Michael Matsuda and
The Martial Arts History Museum
By Linda Bustamante
Michael Matsuda
Humility, honor, and
servitude describe Michael
Matsuda, the man who
created Th e Martial Arts
History Museum. It is no
surprise that this family-
oriented man would
be the founder of an
organization that nurtures
our martial arts history,
all while bringing families
from all over the world
together. He is the author
to six published books,
including The Martial
Arts History Museum:Th e
Story of How the Museum
Began, Th e Martial Arts History Museum: Hall
of Fame Volume 1, Th e Martial Arts History
Museum:Hall of Fame Volume 2, Monkey Kung
Fu: History & Tradition and co-author of Th e
History of Monkey Kung Fu and Art Camacho: A
Filmmaker’s Journey. Not only has he graced the
cover of the “Top 100 Producers in America”
by Producer magazine, he has also been a
contributing editor for Black Belt and Inside
Kung Fu magazines for 20 years. He holds a
degree in business management and journalism,
and with his degree he has been able to run a
successful museum, publish articles and books,
as well as work in advertising fi rms throughout
the years. A practitioner of the martial arts for
49 years, Mr. Matsuda began his martial arts
journey studying Judo in 1968. He proceeded
to learn Jiu-Jitsu, Hung Gar Kung Fu and Jeet
Kune Do under Dan Inosanto’s student, Cecil
Peoples. He did not stop there. He continued to
become grandmaster in the art of Monkey Kung
Fu, also known as Tai Shing Pek Kwar, and is
the 6th generation successor of the art. Th rough
the harmony of skill, hard work and support, he
conceived of Th e Martial Arts History Museum.
Th e Origins of a Martial Art Treasure
Th rough Michael Matsuda’s involvement
in producing martial arts championships,
marketing, research, media communication and
charity events, he ventured on the largest project
of all—the creation of the world’s fi rst renowned
museum dedicated to the preservation of the
martial arts. Although the genesis of the museum
occurred in the 1980s, it wasn’t until September
15, 1999, that Th e Martial Arts History Museum
was offi cially founded. What I found intriguing
about how the museum came to be was not
one isolated story but rather many culminating
events that changed his perspective on how he
wanted to impact the martial arts community
and its history. In the early ‘80s, Mr. Matsuda
was enrolled in a magazine article-writing course
at the university, and the task from his professor
was not conventional. His professor stated that
whoever would get published in a magazine
would earn an automatic “A” for the semester.
Matsuda refl ected upon what his professor had
discussed with the class on writing about aspects
one knows about. For Matsuda that driving
force was the martial arts. Th roughout the years,
he had a friend who worked at Inside Kung Fu
magazine. He proposed a partnership with thetaekwondotimes.com / January 2018 15