A Life Forged in the Dojo: The Legacy of Patrick E. Johnson Patrick E. Johnson, born December 31, 1939, in Niagara Falls, New York, and passing November 5, 2023, was far more than a martial artist; he was a pivotal architect of action cinema as we know it, a dedicated instructor, and a preserver of the American Tang Soo Do tradition. His journey began not on a film set but in the rigorous discipline of the dojo, while serving as a chaplain in South Korea with the U.S. Army in 1963. Under the tutelage of Kang Lo Hee, Johnson swiftly ascended through the ranks, achieving his first black belt w…