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6 – History and Martial Arts

9 Apr 2010

Awesome chain weapons

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

I can’t even deal with how amazing these hand-crafted custom weapons are from Japan’s Jutte Master! This weaponsmith is affiliated with the Musashi Clan ninja re-enactment/performance group in Japan. Their activities range from serious martial arts study to festival performances … Continued

ninja weapons
2 Apr 2010

Awesome resource for MA mags!

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 2 - Books and Manga, 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

Check out this impressively thorough archive of martial arts magazine covers and topics going back 50 years: Vintage Martial Arts Magazines When the titles and decades are laid out like this, you can really see the trends and transitions of … Continued

Kosugi, Stephen K. Hayes, vintage magazines
24 Mar 2010

Cigar store ninja?

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

Amazing statue, courtesy of a report at Travel Pod, outside a tourist spot in Nara.

18 Mar 2010

Ninja festival families

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

Via Austrailia’s Daily Telegraph, absolutely awesome candids from a 2008 Iga ninja festival: Read more about these touristy parades and festivals here and here.

21 Feb 2010

Hoods on eBay

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 4 - Collectibles, 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

VN’s attracted a lot of fans worldwide, and I get all sorts of compliments on the site from very happy readers. Despite all that love, none of you seem especially concerned that I do NOT own an antique armored Japanese … Continued

6 Jan 2010

Hokusai climber

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 5 - Art and Advertising, 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

Detail scan of an 1817 Hokusai manga. (Referenced on the surprisingly fair and well-rounded wikipedia entry on ninja.) The original page feature an array of practicing martial artists:

22 Nov 2009

ONE HUNDRED!

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 1 - Film and TV, 2 - Books and Manga, 3 - Toys and Merch, 4 - Collectibles, 5 - Art and Advertising, 6 - History and Martial Arts, 7 - Ninja Miscelany | 2

It takes 100 ninja to properly celebrate the 100th post on Vintage Ninja! Since going live in June, enthusiastic response from readers and thousands of visits from every continent on the globe have given me a real sense of connecting … Continued

27 Aug 2009

Kunoichi cover girl

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 2 - Books and Manga, 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

Via Robert Grunzanki – cover from the 1988 ninjutsu book Shononki, possibly the only female cover from the 80’s craze books. That mission gear is pink or purple, as she’s actually a tour guide / theme park character from the … Continued

25 Aug 2009

A great collection of ninjutsu books

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 2 - Books and Manga, 6 - History and Martial Arts | 1

I highly recommend browsing the cover collections and article reprints hosted by Robert C. Gruzanski on a memorial site to his father, renowned knife thrower and author of Ninja Weapons: Chain and Shuriken, Charles Vincent Gruzanski. Charles Gruzanski trained with a who’s … Continued

Masaki Hatsumi
12 Jun 2009

A primer on the history of “NINJA”

by Keith Rainville | posted in: 6 - History and Martial Arts | 0

(adapted from an article originally published on Ninja80.com) “Ninja” is a relatively modern word that has come to summarize a wide range of military practices, martial arts traditions and popular entertainment themes in one iconic black-hooded package. The black suit … Continued

Hattori Hanzo, Kosugi, Masaki Hatsumi, Sarutobi Sasuke

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Welcome to VINTAGE NINJA — dedicated to old ninja movies from Japan’s 60s boom to the 80s American exploitation craze and beyond, with a ton of vintage toys, comics, and sharp pointy stuff thrown in for good measure.

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50+ Japanese ninja movies reviewed

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