Martin Kove (@MartinKove) is a prolific actor best known for his portrayal of the evil karate sensei, John Kreese, in The Karate Kid trilogy and Netflix's Cobra Kai series. Be on the lookout as he hosts the upcoming Kicking It with the Koves podcast with his kids Jesse and Rachel.
What We Discuss with Martin Kove:
- How Martin nailed his audition for The Karate Kid by channeling his anger at not having ample time to prepare for it.
- Why we need more role models for leadership and personal responsibility in popular culture -- in the western genre, if Martin had his way.
- How Martin finds common ground with the hard-to-love characters he sometimes portrays in order to make them relatable.
- Does playing villains for months on set ever rub off on Martin's real-life behavior (and does this tend to work for or against him)?
- How does Martin look so young and stay in shape as a 74-year-old?
- And much more...
Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/616
Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course!
Miss the show we did with Jonathan Haidt — the social psychologist who studies the American culture wars and is widely considered to be one of the world’s leading experts on the psychology of morality? Catch up with episode 90: Jonathan Haidt | The Danger of Good Intentions and Safe Spaces!
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This is an unofficial transcript meant for reference. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
Coming up next on the Jordan Harbinger show. So this producer, my biggest fan, says we want you to play this role, just like you did in karate kid and the little click happens here. I've reached in took out the three hundred and fifty seven put it under his chin, and I said Tony
how to play a role at the door. I turned around to these guys that I said, gentlemen. I hope we can do business ten minutes later I got the car and I got the role I want it. Try to do that. Now you going to prison,
Welcome to the show, I'm Jordan Harbinger on the Jordan Harbinger show we decode the stories, secrets and skills of the world's most fascinating people. We have endeavoured com,
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Of course, I always appreciate it when you do that today, not are typical
episode? More of US celebrity profile in a way not the usual fair for the Jordan Harbinger Shelf, but a fun conversation
especially if you grew up with the karate kid and you may be watch cobra kind. Now the number one show a netflix if your new
to the show, I would say, try another era,
but others show at first just to get a feel for how we do around here. This is a funnel
but again, not our typical episode, today's guest start and the karate kid as sense a John crease.
Of course, he's also replies in that role in COBRA, Cairo Netflix is also been in
about and in over a hundred other movies, which has to be close to a record. I know Danny Tray, who was on the show a couple years ago. Now who knows the pandemic timing, but he's been in hundreds of movies? Unbelievable,
of most recently was in turn to you, NOS twenty nineteen film once upon a time in Hollywood, these basically to Darth Vader of karate, or at least the Darth,
it are of the series incur Ricky. I thought this was an
this in fun conversation. I hope you will agree and if you're wondering how I managed to book. All these amazing folks for the show is always
my network and I'm teaching you in our course how to build your network for free over at Jordan, Harbinger, dotcom, slash course. The course called six minute. Networking
about improving you're, networking and connection skills and inspiring others to develop a personal,
and professional relationship with you, it'll make you a better network or a better connector and a better thinker. That's all it
What harbinger dot com slash course in most of the guests, you here on the show, subscribe and contribute to the course as well so come join us you'll, be in small company where you belong now here we go with Martin Cove
the cobra Kai, is number one on Netflix. It's not even just number one in the United States and Canada Number one
like a hundred countries or it has been at one point number one in over a hundred countries- is that people are obsessed with new
in the eighties I mean I can get behind that.
Well, it's a combination. I think it is a couple of reasons and I go through this with walking in the supermarket people telling me how much they love my character, how much they love the show. They always depict that this is a show that we all can wash together. We watch the movies and it would say I want my children to see the movies, but they would see the movies. Then they saw COBRA Kai and it came to me and said: let's watch the movies dad, so they go back and watch the movies
get a sense of John Crease. They get a sense of Johnny Lawrence of Daniel Russo and it's a show that everybody can get around the tv. Like the old days with its Sullivan and everyone can get something out of it, everyone does amount of your six. Sixteen or forty. Six is something there, because the writing is so good. Yes, so identifiable that it's the writers just I came in rapid, came and wrote to article one
three was still saying wax on works. I am sweep the leg, no mercy.
those lines usually constitute a great story and script as the source. It's a comfort food.
Away for trying times. You know people want the starch and now more than ever as well, and I think some of it is longing for better times, but I think some of it is am forty one. I love being able to experience that same feeling.
of watching the karate kid again, even though I'm forty one like it doesn't get old. You think when you're older you
and enjoy things like that as much what you definitely can, which I think is one of the sort of cravings that the series serves
Oh, you studied Oaken Alan Karate, I did when I was a teenager, I studied under Master Willie atoms are destroyed. I love that rings any bells for you. If you know that I'm here with Gordon Dover Sola, whose
the valet, ok, because a couple of good teachers across the states that teach Okinawa too
yeah yeah, this is ancient, is sort of the different, I suppose similar branches. A lot of people provident realise that you practice
martial arts in real life. Can, I think, a lot of folks actors. They just learn a few moves or the stunt men do
also the heavy lifting and the actors to be trained. Had I even just make a fist or something like that for some,
months before I'm wondering when you started that cause. I know you group in Brooklyn your jewish kid in Brooklyn
you probably needed karate in the makes and inserted heads were very,
Are we going to love, is fight back
but we used to play tackle, we simply to end touch on the streets in Crowd Heights Brooklyn, but we tackled, we never touched. We always tackled because we just
tough, but then it was actually a movie called the lie.
of Ireland, which was the story of
I am borrow the first king of Ireland
unified. All the tribes of Ireland against the vikings who were raiding the coast
We were working in the Dodo working on a lot of KEDO, but the foundation was karate and you,
new to learn karate, I really didn't earlier- is one eighty two
later I was in on karate kid and I have that foundation of Karate
You know what I knew Kendall, because we working with plywood axes that work for five. He tall learning how to work them within the confines of the style and that time it was that Taiwan dough, but it was never a prerequisite to do those movies to be impartial artist. You know the anti ten Chuck Norris may be being John Crease
the time and to share my foamy near being me Oggie in, but it was really Jerry one tribe who originally next pepper, Rita and then John. I will someone I made a little tape of Pat Merida and brought it into this. Is the guy Jerry and that's how they got pat? They got me cause. I was hostile
additional and I was doing Cagney lazy. What do you mean you're hostile in your eye? The clouds is funny story. I go in, I gotta called I go into the casting woman. She says he has described. Martin, nice, lady, a name, a carriage
and she says- will call you frighten me to direct a jot Allison. I get a call the next morning at nine o clock.
now or never. He wants to see you at noon. I see Kara have worked on the script and she's up is now or never saw. My wife says to me at the time of his vision. She says one you use, he anger and the venom that you feel
right now, when you do the scene and the scene was what I'm walking up and down the aisles in the Dodo mercies for the worse,
here on the streets, you know I'm barking these lines- and I said ok, sounds good.
I was doing calculation, I said nothing to lose. They didn't like me,
they were insulted. What I was gonna do so be it.
So I go there and I'm a get ready to go, and I say John
you're a real asshole John. I said John Everson. We wait for years to meet the writers of your caliber and you'll. Give me no time
to prep your ass, and so you Carol Jones Boom go right into mercy's for the weak, with all that venom he loves it. He was secure enough to love it,
I did the same thing to Jerry. Why drab he loved it and they work. How so you got the part by being joy,
treaties in the audition, but without knowing who John Greece was cause, you hadn't looked at this wrapped. Are you barely lifted? The script I barely describe? The script was one dimensional heavy yeah. We didn't even like the title. It was like a Bruce Lee Movie, the karate kid, so we had no idea was gonna, be as successful as it was. It was a good story, lovely script. I often
this conversation, Robert came in, I say the stars of the movie. Are you and your words? He says no history, charisma between the algae and rough, and we have this ongoing debate and I believe, as we talk about before the western, the western needs a great script to return as the gene or we once had years ago. It's over exposed. He don't get
the material because from nineteen twenty two nineteen sixty seven one of every three movies coming out of Hollywood was a western.
So it's a highly overexposure, so she's gonna work really hard
to get a karate kid in the western John and that's we need that's what we ve got a fine, that's what I've been looking for and will find
we'll get it and will return those heroes, the moral fibre of those
western heroes will bring them in. You know to a society right now that needs hero, sober
I couldn't agree more with that. I definitely agree there. I think right now
We see a lot of role models. They say things like what I never asked to be a role model. Will you don't really have a choice if you're in the spotlight and what are you gonna do just abdicate moral
responsibility because you don't want it like. When did we learn that
It was ok. I don't understand that. Maybe this is the boy scout in me, but, like you, don't really have a choice but to lead-
people are looking to you, you don't get to not do it
you're, absolutely right! You can teach that you have got instinctively have to do it I'll talk into my lady friend about being a soldier and being a good business.
woman and being a soldier of business, not a soldier,
you're, making or sensitivity in the arts, but a soldier in business and people are soldiers. Are authorities are good at what they do
not everybody can do both. But if you are a leader and you're in that position and people will follow you and you
moral fibre and you have integrity. I think about it. A lot with John Crease he's
Do you give awards to kids who are in second third or fourth place
you only give awards to winners despite how hard those other kids try. Therefore, today
they may be soldiers of the computer soldiers of art soldiers of music. They may not be the athletes of the guy who in first place John Kris only thinks first places.
One that's important, I'm in that dilemma as an actor myself by coach baseball. Where I give those participation trophies is inappropriate.
you're. Looking at me like a leader, I'm the coach and it gets more more with greater responsibilities, is more than just a trophy.
Yet I haven't quite figured that out as a father, yet either that we want to encourage effort, but you don't want to make it. The same thing is results. It was interesting before you said you didn't think the karate kid would be anything special
Unlike the title, was there another reason and when did you find out like ok, wait a minute I changed my mind. This is amazing. Was it out you take ticket sales, or did you just see like a final cut and go? I get it now with disappeared,
went right into Cagney Lazy third season, I think it's just kind of disappear. They re editing in China will soon edits everything in his head. So
You know I saw some of the forage and I like it, and I use that as an acting real for myself. I was
working in Eugene Oregon, like my wife for the time, went with my son to see the movie, and I said how was I she says all the movie was great. I think how was I and she said
ok, you're! So then I immediately thought. Oh boy, I, what did I do?
and eventually, within a week or two I saw the movie, I serve as a very good film. You know, but
I remember when I did once upon a time in Hollywood, I was at the theatre at the premier and I got the wrong seats.
And I have the opening scene in the movie and I got up to get through the right seats that someone has given my girlfriend and I the wrong seat, and I missed the sea bright.
sterile. I watch the whole movie and I said God, I guess he cut MIA Quentin cuts people out. There are frequently it's ok,
and I love making the movie with himself.
but then all the sudden out there in the lobby, Eli Roth comes up to me and says: hey man, you were great, we didn't see enough of you wish. It was more, but you were terrific, and my publicist comes up and says
yeah. Your voice really resonates on the screen in this western scenario with the Caprio, I said you saw me yeah, so I realized
I was in the movie, so strange things happen:
all the time and the premiers in
You never really know until you sit there and analyze it. My son just got apart as wider Europe in a pre cool, our that's cool political party, equal to two zone and
It's great swim, Doc, holiday and wider first meeting died city and its written beautifully. It's the moments now my life that matter the moments and giving back to give that genre. Going again. So kids can experience a pleasure I experienced in the sixtys when there were thirty five westerns on prime time television, thirty five
I just would like to create a project like that, be the actor on Time magazine the actor who rejuvenate the western and then I could die yeah,
I mean you get your work cut out for you, but I think it would be a welcome reprisal of that particular genre. How is playing a villain different than playing
characters in a film or series or is acting just acting regardless of the roll years regarding
I was lazy and I didn't to backstories. I didn't create relationships, unwritten relationships that are not in the script, and now I do it feverishly and with John Creasy of pages of what his life was like with his parents, what it was like with his girlfriend, what
like in Vietnam, and there are times when you play a character that you don't like that. You say I have nothing in common with. There was a movie call price for freedom, and I play the Ayatollah khomeini- is
right hand. Man, oh wow. If you wore a red shirt, you were condemned because he was sympathetic to the west, and I said what do I have in common with this guy and I had nothing in common with him. But what you have to do is make him feel that he is serving his pee
he is a hero to his people. He is doing the right thing for his following the population there in that world, wherever the world is the gang is gangs caught his people. So in that case I felt that I was a hero to my people. I cite myself into the
but this guy was a monster. He was a monster that you are. I would have nothing in common with and no sensitivity whatsoever, but you had to fulfil your responsibilities as an actor. I put up her glasses on had a full beer with a turban testing in the movie. When you say you have
pages about John creases relationships and back stories. Are you just sitting down and sort of thinking about it in writing this out, like our right, his girlfriend she's a mess and kids relationship with his
it was terrible. He was bullied and his dad, instead of being sympathetic, just told me, was weak and was distant by do right, all
These things down on paper, essentially law. I dont get that specific. You know you,
kind of relations should be out with his mother and his father with the captain, things that are really pertinent and we can really right every Davis life on their the pertinent moments that create a character then make a character like Zorro, for instance. I remember,
have inhabitants is teaching Antonio, but there is an attorney by their says. I knew how to do this. I can fight and they have Kanzi wrote in on telling what the essence is to be Zorro. The essence that this is what you ve got to maintain. This is what you ve got to overcome and they were subtleties just subtleties, Harrowby, a judge
and how to be charged me. He wasn't about sword, fighting it wasn't about how well he writes Tournedos his horse. It was about the subtleties of being on the egg Della Vega. It was great. I love that scene. It was about how you have to take your character and
find the most important points. There's a lot of times the narration. The narrative in the script is about action and what happens to the character, but it doesn't say why he's operating the way he does, and you ve got to find that yourself. You ve got to do that, and sometimes it just a page to have notes. Sometimes it's going back and looking at those movies
again and seeing that John Crease wasn't turned on by his kids winning Aquatic had one
it wasn't turned down by the music. He preferred
them to win, but he was always masked. He was always a guy who wanted his kids too,
but if they did when he was upset, if they did when he wasn't ecstatic right, it was just a level of
I guess, almost he's preserving what he finds important, which is to be triumphant, but
is never an emotional reaction, one way or the other, and that tells you a lot about the character, just something missing in his soul that need
to be brought out and you can bring it out this not written. You have to bring in a new fund.
I think we're Herschel Land development of a character is often more fun than the actual acting on a set
Your listening to the Jordan Harbinger show with our guest Martin Cove, we'll be right back. This episode is faltered in part by Palatine, adding new things to my work out routine keeps it fresh. Keeps me motivated,
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How do you go about learning the attributes of people that you aren't necessarily like, but maybe they have skills are attributes you can use to your advantage. How do you absorb character traits of some?
you admire or need to become more like weather
acting or real life,
I remember working with Sean Connery, one of my first jobs that was his standing in a movie called the Anderson tapes I was doing, plays in New York and Lincoln Center, and all that it was one thousand nine hundred and seventy two and the most exciting thing I ever remember happening to me- was watching him act and listen. He was so interesting to watch when he was listening. It was just amazing, truly amazing. There are certain things that you have to operate instinctively with the material a lot of times. It doesn't explain enough information
for you, the actor and the director looks at you, like you know, John Allison used to say I didn't hire you to direct you. I hired you because you know what you're doing, and I expect you to be able to do it used to say that all the time every actor wants to go to a director and be nurtured. What's a lot of directors, don't do that you know so when that situation does happened, your left,
instincts, tangier question your instincts with all the information from the back stories and all the stuff. You ve,
reading between the lines you throw it away, and you just operate on instinct with the material at hand, and I believe that the only way to do it is the only way to do it, because, most of the time you
to make definitive decisions before the camera roles before that day's beginning back in your house during rehearsal, you have made the decision of what to do, but if he gets that complex,
it is, then you just have to throw it all away and operate instinctively. That makes
as I wonder how much shared ray
quality. Do you have with John Creasy no dissent?
hey, Kris, come out when you get angry, for example, great question man. I have lost a relationship because last year I did six months of John Kris six months of the sky and he doesn't leave. He doesn't go away. Billy and I talked about this all the time. Billy works more days on the show, so he
one Johnny large than I am and John Greece, but it's not a matter of insanity like people would say that would happen. Teeth ledger! Oh, what happens to you know dangled they Louis Lincoln. Each stays in the carriage doesn't really talked anybody else. Alot of actors do that
but the carriage of John Chris he's got high moral fibre.
extremely high moral fibre he's not really sensitive
but has a lot of emotional texture to the character and its unfortunate
at what he believes to be right, is the only way to go and that gets in the way of being, in a sense, sensitive and romantic and fun. Loving, like Martin Cove, that stuff stays inside. Will you become restricted,
because it's just a character that your entertaining for months and months and months here is no pale. You can take, there's no medication, it's just the nature of the business. If he gets so far and your character, you know you have to take a departure from it for a couple of months,
take a vacation and try to have a relationship without jarred crease dropping in you know
I mean I can see John
he's coming in handy when you're on the phone with the cable company or the credit card company or are you know, there's something
slowly, not working for you. Maybe even
parenting, occasionally just occasionally right but yeah problem
not ideal when you're trying to date night with a wife for the first time in a month and a half, because you ve been shooting and no mercy stray card does
necessarily work well with the Ladys right, not much of it
I mean it. Doesn't it all and then, if they hear you having a cumbersome,
show with someone who is violated you or been irresponsible in this service to you and your giving him the giant crease routine, which just comes up
yeah, I'm very sensitive. I mean I cried supermarket openings. You know, I mean I mean I just you know.
a guy,
Favorite movie is Casablanca, but I returned to the darkness frequently and its unconscious. Then you have to make a deliberate effort to neutralize yourself. It's tough,
it's: really tough people, don't experience it currency or you don't go into that. Come on. You can try it try, six months of portraying a character,
don't necessarily go home and have dinner is John Crease, but as always in your instrument, it always there. When you pick up a script right back in, I guess, conversely, how often
do people think you're acting when you're, actually just really angry and annoyed good person, I can have a resonant voice have to dealing with the landscaper or the plumber or the doktor they didn't.
Would you supposed to do? I can ever resident loud voice and my girl?
will immediately think I'm extremely angry
just by the residents in my voice, not because I would
show her the anger that I have for these of carriages. I divorce myself from it and I come inside and just because my voice is up there in
intensity. She thinks I'm angry at her or angry period. Had I'm really not it's. Just the residue hits the residual effect of being shot increase in dealing with those outside endeavors hero, yet like it's just under the skin poking throw
I'll bet. They're thing I have to say you're and seemingly or in pretty damn good shape for. Are you seventy five
years old, seventy four seventy four, ok,
my I m d B. Has it right?
by year. Ok, I've tried to change it many times it doesn't seem to work. They won't let you
How would you know how old you are? We have to verify the urine, pretty darn good shape for seventy four,
to you have a trainer, especially if you're working on cobra I they probably want you to be limber and in good enough shape for insurance purposes. If no other reason
Well, you know last year season, four I was lucky. They didn't write. Many action sequences season five day did season five's in the can to season. Four was just terrific, but it was a lot of acting a lot of exciting elements for John Kris, which I really the right is a terrific we all signed on, because we were persuaded how good and how perceptive they were going to be with the characters they won't going to write John Kris one dimensional. They weren't going to play and white hats and black hats, and I wanted as much vulnerability and texture and color as I could- and I said, that's the only reason I'm signing on cuz. I want to see this character develop. Is that how you see it and they did Haider sauce, Bergen, Josh, Shield and John Harless? They all see it the same way they direct
it is the right they do everything. There's no ego, which is so great for the show we don't have a prima donna and we all just love the game. That's gotta make it a hell of a lot easier and more fun to shoot. I'm looking at some of these fights that you're doing a lot of people say I'll ask him: what stuff is him in? What stuff is start man which is gonna be impossible to to
I assume you are doing a lot of the stuff that looks like
and fighting but you're not going through like a window or anything like that,
that. Seen in the window was a great fight. That was a terrific fight yeah by bill. If I rather go through the window noise,
go through the window, but I did most of the other stuff in the dough Joe and four billion. Most of it is made his a cover places they choose to have this tat men, but our stun men can is brilliant and he runs the show and he's my son men pussies. The coordinator and thank the shows nominate first start work for
Emmy two years in a row. The other doesn't surprise me at all, but you know we all like it and we all want to be on camera to show that we are really doing it and we have a thing about their all three rough billion I and where we can be ourselves, be the actor doing it. We will
Seen especially was a great fighting, go through the window in order, and then we end up. You know outside the window playing the scene. Just started guys were: go through
window, but we were standing in the broken glass. Half Euro act just bare feet and broken glass and to a cock in the morning in, but it was so rich. He was so good and you know it was the end of the season and yeah Scrite and then the next day he's calling Terry Silver and setting up season for that's brow,
How long does it take to prep those flights that we see in cobra guy? Is it like? I assume months of work, it's not easy to do that. You can't sort of improv that kind of thing it say it all depends on how complicated those fights that happens at the end of season. For those kids didn't get a lot of time
those fight! Yes, when Billy and I had our fight at the very beginning. If you remember, I think episode ten season, one when I appear and then it continues to episode one season two when we have a fight and the fire starts, and when we had that fight ourselves, we had time to go through all of season two and we shot that fight, which is basically episode. One season two. We shot it at the tenth episode at that time, three months later, because we were able to practice for all those three months, even though that fight was airing as the first episode of season two, we were once it to practice and get it right and it was a great fight. Sometimes you don't have that luxury. These kids do a great job of fighting. They really do take it sometimes two and three days, Ralph and Billy in that fight that they had not very much time at all,
it all depends on how which the episode is. The episode claims the actors, so the actress can't go and rehearse they have to go enact this, which is around you know, just Hollywood, try to pigeonhole you into a type of role and then that's something you have to resist like you find yourself and say like the early 90s or the mid nineties.
only getting roles to be like a villain or a heavy, and if so, how do you break out of that say that you don't end up type cast its hard euro? Hollywood is a large group of sheep that basically base
success on the previous success. That's a lot of money at stake and that's what they do. Your pigeon holed very easily because of the successful things when I did rambo- and I just remember right after karate kid one and both those were one hundred million dollar grocers even more, and then
but he too was a big one in I gotta get three so all that you playing beggar any tough and they think that's what you can do, because you just into commercial successes that are making money and that's all you can do so. You ve got to find another vehicle and sell it, and it's tough because everybody says
I've got some terrible stores times where I wanted something more vulnerable and I pulled a gun in an interview. I would never do it now. Can I be shot layer, but back in the eighties, you know it was a movie that they want me to do this rapist in Fiji, Finland in the Zealand and my wife was from the New Zealand, so I thought all be granted to this movie and they thought I wasn't unpredictable enough. So I said get me another interview with these people.
and I took a three forty seven Magnum prop gun put it in my portfolio and I you know what I was gonna pull it, but I wanted to show that I was unpredictable enough and I can get the role that I really want to sell their produce and my biggest fancies. We want you to play this role. This rapist aim, as he says we want you to play this role, just like you did in karate kid, and the little click happened here have reached in took out this. Fifty seven pretenders Chin and I said tal- never tell an extra how to play a role at all the gun. Down put it back in my case left at the door. I turned around to these guys that I said, gentlemen. I hope we can do business
Ten minutes later I got the corn. I got the role I want to try to do that now, you're going to prison, you gonna prison Zog. We were never made the movie anyway and I was doing Cagney Lazy, so it all worked out, but it was a great lessons
the time never made. The movie anyway is like the mob
of Hollywood, maybe more than eighty percent of Hollywood projects never see daylight, pretty much everything you do
our addition for that's it you're! Never going to see or hear about it again, pretty much we'll know. It's not us
standard, but there's a lot of projects that financing falls out.
people in a leisure position of were independently financing. Change their mind it all
berries. You know the studio system is always good. Films does like the studio system because
you know there's money there and yet
They know the business and then not five dentists, getting
gather a million dollars, not knowing anything about the movie.
And the wondering why Michel Pfeiffers in their she's perfect, but why you, I'm sure,
I very what let's get a red head. You haven't got a clue about a times. Deals fall through because people are not part of the movie business. It's a complicated business,
and now it's even more complicated with so many platforms and, thank God, the bond movie recreated the feeder again, because TAT was the first move that really made some money in the theatres. It'll, never change the tv world, seeing the guy that you bring into your living room like Magnum, whoever, as your friend on that small screen, will never take the place of that big screen. The mistake of Jack Nicholson, the mistake of Sean Connery, the mistake of peril to those a big experiences: veal. Lucky enough to get a movie makes him,
as in the fears have done something right. You know it's hard to now: seventy harder for sure it's hard or now tat. I wondering if there was ever a time in the Eightys and Ninetys that you thought all right, the cry
the kid was a huge head. What, if I don't get
anything else that this big ever again like that would scare me I'd be in my head, I'm not from Brooklyn, but I have some of that jewish anxiety like this. Is it I've feet? There's? No,
or for me, how do you have?
that did not happen to you at all. I've always thought they'd or hire me it's their mistake. I have always felt that way:
Sometimes the instrument was really a tune that I was good and sometimes
In addition, I wasn't good testing connect with the words. I always felt that I had something when I was very young. I always felt that I had something different. I was a tough kid, but I was sensitive. I could cry the drop of a hat always,
and yet I could be tackled at the age of eleven on concrete and still get up and play next play. So I felt I always have something to offer the business of tough guy was that sensitive? I didn't see it in the movies
I was growing up. I didn't see enough of the vulnerability and a lot of the heroes you know and I figured I have something to offer. You show business, I'm just gonna go
port- and I discovered that I guess was about ten or twelve- and I just kept going tenacity- was a big thing. Laziness prevail to when you get lazy as young actor. You don't want to do back stories in the things that later on you find makes it did
and soon allay performance or see performance. It's really a matter of believing in yourself: that's just what it is and you go up and down we go up and down how many times do we hear Hogarth should have done something else with my life. Oh, my god. I make the right decision and you just go through it and you figure out the best
right of those reservations and make it worth your while, and there are so many movies that I have not wanted to do this one movie with so violent VFW Vfw was veterans of farm wars of the hour and it was a violent picture who is in William Sadler, Stephen Lang, Fred Williamson, two or three other people that would just wonderful actress. All of us together made the commodity of guys who knew of each other Vietnam and from a movie that was so bloody and violent, it turned out to be. The rage was our come. Rada remained the movie sensational,
I never saw that reaching a script. I never saw that. I got talked into about my manager, my son, but I didn't see all that camaraderie in the process. So a lot of times you'll take a piece you're blind to the value of it, and then he is surprised when it all works out. As you think something is fantastic and it goes nowhere. So
up and down you don't hear. That applies to a pretty much any career right like there's a lot of people that right ended, a show for advice and they'll say: should I take this job? It's what I
if we want to do, but it's a pay cod and it's gonna. Take me like three or four years.
Back up to where I am now taken a big step back. Should I do this and the answer is usually
ass, because then you are in the industry that you want and you can make up the money later, unless of course, there are grossly under paying you and that's a different story, but a lot of times we do have to sort out
get closer to what we want and then later on, we find out that it works out or we get exactly what we want and then it turns out to be a complete and utter disaster. But to judge things in the meat,
Getting is almost a mistake. Yeah, it's like a business investment. Have you have to really do some homework? Homework has to be done. My son's gonna do this wider project, a great script written by the people that road tombstone, but there have enough money, and I want to help them, but it's a big job to help raise more money for a great script,
does your son as the lead to big deal, I thought about it this morning. I did think I'd get involved, but I have two way how much work this project would take of mine when I'm were really want to just kick back in Nashville. How much work would take for my son for me to make this picture raise some more money for them, give it to Netflix whatever and make it happen. I don't know the opening stages are rough, but maybe in a couple of weeks, why reexamined this whole movie, it might be worthwhile,
psych investment investment just have to cover all the basis. This is the Jordan Harbinger Shell with our guest Martin Cove, we'll be right back. This episode, sponsored in part by Hallo Fresh,
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Flash Jordan. By the way you can now read the show, if you're listening on Spotify this sort of new, it's a huge help and makes the show more visit,
on Spotify just go to Jordan, Harbinger, dotcom, Slash, Spotify or search for us in Europe, but if I am click the doubts on the right to make it happen. Now, for the rest of my conversation with Martin Cove
You mentioned earlier, Karate keyboard Karadzic democratic at three I mean I assume you know that there are four karate kid movie, so why does nobody
about that one. What's gonna think they melted Delong, yet nobody talks about it. I never lighted through any movie under the bus sure, but it didn't work. The greatest proof was when Colombia came out with afford disk set cortical one two, three four, the next karate kid I think was called and I got a dozen these sets. I gave the people and then within two months
all of them were pulled off the shelves at blockbuster and all those stores. At the time the Columbia Array issued a three bucks set, so they
the way the cookie crumbles. You know I mean I mean the work is good and yeah she might guest are governed by who knows so. Many great projects go by the wayside. Things like cotton club, everybody
It was a good movie. You know there are so many bombs that happen. You line them up.
stars. You line them up with great writers, whether tv shows or movies, and so many of these movies tank and you think, doth pen directed Jack Nicholson, a mall and Brando in a western, and you figured all Jack Nicholson. Marlon, Brando, Arthur PEN, other friends right too little, big man, body and Clyde did some great stuff
tank individually, the performances were great, but nobody anything to do with everybody else. In areas like I've
movies, where we always about one movie called it was erected by Sidney LE met the city, the matters wonderful director and we had P Weller. We had job heavily on. Oh, we had just slow of people Dennis Hop,
but everybody was rewriting the apart. All the time and showing it to Sidney
This is another great like it. You can hear, provides that and everybody
another movie somewhere in the picture, came out. It was very
Strange, didn't go anywhere, thing was called top of the world. It was a Vegas heist movie, everybody was doing great work but
the scenes had so little to do with everybody else, cobra I
The right word: it's more intellectual like us than karate. Can I use the term very loosely right, because the characters in COBRA Kai, they're, all shades of gray they're, both good and bad verses, just bad wearing a scam.
What's in costume, beating up the main character right, John Crease has backed story. Johnny Lawrence is trying to do right, but he's just kind of a screw up
who threw a lot of his life away, whereas in the car
hey kid he's just a boy. There's no, like he's got a good site. Right is just a jerk, John Creasy.
karate kid movies he's. Ninety nine percent is just bad there's not like any redeeming thing. You can't really relate to him at all if you're a normal person but in COBRA Kai, is totally different right. You kind of have sympathy for it. While he's a
since a because he was bullied and then he added trauma the war. Like you know, it's just a different kind of role.
It is more nuanced, probably because audiences are more sophisticated. So I guess the question is
Is that a more fun role? Is that a more interesting role, because chirp it's more three dimensional unquestionably, for those reasons that is worth three dimensional, I certainly
that was him and said to the writers. I would like, as I said before, I would like texture in the character and colors. I don't want a one dimensional, tough guy, that was their plan. I had three pages of notes to season two that I wanted to exercise flashbacks, Vietnam, and all that reasons why John Kris was like he was they already had that they already had it in their palette.
Never mind, and they already painted the colors of John Crease, and I was amazed all my notes, meeting with mercenaries meeting with soldiers of fortune, meaning
Some army rangers tell me anything they,
already there they already put that down on paper for the next season. Yes, it is much more fun to play as an actor, and especially when you come from a heart s, character. Like John Greece, you gotta those texts, rice places with lots of color,
For me it's heaven in. I was trying to be Steve Mcqueen and I got to this town. Everything was posturing like Steve, Mcqueen,
I worked all the time because you know it's a tough guy and I had a good face and all, but I was really touching with Martin Cove is about. I was trying to be Steve Mcqueen with a twinkle in my eye. You don't get to be steam queen with a twinkle. Unless you do the work, you do the work into the back stories to the confrontations in your head with the carriages and create what he's about and that's what we loved about steam Mcqueen, the stuff
behind his eyes. Through their love about Anthony Hopkins about Mall and Brando, you loved, so the more you can qualify it. Even if you say it, you don't say it you think it and then it's really interesting to watch.
Steve Mcqueen for people who are maybe like in their twenties and have no ideas, ultra famous actions star from the
you know, you can get. Everything is more than that started out in a blob which was a horror movie. Then the magnificent said
then the great escape and then insects.
single girl all this
of any ended up doing enemy of the people and fourthly, passed away from cancer.
But you know his son. Chad was one of the core brocade. I always tell Chad the greatest mistake I ever made. I was hired to play gentlemen, Jim Corbett, a fighter in steam, queens last Western Tom Horn, and I had a week's work with Steve Mcqueen and through dumbest thing I ever did my entire career. I went to New York to see my parents and the day I got there. They may this offer and I had a come back. The next day had I felt really badly. Then I would come see my parents for an afternoon and then go back to Hollywood and do all we can this movie. So I passed on it biggest mistake. I've made a decline working with a giant
like my idle at a time Poland, woman steam queen, they were just my idols at the time and they did such good work, the backstory and already the nuance characters. We ve been talking about correct me. If I
round. But it also sounds like you don't think. That's John Creed
The villain, but he's just maybe misunderstood, guess you're, absolutely right,
he's misunderstood. Whenever people say, I hatred concretely he's such a villain people's walk up to me and say that I say no, he just misunderstood,
he's got a villain, he's gotta high moral fibre? He might have been seen in the one dimensional character we saw in the movies, but now he's very taken by Peyton lists character Tory you know, he's very much involved in her plight because he identifies with it and there are signs that indicate tat more than were coming up.
But he's a complicated clarity is not Terry silver. Terry servers, pure evil, Terry servers resents so much being indebted to me and that's interesting writers thing. I never knew that until they wrote it until he says to me at the end of season, for you know you hate someone and resent them because they saved your life thirty years ago
sick. That's a real sickness hero and deep dropped in another villain that is real villain, he's had misunderstood
he's a real villain, the right
is phenomenal and I definitely encourage people to binge on some
Ricky. If they're looking for a little nostalgia or just a good show, I mean you, don't even have to know anything about the grotto Kate, you can watch it with your ten year olds and they won't air about the movies. Until you
o them in their blown away that everyone is so young and looks like the actual figures that I you know
funny, I had all these karate could action figures and I lost all of them in a few months ago,
back to clean out my mom's basement with her. She was. I get this crap out of my basement reasonably and I found one action figure and it was you.
The big one, the one from eighty four, the one yeah, it's pretty big and if you there's a switch
you're back? And if you push you know, I'd come straight. A leg up those legs were always break off. Those legs is very funny. Yeah. I have a couple of those. That's your regional that was might have been replica toys. I went to the toy fair back. There was he for eighty five and it was my first toy fair and those of the dolls now this year, so many there are sets without Ralph or Billy sets of Colebrook I've. Full figures like that, then, is several
four figures of us individually and have of near the four year olds. Why give him everything? So now they have ninja turtles fighting John Crease. They have ninja charity.
fighting Johnny Lawrence. They have ninja journals, fighting rough macho, its hysterical, because my grandson loves ninja turtle. So here the ninja tells a fighting grumpy yeah, it's a bit of a church thy spurs
Yeah do people constantly yell sweep the leg at you whenever you go to the mall pretty much
not always but other forget the time I was going to a building and I was pressing the button
and her little screen, so they could see who it is, and I pressed the button and they could see who was wanting to come in and the guy didn't acknowledge me. He just press the button.
Let me end. He said mercy as for the weak tories had examined,
for some guy says no mercy, sweetie leg, but you do cameos. You know I am you. Do these cameos? I have had priests. Ask me to give a pep talk. Me track Greece, a pep talk to their congregation because he's having a silent auction to raise money for the church, and he wants me to tell them to participate in the silent auction. I've had six year olds, happy birthday,
their favorite character six year old. It's like you know. I like the guy who yells at everybody, threatened the media. We opposite everybody, ok, but it makes you think that
Maybe these young kids see that,
he's not that dark. Meda is something that inspires them, because it's a positive experience I mean Burma's visit requests. I get I say
tough rise. I do my have Torah. You know what you read and recited you know it's safe
it's gotta be rewarding. Look I appreciated. Thank you so much. I am really looking forward to the currencies in a cobra. I haven't started it yet. I gotta binge
a thing in a week, and I haven't had time like
So we just had a baby and I'll probably watch this well go
in and out of a sleep deprivation coma with like a deeper in one hand, but thank you so much for bringing back better time
for a huge number of our generation in and good luck with your podcast that you're doing now is well yeah, cobra coves, I think we're tomorrow. I'm part cast one cobra coves with my son
daughter and it's very exciting. We discuss mental health, bullying movies, music, very, very exciting. My son Jesse, my daughter, Rachel yeah. It's great
I hope there is articulated you're, my friend if you're
looking for another episode of the Jordan Harbinger show to sink your teeth into here's. A preview trailer of our interview with Professor Jonathan Height, discussing the dangers of free speech
mutations here in Amerika, especially on college campuses, so stay tuned for that after that,
because of the show there is a new economy of prison
each pen in the new economy of prestige enabled by social media on college campuses. The more you
call someone out for racism, Sexton, homer
Bobby Islamophobia Transphobia, you get a point. Every time you do yet point so, every time you accuse some doesn't matter. If it's true does it matter, if you
story, the produce man, if you call someone out viewpoint, and so you had some communities in some universities that are playing this game with horrible external
for everyone else, but if the leadership stand up against it, they will be accused of all
kinds of bigotry and insensitivity, so they almost never do in a victim of culture. You get prestige either by being a victim, so you emphasize how much you've been victimized or by standing up for victims and attacking their oppressors. So when you get people
movements who are especially the lot of white people in those moments. They tend to be doing that vindictive protected this thing, you're on camera, all the time
even if not literally on camera, the current generation, because they were raised in an age of social media. They self sense
as though they were on camera. So why do you see the speck in your neighbours? I, but you do not.
this, the login, your own, I mean come on you're, the ancient and a Buddha Buddha saying the same thing. It's easy to see the faults of others with difficult to see once and on campus,
telling kids forget thousands of years of wisdom, look at life through the land
oppression?
domination and violence everything's against you right? Do the opposite,
but you can't teach that work might trigger someone. What kind of world would you rather live in one day
Everyone is polite because they're afraid of offending or one in which people will sometimes say things that they think are true, even if their offensive
furthermore, with professor height, including how the concept of safe spaces and trigger warnings are making our society less safe and less prepared for the real world and what we should be doing instead to prepare ourselves and our kids for reality check out epoch.
Ninety right here on the Jordan Harbinger show definitely afore.
conversation. When I got pitch this, I was like I do this. It's a little over we'll house and I thought yeah the fans of this
we're going to like it. The sands of COBRA Kai are going to like it the karate kid pens are going to like it, and I understand that might not be everyone's.
Do you, but I really had fun with it. Martin Cove is really
big into the anti bullying movement, which is ironic because sense, a crazy, you know, is a product of bullying and also his dodo. Essentially, Trans boys also Martin loves what
turns, and he can't shoot and does no martial arts for real, so he's like an actual dangerous guy. He was also a dancing with the stars. Lot of you wanted me to ask about that. There's gonna, be
M. Karate moves in that dance. I assume I will have to watch their on Youtube, but
The boiler he was eliminated in the second week first pair to get the boot actually sounds, like the judges showed no mercy. He's also got a really
relationship with his kids he's gonna podcast on podcast, one, which is my network. It's called the COBRA Cove right here on Podcast one cove with a K. I guess this Gazprom really big COMECON.
Agent. He broke can't go anywhere, but especially a place like COMECON. By the way he does
its bought at a lot. I know we talked about this during the show there was a story. He told off air that I think is funny enough
chair since he's been in so many movies, he also get spotted by not just fans but other actors that he's worked within those hundred plus movies that he's done and one was called mercenary any day
like a rape scene, or something like that in the movie is pretty, is a pretty awful guy and then
years later, he seated at a cafe and a woman.
ends up and says. Marty. Do you remember me, you raped me years ago in San Diego and obviously
the needle came off the record in the cafe and they had to kind of vocally
verify that it was in a movie which sounds like a great way to get cancelled. I can only
so this was a while ago and nobody had their phone out. Also, a lot of folks asked him about
the Terran Tina movie. We didn't get there in the show, but he met Tarantino at an event
tearing Tino gave him this phone number in four years, Martin was trying to reach Quentin tyranny,
Nor could he couldn't read his handwriting. So his calling
These numbers there all the wrong number, then he runs into him again gets the wrong there.
were again, which it all sounds like my day.
life in college. But there's a part of me. That's thinking me
The acquaintance over didn't really want to put him in a movie, but he ended up in one anyway, so good for him. That shows what you get with persistence. Big! Thank you to Martin
of all links to his stuff will be in the website in the show notes. If you Bonnie books from any guess on a show, please use the website links. It does help support the show transcripts of this one hour.
Shone on there's a video of this interview on our Youtube Channel Jordan, harbinger dot com, Slash Youtube, I'm at Jordan.
Urban, on both twitter and Instagram, urges hit me I'm linked in love connecting with
anyway, I can on teaching you how to connect with great
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it's a Jordan, harbinger, dot com, slash course. I'm teaching you how to dig the well before you get
stay and build relationships before you find out that you need them. The show is created in association with Podcast one. My team is Jen Harbinger, Jays Sanderson
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For the show is that you share it with friends when you find something useful or interesting, Venosa
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Transcript generated on 2022-02-26.