Fredrick J. Villari is a 10th Degree Grandmaster and founder of Shaolin Kempo Karate

Shaolin Kempo Karate

Shaolin Kempo Karate is a martial art style that combines the Five Animals of Shaolin Kung Fu, the core competency of Kempo, the hard-hitting linear explosiveness of traditional Karate, as well as the power of Western Boxing and the felling and grappling arts of Jujutsu, Chin Na, and Mongolian...

 - a unique martial arts style that combines the Five Animals of Shaolin Kung Fu

Shaolin kung fu

Shaolin Kung Fu refers to a collection of Chinese martial arts that claim affiliation with the Shaolin Monastery.Of the multitude styles of kung fu and wushu, only some are actually related to Shaolin...

, the core competency of Kempo

American Kenpo

American Kenpo or Kenpo Karate is a system of martial arts created by Ed Parker, characterized by the use of quick moves in rapid-fire succession intended to overwhelm an opponent...

, the hard-hitting linear explosiveness of traditional Karate

Karate

is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...

, as well as the power of Boxing and the felling and grappling arts of Jujutsu

Jujutsu

Jujutsu , also known as jujitsu, ju-jitsu, or Japanese jiu-jitsu, is a Japanese martial art and a method of close combat for defeating an armed and armored opponent in which one uses no weapon, or only a short weapon....

, Chin Na

Chin Na

Chin Na or Qinna is a Chinese term describing techniques used in the Chinese martial arts that control or lock an opponent's joints or muscles/tendons so he cannot move, thus neutralizing the opponent's fighting ability...

, and Mongolian wrestling

Mongolian wrestling

Mongolian wrestling, known as Bökh , is the folk wrestling style of Mongols in Mongolia, Inner Mongolia and other regions...

.

Fred Villari was also the original proprietor of the successful United Studios of Self Defense, or USSD chain of martial arts centers, and later changed the name to Fred Villari’s Studio of Self Defense over in-fighting which led to a business split between Villari and a number of his high-ranking subordinates.

Early Years & Development of Shaolin Kempo Karate

After years of training in various forms of kung fu, karate, boxing. and wrestling in his youth, Fred Villari studied as a young man under Professor Nick Cerio to strengthen his roots and master the art of Kempo. The problem was that Kempo was in constant flux due to the hybrid and non-dogmatic roots and philosophy of the art, and therefore Fred Villari set out to create and strictly codify a balanced system that was robust in the "4 ways of fighting" :Striking, Kicking, Felling, and Grappling.

"Villari’s martial arts training started early in his life. After being introduced to Western and Chinese boxing by his father, Villari went on to study jiujitsu and wrestling with the LeBlanc brothers in his middle teens. By the time he was 18, Villari realized his martial arts training was stagnating and sought out Nick Cerio as an instructor of Chinese kenpo. After completing his requirements as second degree black belt with Cerio, Villari traveled to the West Indies where he traded his techniques for karate and kung-fu training. While in the islands, Villari also studied under a Chinese-Australian instructor Soo, and gained his third and fourth degrees. After working with another master Len Chou, Villari received his fifth degree and soon decided to open his own school."

Influences

Nick Cerio was the first martial arts instructor to give Fred Villari a black belt, and many of Cerio's black belt forms exist in Villari's standard curriculum today.