At one time, Mark Dacascos was a real symbol of strength and courage, and his participation in the action movie guaranteed the film popularity. But in addition to acting, he is also a famous athlete who managed to win a lot of prestigious awards. And today, fans are increasingly interested in the biography and filmography of the actor.
Biography of Mark Dacascos
The full name of the actor is Mark Alan Dacascos. He was born on February 26, 1964 in the city of Honolulu in Hawaii. His father, Albert Joseph Dacascos, better known as Al, was a martial arts teacher. It should be noted that during his sports career, Dakaskos Sr. managed to create his own kung fu style, which combined elements of camp, fist fighting, karate, judo and traditional western boxing. At the time, this style was very popular in Hawaii. Al still teaches this style in his own school, which is located in Portland.
It was father who became the first teacher of the boy who was fond of martial arts from an early age. By the way, his mother Moriko Makvey was a student of Al, so she also passed on her experience to her son.
When the boy was six years old, a new important woman appeared in his life, which he often called the "second mother." Stepmother Malia Bernal was among the top ten American fighters and was the first in the ranking among women professionally engaged in martial arts. By the way, she was the first female member to hit the cover of Black Belt. Malia had a son, Greg, so Mark had to get used to not only the new environment, but also to new family members. By the way, the boys quickly became friends and today consider each other the best friends.
Sports career
It is unlikely that in childhood Mark Dacascos thought about the career of an actor - his dream was sports awards and victories in competitions. And the boy purposefully moved towards his dream.
Constant classes at the school of father and stepmother yielded results - at nine years old he won first place in the international championship among juniors. At the same time, parents were invited to work in Germany in order to share teaching experience. So Mark, along with his half-brother Greg, got to Habsburg. For several years, he traveled to almost all European countries and managed to participate in 200 competitions.
In 1980, he won first place in the Hamburg Karate Championship. In 1982, he won the European Kung Fu and Karate Championships. In the same year, he won first place in the Italian and Hamburg championships.
When Mark was 17 years old, he went to Taiwan, where for six months he studied the legendary style of the Shaolin monks. Upon returning to America, the guy was for some time a student of Amen Santos, who taught capoeira.
First career steps
Despite an active sports career, Mark Dacascos did not forget about education. In particular, he studied drama and Chinese at the University of Portland. And when the guy was 19 years old, he decided to participate in a university performance. It was at this moment that he fell in love with acting and decided to make a career in cinema.
His first work was a comedy called Dim Sum: A Light Heartbeat. But in the future, all the frames with Mark were cut out, and no one saw him on the screen. In 1989, he starred in one of the soap opera series Dr. Dougie Hauser. And in 1990, he played an inconspicuous role as a driver in the City of Angels.
American Samurai - the first serious work
In 1992, actor Mark Dacascos first appeared on large screens in the movie "American Samurai." This was the first really serious work, where Mark played a negative character. He got the role of Kenjiro, a member of the Yakuza gang, who is considered the champion in clandestine gladiatorial battles.
Despite the not too hospitable hero, this role gave Mark the opportunity to demonstrate not only acting abilities, but also martial arts skills. It was these qualities that made him so popular.
The film "Only the strongest" and worldwide recognition
If you are interested in the best films of Marc Dacascos, then, without a doubt, you should view the picture of 1993 under the title “Only the Strongest”. Here, the actor played the master of capoeira and former soldier Luis Stevens, who after service returns to his hometown. And the former school meets him with armed kids and lawlessness. Louis is offered to become a martial arts teacher. The main character himself firmly believes that physical training will help to cope even with the most problematic students.
It was this picture that made the actor a world celebrity. Posters and photos of Mark Dacascos adorned the walls of many impressionable teenagers who dreamed of becoming the same as the main character of the film.
Filmography of Mark Dacascos
After the resounding success, proposals began to pour in on the actor one after another. Indeed, in the 1990s, action movies were one of the most popular movie genres, and Mark had something to show on the screen.
In 1994, the filmography of Mark Dacascos was replenished with the adventure film Double Dragon, where he played Jimmy Lee, who, together with his brother, hunted a powerful talisman. In the same year, he starred in one of the episodes of the popular series "Tales from the Crypt."
And in 1995, another action movie called “The Crying Killer” was released, where the actor played Yo Hinomura, a hired killer with conscience who falls in love with his victim. In the same year, the continuation of the famous Kickboxer 5: Retribution story appeared, where Mark played Matt, a friend of David Sloan, who was trying to avenge the murder. By the way, some scenes of the fights were staged by Dacascos himself.
In 1996, other films appeared with the participation of Mark Dacascos. In particular, he starred in a fantastic thriller called "The Island of Dr. Moreau." Then came the pictures “Sabotage”, “DNA”, “Drive”, “Boogie fight”, “Shelter” and the series “Chinese City”.
The series "Raven: Stairway to Heaven"
In 1998, the Canadian series was released, which was shot based on the Raven comics. Here, Mark Dacascos played Eric Draven, the guitarist who, along with his girlfriend, died at the hands of bandits the night before Halloween. But the main character returns from the dead, in order to join his girlfriend in the afterlife, he needs to help several people.
The story of the rock musician Avenger became popular after the release of the movie "Raven" with the participation of Brandon Lee. And, as Mark Dacascos has said more than once, he was literally in love with his hero. By the way, the role was not easy for the actor, because he needed not only to demonstrate fighting skills, but also to transform into a rock star and delight the audience with a virtuoso guitar playing. And, despite the fact that the series was closed after the first season, he, without a doubt, left a mark in the memory of the actor’s fans.
New films with Mark Dacascos
At the beginning of the 21st century, interest in militants diminished. However, there are pictures where Mark Dacascos is filming. Films, however, are of a slightly different genre. For example, he starred in the famous historical film called The Brotherhood of the Wolf in 2001. Here he played the Iroquois Mani, who helps hunt a monster known as the Zhevodansky wolf. In the same year he appears in the action movie "Killer Instinct."
And in 2005, the actor plays Sharisha in the famous Kazakh-French film "Nomad". In 2007, he appears on the screens in the crime comedy Nicknamed The Cleaner. In the same year, Mark receives a major role in the film "I am a Warrior." He also played in one of the episodes of the series "Stargate: Atlantis."
In 2008, the actor appears in the movie Middleman. In 2009, he got the role of Peter in the film “Scar of Serbia”. In the same year, he took part in the filming of Wolfsbane: The Wolfman.
The personal life of the actor
Many fans are interested in the biography of Mark Dacascos, and in particular his personal life. In many early interviews, the famous actor has repeatedly said that he was not created for marriage and is unlikely to ever assume such a responsibility. However, in 1995, during the filming of the famous movie "The Crying Killer", Mark met Julie Kondra. Sympathy immediately appeared between the young people, which then grew into deeper feelings.
Soon, Dacascos and Julie played a wedding. And in 2000, the couple had a first-born, who was named Makoalani Charles. Today, Mark is a loving and faithful husband, as well as a caring father of three wonderful children, since Charlie was followed by his brother Capono and sister Noelani.
By the way, the actor has two dogs. And he considers playing the guitar his hobby, which he began to study during the filming of the series Raven. He also likes to play the drums. In addition to English, Mark is also fluent in French and German, can speak Mandarin.