Forty years ago, Mr. Miyagi inspired a generation of children to take up the martial arts.

But his movie magic his based on several real karate legends.

Wax on, wax off.

Mr Miyagi in The Karate Kid

This classic line fromThe Karate Kidis ingrained in our minds as the epitome of cinematic martial arts lessons.

It captures the elfin broken English of Mr. Miyagi in all his humble and quirky charm.

But did you know that Mr. Miyagi was based on a real person?

Actually, he was based on three people, all famous karate masters.

Here are their stories.

Goju-Ryu is still a popular style of karate, practiced worldwide to this day.

Ad content continues below

Robert Mark Kamen, the screenwriter behindThe Karate Kid, studied Goju-Ryu.

Being bullied lies at the heart of any underdog tale, and Daniel was the ultimate underdog.

Kamens first instructor was militant and cruel, which inspired Kreese (Martin Kove).

Kamen left that sensei, moving on to train at a Goju-Ryu dojo.

There he discovered its legendary founder, Chojun Miyagi.

Yagi began training under Miyagi when he was only 14 years old.

In 1986, Emperor Hirohito proclaimed Yagi as a Living National Treasure of Japan.

Nods to Chojun Miyagi and Goju-Ryu are revealed in the sequels.

It lends martial authenticity to the Karate Kid franchise without overshadowing the story.

Demura was Moritas stunt double inThe Karate Kid, as well as featured in the third and fourth sequels.

Demura was a pioneering master of karate in America.

He wrote the first significant English language book on nunchaku.

When he was a teenager training under Demura, Derek met Morita in person.

Morita attended one of Demuras tournaments whenThe Karate Kidwas still in production.

I think he was trying to perfect his accent, Derek claimed.

Because if you watch him talk, its very close to how my sensei talks.

In real life, Morita didnt have an accent.

Whats more, Morita had no experience in the martial arts prior toThe Karate Kid.

Morita was a stand-up comedian who went by the nickname the Hip Nip.

However, he was most famous for his reoccurring role as Arnold in the sitcomHappy DayswhenThe Karate Kidbegan production.

Demura was the perfect body double for Morita.

No other actor could have better brought all these elements together for Mr. Miyagi than Pat Morita.

However, Mifune did not speak English so that didnt work out.

With Mifunes penchant for gruff and coarse characters, its hard to imagine Mifune as Miyagi.

Moritas timeless portrayal of Mr. Miyagi remains his shining legacy, the heart and soul ofThe Karate Kid.