Davis Guggenheim
American film and television director and producer
Philip Davis Guggenheim is an American screenwriter, director, and producer.
Active in television and film's directions and productions since the 1990s, from 2006 Guggenheim has specialized in making documentaries, ranking the top 100 highest-grossing documentaries of all time with three works: "An Inconvenient Truth", "It Might Get Loud", and "Waiting for "Superman"."
Guggenheim's cinematographic projects received several awards and nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film for "An Inconvenient Truth", the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Documentary Feature for "He Named Me Malala" and two nominations at the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program.
His credits include "NYPD Blue", "ER", "24", "Alias", "The Shield", "Deadwood", and the documentaries "It Might Get Loud", "The Road We've Traveled", "Waiting for "Superman"", "".
Early life.
Philip Davis Guggenheim was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Marion Davis (née Streett) and filmmaker Charles Guggenheim. His father was Jewish, whereas his mother was Episcopalian. He graduated from the Potomac School, Sidwell Friends School and Brown University.
Career.
Guggenheim joined the HBO Western drama "Deadwood" as a producer and director for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch and focused on a growing town in the American West. Guggenheim directed the episodes "Deep Water", "Reconnoitering the Rim", "Plague" and "Sold Under Sin". He left the show at the end of Season 1.
The documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" was produced and directed by Davis Guggenheim. "An Inconvenient Truth" won the Academy Award in 2007 for Best Documentary Feature. The film, released in 2006, featured former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and his international slideshow on global warming.
Then-candidate Barack Obama's biographical film, which aired during the Democratic National Convention in August 2008, was directed by Guggenheim. Their infomercial, which was broadcast two months later, on October 29, 2008, was "executed with high standards of cinematography", according to "The New York Times". In 2012, he released "The Road We've Traveled", a 17-minute short film on the president.
Guggenheim directed and was an executive producer of the 2009 pilot for "Melrose Place".
In 2008, he released "It Might Get Loud", a documentary that glimpses into the lives of guitarists Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White.
Guggenheim's 2010 documentary "Waiting for "Superman"", a film about the failures of American public education sparked controversy and debate. Guggenheim knew his film would lead to this and said, "I know people will say this movie is anti-this or pro-that. But it really is all about families trying to find great schools". This film received the Audience Award for best documentary at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. Its public release was in September 2010.
A documentary film about the band U2 directed by Guggenheim titled "From the Sky Down" opened the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival in September.
In 2013, he directed "The Dream is Now", a 30-minute documentary about four undocumented students in the United States as they deal with the U.S. immigration system.
In 2015, he directed a documentary film "He Named Me Malala" about Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by Taliban gunmen, shot in the head and left wounded.
In 2019, he created and directed a documentary miniseries titled "". The series explores the mind and motivations behind the captain of industry and philanthropist Bill Gates, the rise of Microsoft, and the past and current pursuits of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
In 2020, Guggenheim and Jonathan King launched production company Concordia Studio.
In 2023, the documentary "", directed by Guggenheim, was released on Apple TV+. Featuring read excerpts from Michael J. Fox's own books, the biopic stars Fox himself as both interviewee and narrator, recounting his career and experience contending with Parkinson's disease. The feature received seven Emmy Nominations.
Personal life.
Guggenheim married actress Elisabeth Shue in 1994. They have three children together. He is the first cousin of actress Patty Guggenheim.
References.
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Gracie (film)
2007 film by Davis Guggenheim
Gracie is a 2007 American sports drama film directed by Davis Guggenheim. It stars Carly Schroeder as Gracie Bowen, Dermot Mulroney as Bryan Bowen, Elisabeth Shue as Lindsay Bowen, Jesse Lee Soffer as Johnny Bowen, and Andrew Shue as Coach Owen Clark.
"Gracie" takes place in New Jersey in 1978, before 1972's Title IX had taken much effect in women's college sports and when organized women's soccer was still very rare in the United States. Gracie, the film's central protagonist, overcomes the loss of her brother by convincing her family and school to allow her to play varsity soccer on an all-boys team. The story is partially based on the childhood experiences of Elisabeth Shue, who was one of the producers in addition to being the wife of Davis Guggenheim, the director, as well as a cast member.
The novelization of "Gracie", written by Suzanne Weyn, was released in June 2007.
Plot.
In the year 1978, Gracie Bowen, a 15-year-old tomboy who lives in South Orange, New Jersey, is crazy about soccer, as are her three brothers and their former soccer star father. Although Gracie wants to join her brothers and neighbor Kyle in the nightly practices her father runs, she is discouraged by everyone except her older brother, Johnny.
Johnny, Gracie and Kyle attend Columbia High School, where Johnny is the captain and star player for the varsity soccer team. After missing a shot at the end of a game, the despondent Johnny drives off with a friend's car and dies in a traffic accident.
Struggling with grief, Gracie decides that she wants to replace her brother on the team. Her father does not believe that girls should play soccer, telling her she is neither tough nor talented enough. Her mother is a nurse who lacks the competitive drive of the rest of her family and fears for Gracie's safety. Her mother later tells Gracie that she would have liked to become a surgeon, but that option had not been available to her as a woman.
Rejected and depressed, Gracie begins to rebel; she stops doing her schoolwork, is caught cheating on an exam, and experiments with wild and self-destructive behavior. She is finally caught by her father almost having sex with a guy she met near the docks after telling her friend, "I want to do something that I've never done before." This serves as a wake-up call for her parents, particularly her father. He quits his job to work with her on her soccer training.
When the school board rejects her request to play boys' soccer, Gracie files an appeal. Citing the newly passed Title IX, Gracie argues that since a girls' soccer team does not exist, she should be allowed to play on the boys' varsity soccer team. The school board allows her to try out for the team. After a very rough tryout, she makes the junior varsity team and has to decide if she is willing to settle for playing at that level. She decides to make the most of playing on junior varsity.
One of the coaches asks her to come up to the main team for their championship game. After saying no at first she finally goes. Gracie watches from the bench as the game goes to sudden death overtime. New captain Kyle gets hurt and Gracie goes in for him, scoring the winning goal with a move that her dad taught her.
Cast.
<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>*Carly Schroeder as Grace Bowen
Historical background.
The premise of the film rests upon the conflicting expectations of two different American generations. As Gracie's parents were most likely both products of what is now referred to as the "Silent Generation" of children born during the Great Depression and World War II, they would have been raised to adhere to traditional gender roles. This would have included discouraging a girl from participating in "boys' sports" such as soccer, as opposed to "girls' sports" such as cheerleading or gymnastics. Gracie, on the other hand, came of age during the 1970s, when new and controversial ideas about gender were being introduced.
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, critic for the "Atlanta Journal-Constitution," noted an additional generation gap between those in the film and those in the audience, many of whom grew up with the United States women's national soccer team (which played its first game in 1985) as a reality:
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />Not so long ago – 1978, actually – girls were not treated equally with boys when it came to school sports ... what happens in "Gracie" must seem like a tale from the Dark Ages to today's young athletes, something akin to slaying a dragon or housekeeping for seven dwarfs. But think of it this way: In 1978, future gold medalist and World Cup star Mia Hamm was only 6 years old.
Other critics have also noted the multiple generation gaps. Kevin Cahillane observes in the "New York Times" that, "this being 1978 (before Title IX turned a generation of girls from onlookers into athletes), her desire goes against the wishes of the coach, the principal, the other players and her heartbroken parents." In another article for the "New York Times," Jeannette Catsoulis further argues that, "[Gracie] is accustomed to having her abilities overlooked ... When tragedy strikes, and Grace channels her grief into a resolution to play on the all-male varsity team, even her best friend is horrified. As everyone knows, only lesbians play soccer."
The film closes with the following remarks: "Thanks to Title IX and brave girls like Gracie, there are over 5 million girls who play soccer in America. Since 1991 the U.S. Women's National team has won Soccer's World Championships four times." (FIFA Women's World Cup Champions 1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019)
Production.
Development and casting.
The film is loosely based on life events concerning the Shue family. Former "Melrose Place" star Andrew Shue, who developed the film, was one of its producers, and acted a supporting role in the film, initially conceived of it as a story about his late brother William, the oldest Shue sibling, who was the captain of the Columbia High School soccer team that won the New Jersey state championship in 1978; he had died in an accident in 1988. As Andrew developed the idea with his brother-in-law Davis Guggenheim, the director of "An Inconvenient Truth," the storyline began to shift towards Guggenheim's wife, Elisabeth Shue, Andrew's older sister. She became the model for Gracie, and William became the model for Johnny. As Andrew Shue noted in an interview:
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />... It was going to be about my older brother, originally. It was really Davis, my sister's husband, who pointed out to me that my sister was the real underdog in our family. I didn't know the emotional turmoil of a girl in an all-boys family trying to get some credit for the fact that she had this courage to play with boys. She has gone from being a girl who was scared, to being this brave girl who could stand up and play with boys, and [went] into acting before any of us and inspired all of us in many ways. So I wanted to celebrate her and her journey.
This refers to Elisabeth Shue's own decision in 1972, at the age of nine, to play soccer on an all-boys team, making her the first girl in the South Orange and Maplewood areas of New Jersey to do so. Shue explained her reason for doing so in a 2007 interview. "There was no other choice back then," she pointed out to the interviewer. "There was no girls team to play on." Shue continued to play on the team until 1976, when she turned 13. Of her decision to leave the team, Shue stated, "the movie is really what would have happened if I hadn't quit [playing soccer]. I quit because of what people would think of me. The pressure from the boys. The awkward development of my body. I really, really regret it. I wish I'd been brave enough."
Andrew, Elizabeth, their brother John (who was also a producer on the film), and Guggenheim then engaged in an extensive search to find the right actress for the role of fifteen-year-old Gracie; they promoted the search on the website "findinggracie.com." The role eventually went to athlete-actress Carly Schroeder. Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat argue that Schroeder "puts in a stellar performance as the teenager who becomes a warrior when most of her peers are cheering from the sidelines."
Filming took partial place at Columbia High School, both the setting of the events of the film and the actual high school the Shue family members had attended. Filming also took place in various locations in South Plainfield, New Jersey.
Andrew Shue chose to honor his former Dartmouth and Columbia High School teammate Chris Colasanti by naming the story's coach after him. Colasanti, who had been the captain of Columbia's 1985 state championship team, was killed in the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center.
Reception.
Reviews.
"At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper" gave "Gracie" "Two Thumbs up", stating, "You've seen it before, but you'll rarely see it better." "Gracie" is a "New York Times Critics' Pick." Times critic Jeannette Catsoulis described "Gracie" as "a familiar underdog story told with unusual sensitivity ... "Gracie" connects the adversity-drama dots – the beat-down, the bounce-back, the last-minute support from an unexpected quarter – with a subtle awareness of the shock waves of bereavement. Balancing the emotional complexity is Chris Manley's refreshingly unaffected cinematography; the drama of a free kick, like that of a good movie, is best viewed through a steady lens." Bill Zwecker, of the "Chicago Sun-Times," stated, "It's a sweet and uplifting film, and though quite predictable, gives us a family drama that showcases simple truths about overcoming seemingly impossible odds and leaves you with a warm and very satisfying feeling deep down. It's a solid, hopeful and inspiring story that reminds us of what we might call 'old-fashioned' values about perseverance and making your dreams come true. Old-fashioned? Not at all."
Owen Gleiberman of "Entertainment Weekly" argued that "in 1978, a high school girl playing competitive soccer wasn't just novel – it was barely heard of. This amiable rouser, based on the experiences of Elisabeth Shue and her family, tries to convey how gutsy and role-smashing it is for ... Gracie to cleat her way onto an all-boys soccer team. So why is Gracie as processed as an after-school special? You miss the knockabout edge of "Bend It Like Beckham" – though the ending, in its Pavlovian sports-flick way, pumps you up." Scott Tobias of "The A.V. Club" suggested that "though "Gracie" fashions Shue's story into ready-made inspirational formula, it's nonetheless vivid in its particulars, from the looks and sounds of late-'70s New Jersey to the portrait of a soccer-driven family reformed by loss." Lael Loewenstein of the "Los Angeles Times" stated that "Gracie" is "an earnest, well-acted, poignant drama that nevertheless runs afoul of sports movie clichés."
The film received a 62% rating from Rotten Tomatoes based on 91 reviews, with an average rating of 5.90/10. The consensus reads, "Gracie can be rousing and touching in spots, but is ultimately undone by its predictable story arc and a lack of nuance."
Box office.
On a budget of $9 million, the limited release film made about $4 million at the box office and over $3 million in rentals.
Soundtrack.
The soundtrack contains a number of popular classic rock songs, many of which are from the year 1978.
Songs included in the CD.
The CD was released in 2007 by Lakeshore Records.
Soundtrack.
Lakeshore Records also released a CD of the film's score, composed by Mark Isham.
References.
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Gracie!
2009 television film
Gracie! is a biopic television film on the life of Gracie Fields, with Jane Horrocks playing Fields and Tom Hollander her husband Monty Banks. It covers her career before the Second World War and the decline in her popularity during the war.

Gracie Otto
Australian filmmaker
Gracie Otto is an Australian filmmaker and actress. She made her feature-length directing debut with the 2013 documentary "The Last Impresario" about prolific British theatre impresario and film producer Michael White. She has also directed a variety of screen content such as television commercial videos (TCVs), shorts, television series, feature films and documentaries.
Early life.
Gracie Otto is the daughter of the Australian actor Barry Otto and Susan Hill. Actress Miranda Otto is her half-sister. She attended Burwood Girls High School in Sydney. As a schoolgirl, Otto represented Australia and New South Wales in indoor soccer, and represented her home state New South Wales in school softball.
Director.
Otto's feature-length directing debut was with the 2014 documentary "The Last Impresario", about prolific British theatre impresario and film producer Michael White. The film made its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival in October 2013, where it was positively received by critics; it features interviews with 60 of his friends and associates.
Otto has directed several short films. In 2019, after winning the North American Script Competition through Soho House in the US, Gracie directed and edited a new short film, "Desert", which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
In 2019, Otto was the director of the second series of the Stan original, "The Other Guy" starring Matt Okine, Claudia Karvan, and Harriet Dyer. In early 2021, the Stan original series "Bump" was released starring Claudia Karvan, Natalie Morris, and Angus Sampson. Otto directed three of the ten episodes in the series.
In 2021, Otto's feature documentary "Under the Volcano", about music producer George Martin's 1980s recording studio in Montserrat, was released.
In 2022, she directed four episodes of the Netflix comedy drama series "Heartbreak High", for which she was nominated for the AACTA Award for Best Direction in Drama or Comedy.
Filmography.
Director.
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Actress.
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References.
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Gracie's Choice
2004 made-for-television drama film directed by Peter Werner
Gracie's Choice: A Story of Love is a 2004 American drama film that premiered on Lifetime. It is written by Joyce Eliason; directed by Peter Werner; and stars Kristen Bell, Anne Heche, Diane Ladd, and Kristin Fairlie.
Plot.
Gracie is a 17-year-old girl whose mother is addicted to drugs. The police arrest her mother and separate the children, forcing them to leave their family dog Spike behind, but Gracie does whatever she can to keep her family together. Their mother is in and out of their lives, and her sister gets pregnant and runs off to get married, so Gracie takes on the challenge of being the caregiver and guardian to her brothers while putting herself through school and working part time.
Eventually Gracie decides that in order to keep the family stable and away from their mother's errant ways, she must petition to adopt her brothers in court. She does so but not without a fight from her mother. Ultimately the judge asks each individual boy who they want to live with, and all three say Gracie despite their mother's pleas. Seeing the stability the boys have found with their sister and taking into account the answers she was given, the judge terminates parental rights of their mother and grants them to Gracie. The trial ends with them adopting the surname of "Weatherly" from all the trials they have weathered, and the story ends with details about how well the new family is doing.
Production notes.
Inspired by actual events, the film is based on a story featured in "Reader's Digest" from staff writer Rena Dictor LeBlanc and is described as being "sure to touch your heart".
Reception.
"Gracie's Choice" received generally positive reviews, with critics praising the acting, story, characters, emotional weight, and both Bell and Heche's performances. Heche was nominated for the 2004 Emmy Award for "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie".
References.
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Gracie Films
American film and television production company
Gracie Films is an American film and television production company founded by James L. Brooks in 1986. The company is primarily responsible for producing its long-running flagship animated series "The Simpsons".
The company's headquarters is located on the Fox Studios lot at 10201 West Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles.
Overview.
James L. Brooks, who had previously founded John Charles Walters Company, founded Gracie Films at 20th Century Fox in 1986, with Polly Platt as executive vice president. Named for comedian Gracie Allen, the company was established to "provide real writers with a vehicle to get their movies made". Its primary distributor is currently Sony Pictures Entertainment, though it continues to produce "The Simpsons" at Fox's studio in Century City, Los Angeles.
According to "Simpsons Confidential", Brooks gave "The Simpsons"' writing staff free rein, as he firmly believed they were the most important part of the process, and "in the legal battles over "The Simpsons", it was Fox that was being sued, not Gracie Films". The company also coordinates international distribution and dubbing for "The Simpsons", "[finding] voices for dubbing that would match those of the original American actors as closely as possible." Gracie Films’ main production office is at the Sidney Poitier building on the Sony Pictures Studios lot in Culver City, California. In 1989, Gracie Films had struck a deal with ABC.
Logo.
Gracie Films' production logo depicts noisy patrons in a movie theatre (which were the voices of then-CEO of Fox Garth Ancier and music composer Jeffrey Townsend double-tracked to sound like there were more people) being shushed by a woman in the back row (with the shush sound being done by Tracey Ullman). The company's name appears on the screen, accompanied by a brief passage played on keyboard. Audio variations exist on "The Simpsons", often with dialogue from the episode or characters such as Homer responding to the shush. The most common audio variation is on the Treehouse of Horror episodes (excluding "Treehouse of Horror" which used the original logo audio and "Treehouse of Horror II" and "Treehouse of Horror III" which has the organ theme only), where the shushing sound was replaced by a woman screaming and the logo's music is played in a minor key on a synth-emulated pipe organ. Originally, the Roland D-50 PN-D50-01 Pipe Organ preset was used for that particular variant and was composed by Danny Elfman. The music was composed by Jeffrey Townsend and Alf Clausen on a tiny Korg synth rack using a custom programmed preset. Starting from Treehouse of Horror XXVIII, the music was rearranged by Bleeding Fingers Music.
References.
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Gracie Lawrence
Gracie Lawrence (born March 16, 1997) is an American actress and singer who co-fronts the soul-pop band Lawrence alongside her brother Clyde.
Early life.
Lawrence grew up in a Jewish family in New York City. Her father, Marc Lawrence, is a filmmaker, best known for writing "Miss Congeniality". Lawrence and her brother Clyde have been performing music together since childhood. Their first venues were “small cafés and clubs around lower Manhattan.” She graduated from The Dalton School in 2015. She attended Brown University before dropping out to pursue music full-time.
Music.
Gracie and her brother Clyde put together a band and gave it the family name Lawrence. They released their first album, "Breakfast" in 2016. They have released four studio albums and several live and acoustic albums.
Lawrence currently has eight band members including Sam Askin, Sumner Becker, Jordan Cohen, Michael Karsh, Jonny Koh, and Marc Langer. In 2023, the band served as the opening act for the Jonas Brothers North American tour.
The band has performed on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert".
Acting.
Lawrence made her Broadway debut in 2009 in the revival of Neil Simon’s play, "Brighton Beach Memoirs." In 2025, she'll star alongside Jonathan Groff as the singer Connie Francis in the musical "Just in Time".
She has had roles in "The Americans: Younger," and "Billions." In 2025, she joined the third season of "Sex Lives of College Girls" on Max as a series regular playing the character Kacey.

Ryan Gracie
Brazilian Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and mixed martial arts fighter
Ryan Gracie (August 13, 1974 – December 15, 2007) was a Brazilian mixed martial artist with a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He was a member of the Gracie family and a grandson of Carlos Gracie.
Career.
Ryan trained with his brothers, Renzo Gracie and Ralph Gracie; the latter often served as his cornerman. He also trained Pancrase fighter Gabriel Vella and jiu-jitsu world champion Fabio Leopoldo while in Brazil.
Gracie had seven fights in the PRIDE organization, with his first at PRIDE 10 in 2000 and his most recent at PRIDE Shockwave 2004. PRIDE billed Ryan as the "bad boy" of the family who reputedly gained experience fighting in the streets of Brazil. In interviews in 2004, Gracie expressed a strong interest in fighting Kazushi Sakuraba and Hidehiko Yoshida. Sakuraba, known as the "Gracie Hunter" for his many victories over the Gracie family, defeated Ryan earlier with a decision win in 2000.
Ryan was the leader and head coach of Gracie São Paulo, one of the largest jiu-jitsu associations in Brazil, with affiliated schools spread over the world. Supported by his cousins Carlos Russo, Daniel Simões, and Renzo Gracie, the academy is home to several world champions.
Personal life.
He was the youngest son of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Master Robson Gracie. On December 8, 2001, his only son, Rayron Gracie, was born. Ryan's brothers are Charles Gracie, Renzo Gracie, and Ralph Gracie.
On January 30, 2021, Ryan's son, Rayron, released a short documentary titled "Letters to my Father", which reveals his experiences growing up without his father through a series of letters he decided to write to Ryan throughout his teenage years.
In October 2005, Gracie suffered an accidental gunshot wound to the leg while reaching into a closet in his sister's house in Rio de Janeiro, according to a report by GracieMag.com. He was hospitalized and returned to stable condition after receiving a blood transfusion.
Death.
On December 15, 2007, at 7:00 A.M., Ryan Gracie was found dead in a jail cell in São Paulo, Brazil. At approximately 1:30 A.M. that day, Gracie had been arrested for stealing and crashing a car and attempting to hijack a motorcycle. The owner of the motorcycle hit Gracie on the head, and Gracie was detained by several cyclists until police arrived. A toxicological examination at the Medical Legal Institute was conducted, after which Gracie was transported to the police station. While in jail, Gracie's wife called psychiatrist Dr. Sabino Ferreira de Faria to attend to him. The psychiatrist was later accused of medical negligence by over prescribing medication and causing Gracie's death. Ferreira was later sentenced to two years of community service for recklessness. The doctor was with Gracie most of the night, and was notified of Ryan Gracie's death as he was driving home. Gracie was found alone and slumped into a corner when police were doing a routine check of the jail cells.
Mixed martial arts record.
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References.
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Marc Gracie
Marc Gracie is an Australian writer, producer and director of films and television, best known for his work in the comedy field.
In 2009 he won the 2009 Melbourne Underground Film Festival Best Director award for The Tumbler.
He directed the original "Wogs Out of Work" stage production.
References.
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Charlie Gracie
American singer and guitarist (1936–2022)
Charles Anthony Graci (May 14, 1936 – December 16, 2022), known professionally as Charlie Gracie, was an American rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer and guitarist. His biggest hits were "Butterfly" and "Fabulous", both in 1957.
Career.
Early career.
Charlie Gracie was born in South Philadelphia to Santo ("Sam") and Mary Graci (née Cappizzi), who were both of Sicilian heritage. At the age of 10, Gracie's father encouraged him to play the guitar. His musical career started at the age of 16 when he appeared on the Paul Whiteman television show in 1952.
Gracie performed at weddings, local restaurants, and parties, and on local radio and television. He also won regional talent contests. Charlie graduated from South Philadelphia High School in 1952.
The owner of Cadillac Records, Graham Prince, heard one of Gracie's early radio performances, contacted the young musician and signed him to a recording contract. This association yielded the single "Boogie Woogie Blues" backed with "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter". The record led to Charlie's first appearance on Bob Horn's "American Bandstand" television program, four years before Dick Clark became the host. After cutting two more singles for Cadillac, including one called "Rockin' 'n' Rollin'" in 1952, Charlie moved on to 20th Century Records, where he put out another four sides. The discs he made embraced a wide variety of styles: jump blues, gospel, and country boogie with the influences of Big Joe Turner, B.B. King, Louis Jordan, Roy Acuff, and Hank Williams.
Cameo success years.
By 1956, Philadelphia had given birth to the new Cameo record label. Its founders, in search of a strong talent, signed Gracie later that year. With a $600 budget, this new union went into the recording studio to record "Butterfly" backed with "Ninety Nine Ways". It became a hit record, reaching #1 in jukebox plays in the "Billboard" chart. Gracie received a gold disc for the two million plus sales. His only other Top 40 hit was with a song entitled "Fabulous" the same year, which reached number 16. This track also reached number 6 in the UK. Two other substantial sellers followed: "Wandering Eyes", his third Billboard Top 100 hit, which peaked at number 71 (another number 6 in the UK), and "Cool Baby" (also a top 30 hit in Britain). The financial success of these hits bankrolled the Cameo label, which became a dominant force in the music industry for several years.
Gracie's personal appearances grew until he performed and headlined some of the biggest venues of that time: Alan Freed's rock and roll shows at the Brooklyn Paramount, "The Ed Sullivan Show", "American Bandstand" and the 500 Club in Atlantic City, New Jersey. He appeared in the 1957 film "Jamboree" and toured with Chuck Berry, the Everly Brothers, Bo Diddley and his close friend Eddie Cochran.
Gracie became only the second American rock and roller to bring this new art form to the British concert stage. His two extensive tours in 1957 and 1958 were topped off by headlining the Palladium and the Hippodrome in London. In the audiences, among Gracie's fans, were future rock musicians Graham Nash, and members of the Beatles. These performers and many other well-known acts have credited Gracie as an influence. George Harrison referred to Gracie's guitar technique as 'brilliant' in a March 1996 interview with "Billboard"; Paul McCartney invited Gracie to the premiere party of his 1999 release which paid tribute to the early pioneers of rock music.
According to the documentary film "Wages of Spin", Gracie sued Cameo Records for unpaid royalties and in retaliation was blacklisted from the radio and "American Bandstand". Per the film, "Bandstand" host Dick Clark had a relationship with the record company and was paid $14,000 for services related to Gracie's song "Butterfly".
Later career.
After Cameo, Gracie moved on to other record labels such as Coral, Roulette, Felsted, and Diamond, performing more of the R&B he preferred. Even as success slowed, he continued to perform in clubs, theaters, and resorts all over the USA and Europe, from the 1960s through the 1990s and into the 2000s. He enjoyed a loyal following in the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, and the Netherlands, where he regularly toured - thanks in part to his friend and manager, Paul Barrett who represented Charlie until Paul's passing in 2019.
During the late 1990s, he was introduced to Quentin Jones, a guitarist, studio owner and label head. Jones had a strong background in roots music, having played in a rockabilly band produced by the Stray Cats bassist Lee Rocker. He also played lead guitar on Robert Gordon's 1996 self-titled CD. Gracie and Jones met at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. They decided to record an album together with Jones acting as producer. He brought in bandmate Dave Ferrara to play drums. Jones played bass guitar, combining with Gracie's guitar and vocals. Gracie invited Jones and Ferrara to back him when Van Morrison commissioned Gracie to open his 2000 West Coast tour.
Contributing their musical talents on his latest CD were Tommy Conwell, whose guitar playing is featured on "Still 19", Ralph Miller on piano, Daryl Jenkins on saxophone, and Pete Barnhart on percussion. Graham Nash contributed vocals to the song "A little Too Soon To Tell".
Gracie's pioneering contribution to the genre was recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and he was inducted into the South Philadelphia High School Alumni Cultural Hall of Fame.
In 2007, a documentary film about Gracie, "Fabulous", was aired on PBS stations.
In 2011, ABKCO released the CD "For The Love of Charlie" produced by Al Kooper and co produced by Quentin Jones, with guest artists Graham Nash, Peter Noone, Jimmy Vivino, Craig Ross, and Dennis Diken, with Gracie singing some of his own songs and some covers.
From 2011 to 2016, Gracie and his son hosted the local radio program "A Fabulous Hour with Charlie Gracie", which aired on Sunday afternoons on WVLT (FM), a classic hits station known as Crusin 92.1FM, based in Vineland, New Jersey, that serves the Southern New Jersey, Northern Delaware and Philadelphia broadcast markets. It spotlighted Gracie's recordings as well as many of his favorites from other artists, and included requests from his family and friends.
On Gracie's 75th birthday, he recorded "Baby Doll" with Producers / Writers Gary Lefkowith and Mike Rogers. The track featured guitarist/vocalist Richie Scarlet, best known for his work with Ace Frehley, Sebastian Bach and Mountain (as well as producing such acts as The Chesterfield Kings). Released in the fall of 2011, it was his first single in over 50 years to receive UK airplay on the BBC. In the US, the record entered the Top 100 on Mediabase's Top 40 Chart, from the strength of Airplay at Sirius XM. Richie Scarlet is featured on lead guitar and played with Gracie at the Bitter End, in New York City, on March 30, 2012, after a live radio broadcast at WFUV. WXPK and WXPN played "Baby Doll," as well, in regular rotation. The World Café featured Gracie at their Philadelphia venue during the same time period, in support of the record.
Gracie was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame on November 16, 2012, at the Hilton City Avenue, Philadelphia.
In 2019, Gracie toured the UK with Marty Wilde along with Mike Berry, Nancy Ann Lee and the Wildcats.
He continued to perform at many places in the Philadelphia area, and for many years had annual concerts during the summer at Rose Tree Park in Media, Pennsylvania, and Goshen Country Fair in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
Personal life and death.
Gracie died in Philadelphia, on December 16, 2022, at the age of 86, after dealing with COVID-19 complications since the spring. He was married for over 60 years to his wife Joan. They had two children, a son and a daughter.
References.
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Rener Gracie
Brazilian-American martial artist and entrepreneur
Rener Gracie (born 10 November 1983) is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) black belt instructor, coach, and inventor.
One of the most recognisable figures in modern Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Gracie is a well-known and popular coach who has helped develop some top UFC competitors, such as Ronda Rousey, Brian Ortega, Brendan Schaub, Javier Vazquez and Lyoto Machida as well as WWE wrestler CM Punk and pro boxer Ryan Garcia. Additionally, he has also trained celebrities including Vince Vaughn and Travis Barker.
As co-owner and head instructor at the Gracie University of jiu-jitsu headquartered in Torrance, California Gracie is known for his initiatives training Police officers in jiu-jitsu based self-defence and his advocacy calling for a nationwide police reform. His "Gracie Survival Tactics (GST)" curriculum is the first to be recognized in California as approved for law enforcement.
An inventor and entrepreneur, Gracie founded Quikflip, a garment converting into a backpack, which was featured on ABC's Shark Tank and named as one of Time Magazine 2019 best inventions.
Early life and education.
Rener Gracie was born on 10 November 1983 in Torrance, California. A member of the first generation of the Gracie family born outside of Brazil, Gracie is the second eldest son of Ultimate Fighting Championship co-creator and BJJ red belt Rorion Gracie, and a grandson of jiu-jitsu co-founder Hélio Gracie.
His introduction to jiu-jitsu came when he was still a child, learning from his father, grandfather and uncles Rickson and Royce Gracie. Gracie's father and uncles opened "Gracie Jiu-jitsu Academy" in Torrance in 1989, a martial art school teaching Gracie Jiu Jitsu, Gracie started helping with the coaching at the age of thirteen, becoming one of the head instructors at nineteen.
Competitive career.
As a brown belt, Gracie won the 2002 IBJJF American Nationals Championship. After receiving his black belt from Hélio Gracie in 2002 at the age of 19, Gracie competed in the 2003 IBJJF Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship winning bronze. In May 2003 he won the Southern California Pro-Am Invitational, a no-gi, no time limit tournament featuring 16 competitors, after defeating Cassio Werneck, Joe Stevenson, Tyrone Glover and Jason Miller. Even though the tournament was a no-gi grappling event, Gracie and his brother Ryron chose to fight in their gi. The match with Werneck drew particular attention due to a controversial finish, where Werneck claimed that he did not submit and video footage was reviewed in order for the referee to determine otherwise. In 2004 he retired from competition to focus on coaching and teaching.
Gracie University.
In 2009, Gracie and his brother Ryron launched "Gracie University Online", a web BJJ learning platform. In 2024, Gracie and his brother Ryron announced the release of "Gracie Combatives 2.0", an update to the course they first released 13 years earlier.
Coaching career.
Gracie and his brother spent time training MMA fighter Javier Vazquez after he married their sister Rose in 2005. Gracie has also trained Lyoto Machida and his brother Chinzo Machida, as well as Carla Esparza while she was wrestling in college and Chris Holdsworth.
Gracie coached Olympic Judo medal winner Ronda Rousey in jiu-jitsu. Rousey started training with Gracie and his brother for her last two competition camps prior to at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas in December 2013. Rousey won the fight crediting the Gracie brothers for her improvements. In anticipation for UFC 170, and the defence of her bantamweight title, Rousey trained her jiu jitsu again with Gracie during camp. In 2015 Gracie was criticized by Cris Cyborg for saying that she was being given "more credit than she deserves". Reflecting on his coaching of Rousey, Gracie said: "I've helped professional athletes of all different skills and sports and capabilities, certainly in martial arts and in jiu-jitsu in regards to combat sports, but I've never seen an athlete who hones her craft and is perfect for their sport like Ronda is for MMA."
In 2009 MMA fighter Brendan Schaub started to train Brazilian jiu-jitsu at Gracie University under Gracie and his brother, following . Even though he was already a BJJ brown belt, Schaub wore a beginner's white belt for a few weeks while training no-gi. At Metamoris 2, Gracie commentated Brendan Schaub's controversial match against Roberto 'Cyborg' Abreu, alongside Ed O'Neill, while serving as one of Schaub's coaches. For UFC 165 in 2013, Gracie coached Schaub for his heavyweight bout against Matt Mitrione. In 2014 Gracie travelled to Vancouver to coach Schaub for his fight against Andrei Arlovski at UFC 174. In 2015 Schaub retired from MMA.
In 2010 Gracie started training WWE superstar CM Punk in jiu-jitsu. in 2014 he began preparing Punk to transition to MMA and make the jump from the WWE to the UFC. With Gracie acting as his mentor, Punk stated that he could not see himself "walking out without Rener". For Punk's professional debut at UFC 203 in 2016, Gracie prepared him for his fight against Mickey Gall.
Gracie has been training professional mixed martial artist Brian Ortega since his early years. Ortega enlisted at the academy at the age of thirteen learning under Gracie throughout his teenage years, and receiving his BJJ black belt and his "T-City" nickname (short for Triangle City) from him. Gracie has been cornering Ortega for most of his pro fights, only missing due to a positive Covid result, ESPN called him "Brian Ortega's most-tenured coach". Gracie joined "Team Ortega" on The Ultimate Fighter 29. Ortega has been ranked by the website Tapology one of the greatest MMA grapplers of all time, and as of May 2023, one of the 5 best featherweight MMA fighters.
In 2022 Gracie started training professional boxer and 2021 WBC interim lightweight title holder Ryan Garcia in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In addition Gracie has trained a number of celebrities including Anthony Bourdain, Vince Vaughn who started in 2016 and received his purple belt in 2018, Rakaa Iriscience, Travis Barker, Prince Jackson, Billy Graziadei and Michael Clarke Duncan. Gracie has also trained actor Jeremy Piven and Hollywood stuntwoman Heidi Moneymaker.
Gracie has been a regular guest on the TV series UFC Ultimate Insider, appearing in 16 episodes between 2012 and 2016. In 2021 Gracie was featured, as Brian Ortega's jiu-jitsu coach, on Countdown to UFC (Season 15) for and on in July 2022.
Law enforcement training.
Gracie has been involved in teaching BJJ to law enforcement for over twenty years and for advocating a nationwide police reform across the United States that would include jiu-jitsu training. Gracie's defense program using jiu-jitsu is called Gracie Survival Tactics (GST), in 2020 the GST curriculum became the first of its kind to be approved, by The Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) for law enforcement in California. A certification that the Gracie family had been seeking for years, since then the program has started to certify police officers and armed forces personnel. Gracie's plan for national police reform centered around BJJ was featured in August 2021 on an episode of HBO sports news program Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.
In 2020 Gracie criticized Mayor Bill de Blasio for signing a bill into law that bans mount and knee on belly positions as well as any type of vascular restraint for police officers, calling the new Police reform "A Disaster For Everyone". In 2021 the bill was retired after being struck down by the New York Supreme Court.
Healthcare professionals.
Gracie announced in 2025 that he was launching ‘Gracie Medical Defense’, which would focus on techniques for healthcare professionals.
Other ventures.
Gracie Breakdown.
In addition to running Gracie University, Gracie and his brother Ryron host the most popular BJJ YouTube channel called: "The Gracie Breakdown" where they go over techniques used on the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) with guests such as Ed O'Neill as well as highlighting the application of jiu jitsu in real-life situations. in 2018 "The Gracie Breakdown" had 355,000+ subscribers and over 200+ videos, in 2022 the channel had over 700k subscribers and more than 155 million video views.
Quikflip.
Gracie is the creator of "Quikflip Apparel", clothing that can be assembled into a wearable backpack, starting with designing a hoodie. Gracie presented Quikflip on Episode 23 Season 10 of the reality ABC TV series Shark Tank where it received an offer from investor Lori Greiner of $250,000 in cash and a $250,000 loan, in exchange for 10% equity. The deal with Greiner was never finalized but the appearance on Shark Tank drastically increased the sales. Quickflip was featured on Advertising Specialty Institute 2019 Hot List and named one of "The 100 Best Inventions of 2019″ by TIME Magazine.
In 2019 as the 2019 ADCC World Submission Fighting Championship took place, Gracie's invention became a best seller on Amazon, breaking sales records for both Quikflip and the e-commerce website after being featured on Amazon's Deal of the Day. In 2023 Q"uikflip Apparel" had an annual revenue of $4 million while being valued at $3.2 million.
Sleeper Hold Travel Pillow.
Gracie also invented a different take on the classic travel pillow, called the Sleeper Hold travel pillow. He launched the pillow on Kickstarter on May 3, 2023 and raised over $1 million (USD) for 17,843 backers in 30 days making it the top-funded travel pillow in crowdfunding history. On May 11, 2023, he received an invitation to appear on Shark Tank for a second time with his latest product.
The 32 Principles.
Gracie released a book entitled "The 32 Principles: Harnessing the Power of Jiu-Jitsu to Succeed in Business, Relationships and Life" with a foreword by Jocko Willink on August 23, 2023.
Black belt exchange.
Along with his brother Ryron Gracie, Rener hosts an annual 'Black Belt Exchange' at the Gracie University Headquarters in Torrance, California, that aims to bring together Jiu-jitsu black belts in order to share information and opinions on the sport.
Personal life.
Gracie is married to former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler Eve Torres, with whom he has two sons Raeven born in 2015 and Renson born in 2018.
Testimony in injury lawsuit.
Following catastrophic injuries suffered in 2018 by a jiu-jitsu student rendered quadriplegic, Gracie was called in at the trial to testify as an expert witness for the plaintiff. After four months of trial, the jury found the jiu-jitsu instructor at fault and awarded the student $46 million. After leaked footage of the incident was released, Gracie's involvement in the case, his opinion on whether the injury was the result of negligence or not, as well as the compensation payment he received for his testimony, attracted a lot of criticism from the BJJ community.
For his expert testimony in the injury lawsuit, Gracie received $100,000 as payment or $3000 per hour. Following the backlash Gracie shared a video explaining his role as an expert witness and his understanding of the incident. Gracie later announced that he was donating the entirety of his court case earnings to charity. On 14 April 2023, Gracie had a live discussion about the lawsuit with Tom DeBlass, a prominent figure in the BJJ community and one of his most ardent critics.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitive summary.
Championships:
Instructor lineage.
Kano Jigoro → Tomita Tsunejiro → Mitsuyo "Count Koma" Maeda → Carlos Gracie → Helio Gracie → Rorion Gracie → Rener Gracie
References.
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Hélio Gracie
Brazilian co-inventor of Brazilian jiu-jitsu (1913–2009)
Hélio Gracie (October 1, 1913 – January 29, 2009) was a Brazilian martial artist who together with his brothers Oswaldo, Gastao Jr, George and Carlos Gracie founded and developed the self-defense martial art system of Gracie jiu-jitsu, also known as Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ).
Considered as the Godfather of BJJ, according to his son Rorion, Gracie is one of the first sports heroes in Brazilian history; he was named Man of the Year in 1997 by the American martial arts publication "Black Belt" magazine. A patriarch of the Gracie family, multiple members of his family have gone on to have successful careers in combat sport competition including mixed martial arts (MMA).
Early life.
Gracie was born on October 1, 1913, in Belém, Brazil. Contrary to popular belief, he was a talented athlete, and trained and competed in rowing and swimming since his childhood. He had his first contact in martial arts at 16, when he started training judo (at that time commonly referred to as "Kano jiu-jitsu" or simply "jiu-jitsu"), with his brothers Carlos and George. He also learned catch wrestling under the renowned Orlando Americo "Dudú" da Silva, who taught his brothers for a time.
When he was 16 years old, he had the opportunity to teach a judo class, which helped him develop his family style, "Gracie jiu-jitsu". When the director of the Bank of Brazil, Mario Brandt, arrived for a private class at the original Gracie Academy in Rio de Janeiro as scheduled Carlos Gracie, the instructor, was running late. Hélio offered to teach the class in Carlos's stead. When Carlos arrived with apologies, Brandt assured him it was no problem, and even requested that he be allowed to continue learning with Hélio.
Gracie realized, however, that even though he knew the techniques theoretically, the moves were much harder for him to execute. Consequently, he began adapting Mitsuyo Maeda's brand of judo, already heavily based around "newaza" ground fighting techniques. From these experiments, Gracie jiu-jitsu was created. Like its parent style of judo, these techniques allowed smaller and weaker practitioners the capability to defend themselves and even defeat much larger opponents. "Carlos and Helio Gracie ... brought a fresh eye to jujitsu just as their fellow countryman brought a special new approach to football."
Aside from training with his brothers, Gracie learned further judo under Sumiyuki Kotani and Argentinian judo pioneer Chugo Sato. He might have also got training under a practitioner named Hiraichi Tada. However, the extent of his official training in this art remains unknown. According to Masahiko Kimura, Gracie held the rank of 6th dan in judo in 1951, while according to Robert Hill, Kodokan records show Gracie at the rank of 3rd dan at the time, though Hill also noted that it was not unusual for Kodokan records to show a lower rank than that actually held by non-Japanese judo practitioners.<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>[a]
Fighting career.
First challenges.
Gracie began his professional fighting career at 18 years old against boxer Antonio Portugal. The fight took place in the undercard of a "jiu-jitsu vs. boxing" event on January 16, 1932, which saw judoka Geo Omori defeating boxer Tavares Crespo. Gracie won his fight by submission in a short time, probably an armlock in 40 seconds. Portugal is sometimes incorrectly billed as a boxing champion.
His second match would be the same year in a jiu-jitsu exhibition against Takashi Namiki in September. As Namiki had a 7 kg (15 lb) weight advantage and was a native of Japan just like the art of jiu-jitsu, he was expected to defeat Gracie. Namiki dominated the match, but Gracie wasn't defeated, leading it to a draw after several rounds.
Matches against wrestlers.
Also in 1932, Gracie faced professional wrestler Fred Ebert on November 6. It was his biggest challenge up to the point, as Ebert outweighed him by 29 kg (64 lb) and was a decorated freestyle wrestler, and their match would have no time limit. Gracie was positive, claiming he would submit Ebert in a short time. However, the bout lasted almost two hours, and was eventually stopped by the police at the promoters's discretion as none of the fighters was progressing or advancing position. Again, this fight is sometimes registered as a vale tudo match, but it was hosted under grappling only rules. In an interview, Gracie claimed that he had to undergo an urgent operation the next day and that the stop was demanded by the doctor due to Gracie having a high fever caused by a swelling.
In 1934, Gracie faced another jiu-jitsu practitioner named Miyaki. The latter (whose first name is unknown) was billed as a judo black belt, although he had fought only one professional fight, a loss against professional wrestler Robert Ruhmann. He is usually identified as the famous judoka and catch wrestler Taro Miyake, a theory possibly initiated by Mark Hewitt in his book "Catch Wrestling: A Wild and Wooly Look at the Early Days of Pro Wrestling in America" (2005). However, Miyake was 54 years old and weighted 90 kg (200 lb) at the time, while Miyaki's official stats were about 20 years old and 64 kg (141 lb), and photographic material seems to support them being different people.
In any case, Gracie passed the first 20 minutes of the match in guard position before he climbed up to mount. He then applied a gi choke which Miyaki didn't surrender to, making the Japanese fall unconscious for the victory.
On July 28, Gracie faced renowned professional wrestler Wladek Zbyszko who, very much like Ebert, had a 40 kg (88 lb) weight advantage (albeit was 22 years older) and was billed as a world champion. Although the match was promoted as a "catch-as-catch-can vs. jiu-jitsu" challenge, it was fought under jiu-jitsu rules, including judogis and a 20-minute time limit. It was an uneventful affair; Gracie pulled guard at the opening and they spent the rest of the match in said position, ending in a draw. Still, it was seen as a moral victory for Gracie not to have been finished by the larger Wladek. The wrestler himself praised Gracie's courage and resistance.
Gracie's next opponent was his own former teacher, Orlando Americo "Dudú" da Silva, who had defeated Hélio's brother George in a catch wrestling match earlier in the year 1935. Their match was stipulated as a vale tudo bout with a 20-minute time limit on February 2. During the match, the two fighters exchanged punches before Dudú, heavier by 20 kg, took Gracie down. Gracie defended from the guard, but Dudú landed heavy punishment in form of ground and pound, breaking Gracie's nose with a headbutt and making him bleed profusely. However, the wrestler ended up spending all his energy in the assault, and it allowed Gracie to counterattack gradually with short punches from the bottom. When they returned to standing by the referee, Gracie landed two side kicks of the kind called "pisão" in capoeira, and the tired Dudú submitted verbally shortly after.
Matches against judokas.
After the fight against Dudú, Gracie was challenged by 5th dan judoka Yasuichi Ono to another vale tudo fight. This was met with heat by the Gracie side, as Ono had defeated George Gracie by choke in a jiu-jitsu match. Calling Ono a "cretin" in a newspaper interview, Gracie claimed to accept the challenge and the two were stipulated to fight in April 1935, but the bout was scrapped when Gracie pulled out. Eventually, Gracie accepted to fight Ono, but only under jiu-jitsu rules, without points or judges and in December. He also came to the match wearing a judogi with very short sleeves to make gripping difficult.
The affair saw Ono, though lighter than Gracie by 4 kg (9 lb), executing an exact number of 32 judo throws on Gracie through the entire match, as well as almost finishing him with a juji-gatame in the first round. However, Gracie never gave up and escaped all his holds, including one in which he dived out of the ring to avoid a choke (a legal action at the time), and even had his own modest submission attempts in the form of an armlock and a gi choke near of the ending. After 20 minutes, the bout ended in a draw.
On June 13, 1936, Gracie fought judoka Takeo Yano, a training partner of Ono who also had dominated George Gracie the previous year in a time draw. Again, Gracie demanded a match without judges and wore a modified judogi, and his brother Carlos predicted that Yano wouldn't last a single round. Indeed, Gracie showed improvement, threatening Yano with a gi choke in the second round, but Yano threw and took down Gracie repeatedly through the three rounds of the match, which ended in a draw. Ono challenged Gracie for a future rematch after the bout, which Gracie accepted. The same month, Gracie was involved in a challenge consistent in fighting three opponents the same night, being those Geroncio Barbosa, Manuel Fernandes and Simon Munich, but Gracie pulled out before the event and was replaced by his brother George.
On September 12, Gracie faced a 2 kg heavier fighter named Massagoishi. He was billed as both a sumo wrestler and judo black belt, although Takeo Yano was quoted as skeptical of the second claim. Gracie submitted Massagoishi with an armlock after 13 minutes of fighting. However, the match was criticized by the press, calling it "a comedy and a farce" due to Gracie and his opponent not living up to expectations. The Brazilian Federation of Pugilism actually suspended Massagoishi for his inactivity during the bout.
Gracie met Yasuichi Ono for the second time on October 3, 1936, again in a match under jiu-jitsu rules and with no points of judges. Press and critics were unanimous in Hélio's improvement from their first match, although Ono again threw Gracie a number of 27 times and controlled most of the match. Around the time, Gracie had another rematch, it being against Orlando Americo da Silva and under grappling only rules. Gracie lost the match when he was disqualified for using a forbidden hold. Gracie had also a match against Erwin Klausner in 1937. Klausner was mainly a boxer (although he was also known as a wrestler), but the match was contested under the usual jiu-jitsu rules. Gracie won by armlock at the second round.
In 1937, Gracie retired from competition for the first time. He did not fight again until 1950. The year of his return, Gracie challenged famous boxing champion Joe Louis to a vale tudo match in one of his visits to Brazil, but Louis declined and proposed a boxing match, which Gracie rejected.
Gracie vs. Kimura.
In 1951, Gracie issued a challenge against a touring judoka and professional wrestler, Masahiko Kimura. To fight him, Gracie faced before a lesser member of Kimura's troupe, Yukio Kato. Gracie and Kato went to a draw on September 6, 1951, with Kato immediately asking for a rematch. It took place on September 29, and it saw Gracie winning by choking out his opponent. Although the win was controversial, the match against Kimura was realized, and it happened on October 22. Kimura defeated Gracie by "gyaku-ude-garami" at the second round in a convincing fashion. Gyaku-ude-garami then went on to be known as the Kimura lock.
Academia Gracie vs Academia Fadda.
Oswaldo Fadda represents a non-Gracie line of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He was trained by Luiz França who was a student of Mitsuyo Maeda around the same time as Carlos and Hélio Gracie. Fadda was known for training the poor in Rio de Janeiro, and for the use of leg locks, which the Gracies considered low class. He trained a number of students and challenged Gracie's academy in 1953. Fadda's academy won the majority of the matches.
Gracie vs. Santana.
In 1955, Gracie was challenged by Valdemar Santana, a former student of his academy who now trained and fought under the management of Carlos Renato and Haroldo Brito. Reasons why Santana left the Gracie team are diffuse; one of them is that he was expelled for taking a professional wrestling bout, something that their fighters had forbidden, while another tells how Santana accidentally flooded Gracie's gym while doing cleaning chores. Gracie accepted the challenge of a vale tudo match, even though Santana was 16 years younger and 60 lb heavier.
They fought in May, both wearing a jiu-jitsu gi. The bout lasted almost four hours, possibly three hours and 40 minutes. Gracie defended from his guard for most of the fight, hitting elbows to the head and heel kicks to the back, while his opponent threw punches through the guard. After a long time of fighting, Gracie got eventually tired, and Santana took over with headbutts and more strikes. At the end, Santana lifted Gracie up and slammed him on the mat, and then landed a soccer kick to the head of a kneeling Gracie. Gracie was knocked out and his cornermen threw the towel.
Although luta livre veteran Euclydes Hatem challenged Gracie after the fight, Gracie's bout with Santana was his final match before his retirement.
Assault and Rufino Dos Santos.
A dispute between Gracie's brother Carlos and Manoel Rufino dos Santos worsened after Dos Santos won a public bout against Carlos in August 1932. Subsequently, the conflict then moved to the newspapers, where Rufino criticized Carlos's skill and dismissed his jiu-jitsu credentials, leading Carlos, George and Hélio Gracie to assault him in front of his teaching place at the Tijuca Tênis Clube on October 18. They hit him repeatedly with a steel box and immobilized him for Carlos to apply an armlock, dislocating Rufino's shoulder so badly that it needed surgery. The brothers were arrested and were convicted to two and a half in prison for assault, as well as for trying to run away during the arrest, but their connections to President of Brazil Getúlio Vargas granted them a pardon.
Later life.
Gracie's son, Rorion Gracie, was among the first Gracie family members to bring Gracie Jiu-Jitsu to the US. Royce Gracie, Rorion's younger brother, went on to become the first UFC champion in the organization's history; Helio coached Royce from outside the cage at UFC 1 and UFC 2.
Death.
Gracie died on the morning of January 29, 2009, in his sleep in Itaipava, in the city of Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro. The cause of death, reported by the family, was natural causes. He was 95 years old, and was teaching/training on the mat until 10 days before his death, when he became ill.
Personal life.
Gracie had been married to Margarida for 50 years. Because Margarida was unable to bear children, during their marriage, Gracie became the father of three sons (Rickson, Rorion, and Relson) with a nanny Isabel 'Belinha' Soares and four sons (Royler, Rolker, Royce, Robin), two daughters (Rerika and Ricci) with Vera. After Margarida's death, he married Vera who was 32 years his junior. Gracie was grandfather to many BJJ black belts, including Ryron, Rener, Ralek, Kron, and Rhalan.
In his late years, Gracie was quoted as saying: "I never loved any woman because love is a weakness, and I don't have weaknesses."
Gracie was a member of the Brazilian movement Brazilian Integralism, which first appeared in Brazil in 1932. Today, many members of the Gracie family are also close to the former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who received an honorary black belt from Robson Gracie in 2018, although some family members were associated with the left under the Brazilian Dictatorship period.
Documentary.
On July 6, 2023, it was announced that ESPN Films is producing a documentary series on the Gracie family directed by Chris Fuller and produced by Greg O'Connor and Guy Ritchie.
Fight record.
! Date
! Result
! Opponent !! Location
! Method !! Time !! Record
! style=background:white colspan=7 |
! style=background:white colspan=7 |
References.
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Gracie family
Family of Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners
The Gracie family () is a family of martial artists originally from Belém, state of Pará, Brazil, whose ancestors came from Paisley, Scotland. They are known for promoting the self-defense martial arts system of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, commonly known as Brazilian jiu-jitsu, originating from "Kano jiu-jitsu" (Judo) brought to Brazil by "judoka" prizefighter Mitsuyo Maeda.
They have been successful in combat sports competitions for over 80 years, representing their self-defense system (Gracie jiu-jitsu) including mixed martial arts (MMA), vale tudo and submission wrestling events. Several members were involved in the creation of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), along with promoter Art Davie.
As a family, the Gracies upheld the "Gracie Challenge", a martial arts challenge intended to showcase the effectiveness of their style of grappling against other martial arts disciplines. Members have an affinity to, and are consanguineously related to, the Machado family.
Jiu-jitsu.
Gastão Gracie from Rio de Janeiro, the grandson of George Gracie through his son Pedro, married Cesarina Pessoa Vasconcellos, the daughter of a wealthy Ceará family, in 1901 and decided to settle in Belém do Pará. Gastão became a business partner of the American Circus in Belém. In 1916, the Italian Argentine Queirolo Brothers staged circus shows there and presented Mitsuyo Maeda, a Japanese "judoka" and prizefighter also known as Conde Koma (Count Combat). Gastão was also responsible for helping Maeda establish a Japanese community in Brazil. In 1917, Gastão's eldest son Carlos Gracie, saw a demonstration by Maeda at the da Paz Theatre, prompting the start of his training by Maeda's apprentice Jacintho Ferro. In 1921, however, following financial hardship and his own father Pedro's demise, Gastão Gracie returned to Rio de Janeiro with his family.
Maeda's teachings were then passed on through local Rio de Janeiro coaches to Carlos and his brothers Oswaldo, Gastão Jr., George, and Hélio. There's a version saying that Hélio was too young and slow at that time to learn the art and due to his medical imposition was prohibited from physically partaking in training, but it is now known that he became a coxswain for the local rowing team as well as a competitive swimmer. A common account is Hélio learned the art of jiu-jitsu by watching his older brothers train, but due to his fragile condition instead of using pure strength Hélio learned to use leverage and positioning to defeat his opponents. Though these claims have been criticized and refuted.
For a number of years, the Gracie family ran a competitive monopoly on vale tudo events. Through their competitive rise, the men allocated power and influence with which they sought to promote Gracie family members within the vale tudo community.
With the growing popularity of grappling, members of the family have distinguished themselves in international competition. Roger Gracie won the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship 10 times in various weight divisions (6 times at 100 kg, once at 100+kg, and 3 times in the Absolute division). He also won the Pan-American Championship in the Absolute division in 2006 and the European Championships in 2005 in the 100+kg and Absolute divisions. He was also the first person