About this episode

Johnnie Clark shares his experiences as a Vietnam veteran and author, discussing his combat experiences and martial arts journey.

Johnnie Clark is an American author and Vietnam Veteran, best known for his 1984 Vietnam War memoir Guns Up!. Many of his works fall into the genre of non-fiction military and contain a tough, no nonsense portrayal of combat, courage, and camaraderie. Mr. Clark joined the Marine Corps at 17 years of age after graduating from St. Petersburg High School. He served as a machine gunner with the famed 5th Marine Regiment during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam. He was wounded 3 times, mortar round, grenade, and gunshot. During his rehabilitation from gunshot wounds in Okinawa, Mr. Clark began training in Martial Arts as part of his rehab program. In 2015 Mr. Clark returned from Korea after testing for his 8th Dan in Tae Kwon Do. He was also promoted to 9th Dan in the Ji Do Kwan. Grandmaster Clark owns and operates Johnnie Clark Tae Kwon Do and Judo school in St. Petersburg and has been inducted into the U.S.A. Martial Arts Hall of Fame. Mr. Clark’s books, Guns Up! and Semper Fidelis, are recommended reading by Lt. Col. Madonna, former MCG, to all newly commissioned officers at The Basic School. His books have been required reading in many colleges and high schools around the country as…

People in this episode

Host: Shawn Ryan

Guest: Johnnie Clark

Topics covered

• Vietnam War
• military memoir
• combat experience
• martial arts
• courage
• camaraderie

Keywords

• Vietnam War
• Johnnie Clark
• Guns Up!
• martial arts
• Tet Offensive
• military memoir
• combat
• courage
• camaraderie

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: U.S.A. Martial Arts Hall of Fame, Johnnie Clark Tae Kwon Do and Judo school

Books & works: Guns Up!, Semper Fidelis

Places: St. Petersburg, Vietnam, Okinawa, Korea

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