Hackleman was born in New York City but moved to Honolulu, Hawaii at the age of four. He began studying Judo when he was about nine years old. By the time he entered high school, Hackleman was a Golden Gloves boxer and a competitive kickboxer. He had some Shotokan Karate training, but by the age of 10 studied Judo and KaJuKenBo under Walter Godin, with whom he would continue to train until Godin’s death in 2002. Kajukenbo is a mixture of Kempo Karate, Tang Soo Do, Judo, Jujitsu, Chinese Kenpo, and Chinese boxing (Kung Fu), which was developed in Hawaii between 1947 to 1949 and which was developed specifically as a street fighting art.
In 1979, Hackleman enlisted in the Army in response to the Iran hostage crisis. He spent three years as a member of the Army boxing team, during which time he won the state and regional Golden Gloves titles. After leaving the Army, Hackleman worked as a professional boxer under the management of Don King Promotions. Although, there is some speculation ...
