Brooklyn-born Michael Jai White survived his rough urban upbringing and entered the entertainment industry on the strength of his martial arts credentials, backing fellow black belt Steven Seagal in a soup commercial for Japanese television, making his feature debut as Alley Guy 1 in "True Identity" (1991, billed as Michael White) and playing a bit part in Roland Emmerich's "Universal Soldier" (1992), starring another martial arts maestro, Jean-Claude Van Damme. He appeared in straight-to-video fare like "Ring of Fire" (also 1992), "Full Contact" (1993) and "Lion Strike" (1994), as well as on
Taught emotionally disturbed children for three years
Hired by fellow martial-arts maestro Steven Seagal to work on a soup commercial for Japanese television
1991
Feature debut as Alley Guy 1 in "True Identity", billed as Michael White; also appeared in that year's straight-to-video martial arts pic "Ring of Fire"
1992
Appeared as a Soldier in Roland Emmerich's "Universal Soldier", starring fellow martial artist Jean-Claude Van Damme
1993
Acted in straight-to-video martial arts feature "Full Contact"
