Ska used to be dangerous. Getting jumped was a way of life for Jamaican rude boys in the 1960s. In the 1970s, proto-skankster Jimmy Cliff got heckled while opening for the Rolling Stones. Then, in the early 1980s, mohawked punks made a hobby out of beating up 2-Tone fans. Today, the steady beat has been tapped by the mainstream. Ska is heard on commercial radio, in television ads, and during hockey game intermissions. Your mom might not know the term ska, but she probably hums along to it when she's trying on clothes at the mall.

ENTER THE DRAGON Mike "Bruce Lee" Park entered the ska scene sometime in between eras. As a founder of Skankin' Pickle, current leader of The Chinkees, and owner of Asian Man Records, he is partially responsible for today's ska boom. It's Asian Man Records Night at an all-ages venue in Anaheim, California, and the club is sold out. Inside, the Alkaline Trio is getting 200 happy ska punk kids to dance. Outside, another 100 without tickets are looking for action. In the back room, Mike Park cools off from The Chinkees set. Mike remembers his first ska show: "It was The Untouchables in 1983. I was mesmerized. Back then, there weren't any bands that touredjust Fishbone and The Untouchables."

After graduating high school in 1989, the Northern California native became involved with Skankin' Pickle and Dill Records. After a few years, albums, and tours with the goofy and prolific ska outfit, he was ready to go solo. "I felt like I had done the majority of the work. I wanted to run a label where it was my stuff, a representation of what I wanted. I could foresee problems coming up within the group, so it was better to get out before it got too deep." THE CHINESE CONNECTION Asian Man Records started off almost too well. The first bands Mike released, Less Than Jake and Slapstick, were subjects of major label bidding wars. He also released a compilation, Misfits of Ska, that might have been the major labels' guide to ska. Sublime, Reel Big Fish, the Voodoo Glow Skulls, and the Suicide Machines all appeared on the Asian Man Records sampler before they were cherry-picked by bigger labels. Mike was also contacted by lawyersnot for rights to his solo project, The Bruce Lee Band, but for the Misfits' art he appropriated for the Misfits of Ska package. "It was the first record I put out and I thought you could use anything," the sweaty singer and guitar player admits. First, The Misfits' lawyer told him that their skull logo couldn't be used. Then he was served with a legal notice from Tokyo: "I used a picture of Godzilla on the back, but right away I got a letter from Japan. Toho [Studios] said I was in trouble. I paid $3,000 and got out lucky." Mike's solo project, The Bruce Lee Band, also faced a copyright infringement lawsuit after a chance encounter with Bruce Lee's real-life brother. "When I changed CD replication plants, I just happened to pick the one that Robert Lee worked at," he says. "He was cool, and said to change [the artwork] because Universal owned the rights and would sue me. We had only made a few copies with the Bruce artwork and didn't get sued."

THE GAME OF DEATH These days, you can't go to the grocery store without tripping over a ska band. A lot of them suck, and Mike agrees: "That's what my ears are hearing. I still love ska it's in my heart as number one but the bands, the demos I'm getting, it's really low-quality stuff. It's turning me off." "I think right now in the U.S., it's taking a big hit. There's a big backlash against ska. There's too much crap. It became very trendy. All the kids jumped on it. Now it's not cool, so everyone's off it. All the ska kids are emo kids now. Then they'll be punk rock kids, metal, or whatever."

RETURN OF THE DRAGON Ska may be going out, but the Asian Man is sticking with it. Mike is currently concentrating on follow-up releases by his roster, including The Chinkees. "It's really difficult to play under that name," admits the DeGrassi High addict. "We've gotten a bunch of mail from Asian people who are bummed by the name. But I think it's good. We want it to stir emotion." To eliminate confusion, the band's T-shirts explain the irony and anti-racist point of their name. Unlike Charles Barkley, Mike has no problems being a role model. "I get off on it. I think it's cool. People think there's no Asian people in rock and I'm a front man. If I can be a role model, whatever, I'm more than happy to take on the responsibility." The conversation gets gushy, so I excuse myself to check out The Alkaline Trio. "They're great!" says Mike, following me to the stage and proving that he's not only the owner of Asian Man, but also a customer.