During the 1980s, many martial arts movies appeared on North American syndicated television nationwide. A highly remembered Saturday afternoon ritual among children of the 80s, the popularity of these films convinced independent television stations to reserve a dedicated airslot for them much in the same tradition of "The Late Night Creature Feature." Many stations would promote this time slot with the interchangeable names Kung Fu Theater or Black Belt Theater. It is not known who coined these names or who began using them first, but they are universally associated with the low budget kung fu and ninja films produced by studios such as the Shaw Brothers. Other notable prolific producers include Godfrey Ho and Joseph Lai.
The term "chopsocky" emerged in reference to the many recurring cheesy or campy elements most often associated with these films. The often poor English dubbing and clumsy diction have become the subject of many a parody and many a fond nostalgic memory. The grunts and "hmmppphs" and "hm hm hmmm..." as well as the unusual pauses and voice patterns are almost trademark to kung fu movies. Commonly quoted examples of kung fu movie dialogue are variations of:
