Wax On Wax Off

Spoken by Mr. Miyagi (played by Pat Morita) during Daniel LaRusso's first days of training in The Karate Kid (1984), directed by John G. Avildsen with a screenplay by Robert Mark Kamen. Miyagi assigns Daniel a series of mundane chores — waxing cars, sanding floors, painting fences — without explaining why. "Wax on, wax off" describes the circular hand motions used to polish the cars. Only after days of labour does Miyagi reveal that each chore has been drilling the blocking movements of karate into Daniel's muscle memory, transforming routine work into martial arts mastery. Pat Morita was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Miyagi.