Biography of Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (Lee Hsiao Lung), was born in San Fransisco in November 1940 the son of a famous Chinese opera singer. Bruce moved to Hong Kong when he soon became a child star in the growing Eastern film industry. His first film was called The birth of Mankind, his last film which was uncompleted at the time of his death in 1973 was called Game of Death. Bruce was a loner and was constantly getting himself into fights, with this in mind he looked towards Kung Fu as a way of disciplining himself. The famous Yip Men taught Bruce his basic skills, but it was not long before he was mastering the master. Yip Men was acknowledged to be one of the greatest authorities on the subject of Wing Chun a branch of the Chinese Martial Arts. Bruce mastered this before progressing to his own style of Jeet Kune Do. At the age of 19 Bruce left Hong Kong to study for a degree in philosophy at the University of Washington in America. It was at this time that he took on a waiter's job and also began to teach some of his skills to students who would pay. Some of the Japanese schools in the Seattle area tried to force Bruce out, and there was many confrontations and duels fought for Bruce to remain. He met his wife Linda at the University he was studying. His Martial Arts school flourished and he soon graduated. He gained some small roles in Hollywood films - Marlowe- etc, and some major stars were begging to be students of the Little Dragon. James Coburn, Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin to name but a few. He regularly gave displays at exhibitions, and it was during one of these exhibitions that he was spotted by a producer and signed up to do The Green Hornet series. The series was quite successful in the States - but was a huge hit in Hong Kong. Bruce visited Hong Kong in 1968 and he was overwhelmed by the attention he received from the people he had left. He once said on a radio program if the price was right he would do a movie for the Chinese audiences. He returned to the States and completed some episodes of Longstreet. He began writing his book on Jeet Kune Do at roughly the same time. Back in Hong Kong producers were desperate to sign Bruce for a Martial Arts film, and it was Raymond Chow the head of Golden Harvest who produced The Big Boss. The rest as they say is history. Birth Name: Lee Yeun Kam Birthdate: November 27, 1940 Birthplace: San Francisco, California Date of Death: July 20, 1973 Occupations: Actor, Director Bruce Lee Photo Claim to Fame: Martial arts dynamo made popular in many Hong Kong-produced action films Significant Other(s): Wife: Linda Lee Caldwell, from Seattle; had Lee buried there. Family: Father: Hoi-Cheun Lee, actor; appeared with Chinese opera and in films; died in 1965 Mother: Grace Lee, German and Chinese ancestry; suffered from Alzheimer's disease Brother: Peter Lee, older Sister: Phoebe Lee, older; born 1938 Sister: Agnes Lee Brother: Robert Lee, younger; musician, businessman Son: Brandon Lee, actor; born February 1, 1965; died March 31, 1993; signed a three-picture deal with 20th Century Fox in 1991 Daughter: Shannon Lee, actress; born April 19, 1969 His best-remembered film, though, was his real breakthrough as an American star, "Enter the Dragon" (1973; released several weeks after Lee's death), which unfortunately proved to be his last. The mysterious circumstances surrounding Lee's premature death transformed him into a James Dean-style cult figure among millions of martial arts enthusiasts. "Game of Death" (1979), an uncompleted project from around 1972, was released after Lee's death by using footage from earlier films as well as the services of a Lee look-alike, Kim Tai Jong. Years later, it was revealed that the cause of Lee's death seemed to be a cerebral edema triggered by an allergic reaction to a routine painkiller (which, as it turns out, had earlier caused a sudden collapse from which Lee quickly recovered). The 1993 film, "Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story" proved to be one of the best and most popular of the several films which purported to tell Lee's life story; though none of the fictionalized cinematic renditions were 100 percent accurate. Father of burgeoning action star Brandon Lee, who also died suddenly at a very young age. Filmography Pierre Berton Show: Bruce Lee Interviewed (1999) Deadliest Art: The Best of the Martial Arts Films (1990) Bruce Lee: The Legend (1984) Circle of Iron (1978) The Game of Death (1978) Fist of Fear, Touch of Death (1977) Enter the Dragon (1973) Return of the Dragon (1973) The Chinese Connection (1972) Fists of Fury (1972) Marlowe (1969) Le Tresor De Bruce Lee (1969) The Wrecking Crew (1968) The Green Hornet (TV Series) (1966) Education: University of Washington (majored in philosophy) Source: http://www.allbrucelee.com/biography.htm

• published: 29 Sep 2013
• views: 142