Bruce Lee Biography
Bruce Lee blazed across movie screens with charisma and lightning speed,
introducing martial arts to mainstream America and changing the way Asian
American men were portrayed in films. Using his background in dance, Ti Chi
and Gung Fu (commonly called Kung Fu), he broke down the rigid structures of
traditional martial arts and added philosophy, western boxing, and fencing
to craft Jeet Kune Do, a style that concentrated on "practicality,
flexibility, speed and efficiency".
Speculation and controversy surrounded Lee's untimely death as it did for
most of his career. He frequently faced opposition and criticism for his
unconventional style of martial arts -often being challenged to duels and
even rumored to being targeted by the Triad, a powerful Chinese gang.
Bruce Lee lives on as one of the most influential martial artists of the
20th century and a Chinese American icon.
Read more on Bruce Lee >
Awards and Honors
- Crowned Hong Kong’s Cha-Cha Champion in 1958.
- Honored with Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1993.
- Named TIME magazine100 Most Important People of the Century in 1999.
- Bronze “Star of the Century: Bruce Lee” statue unveiled on Hong Kong’s Avenue of the Stars in 2005.
- China issues commemorative stamps depicting Bruce Lee to mark 100 years of
Chinese cinema in 2005
Important Film Roles
- The Game of Death 1978 (completed posthumously)
- Way of the Dragon 1973
- Enter The Dragon 1973
- Fist of Fury 1972
- The Big Boss 1971
- Marlowe 1969
Bruce Lee Timeline
1940
Born Lee Jun Fan in San Francisco’s Chinatown on November 27th.
1941
Returns to Hong Kong with family at 3 months old.
1959
Returns to the United States at 18 years old.
Enrolls in Seattle’s Edison Technical School.
1964
Leaves University of Washington.
Opens Gung Fu training school in Oakland.
Marries Linda Emery, a student at University of Washington.
1965
Birth of son Brandon Lee on Feb. 1st
1966
Lee stars in television’s “The Green Hornet” as the sidekick Kato.
1967
Lee’s specialized fighting style is named Jeet Kune Do.
1969
Birth of daughter Shannon Lee on April 19th.
Stars in first major U.S. film, “Marlowe”, as a karate chopping henchman.
1970
Suffers a major back injury while training, taking months of bed rest and rehabilitation to overcome.
1972
Forms a production company “Concord”
Directs and stars in “The Way of the Dragon” which he also wrote.
Begins filming “Game of Death”.
1973
Films “Enter The Dragon” –the first co-production between a Chinese and an American studio.
Dies in Hong Kong from a brain edema caused by a pain medication on Juy 20th.
“Enter The Dragon” is released in theaters becoming a huge success.
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