Bruce Lee

Bruce, originally known as Jun Fan Lee, was born in San Francisco in 1940. At the time of his birth, his parents, both opera singers, were on tour with the Chinese Opera. The Lee family returned to Hong Kong in 1941, where he grew up.

Bruce Lee was a child actor who appeared in over 20 films. His youth was spent in street fights in Hong Kong. After studying various martial arts, he began training in Wing Chun Kung Fu at the age of 13 under the direction of renowned Wing Chun master Yip Man. By the age of 18, he had defeated a boxing champion and become a formidable fighter in bloody alleyway tournaments.

Leaving Hong Kong at 18, Bruce Lee came to the United States, working in a family friend's restaurant in Seattle, Washington. After completing high school, he earned a degree in philosophy from the University of Washington. In 1960, he began teaching Kung Fu to Americans in Seattle who knew little about it, and soon opened his first school, the Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute. This school was followed by two more schools he opened in Oakland and Los Angeles. Famous figures such as Dan Inosanto, Steve Marquin, Karem Abdul Cabbar, and James Caburn were among his students. He met Linda Emery during this period and married her in 1964. They had two children, Brandon and Shannon. By the mid-1960s, Bruce Lee was also developing his own martial art, Jeet Kune Do. Bruce Lee deepened his art with a philosophical foundation and did not follow long-established martial traditions. Instead, he embraced the ideas of simplicity, immediacy, and freedom.

When he returned to Hong Kong with his family, he starred in the film Big Boss, which became a major hit, shattering all previous box office records in Asia. He then starred in Fist of Fury, showcasing his unique style extensively. Having become a major star through his films in Asia, Bruce Lee became very popular in the US and received numerous film offers from Hollywood.

In his third film, The Way of Dragon, seven-time American Karate Champion Chuck Norris co-starred, while Bruce Lee took the lead. The famous fight scene, shot in the Colosseum, featured Kung Fu and Karate battling for supremacy. In 1972, he founded his own production company, Concorde Pictures. While filming his fourth film, Game of Death, American producers offered him a starring role. Deciding to take up the offer, Bruce Lee abandoned his film halfway through and starred in the Hollywood-American joint production of Enter the Dragon. The film, for which Bruce Lee provided the fight choreography, became a school of martial arts films worldwide.

Bruce Lee recently suffered a serious back injury during training. Doctors advised him to abandon martial arts and remain bedridden. Experiencing one of the worst periods of his life, Bruce Lee remained on his back in bed for six months. However, during this time, he remained committed to his passion for martial arts and began writing the book "Tao of Jeet Kune Do." He was found dead suddenly and suspiciously in 1973. Suspicious, as it was determined that he had no health problems. The entire Hong Kong community was plunged into mourning after Bruce Lee's death. After his death, Linda Lee completed the book Tao of Jeet Kune Do. The film Game of Death was also cut short by his death.