July 20 Hong Kong Bruce Lee example essay topic

. Why was Bruce Lee so famous, and why is he still thought of as the Master of Chinese Martial Arts? Another interesting thing about Bruce Lee is his true ability to perform martial arts. He criticized Karate for its brocken motions, and Wing Chun for its flashy techniques. Both, he said, were not ideal to use in actual combat. This is the reason for the creation of Jeet Kune Do (JKD). JKD was designed to be used in real life situations.

It's style is no style. The goal of JKD is not to master certain techniques, but to let your body express the techniques in its own way. Everyone has his own style, and JKD is a form of bringing it out... What aspect (s) of Bruce Lee's character made him so famous? The question remains in many people's mind: What made Bruce Lee so famous? There are several Martial Arts movies; why is Bruce the one remembered for Chinese Gung-Fu.

Bruce would work himself very, very hard, until he perfected what he was working on. He was a perfectionist. Another aspect of his success is his ability to really kick some ass. Bruce remains undefeated throughout his life, except for a lost fight when he was 13 years old (this prompted Bruce to begin taking Martial Arts lessons). People jealous of Bruce, or people just thinking they could beat him, would frequently approach Bruce, tap their foot on the ground (this symbolizes a challenge), and they would begin to fight. Once during the filming of 'enter the dragon. html', an extra approached Bruce, tapped his foot on the ground, and they began to fight.

The extra had some real skill, but instead of trying to beat Bruce, he was really trying to hurt him. When Bruce realized this, he began to unleash his lightning quick speed and powerful moves; he smashed the guy right again's the wall. Bruce later said that he had never kicked a guy so hard before. He really beat the guy up. But unusually, after the fight was over, Bruce told the extra to get back to his spot and act. He never fired him.?

Facts (and interesting stuff) Jeet Kune Do?' You see, ' Bruce once said, 'many people come to instructors and say, 'Like man, like what is the truth? Hand it over to me. ' So therefore the guy would say, 'I'll give you my Japanese way of doing it. ' And another guy would say 'I'll give you the Chinese way of doing it.

' But if you only have two hands and two legs, nationalities don't mean anything. When you go with a particular style, you " re expressing that style. You are not expressing yourself. ' 'Jeet Kune Do was really intended as a means of self discovery or enlightenment. In the linear notes of his album, Tau hid, saxophonist Pharoah Sanders describes the process of self-discovery: 'I don't see the horn anymore.

I'm trying to see myself. If you have the discipline, you can do whatever you want to. You yourself are the key to yourself. ' ' Robert Close recalls that:' The first time he met you, you'd expect him to shake hands but instead he'd step back and flick out his foot so fast you could feel the air move right at the tip of your nose. Then he'd take your hand and place it on his stomach.

It was kind of his calling card. ' Bruce's Family Life? Bruce's Parents. Bruce's father: full-blooded Chinese. Bruce's Mother: German / Chinese descent.

(Her father is German; her mother is Chinese) Bruce Lee Kicks Ass in Real Life? These are a few of the fights that Bruce participated in the ring and out. 1958: vs. Gary Elms in a tournament. (Won) 1958 or 1959: Against Chung on a rooftop in Hong Kong.

(Won in 2nd Round) 1960 - Seattle: Bruce back fisted a guy and busted his nose after Bruce saw him harassing a Chinese Girl. Bruce was taking a walk. This fight was witnessed by James De Mile. 1960 or 1961: vs. Uchi. (Won in 10 seconds) Summer 1963 - Hong Kong: Bruce snapped a low kick to a punk's shin after the punk and his friend harassed him during an evening stroll. An interview with the Green Hornet These are some of the questions and responses from an interview with Van Williams (Britt Reid in the Green Hornet) What ever happened to the Green Hornet?

Why was it taken off the air? The show was costing an absolute fortune. It was costing almost as much for the half hour of the The Green Hornet as a one hour segment of Batman. The special effects, the color, the amount of production that went into it.

The cost was draining William Dozier. Everything he was making off Batman was going into The Green Hornet, and it wasn't working. When Dozier demanded and hour slot, and was declined, he took the show off the air. Now another thing that happened that you might want to know is there's a little mystery in it.

There was an audit done on the show afterwards and they found that there were double and triple charges being charged to The Green Hornet that were not supposed to be. What was Bruce like on the set? He was used to working with people who knew how to give way when those slaps and backhands took effect. The guys working on the Hornet didn't know how to protect themselves. A lot of 'em got kicked in the you know whats. We had to convince Bruce that you could do your wacke ty-wack over the shoulder and be three feet apart.

We also had to slow him down- it was a joke! He would go into a room, and all you'd hear, because of the lighting, was all this yelling and people flying around! We'd replay the scenes later and people would laugh and that really got him upset. He did NOT want to be laughed at. It really was a case were he was so focus on the one thing that he didn't have many hobbies? He didn't care anything about acting.

He didn't care about trying to get rid of his real heavy Chinese accent. Didn't he joke that he got the part because he could say 'Britt Reid'? Yeah he could say 'Britt Reid. ' Otherwise he had this heavy, heavy Chinese accent that was very, very hard to understand. Now he was never much of a part ier though... He wasn't here.

But I'd heard rumours, which I couldn't believe because he was very into keeping himself in shape and eating the right foods. He didn't drink alcohol, didn't smoke pot, or this that 'n' the other. But I heard rumours that he had got involved with pot smoking, for the pressures and stuff. I didn't know whether that was a fact or not. I just heard that he'd been involved with dope and that it could have been an overdose, but I pooh- poohed that. You know, rumours were flying all over when he died.

But when he was here he did not smoke cigarettes. He couldn't stand to be around people who did. He never took a drink that I ever saw. He took himself, , very, very seriously because that was his whole deal.? Can you remember any funny stories about Bruce, or recall any of his raunchy jokes?

Bruce drove everybody nuts around the set doing his Jeet Kune Do. Everybody'd be standing around, and suddenly you'd feel something tick your ear like a bug hit it or something. You'd turn around and realize that Bruce had just jumped in the air, kicked out and hit the lobe of your ear. You knew it was in fun, and he did have a sense of humor, but he was ALWAYS doin' this stuff. He'd tap you on the shoulder-, you'd turn around and all of a sudden he'd kick out at your groin. And of course you'd fold up, fall down, back up into furniture- and he just thought that this was hilarious!

Just putt in' everybody to a disadvantage. Then one day he did that and at the same time the guy looked over to his right. Bruce hit him and dislocated his jaw. That ended that party!

People were impressed with it at first. But after a while it got to be, 'Oh God, he's at it again... ' Bruce's Film Credits. Golden Gate Girl: (1940) Filmed in San Francisco, CA. Bruce was three months old... The Beginning of a Boy: (1946) Bruce was 6 years old...

The Birth of Mankind: (1946) Bruce was 6 years old. Unicorn was in the movie... My Son, Ah Cheun: (1946) Bruce was 6 yes old. Chow Shui was also in the movie... It's Father's Fault. The Orphan: (1958) Bruce's last childhood role in the movie.

Other TV Appearances. KITS-Channel 9 (Seattle): Bruce appeared on several TV program giving Kung Fu demonstrations... The Green Hornet: Bruce co-starred in 26 episodes as 'Kato'. It filmed a two-part crossover episode for Batman... The Milton Berle Show - (1966-1967): The Green Hornet (Van Williams) and Kato (Bruce Lee) guest starred on the show... Ironside - 'Tagged For Murder': Brief appearance in which Bruce plays a Karate instructor...

Blondie - 'Pick on a bully your own size': Brief appearance. Here Come The Brides - 'Marriage Chinese Style': . Longstreet: 4 episodes Bruce's Motion Picture Credits. Marlowe (1969). 'fists of fury. html' (1971) (released in the U.S. as Fists of Fury). 'chinese connection. html' (1971) (released in the U.S. as The Chinese Connection). 'return of the dragon. html' (1972) (released in the U.S. as Return of the Dragon). 'enter the dragon. html' (1973). 'game of death. html' (began in 1972, completed after Bruce died) Bruce Lee Documentaries and Misc Film Footage.

Bruce Lee: The Legend. The Real Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee: Kung-Fu Mania Books by Bruce Lee. Chinese Gung-Fu: The Philosophical Art of Self-Defense. Tao of Jeet Kune Do (published after Bruce's death, the book was compiled from his various personal notes). Wing Chun Kung-Fu Students and Training Partners of Bruce Lee Seattle.

James De Mile. Sue Ann Kay. Linda Emery Oakland. Daniel Inosanto. James Yimm Lee.

Howard Williams Los Angeles. Daniel Inosanto - Asst Instructor. Ted Wong. Jerry Potent. Daniel Lee - schools first student in 1967. Herb Jackson.

Chuck Hill. Gary Fine man. Lee Hong. Melvin Kwan. Leo Duff in. Larry Hart sell.

Bill Bremer. Mike Cochrane. Robert Lujan. Peter Rosas. Al Wol in Celebrity Students.

Lew Alcindor 'Kareem Abdul Jabar'. Steve McQueen. James Coburn. Roman Polanski. Stirling Silliphant. Tom Tannenbaum.

Joe H yams Private Students. Mike Stone. Chuck Norris. Joe Lewis Other persons he worked with. Wally Jay. Jhoon Rhee.

Bob Wall Bruce's School / Training Locations. Seattle, Washington: Backyards, Garage, Chinatown Basement location, Ruby Chow's parking lot, University of Washington, Wayne Chan's Pharmacy. Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute - 4750 University Way, Seattle, WA (Taky). Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute - 628 College Street, Los Angeles, CA (Insonato) Bruce Lee (Lee Jun Fan) November 27, 1940 at 7: 12 am (San Francisco, Ca.) Passed Away: July 20, 1973 in Hong Kong (brain edema) Education: Philosophy Major at the University of Washington Height: 5' 7' & 1/2 Weight: 135 pounds Sometimes credited as: Little Dragon Lee Siu - Lung LeeXiaolong LiJ KD Instructor of The Year 1972 Man of The Year 1974 ~||: : : ||~November 27 1940 - San Francisco - The Year of the Dragon, Lee Jun Fan is born at the Jackson Street Hospital in the Chinatown section of San Francisco.

Later to be known as Bruce Lee. His father, Lee Hoi Chuen, a performer with the Cantonese Opera Company, was touring in America at the time. 1941 - Hong Kong - Bruce and his parents return to Kowloon, their family home. 1946 - Hong Kong - At the age of six, he makes his professional screen debut in The Beginning of a Boy.

During the later years of his childhood, Bruce appears in 20 more films in Southeast Asia. Lastly, being the film The Orphan at age 18. ~||: : : ||~1953 - Hong Kong - After being involved in numerous street fights in Hong Kong, Bruce begins training under Sifu Yip Man, a master of the Wing Chun system of Gung Fu. 1958 - Hong Kong - Being an expert dancer, Bruce wins the crown colony Cha-Cha Championship.

~||: : : ||~1959- Hong Kong - After more fierce street fighting ending in police involvement, Mr. and Mrs. Lee decide that Bruce should exercise his American citizenship and return to San Francisco. San Francisco - Seattle - Bruce arrives in the U.S. and stays with Arnold, a friend of his father's. He works odd jobs around the various Chinese communities. Later moves to Seattle to work for Ruby Chow, another friend of his father's. He lives in a room above her restaurant while working as a waiter downstairs.

Eventually enrolls at Edison Technical School and earns his high school diploma. Starts teaching Gung Fu in backyards and city parks. ~||: : : ||~1961- Spring - Seattle - Enrolls at the University Of Washington. Major - Philosophy. Teaches Gung Fu to students at school.

~||: : : ||~1963 - Summer - Hong Kong - Returns to Hong Kong for the first time since his arrival in the U.S. Returns to Seattle at the end of summer to continue school. - October 25 - Seattle - Bruce takes out Linda Emery (the future Mrs. Linda Lee) for their first date. Dinner at the Space Needle. - Fall - Seattle - Moves the Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute into a building (4750 University Way) near the university campus. ~||: : : ||~1964 - Summer - Oakland - Bruce leaves Seattle to start a second school in Oakland. His good friend, Taky Kimura, takes over as head instructor.

- August 17 - Seattle - Bruce returns to Seattle to marry Linda Emery. Residing afterwards back in Oakland. Oakland - Several months after he begins teaching, he is challenged by a leading Gung Fu practitioner in the Chinatown community. If Bruce lost the challenge, he was either to close his school or stop teaching Caucasians. At that time, the Chinese were reluctant to teach Caucasians their martial arts. Bruce accepts and dispatches his opponent in only a couple of minutes.

Later he is bothered on why the fight took so long and begins to reevaluate his style. Thus, the early concepts of Jeet Kune Do, Bruce Lee's own style, are born. - August 2 - Long Beach, Ca - Ed Parker, known as the Father of American Karate (Kenpo), invites Bruce to give a demonstration at his first International Karate Championships. In the audience is Jay Sabring, the hair stylist for Batman producer William Dozier who is looking to cast a part in a TV series he was developing. Sabring then gives a film of Bruce's demo to Dozier who is impressed at what he sees.

Bruce later fly's down to Los Angeles for a screen test. ~||: : : ||~1965 - February 1 - Oakland, Ca - Brandon Lee is born. - February 8 - Hong Kong - Bruce's father passes away. ~||: : : ||~1966 - Los Angeles - Bruce and family move to Los Angeles where he begins working on a new TV series called The Green Hornet as Kato. Later opens third branch of The Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute in Los Angeles' Chinatown. ~||: : : ||~1967-1971 - Hollywood - During this time, Bruce lands bit parts in various films and TV series (Marlowe, Longstreet).

He also gives private lessons for up to $250 an hour to the likes of Steve McQueen, James Coburn, James Garner, Lee Marvin, Roman Polanski, and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. 1969 - April 19 - Santa Monica, CA - Daughter Shannon Lee is born. ~||: : : ||~1970 - Los Angeles - Bruce injures his back while training. The following period of inactivity he starts to document his training methods and his philosophy of Jeet Kune Do. Later after his death, The Tao Of Jeet Kune Do is published by his wife.

~||: : : ||~1971 - Hong Kong - Takes a short trip back to Hong Kong to arrange for his mother to live in the U.S. Unknowingly to him, he had become a superstar for The Green Hornet was one of the most popular TV shows in Hong Kong. Later is approached by Raymond Chow, owner of a new production company, and offered the lead role in a new film called The Big Boss. He accepts. - July - Thailand - Filming begins for The Big Boss (released as Fists Of Fury in U.S.) Opens in Hong Kong to great reviews and mobs of fans. Proceeds to gross more than $3.5 million in little than three weeks. ~||: : : ||~1972 - Hong Kong - Fist of Fury (called The Chinese Connection in the U.S.) is released.

Grosses more than The Big Boss and further establishes Bruce as a Hong Kong superstar. - Rome, Italy - Location shots are made for Bruce's third film The Way Of The Dragon (later called The Return of the Dragon), which he writes, directs and stars in. Chuck Norris is Bruce's adversary in the final fight scene. Again, this film surpasses all records set by his previous two films. - Hong Kong - Bruce begins work on Game of Death and films several fight scenes including Danny Inosanto and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. ~||: : : ||~1973 - April - Hong Kong - Filming of Enter the Dragon is completed.

- July 20 - Hong Kong - Bruce Lee dies in Hong Kong of an apparent Cerebral Edema (swelling of the brain). Enter the Dragon premieres a month later to much success. - July 25 - Hong Kong - A funeral ceremony is held for friends and fans in Hong Kong consisting of over 25,000 people. Bruce is dressed in the Chinese outfit he wore in Enter the Dragon. - July 30 - Seattle - After a smaller second ceremony, Bruce Lee is buried at Lake View Cemetery. His pallbearers included Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Danny Inosanto, Taky Kimura, and his brother, Robert Lee.

Bruce Lee Is Gone But Not Forgotten by Richard Seven - Seattle Times staff A COOL SPRING WIND lunges across Capitol Hill's Lake View Cemetery, sending Taky Kimura's grimy dust cloth flapping in his hand. The Seattle grocer has swept the regal side-by-side grave markers of Bruce and Brandon Lee, and rearranged the earrings, flowers, coins, seashells, rocks, paper hearts left on them the past few weeks. He steps back and views his handiwork, leaning his left leg against a stone bench that holds an engraved message: 'The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering. ' Bruce Lee, only 32 when he died, is as remembered, as immortal, as ever. Visitors, some born after his death, still stream to the martial artist's grave. It is important to Kimura not just that they come, but why they come.

Is this a stop on some pop-culture tour or have they been inspired? Friendship, true and lasting, is why Kimura comes here and has spent much of his life since Lee's death looking after not only his grave, but his legacy. Lee inspired Kimura to try to live a life worth remembering and Kimura, in return, is doing what friends do. He was Lee's closest friend, the best man at his wedding, his first assistant gun fu instructor, his confidant toward the end when Lee finally got the fame he craved but desperately wondered whom he could trust. Kimura was one of the pall bearers who carried Lee to this grave.

Kimura carries Lee along even now, teaching his martial art and the philosophy behind it so Lee stays more than a cartoonish action figure from old movies. Kimura refused to take money when he ran Lee's Seattle gun fu club in the mid-1960's and he refuses to cash in to this day. A tall, strong man strides to the grave, immediately recognizing Kimura from a documentary done on Lee several years ago. Kimura wastes no time; he asks the man why he came. The question rattles the visitor. His face contorts with sadness.

He stammers and fidgets. There is clearly a whole story to it, but he finally just motions to Lee's headstone and says, 'paying my respects. ' Kimura asks how much he knows about Lee's martial art, Jeet Kune Do. The reply tumbles out. The guy is a 33-year-old kick boxer who has idolized Lee since third grade. He starts with tired Bruce Lee trivia, about how the old TV show, 'Kung Fu' was written with Lee in mind, but suddenly he admits he's searching for help.

He says he has made a lot of bad choices and woke up only after getting a. 45-caliber handgun shoved in his face. He is seeking maturity and peace of mind now, he says, through martial arts and specifically through Lee's message of being responsible to and for yourself. Kimura, 74 and graying, and small like Lee was, looks right at the former college football player. He does what Lee did to him: He challenges the guy by replying in a man-to-man tone, 'You " re saying all the right things to me, but now you gotta go live it or it's no use, right?' The man eagerly nods yes and eventually asks if he can sit and talk with Kimura someday or maybe work out at his club. They talk more and swap names and phone numbers.

The man bows and rushes off toward his car, energized by the meeting, but relieved to be leaving. He reappears in less than five minutes, asking Kimura for more advice. They spend the next 15 minutes standing a few paces from Lee's grave, Kimura talking and the visitor fighting back tears. 'That happens quite often,' Kimura says later. 'I just give it to them straight like Bruce did.

I don't help them. Bruce does. ' Kimura eventually admits him into the gun fu club, but only after making sure he understands it is more about the soul than the fist. Every Monday since Lee died, Kimura has opened the basement of his First Hill grocery store and taught the principles of Lee's early martial-arts philosophy to select students.

Grocery carts line one wall. A Bruce Lee shrine of posters and photographs line another. Men and women of various shapes and skill spread out across the concrete floor and amid wooden pillars, doing calisthenics and fighting drills. It's called the Jun Fan Gung Fu Club, after Lee's Chinese name. Its beauty is its simplicity. There are no fancy outfits or macho posing.

It is informal but down-to-business. Although Kimura never asked them to, club members head outside after each session and clean up his parking lot. Kimura charges $30 a year, about 60 cents a week, just enough to pay for club picnics and supplies such as punching bags. He does not make a dime. He does not advertise. He does not want fame.

He does not want champions or wannabes. 'I interview everyone who wants to be part of this,' he says. 'If they want to be a champion I tell them I can't help them, but if they want camaraderie and perhaps become a better person then we might have something for them. ' Kimura teaches what Lee taught during his Seattle years, between 1959 and 1964. Lee's style was ever-evolving but its foundation took shape here. Kimura emphasizes Lee's philosophical side, hidden from popular view by his startling speed, power and grace.

Kimura says he has two left feet and doesn't know all that much, but anyone who has felt the force of his controlled punch or seen him do close-quarters combat called 'sticking hands' knows that's not true. Chris Sato, one of his assistant instructors, knew Lee and says it is the purity of Kimura's purpose that makes the club unique. 'Taky feels a closeness to Bruce and a responsibility to him,' Sato says. 'He teaches without the pollution of money or belts. It's funny, but when you walk down those stairs and into that modest basement you feel honored to be hearing Bruce's words.

' Lee was both a maverick and a pragmatist. He borrowed from all kinds of fighting disciplines, including fencing and boxing. He incorporated what worked and tossed what didn't. He criticized established fighting systems as being too rigid, stifling and impractical for the street. He, in return, was criticized by some martial artists as lacking respect.

He eventually created his own style, Jeet Kune Do, but refused to call it a style because he feared once he did, it would become limiting. He expected students to use the principles he provided and then experiment, using only the parts that worked for them. Kimura, though, became concerned that instructors who never had contact with Lee were claiming to be experts in Jeet Kune Do. Three years ago, he helped start the Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do Nucleus, a group of Lee's family, key students and friends, dedicated to ensuring the principles of his art don't become too fragmented.

'I was worried that one day people would say, 'What the heck was this Bruce Lee guy teaching anyway?' Bruce revolutionized the martial arts. We owe it to him to perpetuate the system as he meant it. ' The two men were extreme opposites when they met here in late 1959. Lee was 19.

He had grown up in Hong Kong and had been in Seattle less than a year. He struggled with the American culture and language, but was sure about his martial-arts ability, exquisite even then. He was brash and confident, ambitious and focused. Kimura was 36, born and raised in Clallam Bay on the northwest tip of the Olympic Peninsula. He was working with his parents, brothers and sisters at the First Hill market he now owns. He still hadn't recovered from spending years in an internment camp during World War II.

The U.S. government uprooted Kimura and his family the day before he was to graduate from high school. 'My parents used to tell us kids we shouldn't expect to be more than second-class citizens here and I used to argue with them about it,' Kimura says. 'Then, in the snap of the fingers, it happened. All those years later, I still didn't feel equal. If I felt someone walking behind me on the street I would have to stop, move over and let them pass. ' Lee was born in San Francisco while his parents were touring with a Chinese opera company, so he had U.S. citizenship.

Some accounts say his parents sent him to America because he was getting into too many street fights in Hong Kong. He was a born performer. He acted in 20 Chinese films as a youngster and won the Hong Kong cha-cha championships as a teenager. He was a kinetic genius, able to copy, master and explain virtually any movement, even ballet, almost immediately. He was hyper and showy and quickly got attention here by holding a series of martial-arts demonstrations at festivals and schools. Kimura, who was studying judo, heard about Lee and decided to see what the fuss was about.

By the time they met, Lee already had five or six informal students, most of them street toughs he met at Edison Technical School on Capitol Hill. They would practice in parks, parking garages, open gyms, anywhere they could find space. Lee didn't charge; they were his friends and he was learning from them how to adapt his style against Western-style fighters. Lee was only 5-foot-7 and 130 pounds, but hit like a heavyweight.

The first time the two squared off, Lee threw a series of rapid-fire punches, stopping each inches from Kimura's face. Kimura was both intimidated and fascinated. He joined the group, but made it a point never to hang around after the workouts. Lee was too frenetic, too much the teenager for him.

Slowly, Kimura began listening to Lee, impressed not only with the taoism he would spout, but how direct and dead-on his observations were. Lee was blunt, sometimes cruelly so, and most often right. He could dissect not only a movement, but an attitude as well. Lee built up Kimura, repeatedly telling him he was no worse or better than anyone else. Once you set a limit, Lee would say, you are doomed to adhere to it. But to Kimura, it was Lee's unshakeable confidence that made him so mesmerizing.

Lee was adamant about changing the American stereotype of Asians being somehow docile, but he also upset some members of the Chinese martial-arts community at the time by insisting on teaching the skill to whites. For the first few years here, Lee lived in a tiny room above a Broadway restaurant owned by Ruby Chow, a family friend and later a King County councilwoman. He worked in her restaurant and stuffed newspapers in The Seattle Times mail room. He attended the University of Washington, where he studied philosophy. When Lee finally opened his first formal gun fu school in Seattle, the friends he had been teaching for free opted out. They didn't want to start paying for it or calling their friend, Bruce, 'sift (master).

' Kimura stayed on and Lee made him his assistant instructor. Kimura played the punching bag at his demonstrations. Lee would blast Kimura with his famous 'one-inch punch' and clip his ears with nunc haku (chained-linked batons). Lee was so good he hurt Kimura only once. When Lee married Linda Cadwell, a Garfield High School graduate, Kimura was the best man.

When Lee moved down to Oakland in 1964, Kimura ran his University District club, send ing all the money to Lee. Kimura closed the club in 1967 or 1968, when Lee got the role of Kato in 'The Green Hornet,' and began tutoring Hollywood stars such as Steve McQueen and James Coburn in the martial arts for $275 an hour. The TV show lasted only one year. Although Lee made a lasting impression as Kato, Hollywood didn't come through with starring roles, so he returned to Hong Kong, where he made a series of cheap but classic martial-arts films that made him a star there. While Lee was becoming famous, Kimura became the first U.S. importer of Japanese mandarin oranges since World War II. His two brothers had spent more than 15 years and $100,000 setting the groundwork, but both men died before the deal was done.

Kimura stepped in and made sure it happened. A few years later, he also became the first importer of Japanese crystal pears. He says he could not have navigated the project, which involved two governments, trade restrictions, politics and double-talk, if Lee hadn't given him self-confidence. Lee continued to pass along some of his latest techniques to Kimura and ask for business advice.

He offered Kimura a role as a foe in 'The Game of Death,' but the grocer turned him down, saying he was too old and not nearly good enough. Less than a year later, Lee died suddenly and mysteriously of cerebral edema (swelling of the brain) on July 20, 1973, just weeks before his first American-made movie, 'Enter the Dragon,' was released. The film was a hit and made him a worldwide icon. Kimura was working in his store when he heard the news.

Lee was the fittest, most indestructible person he had ever known and the early death fueled Lee's legend and fame. Kimura immediately set about on his own grass-roots tack, kicking his private basement club into high gear, teaching what he felt Lee was really about. The real Lee, Kimura says, was greater than the myth. He could stand five feet from you, warn you it was coming and then touch your face before you could do more than flinch. He didn't need camera tricks. His martial art was grounded in a resilient philosophy.

That's why he hasn't been replaced. Some of Lee's other Seattle pupils are still involved in the martial arts. Jesse Glover, his first student, teaches gun fu in his own private Pioneer Square-area club. Jim De Mile runs a do jo on Aurora Avenue North and travels the world teaching self-defense. Both are fiercely loyal to Lee in their own way, but neither was as affected by his brush with him as Kimura was. Kimura has not only spent these years fostering Lee's legacy, but he has slowly gotten his 26-year-old son, Andy, involved in the nucleus and Monday-night club.

'You can do many things to create an image, but when you lay down at night you are who you are,' says Andy Kimura, who plans to keep the club going. 'My father knows who he is and his mission in life. ' People from around the world still manage to find Kimura and quiz him about Bruce Lee. He always tries to make time and occasionally takes them on the tour: the first gun fu club, the University District church where Lee wed, the restaurant the early students gathered in for dim sum and, of course, the grave. 'I am so amazed how people will come here and be so nervous meeting me because I was Bruce's friend,' Kimura says. 'I tell them, 'I'm just an old man.

' ' Perhaps they see an old man with a little Bruce Lee in him or an old man who, by staying true to a friendship, has managed to live a life worth remembering. JFJKD Instructor List The Philosophy of Bruce Lee The Mystery of Bruce Lee's Death by Jake Seal Bruce Lee, dressed in the traditional Chinese outfit he wore in the movie Enter The Dragon, was laid to rest in Lakeview Cemetery in Seattle in late July of 1973. But long before Lee's sudden and tragic death in a Hong Kong apartment at age 32, rumors were rife throughout the Orient that he had been wounded or killed in fights. 'One day, I got a long-distance call from Hong Kong's largest newspaper,' Lee recalled. 'They asked me if I was still alive. 'Guess who you are talking to?' I replied.

' Thus, when Lee actually did die, speculation abounded as to the cause. The rumors ranged from Lee being killed by Hong Kong triads (gangsters) because he refused to pay them protection money - something that was common for Chinese movie stars to do at that time to his being killed by an angry martial artist's dim mak (death touch) strike. Some people claimed Lee was cursed he had just bought a house in Hong Kong that was supposed to be haunted or that he had died while making love to actress Betty Tingpei, or that he had angered the Chinese martial arts community by teaching foreigners, and that he had been killed in a challenge match. Many Chinese believed Lee was the victim of too much gum Ilk (intensity) in his training, while others cited drug use as the cause for his sudden demise. Still others believed that Lee's fate was sealed at birth, that it was in the stars. And, finally, there are those who think Lee's death was staged, and that he is merely waiting for the right time to return to society.

The facts of the case are this: Lee died after falling into a coma. The coroner's report was inconclusive, and medical authorities came up with five reasons for Lee's untimely death. However, they all agreed that it was caused by a cerebral edema (a swelling of the brain caused by a congestion of fluid). But what caused the edema became a matter of speculation. For the most part, the course of events on that fateful July day in 1973 can be pieced together. According to Lee's wife, Linda, Bruce met film producer Raymond Chow at 2 p.m. at home to discuss the making of Game of Death.

They worked until 4 p. m., and then drove together to the home of Betty Tingpei, a Taiwanese actress who was to also have a leading role in the film. The three went over the script at Tingpei's home, and then Chow left to attend a dinner meeting. A short time later, Lee complained of a headache and Tingpei gave him a tablet of Equagesica kind of super sapir in. Apart from that, Lee reportedly consumed nothing but a couple of soft drinks. At around 7: 30 p. m., Lee lay down for a nap and was still asleep when Chow called to ask why he and Tingpei had not yet shown up for dinner as planned. The actress told Chow she could not wake Lee.

The ensuing autopsy found traces of cannabis in Lee's stomach, but the significance of this discovery is debatable. Some believe the cannabis caused a chemical reaction that led to the cerebral edema, but the coroner's inquiry refutes this theory. In fact, one doctor was quoted as saying that the cannabis being in Lee's stomach was 'no more significant than if Bruce had drunk a cup of tea that day. ' Dr. R.R. Lynette of Queen Elizabeth Hospital viewed Lee's death as a hypersensitivity to one or more of the compounds found in the headache tablet he consumed that afternoon.

Although his skull showed no injury, his brain had swollen considerably, from 1,400 to 1,575 grams. None of the blood vessels were blocked or broken, so the possibility of a hemorrhage was ruled out. All of Lee's internal organs were meticulously examined, and the only 'foreign's ub stance to be found was the Equagesic. Chow came to the apartment and could not wake Lee either. A doctor was summoned, and he spent 10 minutes attempting to revive the martial artist before sending him by ambulance to Queen Elizabeth Hospital. By the time he reached the hospital, Lee was dead.

Foul play was immediately suspected as having a role in Lee's passing. Chow appeared on television to try to settle the public furor that quickly developed. He explained what happened, omitting only the fact that Lee had not died at home. The press soon uncovered the truth, however, and demanded to know what Chow was trying to cover up. R.D. Teare, a professor of forensic medicine at the University of London who had overseen more than 90,000 autopsies, was called in and declared that it was basically impossible for the cannabis to be a factor in Lee's death. In Teare's opinion, the edema was caused by hypersensitivity to either meprobamate or aspirin, or a combination of both. His view was accepted by authorities, and a determination of 'misadventure' was stamped on Lee's death.

Strangely, an early death was a conceivability that Lee had contemplated with surprising frequency. According to his wife Linda, he had no wish to live to a ripe old age because he could not stand the idea of losing the physical abilities he had strive d so hard to achieve. 'If I should die tomorrow,' he used to say, 'I will have no regrets. I did what I wanted to do. You can't expect more from life. ' 1940 - November 27 - San Francisco- In the The Year of the Dragon between 6: 00 a.m. and 8: 00 a.m. (the hour of the dragon), Lee Jun Fan, Bruce Lee is born at the Jackson Street Hospital in San Francisco Chinatown while his father and mother traveled to the U.S. Lee Hoi Chuen, Bruce's father, was performing with the Cantonese Opera Company in America.

At three months old, Bruce debuts in 'Golden Gate Girl' in San Francisco, CA. He plays role of a female baby, carried by his father. 1941 (Age 1): Hong Kong - Bruce and his parents return to Kowloon, their family home. They move to into an apartment at 218 Nathan Road, Kowloon district. The apartment is located on the second story of a building which contained a store on the ground level. 1946 (Age 6): Hong Kong - Bruce makes his first major childhood movie in The Beginning of a Boy.

Later this year, he performs in The Birth of Mankind, and My Son, Ah Cheun. (During the later years of his childhood, Bruce appears in 20 more films in Asia. In these films, Bruce's vivid facial expressions begin to develop, and they foreshadow his future expressions in his famous Kung-Fu movies. Bruce becomes nearsighted and starts wearing glasses. (He will later start wearing contacts, suggested to him by a friend who is an optometrist.) 1952 (Age 12): Hong Kong - Bruce begins attending La Salle College. 1953 (Age 13): Hong Kong - After being beaten up by a street gang, Bruce begins to take Kung-Fu lessons, despite local Hong Kong laws, outlawing street fights.

This is the first, and the last time Bruce looses a fight. He begins to train under Sifu Yip Man, a master of the wing chan system of Kung-Fu. 1954 (Age 14): Hong Kong - Bruce takes up cha-cha dancing. 1958 (Age 18): Hong Kong - Bruce wins the Crown Colony Cha-Cha Championship. Bruce has a leading role in the film The Orphan. This is the last movie Bruce makes as a child actor.

This is the only movie where Bruce does not fight. 1958 (Age 18): ? - Bruce enters the 1958 Boxing Championships and defeats the reigning three year champion, Gary Elms. 1959 (Age 19): Hong Kong - Because of numerous street fighting, causing police involvement, Bruce's father and mother decide that Bruce should take a three week voyage to the United States. The trip is a possible means to get him back on the right track.

He return to his birth-place -- San Francisco Chinatown. Time was also running out for him to claim his American Citizenship. 1959 (Age 19): San Francisco - Seattle - With $15 from his father, and $100 from his mother, Bruce arrives in the United States, living with an old friend of his father. Later, he moves to Seattle to work for Ruby Chow, another friend of his father. He eventually enrolls in Edison Technical School and earns his high school diploma. Bruce begins to teach his Martial Art skills in backyards and city parks.

1961 - March (Age 21): Seattle- Bruce enrolls at the University of Washington, studying Philosophy. He teaches Kung-Fu to students at school. 1963 - Summer (Age 23): Hong Kong - Bruce proposes to Amy Sanyo but is turned down. Bruce returns to HongKong with friend Doug Palmer for the first time since his arrival in the U.S. to visit family. He then returns to Seattle at the end of summer to continue his education. 1963 - October 25 (Age 23): Seattle - Bruce takes out Linda Emery (his future wife) for their first date.

They have dinner at the Space Needle. Bruce gives notice to Ruby Chow and leaves her restaurant. He starts the first Jun Fan Kung-Fu Institute. 1963 - Fall (Age 23): Seattle - Bruce moves his Jun Fan Kung-Fu Institute into a building (4750 University Way) near the university campus. He teaches any person of any race. (most Asian Martial Arts schools would only teach people of their own race) At Garfield High School, Bruce demonstrates the 'One-Inch Punch'.

This is the punch he would later make famous at the 64' Long Beach Internationals and which was developed by him and James De Mile in Seattle. Bruce would hold his arm straight out, and with a shrug of his shoulder, knock a man straight across the ground. 1964 (Age 24): ? Bruce meets Jhoon Rhee at the International Karate Championships. The two would remain good. (Jhoon Rhee will invite Bruce to Washington, D.C. to appear at tournaments.) 1964 - June (Age 24): ?

- Bruce discusses with James Yimm Lee plans to open a second Jun Fan Kung-Fu Institute in Oakland, CA. 1964 - Summer - Oakland (Age 24): Plans are finalized, and Bruce leaves Seattle to start a second Jun Fan Kung-Fu school in Oakland. 1964 - August 17 (Age 24): Seattle - Bruce returns to Seattle to marry Linda. They soon move to Oakland. 1964 - August 2 (Age 24): Long Beach, CA - Ed Parker, known as the Father of American Karate (Kenpo), invites Bruce to give a demonstration. Bruce shows off his 'one-inch punch,' and his two-finger push-ups, where he literally does 'two' finger push-ups.

At his first International Karate Championships, Jay Sebring, the hair stylist for Batman, William dozier, a producer, who is looking to cast a part in a TV series he was developing. Sebring then gives a film of Bruce's demo to Dozier who is impressed at Bruce's super-human abilities. Bruce later flies down to Los Angeles for a screen test. 1964 - August 4 (Age 24): Oakland - Bruce leaves for Seattle. He will propose to Linda.

1965 (Age 24): Oakland - Several months after he begins teaching, he is challenged by, Wong Jack Man, a leading Kung-Fu practitioner in the Chinatown Community. They agree: If Bruce looses, he will, either close his school, or stop teaching Caucasians; and if Jack looses, he will stop teaching. Jack Man Wong does not belie Bruce would actually fight, and tries to delay the match. Bruce becomes angered and insists that they not wait. Wong then tries to put limitations on techniques. Bruce refuses 'rules " and the two go no holds barred.

Bruce begins to pound his opponent in only a couple of seconds. As Bruce is winning, Wong attempts to flee, but is caught by Bruce. Bruce begins to beat him on the ground. Students of the other teacher attempted to step in and help their teacher, James Lee, Bruce's good friend prevent this.

He is determined that he is not in his top physical condition. Thus, the early concepts of Jeet Kune Do (JKD), 'The art of the intercepting fist' is created. JKD is an art including techniques of all types of fighting. (i.e. American Boxing, Thai Kick Boxing, Japanese Karate, etc.) His style is no style. Bruce is signed to a one-year option for The Green Hornet. He is paid an $1800 retainer. 1965 - February 1 (Age 25): Oakland, CA - Brandon Bruce Lee is born.

1965 - February 8 (Age 25): Hong Kong - Bruce's father passes away in Hong Kong. Bruce returns to Hong Kong for his fathers funeral. As tradition dictates, in order to obtain forgiveness for not being present when his father died, Bruce crawls on his knees across the floor of the funeral home towards the casket wailing loudly and crying. 1965 - May (Age 25): ? Bruce uses the retainer money from the Green Hornet and flies himself, Linda, and Brandon back to Hong Kong in order to settle his father's estate affairs. While in HongKong, Bruce takes Brandon to see Yip Man to persuade Yip to perform on tape.

Bruce wants to take the footage back to Seattle and show his students what the man looks like in action. Yip modestly declines. 1965 - September (Age 25): Seattle - Bruce, Linda, Brandon return to Seattle. 1966 (Age 26): Los Angeles - Bruce and family move to Los Angeles to an apartment on Wilshire and Galley in Westwood. This is where he begins working on a new TV series called The Green Hornet as Kato. The Green Hornet series starts filming and Bruce is Paid $400 per episode.

Bruce buys a 1966 blue Chevy Nova. Bruce is later known to have gotten the part of Kato because he was the only person who could accurately pronounce the star's name, Britt Reid. He later opens third branch of the Jun Fan Kung-Fu Institute in Los Angeles' Chinatown. 1966 - September 9 (Age 26): Los Angeles - The Green Hornet series premiers. 1967-1971 (Age 27-31): Hollywood - During this time, Bruce lands bit parts in various films and. V. series.

He also gives private lessons for up to $250 an hour to personalities Steve McQueen, James Coburn, James Garner, Lee Marvin, Roman Polanski, and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Bruce meets Chuck Norris in New York at the All American Karate Championships in Washington D.C. Chuck fights Joe Lewis and wins. 1967 (Age 27): Washington, D.C. - Bruce meets Joe Lewis at The Mayflower Hotel while both were guests at the 67' National Karate Championships. Joe is competing in the tournament and Bruce is making special appearances as Kato. 1967 - February (Age 27): Los Angeles - Bruce opens a 3rd school at 628 College Street, Los Angeles, CA. DanInosanto serves as assistant instructor.

1967 - July 14 (Age 27): Los Angeles - The last episode of The Green Hornet Series shows. The movie is later said to have failed because Bruce, a minor role became more popular than the main character. 1969 - April 19 (Age 29): Santa Monica, CA Shannon Lee is born. 1969 (Age 29): ? - A scriptwriter is hired and paid $12 K by Stirling Silliphant and James Coburn to write a script for the Silent Flute. The script produced is unacceptable, and no other scriptwriter could seen to do the job.

They then decide to write it themselves. 1970 (Age 30): Los Angeles - Bruce injures his sacral nerve and experiences severe muscle spasms in his back while training. Doctors told him that he would never kick again. During the months of recovery he starts to document his training methods and his philosophy of Jeet Kune Do. Later after his death, The Tao of Jeet Kune Do is published by his wife in memory of Bruce Lee.

1970 (Age 30): Hong Kong - Bruce and Brandon fly to Hong Kong and are welcomed by fans of The Green Hornet Show. Bruce sends Unicorn to talk to Run Run Shaw on his behalf and inform Shaw that he would be willing to do a movie for him for $10 K. Shaw makes counter-offer of a seven year contract and $2 K per film which Bruce declines. 1971 - February (Age 31): India - Bruce, James Coburn, Stirling Silliphant fly to India to scout locations for The Silent Flute. They spend one month searching but are forced to call off the search as Coburn backs out of the project. This trip gives Bruce the idea for Game of Death, where a fighter, mastering in several techniques, will go from one level to the next in a temple: the first level (the level of weaponry), the second level (the level of the nine degree black belt), and the third level ('The level of the unknown. ' ) 1971 (Age 31): Hong Kong.

- Bruce takes a short trip back to Hong Kong to arrange for his mother to live in the. S. Unknowingly to him, he had become a superstar for The Green Hornet was one of the most popular TV shows in Hong Kong. Later, he is approached by Raymond Chow, owner of a new production company, and offered the lead role in a new film called The Big Boss. Bruce accepts. Bruce is supplied with small furnished apartment at 2 Man Wan Road - Kowloon, HK. Wu Ngan, moves in with Bruce and Linda.

Later Wu Ngan marries and his new wife moves in as well. Brandon attends La Salle College. The same school Bruce attended only 15 years before. Bruce is interviewed by Canadian talk show host, Pierre Bert on, for a TV program being filmed in Hong Kong. This is the only on film said to be in existence. 1971- July (Age 31): Thailand - Filming begins for The Big Boss (released in the U.S. as Fists of Fury).

The Big Boss opens in Hong Kong to great reviews and mobs of fans. 1971 - December 7 (Age 31): Hong Kong - Bruce receives telegram, notifying him that he had not been chosen for the part in the upcoming series, The Warrior. This series was later released as Kung-Fu, staring David Carradine, who doesn't know anything about martial arts. (The show aired a sABC-TVs Movie of the Week on February 21, 1972.) 1972 (Age 32): Hong Kong - Fist of Fury (released in the U.S. as The Chinese Connection) is released. It grosses more than The Big Boss and further establishes Bruce as a Hong Kong superstar. Bruce gets a larger budget, a larger salary, and more power of directing in this film.

Bruce begins work on Game of Death and films several fight scenes including Danny Inosanto and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Bruce appears on Hong Kong's TVB channel for a hurricane disaster relief benefit. In a demo Bruce performs, he breaks 4 out of 5 boards, one of which is hanging in the air with a line of string. Brandon even performs and breaks a board with a sidekick! Bruce helps Unicorn, a fellow actor, by assisting him for one day and supervises fight action sequences in Unicorn's film, The Unicorn Palm - Footage of Bruce on the set is used in the movie and Bruce's name appears in the credits to his surprise causing Bruce to become angry and make a public announcement denying his endorsement of the film.

Unicorn was advised to get Bruce's name in the credits, so his movie would have a better chance at being a success. 1972 (Age 32): Rome, Italy - Location shots are made for Bruce's third film The Way of the Dragon (released in the U.S. as The Return of the Dragon). This time Bruce gets almost complete control the the movie, which he writes, directs, and stars in. 1972 - December 28 (Age 32): Oakland Bruce's brother, James, dies of 'Black Lung. ' 1973 - February (Age 33): Hong Kong - Bruce gets his chance at American stardom as filming of Enter the Dragon begins while Game of Death is put on hold. It is the first-ever production between the U.S. and Hong Kong film industries.

On February 20, Bruce is guest of honor at St. Francis Xavier's school for Sports Day ceremonies. 1973 (Age 33): Los Angeles - Grace Lee, Bruce's sister, sees Bruce in Los Angeles, CA. Bruce tells her that he does not expect to live much longer and that she is not to worry about finances as he will make sure she is provided for. She rebukes him for talking that way. 1973 - April (Age 33): Hong Kong - Filming of Enter the Dragon is completed. Bruce is at Golden Harvest Studios in Hong Kong dubbing his voice for 'Enter The Dragon'.

The air conditioners had been turned off, so the microphones won't pick them up. The temperature soared. Bruce takes a break looping lines to go to the bathroom and splash water on his face. In he bathroom, he passes out on the bathroom floor.

He revives twenty minutes later just as assistant sent to find out what was keeping him walks in and discovers him on the ground. He tries to conceal his collapse by acting as though he has dropped his glasses on the floor and is searching for them and is helped up by the assistant. As they are walking back to the dubbing room, Bruce collapses again and is rushed to a nearby hospital. 1973 - July 10 (Age 33): Hong Kong - Bruce Lee is walking through the Golden Harvest Studios and overhears Lo Wei in a nearby room bad mouthing him. He confronts Lo Wei who retreats and summons the local police. When the police arrive Lo Wei falsely accuses Bruce of threatened him with a knife concealed in his belt buckle.

He further insists that Bruce sign a statement that he will not harm him. Bruce signs the statement to get Lo Wei off his back although Lo Wei lied to the police and Bruce never had a knife nor threatened to kill him. That same day, Bruce appears on the Hong Kong TV show, Enjoy Yourself Tonight with host Ho Sho Shin. Bruce alludes to his problems with director Lo Wei, but does not mention him by name. Bruce is asked to display his physical prowess and demonstrates his abilities.

Bruce demonstrates a technique and Shin is hurled across the stage. The show of power causes the press to indite Bruce in the paper and accuse him of bullying the talk show host though this was not the case. 1973 - July 16 (Age 33): Hong Kong - Heavy rains fall caused by a typhoon off the coast of Hong Kong. Bruce makes a $200 phone call to speak to Unicorn in his hotel room, who is filming a movie in Manila. Bruce tells Unicorn that he is worried about the many headaches he is experiencing. 1973 - July 18 (Age 33): Hong Kong - A bad Feng Shui deflector, placed on the roof of Bruce's Cumberland Road home in Hong Kong is blown off the roof by heavy rain and winds.

The deflector had been placed on the house to protect Bruce and family from bad Feng Shui; previous owners had all been plagued by financial disaster and it was believed that this was because of the incorrect positioning of the house. The deflector was to ward off evil spirits. 1973 - July 20 (Age 33): Hong Kong - Early in the morning Bruce types a letter to his attorney, Adrian Marshall, detailing business ventures he wants to discuss on his upcoming trip to Los Angeles. Bruce had tickets already set to return to the US for a publicity tour and was scheduled to appear on the Johnny Carson show. Raymond Chow goes by Bruce's house and the two discuss plans for their upcoming movie Game of Death. Linda kisses Bruce good-bye and says she is going out to run some errands and will see him later that night.

Raymond and Bruce visit Betty Ting Pei at her apartment to discuss her role in Game of Death. That evening plans had been made for them all to meet George Lazenby over dinner and enlist him for a part. Bruce explains that he has a headache, takes a prescription pain killer offered by Betty, and lies down on her bed to rest prior to dinner. Raymond Chow departs and says that he will meet them later.

Raymond Chow and George Lazenby meet at a restaurant and await Bruce and Betty's arrival, but the two nevers how up. At 9: 00 p.m. Chow receives a call from Betty; she said that she has tried to wake Bruce up but he won't come to. Betty summons her personal physician who fails to revive Bruce and who has Bruce taken to the hospital. Bruce does not revive and is pronounced dead. The doctor's are surprised that he had lasted as long as he did that night but unfortunately Betty did not get him help as soon as she could have.

Bruce Lee dies in Hong Kong of an apparent cerebral edema (swelling of the brain). After much confusion and debate, doctors declared the death of Bruce Lee as 'death by misadventure. ' Enter the Dragon was delayed from its initial premieres by four day because of the actors death. 1973 - July 25 (Age 33): Hong Kong - A funeral ceremony is held for friends and fans in Hong Kong consisting of over 25,000 people. 1973 - July 30 (Age 33): Seattle - After a smaller second ceremony in Seattle, Washington at Butterworth Funeral Home on East Pine Street, Bruce Lee is buried at Lake View Cemetery. His pallbearers included Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Danny Inosanto, Taky Kimura, Peter Chin, and his brother, Robert Lee.

1973 - August 24 Hollywood - Enter The Dragon premiers at Graumann's Chinese Theater. The movie is a success, and Bruce Lee achieves world-wide fame.