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The legendary hero, Bruce Lee, was born on 27th November, 1940 at the Jackson Street Hospital in San Francisco Chinatown. His real name was Jun Fan Lee. With love his parents called him Sai Fung. His father’s name was Lee Hoi Chuen. When Bruce Lee was born his father was performing with the Cantonese Opera Company in America. Bruce debuted at the age of three months in “Golden Gate Girl” in San Francisco, CA. He played a role of a female baby, carried by his father. In 1941, His parents returned to there hometown Kowloon, Hong Kong. Bruce Lee entered movies when he was just three years old, with the professional name Li-Siu-Lung, means Little Dragon. His first movie was The Beginning of a Boy. He later did The Birth of Mankind, and My Son, Ah Cheun. In the later years of his childhood, he appeared 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 Gung-Fu movies.
At the age of 12, Bruce began to attend La Salle College. In 1953 Bruce Lee started taking Gung-Fu Lessons. He began his training under Sifu Yip Man, a master of the wing chun system of gung-Fu. In 1954, Bruce Lee started learning Cha-cha dance and won the Crown colony Cha-Cha Championship in 1958, he was 18 years old. In 1958 only he did his last movie as a child actor was The orphan, he got the leading role in the movie. This was the only movie where Bruce didn’t fight. In the same year Bruce Lee entered Boxing Championships and defeats the reigning three year champion, Gary Elms.In 1959, Bruce’s father and mother decided to send Bruce to the United States, because of numerous street fighting, which caused police involvement. The trip was possibly to get him back on the right track. He started working as a waiter in for his father’s old friend Ruby Chow restaurant. He lived in a room above her restaurant. He eventually enrolls in Edison Technical School and earned his high school diploma. Bruce started teaching his Martial Art skills in backyards and city parks.
In 1961, Bruce enrolled himself at the University of Washington, to study Philosophy. He continued teaching his Martial Art to school students. In 1963, he started his first jun Fan Gung-Fu institute, after giving notice to Ruby Chow. In1964 at the age 24 Bruce met Jhoon Rhee at the International Karate Championships. Jhoon Rhee will invite Bruce to Washington, D.C. to appear at tournaments. Bruce started his second Jun Fan Gung-Fu Institute in Oakland, CA. His good friend, Taky Kimura, takes over as head instructor.
On 2nd August 1964 was invited to Long Beach, CA by Ed Parker, known as the Father of American Karate (Kenpo), to give a demonstration. Bruce showed off his “one-inch punch,” and his two-finger push-ups. He married Linda on 17th August, 1964 at the age of 24. On 1st February,1965 Brandon Bruce Lee was born in Oakland, CA. Bruce’s father passed away in Hong Kong on February 8,1965. In 1966 Bruce and family moved to Los Angeles where he worked in a new TV series called The Green Hornet as Kato. He opened his third branch of the Jun Fan Gung-Fu Institute in Los Angeles’ Chinatown in 1967. On April 19, 1969 Shannon Lee was born in Santa Monica, CA.
In1973 Warner Bros. signed Lee to star in his signature film, Enter the Dragon, which made money by the truckload. He made his directorial debut in what many consider his best film, 1973’s Return of the Dragon. It was the last movie Bruce Lee as an actor could complete. While in Hong Kong filming The Game of Death, Lee collapsed on the set, apparently suffering an epileptic seizure. After taking a pain killer, Lee fell asleep — and never woke up. Rumors still persist that Bruce Lee was killed by a group of kung fu experts who resented the actor’s exposing their “trade secrets” to the world. Whatever the circumstances of his death, Bruce Lee’s legend did not die with him. On July 25th,1973 at the age of 33 – A funeral ceremony was held for friends and fans in Hong Kong consisting of over 25,000 people. Bruce was dressed in the Chinese outfit he wore in Enter the Dragon. In 1973 (July 30)- After a smaller second ceremony in Seattle, Washington at Butterworth Funeral Home on East Pine Street, Bruce Lee was buried at Lake View Cemetery. His pallbearers included Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Danny Inosanto, Taky Kimura, Peter Chin, and his brother, Robert Lee. In 1973 August 24 – Enter The Dragon was premiered at Graumann’s Chinese Theater. The movie was a success, and Bruce Lee achieves world-wide fame.
In a grimly ironic twist, Bruce Lee’s son, actor Brandon Lee, likewise died under mysterious circumstances while making a film in 1993.
