Bruce Lee

On the morning of November 27, 1940 (in the Chinese year of the Dragon), Lee Jun Fan was born in San Francisco. The mother, Grace had not planned on an American name, and the father, at the time, was performing a popular Chinese opera in New York. So it was one of the Hospital employee who thought of the name Bruce. The mother concurred and from then on it was Bruce Lee. A legend was born. Shortly afterward, the family returned to Hong Kong.


Bruce's Hong Kong film career began when he was only six years old. The director of his father's latest film saw him on the set and was so impressed that he offered him a part in his father's film. This was the beginning, leading to over twenty motion picture roles and steadily increasing popularity among Hong Kong audiences.


Bruce started training in the martial arts mainly to overcome his fear of being humiliated in a street fight. As a teenager he began to get into more and more fights for no reason at all. And if he didn't win he was furious. As a result, under the great master Yip Man's Wing Chun (meaning "beautiful springtime") teachings, Bruce became a proficient martial artist, not to mention a feared street fighter. However, Bruce actually had more than one teacher. As time went by, Bruce grew. His enthusiasm towards martial arts was more apparent. He was young, energetic and competitive. He soon became acquainted with Wing-chun's basic Kung Fu. Since he was very clever, Mr Yip loved him very much and taught him many secret techniques in Win Chun Kung Fu. He became an expert in Wing Chun Kung Fu.


When Bruce was about fourteen, he discovered that "dancing" could be a great deal of fun. He had a real Knack for it and rapidly became quite polished, never lacking eager partners. Much of the balance and footwork became evident in his later fighting style. His favorite was the Cha Cha, and he spent many hours practicing extremely complex dance routines. He eventually became the Hong Kong Cha Cha Champion.


At the age of 19, Bruce was becoming more and more involved in street fighting. So in 1959 his parents decide to sent him to live with friends in the United States, Where he would finish high school. While he was staying in Seattle, Bruce was allowed to live in the restaurant's attic in exchange for his services as a busboy and waiter. Bruce finished high school and went on to college. By day he attended the University of Washington and nights he was working in the restaurant. After a few months of this, he decided that this lifestyle was not for him. He quit his job at the restaurant and began teaching Kung-fu. At the age of twenty-two, Bruce authored an extremely unique text which he titled "CHINESE GUNG-FU: The Philosophical Art of SELF-DEFENSE." This book reflected his preocupation with spiritual as well as physical development.


Before Bruce finished his Bachelor Degree in Philosophy, he meet Linda Emery, a pretty blonde coed, enrolled in his class and in 1964 they were married. Shortly afterward, they moved to California. In 1965, Bruce's son, Brandon, was born. Couples years later his daughter Shannon was born.