Source | Gu Xiaoge
ID | iguxiaoge
July 20 marks the 48th anniversary of Bruce Lee's death.
In addition to the labels of "kung fu superstar" and "idol of idols", those hidden corners of Bruce Lee, you know?
In May 2020, Bruce Lee's documentary "Be Water" was launched in the United States.
The director spent a lot of effort telling the story of that era when Asians were low.
Media commentary: "'Be Water' is more noteworthy and thought-provoking than the recently hit Michael Jordan documentary The Last Dance. ”
Poster for Bruce Lee's documentary "Ruoshui"
That's right, it was in that particular time.
The Chinese man, who is a quarter of German, used his 33-year limited life to crush the "curse" that had weighed on Chinese for nearly a century.
It was 1936, the Berlin Olympics, and the Chinese sports delegation had won nothing, not even a bronze medal.
On the way back to Singapore, a local newspaper published a cartoon titled "The Sick Man of East Asia" at the right time:
Under the olympic five rings, a group of Chinese with long pigtails, long robes and horse coats, and a thin body carried a large duck egg on a stretcher.
This is bruce Lee's most classic quote in the interview
Bruce Lee's father was Li Haiquan, one of the four famous Cantonese opera actors.
Her mother, He Aiyu, was born into a wealthy family and was the illegitimate daughter of the wealthy businessman He Gantang.
In terms of calculation, Bruce Lee and Ho Hongshen are still cousins of less than three generations.
Because of his parents, Bruce Lee's childhood was rich and carefree, and he was particularly domineering.
Later, Bruce Lee's classmate, Huang Xia, one of the four talents in Hong Kong, said: "In the whole La Salle College, only he bullied others, and others hardly dared to provoke him." ”
At the age of 9, under the recommendation of his father, Bruce Lee starred in the movie "Xiao lu xiang" and got a stage name "Little Li Haiquan".
In this movie, he already does the classic "touch the nose" action.
Bruce Lee grew up stubborn and wild.
He also has a young girlfriend WenLan, who goes to this little girlfriend to dance as soon as he has time.
After all, compared to cha-cha dance, his father taught him qualitative tai chi chuan, which was also too uninteresting.
In addition to dancing, Bruce Lee also loved to fight.
When he was 13 years old, he lost a fight outside and ran to the Wing Chun Boxing Gym to find Ip Man.
This learning was out of control.
Bruce Lee and Master Ip Man practice Wing Chun
Even if Bruce Lee later studied under various families: Neijiaquan, Cut Boxing, Karate, Taekwondo, etc., the most respected teacher was Ip Man.
However, peace like Master Ip Man could not make him change his competitive nature.
During Bruce Lee's twelve years in the United States, many major events have gone down in history: the assassination of Kennedy; Johnson's order to bomb Hanoi, Vietnam; the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War; black riots, anti-racist discrimination demonstrations; hippie movements everywhere...
But with his love for kung fu and a heart that wants to fight for the Chinese, he is like a chivalrous warrior walking in a foreign country, with no ears outside the window, bent on fighting for a piece of the sky in Hollywood.
It all starts with a small note.
In 1969, Bruce Lee wrote such a passage in a small note at the home of a friend in the United States.
I, Bruce Lee, will be the highest-paid superstar in the United States. In return, I will dedicate the most exciting and shocking performances.
Starting in 1970, I will earn a worldwide reputation; by 1980, I will have a fortune of $10 million, when I and my family will live a happy, harmonious, and happy life.
—Bruce Lee, "My Clear Goal"
Between the lines, Bruce Lee's ambitions are unmistakable. This is his 10th year in the United States.
As it turned out, he didn't accomplish that goal.
If he had lived longer, he might have been able to achieve it in the end, but there was never a if in the world.
Bruce Lee in the United States
In 1966, the advent of the TV series "The Green Hornet" did not make much waves in the United States, but this was the starting point for Bruce Lee to enter Hollywood.
Leaning against the wall on the right is Bruce Lee from The Green Hornet
In any case, for Bruce Lee, and even for the Chinese, this was a "major victory".
Because this is the first time that Chinese people have appeared in Hollywood as a positive starring role, Americans can see "Chinese Kung Fu" for the first time.
He once swore to heaven not to make ugly Chinese characters.
Bruce Lee drew a circle for himself, trapped himself, and in the following year, there were very few films that met Bruce Lee's requirements.
And he himself was in the mud.
Bruce Lee told the Americans about boxing
Later, his daughter Li Xiangning was born, and the heavy mortgage and car loan made him only bow to life.
Bruce Lee's family
Bruce Lee advised himself, running the dragon set, it is impossible for every image to be positive, the most important thing is to play the moment when he was killed, and what he wants is to "die" wonderfully.
In addition to giving in, Bruce Lee also had to face many new fears, such as riding horses and diving.
And the money that can be earned by running the dragon set is not much.
Bruce Lee's ideals, which he had written on the note, disappeared in a flash.
In front of him every day was the next bill that could never be paid.
It was his hardest year in the United States. Myopic glasses were broken and there was no money to change, so they could only be wrapped in tape and continued to use.
Bruce Lee's signature side kick
Most of the time, Bruce Lee was preoccupied. Sometimes when he woke up in the middle of the night, he couldn't help but cry in bed.
Running the dragon set can never come out.
While wiping away tears, Bruce Lee made another vow: to compose his own script, to integrate martial arts actions into the film, and to completely reverse the image of the Chinese in film and television works.
In 1971, a close friend of Bruce Lee's disciples introduced him to Warner director Fred.
As soon as Fred saw him in person, he knew that the small Chinese man in front of him who could play a double-cut stick was the perfect candidate for the role of the script he was preparing, "Traces of the Dragon and the Tiger".
But when it came time to set the role, Bruce Lee was told that there was no role suitable for him, on the grounds that he was "too Chinese".
Meaning Chinese face appeared on the screen, and no American wanted to see it.
Eventually, Dragon Trail was renamed Kung Fu and shot for 3 seasons, starring white actor David Caraf, which was critically acclaimed and became a classic.
David Carradin's image in Kung Fu
Bruce Lee felt hurt and even began to hate the Hollywood model.
Ironically, the word Kung Fu was coined by Bruce Lee.
More than half a century later, daughter Li Xiangning stumbled upon an 8-page script manuscript of her father called "Dragon Warrior", which tells the history of Chinese blood and tears.
When Bruce Lee forced the "Dragon Warrior" manuscript to Hollywood, people only thought it was garbage.
Bruce Lee could not have been a white hero, at least not then.
Autographed manuscript of Bruce Lee's Dragon Warrior
In addition to encountering many obstacles in his career, in 1970, Bruce Lee also suffered a major physical injury and was almost paralyzed.
Because of too much thought and distraught, he carried a 125-pound barbell to do "body forward flexion" without sufficient warm-up, and suddenly sprained his waist, and the pain struck instantly.
Schwarzenegger demonstrated weight-bearing forward flexion, using an 80-pound barbell
This action caused permanent damage to his fourth lumbar nerve. The doctor announced the unbelievable news: he could no longer practice kung fu, and even walking became a problem.
Bruce Lee, who was lying in bed unable to move, could not accept such a diagnosis, and he had always been a fanatic with positive thoughts about life.
During his recuperation, he looked at his collection of 2500 books all day long, and finally found sustenance:
"Explore yourself."
"Illuminate yourself with your own light."
"Willpower can remove all obstacles, even pain."
He loves to read, and there is a whole wall of books in the house
Unexpectedly, a miracle really happened - Bruce Lee recovered, as usual, like divine help.
At this time, Hong Kong's film and television giants frequently threw olive branches.
At the same time, "Silent Flute", which was originally shelved, was also put on the agenda by Warner; director Scott re-tailored a script for Bruce Lee, "Blind Pursuit".
For a time, he was originally forced into a desperate situation, and suddenly there were several more roads in front of him. A new question arises: How to choose?
Bruce Lee drove to Las Vegas, spent $40 to find an astrologer, asked him to give an answer, and the astrologer finished divination and said: You will become the big star of the East.
Bruce Lee listened and immediately decided to return to Hong Kong, because a new dawn was about to appear.
In the Hong Kong film and television circle in the 1960s and 1970s, the Shaw family was dominant.
At this time, Shao's publicity director Zou Wenhuai ran away and set up Jiahe Company, and a group of actors were urgently needed to open the situation.
Bruce Lee signed Jiahe, and he will star in two films: "Big Brother Tangshan" and "The Great Hero Huo Yuanjia", each paid $7500.
At this time, three days before flying to Hong Kong to shoot "Big Brother Tangshan", Bruce Lee continued to receive film contracts from the United States.
The opportunity that I could not wait for before, now it seemed as if I had made an appointment, and I flew towards him in unison.
Stills from "Big Brother Tangshan"
Fist to flesh, real fighting scenes, no one in Hong Kong has ever filmed before.
Coupled with the script written by Ni Kuang, "Big Brother Tangshan" became a hit and the field was full.
Soon after, "Jingwumen" came out, and the clip where Chen Zhen smashed the "Sick Man of East Asia" plaque set off a warm applause in the cinema every time.
Chinese don't insult, Chinese hard bones!
Bruce Lee confronts Bob Baker (left) in Jingwumen in 1972
Bruce Lee himself also felt that after filming "Jingwumen", it was different.
He went to see the premiere with Ni Kuang, and when more than a thousand fans in the movie theater saw him, they screamed loudly. Outside the cinema, traffic was all blocked, and the police had to mobilize a large number of police forces to dredge the traffic.
He had seen this scene in the United States, but it had never happened to him.
Jackie Chan did a group performance in "Jingwumen"
Unfortunately, such a warm day is too short.
On May 10, 1973, 33-year-old Bruce Lee fainted on the spot while dubbing "Dragon Fight Tiger Fight" in English and was taken to the hospital.
The doctor said: His body is as strong as an 18-year-old.
Paralysis has survived, what is a fainting?
Bruce Lee did not care about this small matter, after being discharged from the hospital, he was still in good spirits, in addition to frequent migraines, his weight began to decline.
Two months later, when Bruce Lee and Zou Wenhuai went to Ding Pei's house to discuss the script, they had a headache and Ding Pei gave him a piece of painkiller.
Bruce Lee lay down on the bed to rest, and this sleep never woke up again.
The doctor said it was cerebral edema, and the court said it was death by misfortune. But fans can't accept it, which leads to countless speculations.
Some say he was murdered by the underworld; some say shaw assassinated him; some say he was cursed to death by a Vietnamese wizard, and so on.
Bruce Lee's death remains a mystery to this day.
At the funeral, 30,000 fans came to mourn him.
Widow Linda endured the grief and said: "He always believed that the soul is the embryo of the body, and the day of death is when the soul awakens, and the spirit is always there." The day we wake up, we will meet him. ”
The scene of Bruce Lee's funeral
In 1993, on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, his name was engraved on the commemorative star, and he was the first Chinese film star to appear there.
In 2004, Time magazine selected the "Top Ten Stars Influencing American Society", and Bruce Lee ranked seventh.
The reason for the selection is: "When the essence of some stars has surpassed that of stars, when they can influence an entire generation, not a group of people, or a group of people." Then he or she becomes a phenomenon. ”
Yellow, black, or white, countless people were influenced by him.
"Pear Garden disciples chant youth, cross the sea Yuping boxing true." Sweep away the sick man's keel pride, sing him ten thousand times the police came. ”
Photo of some of Bruce Lee's disciples
Today, bruce Lee would be 81 years old if he were alive.
Racial discrimination is still happening in all corners of the world, and the United States is still at the center of the whirlpool.
But China is no longer the China it was.
Finally, an appendix is a poem written by Bruce Lee, "Who Am I?" The excerpt of "Let us remember this noble soul:
Am I a giant in the crowd, a hero who looks down on the heavens, or a mediocre person who is closed to himself?
Am I a well-established, confident gentleman, a natural leader who responds to a lot, or a weak person who is cautious and frightened in front of strangers?
Behind the forced smile, there is a trembling heart, like a little teenager lost in the dark forest.
——Excerpt from Who Am I? Chapter 1
Book Recommendation: Bruce Lee: Myth and Truth by Matthew Polly, Heaven and Earth Press
The book "Bruce Lee: Myth and Truth" not only records Bruce Lee's achievements, but also records the secrets of his life that he does not want to be known. The author closely links Bruce Lee's growth experience with the background of the times, and describes the growth and transformation of Bruce Lee through a large number of life details, and how to achieve extraordinary and great hardships.
Source: Gu Xiaoge, the in-depth character history of Miss Tsinghua's sister Gu Xiaoge.
The image comes from the Internet, if there is infringement, please contact to delete. The content of this article only represents the views of the original author and has nothing to do with this platform.