Born on this date in 1940, Bruce Lee, the renowned actor and martial-arts expert, entered the world in San Francisco, California. Despite a career that was tragically brief, Lee emerged as a film star in Asia and became a posthumous pop-culture icon in America.
While on tour in America, Lee’s father, a Chinese opera star, welcomed him into the world.
In 1941, the Lee family relocated back to Hong Kong. During his childhood, Lee acted in around 20 Chinese films and pursued studies in dancing while training in the Wing Chun style of gung fu (often referred to as kung fu). In 1959, he made his way back to America, eventually enrolling at the University of Washington and establishing a martial-arts school in Seattle. In 1964, he wed Linda Emery, and in 1965, they welcomed their first child, Brandon Lee.
The Lees moved to Los Angeles in 1966, where Bruce landed a role on the television show The Green Hornet (1966-1967), showcasing his talents as Kato, the Hornet’s acrobatic sidekick. He also participated in karate tournaments across the United States and continued to offer martial-arts instruction to private clients, including Steve McQueen.
Desiring better acting opportunities than Hollywood was providing, Lee returned to Hong Kong in the early 1970s. He successfully made a name for himself in Asia, starring in the action films The Big Boss (1971) and The Way of the Dragon (1972), both of which he wrote, directed, and starred in.
In August 1973, Lee’s next film, Enter the Dragon, was released in the United States by Warner Brothers. Tragically, however, Lee had passed away just one month prior, on July 20, in Hong Kong due to a brain edema, which was thought to have been triggered by a reaction to pain medication. Enter the Dragon went on to become a box-office success, grossing over $200 million, and solidifying Lee’s status as a movie icon in America posthumously.
His body was returned to Seattle for burial. The shock of his untimely death at just 32 years old sparked various rumors and speculations surrounding the circumstances of his passing. One theory suggested that Chinese gangsters were responsible for his murder, while another speculated about a potential curse on the actor.
The notion of a family curse reemerged when Brandon Lee, the 28-year-old son of Bruce, who pursued a career in acting like his father, tragically died in an accidental shooting on the set of the film The Crow on March 31, 1993. He was laid to rest beside his father in Seattle’s Lake View Cemetery.
