Still businessman and. Wong, who lives in Hong Kong, remembers the ruckus he heard in his neighborhood one day in 1972, when children were excited about what would become their hero, a true legend, Bruce Lee.
The master of martial arts, whose films contributed to the global popularity of kung fu, was the first Asian to gain fame in Hollywood, but his career was suddenly halted by his early death 50 years ago.
The flame of Bruce Lee is still burning today in Hong Kong, where he spent his childhood and the last years of his life, as many of his admirers still organize annually throughout the week activities that constitute a tribute to the late, including exhibitions and workshops dedicated to martial arts.
“Every child needs a role model, and I chose Bruce Lee,” Wong, 54, who runs the city’s biggest fan club for the star, told the agency.
He added, “I had hoped that my life would be like that of Bruce Lee, who I see as handsome and strong, with great skills in martial arts, and a heroic image.”
The famous hero is revered in a training hall for the martial art of Wing Chun derived from kung fu, which Bruce Lee practiced before he invented his own fighting style called Jeet Kune Do.
And the hero remained his shining aura in the next generation, according to Mick Long, 45, who received training in this room and collected as a teenager videos of Bruce Lee.
Born in San Francisco in 1940, Bruce Lee grew up in Hong Kong and gained fame at a very early age as a child actor thanks to his famous Cantonese opera singer father.
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When he reached the age of 18, he continued his education in the United States, then taught martial arts during the next decade, before he got his first roles in Hollywood, most notably the role of Kato in the TV series “The Green Hornet”.
However, he did not get his first major role until after his return to Hong Kong, when in 1971 he starred in the martial arts movie “The Big Boss” (1971), which made him famous throughout Asia.
The following year, the films “Fist of Fury” and “The Way of the Dragon” cemented his reputation as an indomitable fighter.
On July 20, 1973, the actor, who had just finished filming his fourth film, “Enter the Dragon” (Enter the Dragon), and in the process of completing the fifth, had cerebral swelling, which arose as a reaction to painkillers.
In 2004, his fans managed to erect a bronze statue of him on the waterfront of Hong Kong. However, a campaign to rehabilitate his former home failed to save it from demolition in 2019.
Yip said that by visiting an exhibition dedicated to Bruce Lee in a public museum with her two children, she wanted to convey to them “a symbol of old Hong Kong.”
Weng, who organized a smaller exhibition in Sham Shui Po, said interest in Bruce Lee tended to fade among young people, but he thought his philosophy might once again become popular.
