Screenshot from Thunderstorm, one of a few movies Lee Siu Lung starred in as a teenager.

Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris in Way of the Dragon

Bruce Lee and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in Game of Death

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Bruce Lee

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Bruce Jun Fan Lee (Chinese: 李振藩 Cantonese: Lee Jun Fan Pinyin: Lǐ Zhènfān); November 27, 1940 - July 20, 1973) was an American-born Chinese martial artist, instructor, actor, father of the combat philosophy known as Jeet Kune Do and originator of the martial art called Jun Fan Gung Fu. Bruce Lee is widely regarded as one of the most influential and famous martial artists of all time. He is also widely known as the greatest icon of martial arts cinema and a key figure of modern popular culture .

Lee's films elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial arts film to a new level and sparked a greater interest in Chinese martial arts in the West. Lee also became iconic to Chinese, as he portrayed Chinese national pride and Chinese nationalism in his movies. His pioneering efforts paved the way for future martial artists and martial arts actors such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Chuck Norris, bringing martial arts films and actors to the mainstream .

Bruce Lee's evaluation of traditional martial arts doctrines is nowadays seen as one of the first steps into the modern style of mixed martial arts. Dana White, President of UFC, has referred to Lee as the "father of mixed martial arts".

Early life

Bruce Lee was an American Born Chinese (ABC) born at the Chinese Hospital in San Francisco, California in 1940 to his Chinese father Lee Hoi-Chuen and Chinese-German mother Grace Lee. Lee's parents were on a one-year U.S. tour with the Cantonese Opera Company.

Names

Bruce's Cantonese given name, 振藩 (Jun Fan Cantonese: Janfàan Pinyin: Zhènfán), literally means "invigorate San Francisco." At birth, he was given the English name "Bruce" by Dr. Mary Glover. Mrs. Lee had not initially planned on an American name but deemed it appropriate and concurred with Dr. Glover. Interestingly the name "Bruce" was never used within his family until he enrolled in La Salle College, a Hong Kong high school, at 12 years of age, and then again at another Catholic boys' school, St Francis Xavier's College.

In addition, Lee initially had a birth name 李炫金 (Cantonese: Léi Yùngām Pinyin: Lǐ Xuànjīn) given by his mother, as at the time Lee's father was away on a Chinese opera tour. After several months, when Lee's father returned, the name was abandoned because of a conflict with the name of Lee's grandfather. Lee was then renamed Jun Fan. Finally, Lee was also given a feminine name, 李細鳳 (Cantonese: Léi Saifung Pinyin: Lǐ Xìfèng), literally "small phoenix". It was used throughout his early childhood in keeping with a Chinese custom traditionally thought to hide the child from evil spirits.