| cspec | 05-09-2010 12:55 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by AzNightmare
(Post 6940652)
I haven't watched all those videos yet. (at school right now)
I read an article a while back, someone that trained with Bruce Lee was doing an interview and said something about him not being as great as everyone says or believes. He became more of a legend based on hype and myths/rumors of what people say he has done. And this was coming from someone that knew Bruce personally, without the media blowing things out of proportion. He said something along the lines of Bruce being a great (martial art) actor and teacher, but not necessarily the "invincible" fighter as most would know him as.
I can't find the article anymore, but maybe someone else has stumbled upon it?
Anyway, I still think Bruce Lee's awesome. Can't wait to watch those videos when I get home.
| I actually brought this conversation with a few local Hong Kong martial artists a few weeks back talking about Bruce Lee. My father and his friends (during their younger years... much younger) trained in Hong Kong under "Wong Shun Leung" -- Bruce Lee's "See Hing" (I don't know what that translation is in English, basically the person who trained with his master before Bruce Lee started learning).
While I don't know how true that interview you saw was, or even how truthful the personal experiences that people I have talked to are -- I do believe they are much more valid because the bunch of guys my dad keeps in contacts with are great people (a firefighter who lost his arm saving a family of five, and a policeman for thirty years has earned enough credibility in my books). But I'll share what I have heard from them...
For the most part, the media did in a sense blow Bruce Lee up as an "Invincible Fighter". There was a lot of hype around him because he was undoubtedly the pride at joy of Hong Kong, if not Asia. Because he wasn't just some phoney martial artists -- he actually had talent (how you measure talent in today's standards is totally personal preference but at the time the general populous's view was so). According to my family friends, Bruce Lee was indeed a prodigy during his time. Because yes, he probably won't be able to stack up to a lot of martial artists today. With the advent of the internet, it really is much easier to "improve" yourself than before. But back then, it wasn't so easy, so in a sense, he was "great"... during his time.
While some people may of contrasting views of Bruce Lee, the general consensus with the people I talked to was that everyone viewed him as a very down to earth person regardless of how famous he became. I heard stories of when he came back to Hong Kong, he would always find my dad's master and was overall very respectful and nice to everyone. And that aspect of being so down-to-earth is what a lot of people still admire. I don't think you can find a lot of people on the streets in Hong Kong that doesn't admire or respect Bruce Lee. This doesn't seem like a lot or anything special, but in Hong Kong it means a lot, because every other person here bitches and criticizes about everything and everyone. | 