On Bruce Lee’s would-be birthday last year, we took a teary-eyed look back at some of the martial arts legend’s greatest fight scenes and real-life demonstrations, and even checked out a couple of documentaries devoted to his life and career. Not wanting to retread any old ground, we thought it would be appropriate to showcase another side of Lee’s personality this year — mainly, the thespian, the filmmaker, and the philosopher.
A true renaissance man, Lee studied philosophy and drama while attending the University of Washington — where he would meet his future wife, Linda Emery — in the early sixties. Throughout his career, Lee exuded a wit and charisma that often left those interviewing him at a loss for words (that many of these interviewers were self-contentious imbeciles to begin with only made his intelligence all the more apparent). But more than anything, it was Lee’s succinct, thoughtful, and level-headed approach to the criticism constantly being thrown his way, justified or not, that made him a star.
After the jump, we revisit some of Lee’s rarest and most revealing interviews. Check them out, then pay your respects to the father of mixed martial arts.
On Bruce Lee’s would-be birthday last year, we took a teary-eyed look back at some of the martial arts legend’s greatest fight scenes and real-life demonstrations, and even checked out a couple of documentaries devoted to his life and career. Not wanting to retread any old ground, we thought it would be appropriate to showcase another side of Lee’s personality this year — mainly, the thespian, the filmmaker, and the philosopher.
A true renaissance man, Lee studied philosophy and drama while attending the University of Washington — where he would meet his future wife, Linda Emery — in the early sixties. Throughout his career, Lee exuded a wit and charisma that often left those interviewing him at a loss for words (that many of these interviewers were self-contentious imbeciles to begin with only made his intelligence all the more apparent). But more than anything, it was Lee’s succinct, thoughtful, and level-headed approach to the criticism constantly being thrown his way, justified or not, that made him a star.
After the jump, we revisit some of Lee’s rarest and most revealing interviews. Check them out, then pay your respects to the father of mixed martial arts.
With surprisingly little reaction from the MMA blogosphere, martial arts pioneer Jim Kelly passed away over the weekend at the age of sixty-seven years old. Odds are pretty good that you recognize Kelly as Williams from Enter The Dragon, but his legacy is far greater than just that one role. Armed with his signature afro, one-liners and arsenal of kicks, Kelly broke the color-barrier for black actors in martial arts films at a time when the genre was almost exclusively reserved for Asian martial artists.
Aside from being one of the most instantly recognizable martial artists on the planet, Kelly also found the time to become a professional tennis player, an enthusiastic MMA fan, and a popular draw at conventions such as San Diego Comic-Con International. So in memory of Kelly, we’ve compiled videos of some of his greatest fights, interviews, and even some footage of him playing tennis. Enjoy.
Kelly and Lee working on fight scenes for Enter the Dragon.
With surprisingly little reaction from the MMA blogosphere, martial arts pioneer Jim Kelly passed away over the weekend at the age of sixty-seven years old. Odds are pretty good that you recognize Kelly as Williams from Enter The Dragon, but his legacy is far greater than just that one role. Armed with his signature afro, one-liners and arsenal of kicks, Kelly broke the color-barrier for black actors in martial arts films at a time when the genre was almost exclusively reserved for Asian martial artists.
Aside from being one of the most instantly recognizable martial artists on the planet, Kelly also found the time to become a professional tennis player, an enthusiastic MMA fan, and a popular draw at conventions such as San Diego Comic-Con International. So in memory of Kelly, we’ve compiled videos of some of his greatest fights, interviews, and even some footage of him playing tennis. Enjoy.
Kelly and Lee working on fight scenes for Enter the Dragon.
“Please understand, if I missed anyone, it’s been a big day. I’m a little tired.”
Arguably the most famous line of his career. Don’t even dream about pulling this line off as effortlessly as Kelly.
Highlights from Black Belt Jones, a blaxploitation staple.
Since we’re still on Black Belt Jones, we might as well include this scene.
If we ever do a “Greatest Fight Scene” Roundtable, this gem from Three the Hard Way already has my vote locked up.
The Tattoo Connection, in its entirety.
Same thing for One Down, Two To Go.
Included for scenes and facts about his tennis career.
Kelly makes a special contribution to a Lebron James Nike commercial in 2004.
Kelly on Fedor and Strikeforce back in 2010. For more of Kelly talking about the Gracies and the UFC in 2010, check out this and this.
The other two people to submit exactly-correct guesses were Jason Moles, who is disqualified based on the rule that people who work for CagePotato aren’t eligible to win contest prizes — i.e., “ReX‘s Law” — and knuckleup101.2, who’s just out of luck, pretty much. But we appreciate you guys, really. (Okay fine, knuckleup, if you want a CP t-shirt, shoot your info to [email protected].)
Thanks to everybody who played, and props once again to Warner Bros. for the hookup!
The other two people to submit exactly-correct guesses were Jason Moles, who is disqualified based on the rule that people who work for CagePotato aren’t eligible to win contest prizes — i.e., “ReX‘s Law” — and knuckleup101.2, who’s just out of luck, pretty much. But we appreciate you guys, really. (Okay fine, knuckleup, if you want a CP t-shirt, shoot your info to [email protected].)
Thanks to everybody who played, and props once again to Warner Bros. for the hookup!
In 2008, we declared Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon to be the Greatest Fight Movie of All Time, and our opinion hasn’t changed much since then. Here’s what we wrote about it at the time:
Perhaps the most perfect martial arts movie ever made. Bruce Lee infiltrates the secret island lair of an evil mastermind by way of entering his martial arts tournament. Not only does this film have all the prerequisite elements — faceless crowds of henchmen, evil dude with deadly hand attachments, philosophical digressions — it also features a cast that’s a who’s who of martial arts movies, including Black Belt Jones himself, Jim Kelly, as well as Bolo Yeung and Jackie Chan (uncredited). If the plot seems cliché, that’s probably because it’s been copied so much since then. Because it works.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1973 classic, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just released a re-mastered “Ultimate Collector’s Edition” of Enter the Dragon, which includes three new featurettes, a ton of vintage documentary footage, commentary by producer Paul M. Heller and writer Michael Allin, and collectible art cards, among other extras. And guess what? We’ve got two copies of the set to give away. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s fight-picking time.
This Saturday, Rashad Evans and Dan Henderson are meeting in the three-round main event of UFC 161. All you have to do is tell us who will win and how. Your entry should look something like this…
In 2008, we declared Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon to be the Greatest Fight Movie of All Time, and our opinion hasn’t changed much since then. Here’s what we wrote about it at the time:
Perhaps the most perfect martial arts movie ever made. Bruce Lee infiltrates the secret island lair of an evil mastermind by way of entering his martial arts tournament. Not only does this film have all the prerequisite elements — faceless crowds of henchmen, evil dude with deadly hand attachments, philosophical digressions — it also features a cast that’s a who’s who of martial arts movies, including Black Belt Jones himself, Jim Kelly, as well as Bolo Yeung and Jackie Chan (uncredited). If the plot seems cliché, that’s probably because it’s been copied so much since then. Because it works.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1973 classic, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has just released a re-mastered “Ultimate Collector’s Edition” of Enter the Dragon, which includes three new featurettes, a ton of vintage documentary footage, commentary by producer Paul M. Heller and writer Michael Allin, and collectible art cards, among other extras. And guess what? We’ve got two copies of the set to give away. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s fight-picking time.
This Saturday, Rashad Evans and Dan Henderson are meeting in the three-round main event of UFC 161. All you have to do is tell us who will win and how. Your entry should look something like this…
Evans def. Henderson via split-decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) or
Henderson def. Evans via KO, 2:56 of round 2
In other words: Winner’s last name first, and you must include the method of victory, time of stoppage, round of stoppage, or the judges’ scores if you think the fight will go the distance; we’ll need that in case of a tie-breaker. Please submit your picks to the comments section by noon PT on Saturday. Only one entry per person, please. The two closest guesses will both score the Blu-ray copies of Enter the Dragon, and we’ll announce the winners on Monday. Any questions, let us know in the comments.
Good luck everybody, and thanks to WB for the hookup! If you’re looking for a Father’s Day gift that your old man will actually appreciate, order a copy of the Enter the Dragon 40th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition Blu-ray set right here.
Today would have been the birthday of martial artist and television and movie star Bruce Lee. Lee died tragically young, but still made an indelible mark on the world during his short life by demonstrating his unique abilities as a fighter, instructor and showman.
Part philosopher, part fighter and part entertainer, Lee did much to draw attention to martial arts in a more practical way as well as blow up stereotypes of Asian people around the world. As a practitioner and teacher, Bruce did not limit training to one set of dogmatic forms or a single style. Rather, he studied any and every style he could, from wing chun to western boxing to Judo and Jiu Jitsu. He took what worked from each and jettisoned what did not. He also was a pioneer in his emphasis on strength and conditioning.
To commemorate the man Dana White calls “the father of mixed martial arts,” we’re going to get out of the way and let you enjoy some videos of him tonight. One is a collection of grainy films showing Lee during demonstrations, a couple others are clips from films of his where he’s kicking butt in style and we’ve also included a couple full-length documentaries that we enjoy on the life and careers of Lee.
Enjoy and then get out there and train, like Bruce would have you do!
Today would have been the birthday of martial artist and television and movie star Bruce Lee. Lee died tragically young, but still made an indelible mark on the world during his short life by demonstrating his unique abilities as a fighter, instructor and showman.
Part philosopher, part fighter and part entertainer, Lee did much to draw attention to martial arts in a more practical way as well as blow up stereotypes of Asian people around the world. As a practitioner and teacher, Bruce did not limit training to one set of dogmatic forms or a single style. Rather, he studied any and every style he could, from wing chun to western boxing to Judo and Jiu Jitsu. He took what worked from each and jettisoned what did not. He also was a pioneer in his emphasis on strength and conditioning.
To commemorate the man Dana White calls “the father of mixed martial arts,” we’re going to get out of the way and let you enjoy some videos of him tonight. One is a collection of grainy films showing Lee during demonstrations, a couple others are clips from films of his where he’s kicking butt in style and we’ve also included a couple full-length documentaries that we enjoy on the life and careers of Lee.
Enjoy and then get out there and train, like Bruce would have you do!
Beating up that no good O’Hara in Enter the Dragon:
Lee vs. Entire Japanese Dojo in The Chinese Connection:
As we enter the first full week of Movember, your moustache-in-progress may be looking thin, patchy, and unattractive — more befitting a McPoyle than an alpha male. Stay strong and stick with it, because you have greatness in your future.
As we enter the first full week of Movember, your moustache-in-progress may be looking thin, patchy, and unattractive — more befitting a McPoyle than an alpha male. Stay strong and stick with it, because you have greatness in your future.
Franklin def. Le via TKO, 3:02 of round 3, Knockout of the Night or
Le def. Franklin via spilt-decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29), Fight of the Night or
Franklin def. Le via armbar, 4:08 of round 2, no bonus
Submit your predictions in the comments section by Friday at midnight ET. The two closest guesses will win the shirts, and we’ll announce the winners on Monday. Good luck, and keep growing them Mo’s!
