History Creator / BruceLee

* WorldsBestWarrior: Lee's characters are all portrayed as the world's best martial artist.

His experience in martial arts was varied, including but not limited to boxing, UsefulNotes/WingChun, UsefulNotes/{{Taekwondo}}, UsefulNotes/{{Judo}}, UsefulNotes/CatchWrestling, UsefulNotes/{{Eskrima}}, UsefulNotes/Karate, UsefulNotes/Kickboxing and a long list of Chinese styles. Moreover, Lee was said to be a DanceBattler, since he was both a badass WarriorPoet ''and'' an award-winning cha-cha-cha dancer.

His experience in martial arts was varied, including but not limited to boxing, UsefulNotes/WingChun, UsefulNotes/{{Taekwondo}}, UsefulNotes/{{Judo}}, UsefulNotes/CatchWrestling, UsefulNotes/{{Eskrima}} and a long list of Chinese styles. Moreover, Lee was said to be a DanceBattler, since he was both a badass WarriorPoet ''and'' an award-winning cha-cha-cha dancer.

* AllYourPowersCombined: He created Jeet Kune Do by taking elements from a variety of other martial arts such as boxing, Karate, Wing Chun, Judo, Wrestling, Tai Chi, Taekwondo and Kickboxing and added his own spin on them to make them more suitable for real-life combat situations.

* SimpleYetAwesome: Lee's general approach to fighting and one of the major tenets of Jeet Kune Do was simplicity, due to having created it more for street fights than competitions. As such, Lee's characters always go for straightforward moves such as relatively simple punches and kicks delivered with devastating strength and speed to end fights as quickly as possible.

* ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'': Mr. Yoto, Karate Instructor (episode "Pick on a Bully Your Own Size")

* PintSizedPowerhouse: At 5'8 and about 145 pounds, he was hardly a large man, but his characters pack a whallop.

* DaytimeDramaQueen: Was a big fan of ''Series/GeneralHospital'', and was known to be ''very'' cranky if he missed an episode.

* SimpleYetAwesome: Lee's general approach to fighting and one of the major tenets of Jeet Kune Do was simplicity, due to having created it more for street fights rather than competitions. As such, Lee's characters always go for straightforward moves such as relatively simple punches and kicks delivered with devastating strength and speed to end fights as quickly as possible.

Lee was, and still is, a revered figure in the world of martial arts. He espoused a CombatPragmatist fighting style and favored crosstraining between diffent martial arts to acquire their best points, tenets through which he created his own approach, Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist). This style and the philosophy behind it (the most well-known tenet being "absorb what is useful") has led some to call him the founding father of UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, though the sentiment is hardly unanimous. The popularity of ''nunchaku'' ("nunchuks") is directly tied to his use of them in several films, including ''Enter the Dragon''. He also used the knowledge gleamed from his philosophical studies to write a book about the philosophy behind his martial art. In short, this Asian man embodied the Greek ideal of having a sound mind in a sound body. He trained several people in Jeet Kune Do, including basketball star Creator/KareemAbdulJabbar, Creator/GeorgeLazenby, Creator/JamesCoburn, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/SteveMcQueen, Creator/SharonTate, and Creator/RomanPolanski.

* TheAce: All his characters are are excellent at everything they put their hands to.

Lee was, and still is, a revered figure in the world of martial arts. He espoused a CombatPragmatist fighting style and favored crosstraining between diffent martial arts to acquire their best points, tenets through which he created his own approach, Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist). This style and the philosophy behind it (the most well-known tenet being "absorb what is useful") has led some to call him the founding father of UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, though the sentiment is hardly unanimous. The popularity of ''[[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]]'' ("nunchuks") is directly tied to his use of them in several films, including ''Enter the Dragon''. He also used the knowledge gleamed from his philosophical studies to write a book about the philosophy behind his martial art. In short, this Asian man embodied the Greek ideal of having a sound mind in a sound body. He trained several people in Jeet Kune Do, including basketball star Creator/KareemAbdulJabbar, Creator/GeorgeLazenby, Creator/JamesCoburn, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/SteveMcQueen, Creator/SharonTate, and Creator/RomanPolanski.

* FightingWithChucks: He made the nunchaku famous with sequences such as the big fight in Han's basement from ''Enter the Dragon''. He also fought with both double nunchaukus and a single [[Creator/ChuckNorris Chuck]] in ''Way of the Dragon''.

Lee was, and still is, a revered figure in the world of martial arts. He espoused a CombatPragmatist fighting style and created his own approach, Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist), in order to create more practical martial arts. This style and the philosophy behind it (the most well-known tenet being "absorb what is useful") has led some to call him the founding father of UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, though the sentiment is hardly unanimous. The popularity of ''[[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]]'' ("nunchuks") is directly tied to his use of them in several films, including ''Enter the Dragon''. He also used the knowledge gleamed from his philosophical studies to write a book about the philosophy behind his martial art. In short, this Asian man embodied the Greek ideal of having a sound mind in a sound body. He trained several people in Jeet Kune Do, including basketball star Creator/KareemAbdulJabbar, Creator/GeorgeLazenby, Creator/JamesCoburn, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/SteveMcQueen, Creator/SharonTate, and Creator/RomanPolanski.

Lee was said to be a DanceBattler, since he was both a badass WarriorPoet ''and'' an award-winning cha-cha-cha dancer.

Born in UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco on the 27th of November 1940 (in a Year of and at the hour of the Dragon, appropriately), he was raised in Kowloon, Hong Kong. His father Lee Hoi Chuen was a famous Cantonese opera performer, while his mother was the adopted daughter of Ho Kom-tong, the maternal half-brother of Ho Fook [[note]]grandfather of casino and shipping magnate Stanley Ho[[/note]] and Robert Ho Tung. He had a strong command of English that helped him break away from the "halted Asian accent" stereotype and had the lean good looks to match any action star. He was trained in martial arts first by his father, and then by the Wing Chun grandmaster UsefulNotes/IpMan.

His first real break came when he was cast as Kato in ''Series/TheGreenHornet'' TV series as a HypercompetentSidekick. Kato became a BreakoutCharacter; in Asia, the show was [[MarketBasedTitle renamed]] ''The Kato Show''. Lee auditioned for the leading role in ''Series/KungFu1972'' but lost to Creator/DavidCarradine for several reasons including race and accent. He developed a television series, Ah Sahm, later retitled ''The Warrior'', that he intended to star in, but after the success of ''Film/TheBigBoss'', he focused on his movie career. His original concept would finally be produced in as ''Series/Warrior2019'' on Creator/{{Cinemax}}. Returning to Hong Kong, Lee proceeded a series of acclaimed and extremely popular martial arts films there that foster a strong international fanbase for Asian MartialArtsMovie films until he was made an international star with the (internationally-produced) ''Film/EnterTheDragon''.

''Time'' named Lee a person of the 20th century as the shining example of personal improvement through physical fitness, and he is universally recognized as one of the ultimate film star "tough guys". He achieved this status with only one TV series, a scattering of TV guest appearances, and five martial arts films done in his adulthood, one of which (''[[Film/GameOfDeath The Game of Death]]'') was unfinished by the time of his death. The affectionate biographical film ''Film/DragonTheBruceLeeStory'', where he was played by Jason Scott Lee (no relation), suggests that his success in America helped to reduce the offensive levels of the Engrish-speaking, AsianAndNerdy, and [[AsianRudeness rude Asian]] stereotypes -- though Lee's work did help grow the AllAsiansKnowMartialArts stereotype as a result.

Lee was, and still is, a revered figure in the world of martial arts. He espoused a CombatPragmatist fighting style and created his own approach, Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist), in order to create more practical martial arts. This style and the philosophy behind it (the most well-known tenet being "Absorb what is useful") has led some to call him the founding father of UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts, though the sentiment is hardly unanimous. The popularity of ''[[FightingWithChucks nunchaku]]'' ("nunchuks") is directly tied to his use of them in several films, including ''Enter the Dragon''. And his skill as a martial artist doesn't mean he was a slouch in intellectual matters: Lee studied drama at the University of Washington and also studied philosophy extensively. He used the knowledge gleamed from those philosophical studies to write a book about the philosophy behind his martial art. In short, this Asian man embodied the Greek ideal of having a sound mind in a sound body. He trained several people in Jeet Kune Do, including basketball star Creator/KareemAbdulJabbar, Creator/GeorgeLazenby, Creator/JamesCoburn, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/SteveMcQueen, Creator/SharonTate, and Creator/RomanPolanski.

Lee was said to be a DanceBattler, since he was both a badass WarriorPoet ''and'' an award-winning cha-cha-cha dancer.

* LightningBruiser: Lee made good use of his speed when filming fight scenes, and usually portrayed his strikes as sending his opponents flying.
** It is heavily rumoured that Bruce Lee had to actually ''slow himself down alot'' when filming fight scenes, as the cameras at the time apparently couldn't keep up with his speed.

* RapidFireFisticuffs: Most of his fight scenes focus on the speed at which Lee could deliver his attacks. * RatedMForManly: Most of his movies are about martial arts, and can get pretty violent.

* PintSizedPowerhouse: At 5'8 and about 145 pounds, he was hardly a large man, but hsi characters pack a whallop.

* DeadArtistsAreBetter: Dying in his prime almost certainly aided his legendary reputation.

* FingerPokeOfDoom: Lee popularized the "one-inch punch" technique, which can generate a surprising amount of power over a short distance, enough to push a man with his feet squared up off balance.
* FountainOfExpies: He has so many copies that [[BruceLeeClone they got their own trope]].

* HiddenDepths: Aside from his kicks and punches, he loved grappling, and even trained extensively in judo. However, he never went for it in movies or TV because he knew people wouldn't understand the holds and would consider the action boring.
** He was also an accomplished dancer, considering it a natural extension of his martial arts prowess. He even won numerous cha-cha-cha competitions with his wife.

* IconicOutfit: The yellow tracksuit with black stripes that Lee wore in ''Film/GameOfDeath''. Practically every self-respecting BruceLeeClone is required to wear one if they want to pay proper homage.

* RaceLift: Bruce Lee auditioned for ''Series/KungFu1972'', but Creator/DavidCarradine was cast instead because they didn't want an Asian cast in a lead role on American TV, among other reasons. In 2019, {{Creator/Cinemax}} launched a series based on Lee's similar but original project, ''Series/Warrior2019''.

* TheAce: All his characters are invariably shown as the best martial artists around. He's also this in real life, still praised by many as the greatest martial arts star in film history even close to half a century after his death.

* RealMenWearPink: He was one of the most famous martial arts actors in history and an accomplished dancer who won contests with his wife.

* BrickBreak: Lee would demonstrate his famous "one inch punch" on boards, though he would criticize board breaking later on. "Boards don't hit back".

* BullyingADragon: He was a constant victim of this as many people wanted to prove their toughness by challenging him to fights and all ended up being easily defeated.

* TheComicallySerious: Once or twice. [[http://giphy.com/gifs/reaction-26jpiPaeL2LWo Especially here.]] Notably, it was the lack of humour/comedy in his roles which prompted Jackie Chan to develop his own brand of action comedy in order to step out of Bruce's shadow.

* DoesNotLikeGuns: Inverted! Despite his impressive martial arts skills, Bruce Lee was known for possessing a personal collection of firearms for self-defense purposes, and even a couple of his martial arts movies have his character requesting to use a gun.

* GunsAreWorthless: Lee averted this trope, as he had no illusions about the supremacy of an armed man against an unarmed one. One of the reasons he signed on to ''Enter the Dragon'' was the possibility that, since he was playing a badass SecretAgent, he might get to carry a gun in a few scenes. He was disappointed when he learned how the script required his character to go in unarmed, so he changed the script slightly to have his character's annoyance at those rules reflect his own.

* IHaveManyNames: Bruce Lee, Lee Junfan/Li Zhenfan (李振藩), Sai-fon, Li Yuanxin (李源鑫) [[note]]his name as recorded in the genealogy book[[/note]], Li Yuanjian (李元鉴)[[note]]given to him when he started on his formal education[[/note]] and Li Xiaolong (李小龍). The fact that he has so many names just boosts his legendary status.

* MartialPacifist: Especially a PapaWolf one.

* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Part of his martial arts philosophy was to learn as much as he could from various disciplines and incorporate them into his own unique style, taking from Wing Chun, Karate, Tai Chi, Boxing, Judo, Wrestling, Taekwondo and Kickboxing. He encouraged the same in students and other martial artists.
* PintSizedPowerhouse: At 5'8 and about 145 pounds, he was hardly a large man, and didn't look all that imposing, until he took his shirt off and you could see how muscular he was.

* RapidFireFisticuffs: Most of his fight scenes focus on the speed at which Lee could deliver his attacks. Ironically, he sometimes had to slow down quite a bit from his normal punching and kicking speed so that the camera (shooting 24 frames per second) could capture the movement.
* RatedMForManly: Most of his movies are about martial arts, and can get pretty violent.

* SimpleYetAwesome: Lee's general approach to fighting and one of the guiding philosophies of Jeet Kune Do was to keep things as simple as possible, owing to his experience in street fights, and to use impressive but relatively straightforward moves delivered with devastating strength and speed derived from intense training and repeated practice.
* StartMyOwn: Lee created Jeet Kune Do because he felt he could have won a fight in seconds instead of minutes were it not for the then-current styles of martial arts holding him back.
* TheSilentBob: In most films, you could always tell what his character was thinking without him saying anything. In real life, however, Lee was incredibly eloquent and could speak with great wisdom, particularly evident in his appearance on the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkxqAuFKbXE4 Pierre Berton show]].

* {{UsefulNotes/WingChun}}: This style was the foundation of his martial arts training and he was even trained by the famous Ip Man.

* RaceLift: Bruce Lee auditioned for ''Series/KungFu'', but Creator/DavidCarradine was cast instead because they didn't want an Asian cast in a lead role on American TV, among other reasons. In 2019, {{Creator/Cinemax}} launched a series based on Lee's similar but original project, ''Series/Warrior2019''.

His first real break came when he was cast as Kato in ''Series/TheGreenHornet'' TV series as a HypercompetentSidekick. Kato became a BreakoutCharacter; in Asia, the show was [[MarketBasedTitle renamed]] ''The Kato Show''. Lee auditioned for the leading role in ''Series/KungFu'' but lost to Creator/DavidCarradine for several reasons including race and accent. He developed a television series, Ah Sahm, later retitled ''The Warrior'', that he intended to star in, but after the success of ''[[Film/TheBigBoss The Big Boss]]'', he focused on his movie career. His original concept would finally be produced in 2019 as ''[[Series/Warrior2019 Warrior]]'' on Creator/{{Cinemax}}. Returning to Hong Kong, Lee proceeded a series of acclaimed and extremely popular martial arts films there that foster a strong international fanbase for Asian MartialArtsMovie films until he was made an international star with the (internationally-produced) ''Film/EnterTheDragon''.

* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Part of his martial arts philosophy was to learn as much as he could from various disciplines and incorporate them into his own unique style, taking from Wing Chun, Karate, Tai Chi, Boxing, Judo, Taekwondo and Kickboxing. He encouraged the same in students and other martial artists.

He married Linda Emery, who was one of his martial art students, in 1964 and had two children with her, Brandon and Shannon.

* ''Tower of Death'' a.k.a. ''Game of Death II'': Lee Chen-chiang/Billy Lo [[note]] In actuality, Lee had nothing to do with this movie, made 8 years after his death. The film merely used stock footage of Lee from ''Enter the Dragon'', but at least one DVD still bills him as the star, which was called out by [[Creator/JamesRolfe the Bullshit Man]] in his ''You Know What's Bullshit'' series. The film also has nothing to do with the first ''Game of Death''; it was only the international English dub which changed the character's name to Billy Lo. However, the (real) star of the film does happen to be the same actor who served as the main stand-in for Lee in the first ''Game of Death''. [[/note]]

* BullyingADragon: He was a constant victim of this.