......James Bryant............ Lee,

1940 -1973

I never had the opportunity to meet Bruce Lee although I do have a couple of coloured cherished original photos of him (see below). The third photo isn't mine but is one of Linda and Bruce Lee taken in early February 1965. It's of interest because the T-Shirt Bruce is wearing is the same as in my picture of the top right and may help to date the coloured photo?

It takes a lifetime to know oneself (Bruce Lee)

Bruce Lee is known for being the greatest martial arts exponent that has ever lived. However, he was also a philosopher, thinker and poet. Below is his poem to his wife, Linda penned in my hand:

Circa 1963, a poem by Bruce Lee to his wife

How good was Bruce Lee?

It was Bruce Lee's speed which set him apart from other martial artists. His favourite trick was to make a bet with a friend that he could safely close their eyelids with his fingertips before they could stop him. Even as the person tried to raise their hands to defend themself, Bruce Lee's arm would dart out at incredible speed and gently push down the eyelids. He never missed.

Another indication of how good he was is by running through the list of martial champions who co-started with him on his films: Chuck Norris, seven times Karate champion; Bob Wall 1970 Professional Karate champion, Peter Archer, Commonwealth Karate champion; Yang Sze, Shotokan champion of south Asia to name a few!

Although Bruce Lee was no giant (5'7.5"), he had developed a super charged body. His kicks would literally pick up his opponent with his foot and canon him up to 30 feet or more through the air. Watch his kick in Way of the Dragon against a chinese waiter.

Another of his stunts was to stretch out his right arm almost to the limit and tell a man of say 13 stone (85kg) that, by extending his arm an inch he could generate enough power to punch him across the room. With the smallest of movements he could send a man twice his weight flying through the air. You can see videos of this on Face book!

Bruce Lee was also revolutionary in his training techniques. He would train and shadow box to music which was something way ahead of his time.

The above is just the tip of the iceberg on his talents and he was definitely the greatest exponent of the martial arts that has ever lived and I'll leave you with an actual Bruce Lee quote: 'All the time people come up to me and say "Hey Bruce, are you really that good?"'. 'I say, "Well, if I tell you I'm good, probably you'll say I'm boasting. But if I tell you I'm no good, you'll know that I'm lying."'

Bruce Lee with Wing Chun Kung-Fu master Yip Man.
The glasses in Bruce Lee's pocket were buried with him when he died

Bruce Lee lies in his coffin in the Kowloon Funeral Home, 25th July 1973 (C)

Bruce Lee's grave and his son's grave are side by side in Lake View Cementery, Seattle

Me, 6 April 1976, Buckden

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