Bruce Lee - Overly hyped?

[Saiyagin]

*sigh* and Im not being "Negative" to the TRUTH of what bruce was , either , THAT is my point . He was a Talented beginner that had a LOT of wasted Potential . The FACTS in the article that are Pertinent is the fact that even though he was supposedly pout there creating his own "Super Style" at the time he couldnt beat an 11 month student from a REAL Teacher of a REAL system that was put togehter and well Integrated by ppl that know what theyre doing . Even though he had actually had TWICE as much training time under a teacher considered of Equal , if not GREATER Talents than Sifu Mark .

ME: Was Bruce Lee impressed watching your students practice?

GFM: I don't think so. Not many people have seen or understand this rare system. The power in the techniques is hidden. Bruce remarked on the similarity between Praying Mantis and Wing Chun. He wanted to have a match with one of my students, to which I readily agreed.

ME: What happened?

GFM: Neither Bruce nor my student could gain an advantage; it was a draw. Bruce asked me how long the student had studied. I replied about a year. Then, I demonstrated some advanced techniques and weapons. I asked him if he would like to try my hands. He declined, out of respect, and said he was interested in studying with me.

The article CLEARLY Points out that Bruce's LEVEL is that of a First Year Student , NOT that of a "Master" that should be Inventing his own system .

You guys are focused too much on weather you think I "Like" or "Dislike" Bruce Lee as a person - I never even met the guy - I dislike the LIES about what he was as a Martial Artist , and THAT is what Im being Negative about . I know Master Mark as a real , Breathing Human Being , so OF COURSE the way that I speak of HIM is going to be coloured by the Fact that hes a Charming , Impish little Devil with a magnetic Personality . With Bruce , I cant be Swayed by his Personality or Charm , Ive never Experienced either thing from him . All I know is that AS A MARTIAL ARTIST he was NOT "All That And A Bag Of Chips" , so to Speak . I mean , for Christ sake if I told MOST of the MMA guys on this board that they would be in a Match with a 1st year Praying Mantis student they would laugh out lout and thank me for the Tomato can ! But sayu "BROOSE WEEE !!!" and somehow that makes the 1st year Praying Mantis Student level somethign Godly ?

THINK IT THROUGH .

It also said at that time Bruce was only around 18 and still learning and didnt develope his JKD system untill long after. The reality is none of us would know the real truth unless we actually fought Bruce Lee in his prime. Was he really that good maybe not but he was good enough to establish himself as one of the most respected martial arts figures of modern times and to help break cultural bonds and I feel his legacy will live on forever in martial arts history.

 

[MikeMartial]

he was good enough to establish himself as one of the most respected martial arts figures of modern times and to help break cultural bonds and I feel his legacy will live on forever in martial arts history.

Thank you! That's about the best thing anyone has said on either side. If I was a mod I'd lock this thread right now and end it on that perfect note.

 

[Djimbe]

Thank you! That's about the best thing anyone has said on either side. If I was a mod I'd lock this thread right now and end it on that perfect note.

Exept that its a LIE .

Bruce didnt , beyond the obvious of putting an Asian Face - his own - on screen do ANYTHING to "Break Cultural Bonds" . In fact , he spent most of his time Exacerbating them and making MOST whites THINK that Chinese are Generally more racist than they are so that HE could look like some kind of "Revoloutionary" for "Breaking Barriers" .

Wich did what ? Lead to more GENERAL Distrust of Chinese , and lless SPECIFIC Distrust of 'Our Hero' .

 

[Djimbe]

It also said at that time Bruce was only around 18 and still learning and didnt develope his JKD system untill long after.

Without ANY FURTHUR TEUTELAGE IN HIS LIFETIME .

"Later" means nothing if you dont learn anything in the Meantime . He had no other teachers in the Interim .

The reality is none of us would know the real truth unless we actually fought Bruce Lee in his prime.

Wich he KNEW , and its why he specifically avoided being caught fighting - or even seriously Sparring - in his lifetime .

Was he really that good maybe not but he was good enough to establish himself as one of the most respected martial arts figures of modern times

That only makes him "Good" at Propaganda and PR . NOT MA .

 

[Djimbe]

but I do have proof that he was more attractive then Jet Li OR Jackie Chan.

See "Fearless Hyena" Jackie was WAY more Ripped than Bruce ever was in that one .

They both still TOTALLY lose to Meng Lo (Toad from "5 Deadly Venoms") though as "Kung Fu Look" PosterBoy .

 

[Saiyagin]

Without ANY FURTHUR TEUTELAGE IN HIS LIFETIME .

"Later" means nothing if you dont learn anything in the Meantime . He had no other teachers in the Interim .

WTF? just because you dont have any further teutelage from teachers doesnt mean he cannot learn on his own and get better as I have done the same thing also and when I sparred with my sifu after a two year break he said I got even better then when I last left his teachings.


Wich he KNEW , and its why he specifically avoided being caught fighting - or even seriously Sparring - in his lifetime .

Dont you know anything about Martial arts its not about going out and looking for fights its about learning about your self to be humble the best MA fighters are the ones that have nothing to prove because they have alot of confidence in themselves. I know Bruce was cocky and a show boat but when it came down to serious fighting situations he would humble him self as he new what the consequences where for actually fighting especially in public he could get sued, thrown in jail ,charged for mureder or get seriously injured himself now why would he risk all that if it didnt help or benefit his movie career?



That only makes him "Good" at Propaganda and PR . NOT MA .

It seems as if you have a grudge against Bruce Lee but what have you done to impact the world of Martial arts? You critisize alot but the one you should be critisizing is your self. If it wasnt for Bruce and alot of other prominent figures in Martial arts history that help open the doors to other cultures instead of being closed minded non of you Guailos would know any asian martial arts.

 

[CrazyK]

It seems as if you have a grudge against Bruce Lee but what have you done to impact the world of Martial arts? You critisize alot but the one you should be critisizing is your self. If it wasnt for Bruce and alot of other prominent figures in Martial arts history that help open the doors to other cultures instead of being closed minded non of you Guailos would know any asian martial arts.

He's pissed because Bruce said Kung Fu has a lot of BS in it and isn't a complete art. Which is all true.

 

[Djimbe]

Kung Fu isnt an art at all .

Crack a Book .

 

[Djimbe]

It seems as if you have a grudge against Bruce Lee but what have you done to impact the world of Martial arts? You critisize alot but the one you should be critisizing is your self. If it wasnt for Bruce and alot of other prominent figures in Martial arts history that help open the doors to other cultures instead of being closed minded non of you Guailos would know any asian martial arts.

Im not FROM the US , MORON ! And YES , I very well WOULD know EXACTLY what I know wether Bruce Lee had been Born or not ! My Instructor was teaching what he taught right were I learned it LONG before bruce ever MET Yip Man ! And the fact of the matter is that it dosent MATTER what Effect I had on MA as long as Im not sitting about taking undue Credit for it . THAT is the Problem . Bruce looked cool in the movies .

THAT was his Contribution to MA .

Stop Lumping him in with REAL MA greats that DID contribute , and stop casting the Chinese as all being Racists .

 

[whitedragon]

All legends are over hyped to an extent. Bruce was a hero to many people growing up. There's a British phrase I heard that said "You should never meet your heroes." Regardless of what people argue over he was a very talented martial artist. He had speed, power, conditioning, and good technique. Could he fight? I don't know. I've heard some people say that he could and some say that he couldn't. He did at one time though train a lot of MA fighters and they were all champions. People like Chuck Norris and Joe Lewis and a lot of names I can't remember from being hit in the head too much.

My personal thought is though if you want to include Jackie Chan and Jet Li, neither of them have been in a fight. Neither of them ever fought. Chan did Shanghai opera and Li only did Wushu forms. They're conditioning and skill at what they do if amazing, but neither of them are fighters. Chan has even said on talk shows that Bruce Lee could kick his ass because he's just an actor and has never fought anybody.

In all honesty though. Lee's an iconic legend and the fact that his skill is this highly debated shows how much of impact he's made in many people's lives. I love Bruce Lee and the fact that we never saw him at his true potential only makes it easier to hype him up because people wonder "What could have been?"