Article:
Originally posted by SF Gate
Shanghai -- In the southern Chinese city of Shunde, a two-hour boat ride from Hong Kong, government officials are finalizing plans to build a Bruce Lee theme park, complete with a large statue of the man they call the town's favorite "son."
Never mind that the legendary Chinese American kung fu star was born in San Francisco and visited Shunde only briefly, when he was a boy of 5. Shunde is the hometown of Lee's father and grandfather, and that was enough for local resident Wang Dechao to prod the government to plow $125,000 into opening a Bruce Lee museum in an old teashop in 2002.
Since then, more than 300,000 people, some paying $1 for admission, have come to see its collection of Bruce Lee's rare letters, film posters and other memorabilia.
CCTV, China's national network, has plans to produce a 40-part documentary about Lee. Meanwhile, Lee's brother, Robert, is planning a movie about him, as is one of Lee's former students. They all have their sights set on completing the works by the Beijing Summer Olympics in 2008.
"I believe we will see another round of Bruce Lee fever," Wang said.
Although he has been dead 33 years, Lee remains an enduringly powerful cultural figure. Lee died in Hong Kong on July 20, 1973, from a cerebral edema. An autopsy concluded that Lee had suffered from an allergic reaction.
Lee left no will and was not a wealthy man. In those days, there weren't the movie-based action figures and video and computer games that line store shelves today. The estates of dead celebrities hadn't yet amassed the staggering licensing fees that they do today.
Although he achieved stardom three decades ago, Lee's fame has hardly dimmed. He is still regarded as one of the most influential martial artists of the 20th century, a precursor to kung fu stars such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Chuck Norris. In his teens, he had formal martial arts training in Wing Chun kung fu under a master teacher in Hong Kong. Lee's style was known as Jeet Kune Do (Way of the Intercepting Fist). He was famous for a combat technique called the "one-inch punch."
Current plans for Lee-related entertainment projects include an animated television series, a CGI movie, an animated feature film, a live-action TV series and a Broadway musical being developed by David Henry Hwang, whose "M. Butterfly" won a Tony award in 1988 for best play.
I find what is happening very offensive. While Bruce Lee is constructed of pure awesome, this is really just cashing in. I mean, do we need a 40-part documentary about Bruce Lee? Did he live that long? How can they make an animated show and movie, and not make it kiddie? And do we need two shows about Bruce Lee. As for the live-action show and movie, isn't that just making a martial arts movie and saying, "This is Bruce Lee."? And come on, a broadway musical? That's...I mean...What! Bruce Lee should not be involved with music, unless it's the beating of the drums declaring mortal combat. And he shouldn't have anything to do with dancing, unless it's the dance of death. There is no way there people are doing it for the sake of honoring Bruce Lee. They just see a great franchize. That being said, I will most likely see everything mentioned above, because, as I said, Bruce Lee is constructed of pure awesome.
(Last edited by FX on 09-01-06 05:40 AM) |
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