King Dragon: The World of Bruce Lee

By Norman Borine

Born in the Year of the Dragon at the hour of the Dragon, Bruce Lee seemed destined for greatness from birth. Throughout his life people whose lives he touched could sense his inner strength and spiritual awareness and were drawn to it. Later in his film career, that same magnetism coupled with his martial arts abilities made for a powerful screen presence that demanded an audience s attention. Norman Borine, a personal friend of the Lee family and proprietor of The World of Bruce Lee Museum, tells the story of the martial artist s amazing life from birth to death, including anecdotes and quotes from Lee s family, friends, students and fans, as well as interesting facts about his amazing physical prowess and films.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Norman Borine
• Release date: Feb 8, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310492662

Norman Borine

"To be a contract dancer during the golden age of movie musicals was “akin to being on intimate terms with the gods and goddesses of movieland ... Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Esther Williams, Van Johnson, Hedy LaMarr, Lana Turner, Judy Garland ... tripping the light fantastic on Mt. Olympus ... namely, MGM Studios.” The above quote comes from Nostalgia magazine, Sept./Oct. 1988, from an article by the late Joan Woodbury, a well-known Hollywood actress who was formerly married to Henry Wilcoxon. For seven glamorous and glorious years, Norman Borine danced in every great musical released by the roaring lion, moving from lowly chorus line member to in-demand front dancer and dance-in for Fred Astaire. When he left MGM in 1950, Norman appeared in five Broadway-style shows at the famous outdoor Greek Theatre in Hollywood, followed by three months at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco with Gertrude Niesen in the road show of "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." Following this, for two years he worked for Eleanor Powell as choreographer on her NBC TV show, “Faith of Our Children.” Norman eventually moved to Palm Springs, California and continued living an interesting life, including promoting Bruce Lee's last film, "Game of Death," and creating a traveling Bruce Lee museum. Norman Borine passed away November 27, 2005.

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DEDICATION

King Dragon is dedicated to the memory of my very dear friend, Grace Lee, mother of Bruce.

She constantly reminded me that:

"You did not find Bruce, Norman.

He found you."

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SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

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Though the entire text of King Dragon is obviously my own creation, it would be a major omission if I did not credit my nephew, Bill Borine, for the hundreds of hours spent in the technical work involved in bringing this book to a final conclusion, — Norman Borine

Bill Borine has updated and republished King Dragon as a posthumous tribute to his uncle. Norman had wanted to do more with the book before his death, as part of his continuing effort to keep the memory of Bruce Lee alive and in the public eye. It is my hope that the revised book would meet with his approval.

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Also, I am grateful to my special friend and an outstanding martial artist, Moses Navarro, for the many hours he spent helping us with photos and numerous suggestions covering the overall contents of the book.

Thanks for your complete support in all areas. I could not have done alone! — Norman Borine

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A special thank you goes out to both Nick Clarke and John Overall. Their vast knowledge of Bruce Lee was invaluable in fact-checking the revised manuscript for this book. The final product would not be as complete as it is without their help.

You can visit Nick’s website at http://littledragon.builtfree.org/borine.html

Others who helped with proofreading and editing of this edition were: Conrad Doerr, Joan Maldonado, Ralph Martin, Stephen and Debbie Peterson (M.D./P.A.C.) and Bob Schmitz. Without their efforts this book would have been much more difficult to produce.

FOREWORD

There has been a tremendous resurgence of interest in Bruce Lee, not only with the older Bruce Lee fans, but also among new followers, those who weren’t even born at the time of Lee’s death.

In selecting quotes from the various teachings and philosophy of Bruce Lee, I have chosen those that relate to the strongest and most consistent expression of his belief that if we never try, we will never succeed. Knowledge, Bruce insisted, belongs to the world, not just certain people. And it must be made available to anyone having the mind and desire to use it.

Actor James Coburn once said that Bruce was a beacon, a source of energy toward which others were drawn. Today, more than ever, we realize just how prophetic Coburn’s observation was.

Bruce was adamant in his insistence that life is all-inclusive: past, present, and future. All are one. Separateness is what we create through our own thinking. Without the gift of free choice, life lacks spontaneity, the very key unlocking all doors which lead to individual growth. To those who harbor doubts about such beliefs, Bruce may well have added, I do not feel the need to prove anything to anyone.

Encouraging others to share this way of thinking, Bruce urged everyone to Continue your search for what you already have, and never give up. Remember, you are what you know and what you do. Yes, doing is knowing, and knowing is doing. But remember, too, there is more than one path to the top of any mountain. Keep walking. Keep climbing, one step at a time. Never give up.

FROM THE AUTHOR

During the time I spent organizing and maintaining The World of Bruce Lee Museum, I traveled to cities in seven countries conducting lectures relating to Bruce Lee. The first invitation came from London, where I spoke to more than 2,000 fans at the giant Central Hall, located directly opposite Westminster Abbey. Dan Inosanto was my guest.

The interest and reception from the audience was so intense that I was invited to return two more times in the following two years. My guests for those appearances included Grace and Robert Lee (mother and brother of Bruce), Randy Wong (at the time, connected to the World of Bruce Lee), and cameraman Richard Salvatore of Universal Studios.

For my final appearances in London, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, I was more than happy to introduce martial artist Eric Lee and my special friend Stirling Silliphant, who shared with the audience many of his personal experiences with Bruce.

Mexico City, during two separate visits, impressed me to the extent that I came to think of it as my home-away-from-home. I returned to nearby San Miguel De Allende, and spent three peaceful months there writing much of this book.

I have purposely chosen not to identify many of the fans included in the photos, since the passage of time has erased many names, but not the overall experiences, from my memory. My time working with the World of Bruce Lee and all the people connected to Bruce Lee is something I will always treasure. Those experiences enriched my life beyond belief.

— Norman Borine

CHAPTER 1

A New Life Begins

Bruce Lee is born in the Year of the Dragon at the Hour of the Dragon

On November 27, 1940, a small Eurasian woman, who was more than 10,000 miles from her home gave birth to a baby boy at Chinese Hospital in San Francisco. She did this without the presence of her husband, a Chinese opera star, because at the moment of their fourth child’s birth he was performing in New York City, 3,000 miles in the opposite direction.

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This fourth child was born in the Year of the Dragon; and even more prophetic of his coming acclaim, he was also born at the Hour of the Dragon. His given name was Li Jun Fan. His mother later changed the spelling of his first name to Lee because she thought Americans would mispronounce the original spelling. Loosely translated, his name meant return to San Francisco or protector of San Francisco in Chinese. His mother chose this name because she had a strong feeling that he would someday return to the city of his birth. At the hospital, Dr. Mary Glover nicknamed this new child Bruce, hardly suspecting that later in life this would be the name the world would come to know him by.

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Bruce (the name we shall now use) had matured to the ripe age of three months when his parents, Grace and Li Hoi Chuen, took him on his first ocean voyage across the Pacific to their home in Hong Kong. It was a distance he would travel many times during his brief lifetime, though only once again by steamer. Later, as fame began to engulf his life, there would be no time for such a slow, leisurely crossing.

The Lee household in Hong Kong was a crowded place, since it was home to sixteen people, nine dogs, seven birds, and an undetermined number of fish. The family spent their lives in comparative comfort, despite the close quarters. The group, aside from the menagerie, included Mr. and Mrs. Lee, and the four children: Phoebe, Agnes, Peter, Bruce, and eventually Robert, who had not yet been born; several close relatives, a number of servants, and Wu Ngan, an adopted boy who would forever remain extremely close to Bruce and later became his housekeeper when he was filming in Hong Kong in the ’70s. Such were the conditions at 218 Nathan Road, Bruce’s ancestral home.

Bruce wasn’t born the natural specimen of health and strength one might suspect. As a baby and young child, possibly due to the dramatic change in locale so early in life, he was anything but robust. It may even be said that his parents were often doubtful as to whether he would survive to become an adult.

As Bruce began to grow past childhood into adolescence, he discovered the necessity for self-preservation. He had gradually outgrown his poor health and replaced it with a spontaneous flow of energy and enthusiasm and a need for independence and obvious nonconformity. Freedom and attention were what he craved and he found a way to feed this need through all forms of theater.

He also exhibited a decided disregard for authority of any kind. He failed to respond when told what to do by either parents or teachers, and quickly became a neighborhood bully. It was at this stage of life when he most nearly filled a role often projected into his many screen successes, both as a child and later as an adult. Personal violence became as much a part of his life as it was for most of his peers.

Bruce emerged from boyhood with less than average physical strength and a bullying nature. As he matured, though, he moved into a much more positive place. As his physical strength increased, so too did his positive thinking and fighting skills. He no longer ran and hid from his peers, regardless of their size or strength; rather, he began to invent various ways to compensate for obvious differences. Being small, he often found, was an advantage because he could move faster than his larger opponents.

To add to his fighting skills, he began experimenting with weapons. His excitement grew with each new innovation brought about by his active imagination and creativity. He armed himself with knives, chains, crude objects of iron, and neatly carved and whittled pieces of wood. Fortunately, all this experimentation did not lead to any real bloodshed or serious casualties, though it most certainly earned for him a sort of special notoriety in the alleys and streets along which he traveled to and from school. Even with all this new bravado and self-discovery, he would occasionally show up at the dinner table with a black eye, swollen face, or minor cuts and bruises.

Bruce also began to try to balance his nature. His fighting was offset by an intense interest in books. This new development was considered a godsend by his mother, Grace, who was often distraught and left looking for a way to deal with her troublesome child. Bruce would find a quiet place and read for hours, remaining absorbed in the content as long as he was not disturbed. No doubt it was this intense desire and appreciation for knowledge and learning that fueled his accumulation of a rather large personal library. Books helped in the development of Bruce’s character. This acquired knowledge also facilitated the complete metamorphosis he underwent at age eighteen.

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Grace says Bruce was plagued by many difficulties growing up. But then, she reminisces, there were many other times to compensate. I remember one day when I saw him looking out a window in the living room. I could tell from the way he stood, not even moving, that whatever he was looking at must be something really special. I started to walk over to see what it was, but all of a sudden he ran out of the room, disappeared into the yard and out toward the street. When I got to the window and looked out, I saw Bruce helping an old man slowly and carefully across the street. Almost before I knew it he was back in the room, excitedly explaining to me that ‘everyone out there was just passing him and letting him stand there. He looked tired and kind of sad. I just had to do something ... and I know he was glad.’

There was a twinkle in Grace’s eye when she talked of the incident. Yes, and I remember another time, Grace continued. This was something really funny. Her smile became broader and there was a far-away look on her face as she spoke. "One day I was in the kitchen doing something when all of a sudden I heard noises from the children in the front room. Just then phoebe (Bruce’s sister) came screaming into the kitchen, her eyes wild. She was yelling something about Bruce dying or already being dead—I couldn’t tell what it was all about. She just kept yelling and pulling on my dress. Well, knowing kids, I wasn’t too worried, but on the other hand, anything is possible.

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 "I hurried and dried my hands, then followed her into the other room. There was Bruce, jumping around like he’d been stung by a hornet or something, grabbing at his throat and looking for sure as though he was going to die. The minute he saw me, I could tell he already felt better, but right away he started yelling, ‘Mommy, Mommy, I’m going to die!’ It took a minute or so before I could find out what the trouble was. He had swallowed the rubber nipple from Robert’s bottle. He wasn’t gagging or choking, so I knew it must have gone on down his throat without causing a problem. I kept trying to tell him this, but he wouldn’t listen. He kept grabbing his throat and telling me he was going to die.

"Finally, he realized there was nothing in his throat and everything would be all right as soon as I could call the doctor.

On the phone the doctor told me not to worry, he’d be right over. I got Bruce calmed down and had him just sit and wait. Well, the doctor arrived in a few minutes and took a close look at Bruce to be sure he was going to survive. Grace’s eyes sparkled with remembered fun. He looked very serious and told us exactly what we must do to get rid of the rubber nipple — administer a large dose of castor oil! At once!

Robert, too, has memories: One in particular, he says, "will give you an idea of his passion for making me the target of his practical jokes. ... I remember, he came to my room and announced that he wanted to show me a new game he had invented. I admit I should have known better right then and there, but I guess it was the name he called it that intrigued me. He said it was ‘Submarine,’ and I got all excited.

Well, I sat down and waited. Pretty soon he came back, carrying one of his jackets. He threw it over my head and told me to fix it so I could look through one of the sleeves he held out for me. He was telling me I was the submarine and the sleeve was the periscope. He said there were lots of enemy vessels all around. His hands, Robert added, "were the enemies, and if I saw one pass by, I was to yell ‘Fire one’ as quick and loud as possible.

"It all sounded real exciting! So I waited, straining and watching through the sleeve I held carefully in front of me. I kept waiting like that until suddenly I saw one! It was the enemy. ‘Fire one,’ I yelled as loud as I could, afraid Bruce might not hear me under the coat. But he said I was too slow and the enemy got away. ‘But keep watching,’ he said.

"My eyes strained even more now. ... Then I saw another one and I yelled even louder and faster, but it still wasn’t fast enough. Bruce said he’d give me one more chance. Now I was even more excited — I knew I’d make it. I’d get the enemy for sure! I waited. And waited. Suddenly, there it was! I could see his hand clearly and I knew the enemy was upon me. ‘Fire one! Fire one!’

It was a couple of seconds before Bruce let me know I had missed again. ‘Yeah, you missed and they dropped a depth charge on you,’ he shouted. And with this, he dumped a whole pitcher of cold water right down the sleeve into my face!

Robert obviously felt