TIMESTAMPS 0:00-: Power Factor Training 5:19- John’s Motivations For Writing The Book? 11:50:- Verifying Sources 50 Years Later? 15:36 -: The Lack Of Humility & Spirituality In Martial Arts? 17:35 - Did Bruce Love A Good Fight? 19:44 - Bruce’s Childhood Gender Confusion 22:45 - “Fighting Without Fighting” 25:20 -: Washington Star Quote About Bruce Lee 28:10 - Bruce Lee’s Warning To Chuck Norris 31:13 -Our Favorite Bruce Lee Fights From The Book 42:55 - The Story Behind Tarantino’s Movie Depiction of Lee 45:10 - Gene Lebell’s B.S. Bruce Lee Stories. 50:25 - Did Bruce Lee Says He Could Beat Muhammad Ali? 58:00 - Bruce’s Weight Training & Back Injury 1:06:12 - Bruce Lee - Similarities WIth Mike Mentzer & Arnold 1:10:00 - Arthur Jones Influence 1:12:45 - Thoughts On Matthew Polly’s “Bruce Lee: A LIfe” 1:13:00 - Heat Stroke Hypothesis Of Lee’s Passing 1:16:04 - Bruce Lee’s Drug Use & Drug Letters 1:23:30 - Bruce Lee & Steroid Use? 1:28:35 - Dana White “Lee is the grandfather of MMA but…” 1:35:35 - New Bruce Lee Movie Coming by Ang Lee 1:36:26 - Will John Write A Definitive Book About Bruce Lee? 1:37:20 - Was The Real Fight, “Bruce Lee vs Bruce Lee?” 1:44:45 - Had He Lived, Predictions For Lee’s Movie Career 1:46:35 - John’s New Mike Mentzer Biography Project 1:53:40 - John’s Mike Mentzer Legacy Course On HITuni 1:55:18 - Thoughts on Bodybuilding Today
It seems so many martial artists pride on their ego rather then growth. When I was 14 a guy knocked me out and when I woke up I was so excited I shook his hand and thanked him. Well he didn’t know what to think. I was so happy because it didn’t kill me and that helped to release some of the fear I had about getting hurt. And whenever I sparred in boxing I felt no fear of loosing because I wasn’t geared on wining or afraid of loosing but I just loved the experience. And when I showed no fear I saw fear in their eyes. I’m not bragging but I’m saying that most people are thinking about wining or loosing which disturbs the natural flow. Thank you for this engaging interview.
My pleasure and thanks for that comment. I love learning more about MA and Bruce and people who are more near to that world than me have taught me a lot
i just started watching the interview and its really funny how John talks about the green belt guy shutting him down. I was in a Taekwondo class when i was shut down by the black belt instructor himself saying Bruce was just a movie guy and i had nothing to back up. so kept my mouth shut! :-) i can definitely relate this to my own experience. when i was kid i was learning Kyokushin and they always talked about Mas Oyama. I am almost 53 now and have always believed Bruce's abilities.
My jiujitsu teacher shut me down with the same comment. He couldn't fight he was just a movie guy. I'm glad this book is setting the record straight among the community
Thanks mate. I really appreciate that you enjoyed this interview as it's a bit different to the usual Bodybuilding content, yet it was too fascinating a topic to pass up. Cheers again for your support
Fantastic interview. I especially look forward to the Mentzer book. Mentzer had an herculean style physique which I admire. I don't necessarily agree with all his beliefs, but I liked the fact that he could articulate them well. Unlike many of his contemporaries his articles were not ghost written.
Hey Shawn, Randy and John, i would like to add something, the subject is Tarantino on the Joe Rogan podcast. John said Quentin brought this story with Gene LeBell up. Ive watched the scene again a couple times in the past days, and now i would say it was different: Tarantino didnt mention LeBell at all. He only said Lee hurt stuntmen all the time, and he had a reputation to hit them very quickly. Then Rogan interruprts him, and he [Rogan] suddenly speaks about LeBell, asking Tarantino: "Did you ever heard about the Gene LeBell story?". Tarantino replied positive, but he wanted to move on very quickly, since he wasnt interested in talking about LeBell. Tarantino never wanted to mention LeBell, it was Rogan who brought him in the mix. You can easy support this because there was a false rumour that Cliff Booth was basically LeBell. This rumour was also spread a bit by Rogan and his people. But Tarantino made clear this was never the case. He based the Booth character on Hal Needham, not on Gene LeBell. So it seems like Tarantino's intention was only to talk Lee down and turning him into an arrogant guy who hated american stuntmen, but his intention was never to mention LeBell. Only the LeBell fanboy Rogan, who was a close friend of LeBell, brought LeBell into the talk, not Tarantino. Maybe you (Shawn or Randy) can give this message to John, that he can read it here. Of course he doesnt have to, but if he has time and wants it, he should watch the Tarantino scene on the Rogan podcast again. It was imo only Rogan who brought LeBell up, while Tarantino never had the intention to mentioning LeBell at all.
That's very interesting and thanks for relaying that here in great detail because yes, you're right now that I watched it again. I'll pass this onto John/Randy and maybe they can reply or comment. Thanks Chris (I also caught the stripey episode so thanks.for sharing my podcast with him)
Hi Joseph here from West Palm Beach USA. I just so your podcast with John little. Mr little made a little mistake about judo Gene training Bruce Lee at his school. Mr.Lebell school was call "Grand Olympic Auditorium" located In downtown Hollywood California. It was brought out in 2005 by a Korean religious church called Glory Church of Jesus Christ, its still there and open. It was called the "Grand Olympic Auditorium" where professional Wrestlers, boxers, and weightlifters trained there. It was own and operated by judo genes mother, who was a professional promoter for professional wrestling, boxing and weightlifting and occasional roller derby. When his mother died. Judo gene, and his brother ran the place from 1968 to 1982..That's where judo Gene taught Bruce Lee grappling moves which consisted of professional wrestling moves, ( catch-as- catch Can, judo and Jiu-Jitsu ) You can see these moves being performed by Bruce in the opening scene of Enter the Dragon, ending the fight with the crucifix. I personally wholeheartedly believe that judo Gene LeBell taught Bruce Lee for a year there, at the Grand Olympic Auditorium, which it was called at the time. Holler back at me, LOL, LOL, LOL. P.S. just because its not written down in Bruce Lee's daytimer does not make it not true. You have to remember Bruce Lee was always secretive about things, he came from that culture. Give Gene LeBell his credit as being one of Bruce Lee's teachers.
Muhammad ali himself said on the mike douglas show that if he or any top boxer ever fought with a top martial artist the boxer would lose because a boxer might be better at punching but martial artist are better with everthing. Kicks, take downs, etc.
All true, yes. Ali himself was very realistic. But many ppl on TH-cam or on MMA, Boxing or Joe Rogan podcasts simply dont consider that anymore. They have the habit only to look to height and weight and nothing else. Fact is: Ali s street fight record is 0-0-0. That was even confirmed by his long time trainer Angelo Dundee. He said his man didnt have one street fight in his life. And this has nothing to do with Lee, its just a fact. So how can say Ali would beat XY or would even be a great street fighter, when he never fought in the street? Anyone who knows what a street fight is, knows Ali s style was first and foremost scoring points with fast punches, not with hard killer punches like Mike Tyson etc. This is great under the Marques of Queensberry rules, but not in the street. Ali defeated guys like Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, George Chuvalo, Earnie Shavers und Chuck Weppner in the boxing ring, but i tell you all of them would most probably beat him in a street fight, because their weapons are better disigned for the street. Not long ago retired brithis light heavyweight champion Tony "The Blue Dragon" Bellew, who lost to Olexandr Usyk in his last fight, said: "We are boxers, we arent fighters. That s not the same."
@@carvedouttastone My pleasure :). Great talk from you with John, thx for the uplaod :)! Here much more: A couple things more which are maybe interesting for some people. Since guys like Gene LeBell, Chuck Norris, Joe Lewis etc. were always good in talk Lee down, now i point some things out about them which a rarely mentioned: 1) Something in general about Point Karate (not about Lee, only in general). Here are some fight records compared to professional Boxers and Muay Thai fighters: Sam Langford (Boxer): 314 fights Saenchai (Muay Thai): 378 fights Skipper Mullins (Point Karate): 1115 fights I am not absolute sure, but i think Langford and Saenchai are among the fighters with the most bouts across all full contact combat sports. I couldnt find anyone in Boxing or Muay Thai with 400 bouts and more. This should underline how "dangerous" Point Karate is compared to Boxing or Muay Thai. Langford and Saenchai togehter had 692 fights. Mullin's doesnt double that, but over 1100 fights just shows how much damage your body takes in Point Karate. World Champion in Point Karate doesnt make someone a tough guy, a skilled guy in a certain skill contest yes, but not tough or relevant to full contact combat sport or street fights (only adressed to the milenium kids on YT who always claim "Chuck Norris was a real fighter"). Kenpo Karate founder Ed Parker Senior’s record as „fighter“ is 0-0-0. Still he is regarded a martial arts legend, great MA Instructor, and very effective street fighter. Not one of the Point Karate Champions from back in the day ever challenged his status or challenged him. Parker Sr. about Point Karate: „Tournament Karate is not full contact Karate. The idea is to execute a Karate technique with full control. You win matches by outscoring your opponent, not by killing them.“ This should underline the Point Karate Champions like Norris, Moore etc. never executed their strikes with full power, and the goal was to outscore the opponent, not by hurting them. And it underlines Point Karate wasn’t full contact, so Norris etc. were never full contact fighters. Take a look at (full) professional Soccer player Pelé (1940-2022), who was born the same year as Norris and Lee. During the 1960s he was badly injured many times and had to take longer breaks to recover. Back in the day yellow and red cards didn’t exist, and you could attack opponents very hard. Pelé suffered many leg injuries through heavy kicks to his legs. Compare his injury list with Point Karate Fighters. Pelé was much more injured as them, even if he was a Soccer player and not a combat sport fighter. 2) Were Lewis etc. real World Champoins in Kickboxing or not? A couple weeks ago a new video was uploaded about former Pro Boxer Randall "Tex" Cobb. He fought George Foreman once but also Earnie Shavers. In the beginning of the clip, the narrator says Cobb won 1980 the first world tournament in kickboxing. How could Lewis, Bill Wallace etc. be World Champions in Kickboxing in the 1970s when the first real world tournament in Kickboxing was held in 1980? So if this is true (i cant check it out), then even American Kickboxers like Lewis, Wallace etc. were never real World Champions. At least not in the 70s when they had their prime. 3) Were Point Karte World Champions really world champions? Bill Wallace to John Little: "Back in those days, you could go to Chicago, fighting three guys from Chicago, and be crowned as world champion." So it seems these "World Championships" werent real World Championships. 4) Bob Wall Bob Wall (RiP!) claimed him and Lee were best friends: Fact is Lee only spoke once about Wall, and it was negative. He was asked by someone why he hires that guy (Wall) always? And he said: "Because he gets hit so damn good." Not just Matt Polly but also former Lee histotrian George Tan pointed that out, i mean ppl said Lee never liked Wall so much. But Wall made a career claiming he was Lee's close friend. And in a video podcast in 2018 he even claimed what Lee would do in the late 60s, he himself and LeBell already did in the early 60s. 4) Gene LeBell Yes we know what a fish Seagal is, and yes we know he lied many times, but there were indeed some people who wanted to find out if LeBell actually has a black belt in the original japanese Jūdō. They checked out any Kōdōkan, Nippon Budōkan, Judokai etc. and couldnt find one black belt. The Kōdōkan is the headquater of the world wide Jūdō community, and any black belt is listed there. LeBells Wiki article list him as: 10th degree red belt in Judo 9th degree black belt in Jujutsu 10th degree black belt in Kyokushin Budokai Kyokoshin Budokai is the style which was founded by dutch Jon Bluming. I have no doubts LeBells 10th degree in Kyokushin Budokai is legit, and i dont know if his 9th degree black belt in Jujitsu is legit. But is 10th degree red belt (highest rank) in Jūdō is very sceptical! Notice: Jūdō = the original japanese writing when romanized to western alphabet, founded by JIgoro Kano Judo = western version, but not the original style which was founded by Kano. So it can be LeBell only has a 10th degree red belt in american Judo, but not in the original art from Japan named Jūdō. And this would be very cheap since his nickname was Judo Gene LeBell. It would be a total gag if he never studied Jūdō but called himself Judo Gene. But since he told so many stories from which many are not true, i woudnt be surprised. Go here on YT for Steven Seagal Bruce Lee Haters and you gonna find a video when Steven talks about Tarantino and LeBell. And he pointed out LeBell made his entire career in lying about who he beat up. Buttom line: These guys talked negative about Lee from time to time. No problem. But as you see, they arent flawless too.
@@chrisbach1533 excellent read and very educational - I will pin these comments and hopefully John adds his thoughts if he reads the comment. So glad you stopped by Chris.
It seems that most people like to be around others who tell them what they like to hear and so forth. But they don’t like someone who questions. I love it when someone questions me because then I can give them an answer. There’s nothing like really communicating. But those who don’t follow the path most taken are on their own. Isn’t that the best place to be. Win or loose your being and doing what you want.
@@carvedouttastone Yes of course he was. He recommended your podcast, the video is about 20 minutes long or so, and he quotes me but mentions your podcast. Stripey Rambles, that s the name of his channel.
Hey thanks mate. Those pics are from starting out to 30 years ago. Ive tried my best to maintain and still hang in there at 50, but Power Factor was all I used in those early days.
According to Tommy Carruthers , Bruces grandmothers surname was Fulton . Maybe Bruces grandmother was Scottish rather than English as John claims. All we know is that Bruces grandmother was British, even Matthew Polly couldn't discover her background. She still remains a mystery.
I loved Muhammad ali but i disagree with most people. My money be on bruce lee to beat ALI IN THE RING AND STREET . BRUCE WAS A GENIUS NATURAL FIGHTER FASTER THEN ALI AND STRONGER NEVER UNDERESTIMATE BRUCE BACK THEN
Great video sir kindly ask sir John about Gary Elms amateur boxing fight with Bruce Lee in interschool Hong Kong 1958 wear Bruce Lee beat the champion boxer Gary Elms and his boxing coach was Wing Chun master Wong Shung Leung
Excellent video! I was happy to hear the story about Chuck Norris at the 29:00 minute mark, because I too, have seen Chuck Norris in interviews say that he and Bruce shared techniques, but he never admitted to being a student or sparring. Getting the feel of who Bruce Lee was over the years-especially his philosophy about combat.… I found that hard to believe-thinking they had to have sparred. Thank you for your research!
@@markj228 As John Little says, it has to be classed as hearsay, because he can't remember who told him the story, Anecdote. There lies the problem, everything about Bruce is an anecdote.
All these stories about Bruce beating this guy and that guy, that may or may not be true. Do we also believe the story of Travador Ramos beating Bruce ? Or doesn't it work that way ?
Dana white might be first to coin the term father of mma. But long before that there was the idea people saw bruce as the first Mixed martial artist and that was common thinking, very common. Mainly because bruce got his brilliant ideas out there and people thought bruce was the first who knew what he was doing, be proficient in all the 4 ranges of combat, and like water. And people thought if they follow bruces blueprint they are going the right route and are going to progress mush faster in the martial arts than if they didnt listen to bruce. And yes because different styles acknowledge bruce was the best, at a time when the arts were separated and didn't fight each other, so could convince themselves their art was superior than other styles..Lebel and nishioka thought bruce was the best, karate champs did too etc
Haha definitely natty back in those days. Didn't take anything until I was 40, but the foundation was there already. Haven't used in two years, so trying to hang on to everything moving forward is definitely a challenge
Hey John, not sure if you’ll see this comment. But KFG claims he’s seen documents about what happened to Bruce. He won’t tell anyone though. Don’t know what that’s about maybe it’s just bs 🤷♂️
@@axelstone3131 really appreciate you watching. I loved the interview - I hope it gets out into the community some more because to have these two legends on at the same time is a rare treat
@@carvedouttastone yes, definitely. I’ve shared it on my page. John really is so informed about Bruce. It would be great if he could get on Joe Rogan to set the record straight. A lot of misinformation is pushed about Bruce.
@@axelstone3131 thanks mate, really appreciate you sharing it! Yeah it's strange that Rogan has never had John on since he's the authority on the topic.
These fights bruce lee had in his life everyone could have on the street..some people fight more often and more serious....it is nothing out of ordinary.
Sparring is training...not fighting. Ed Parker wasnt a fighter so Bruce might have beat him, nobody knows. I never heard about them fighting or sparring. AFAIK they were friends from the start.
@cuzz63 But I heard bruce went hard in sparring. He touched you up good, so you knew he wasn't playing games, so you need not play with bruce too. Bruce embarrassed demile, so demile tried hurting bruce. George dillman had to tell bruce to ease up a little, when bruce went to his school to spar with his students
@@iluvcliffrichard well sparring is training and only real dicks go hard when its unwarranted. Its entirely possible DeMile was humiliated by Bruce which could be the reason he left training with Bruce. Its hard to say when DeMile is known to exaggerate things.
@@iluvcliffrichard yea, I heard that Bruce would go light then suddenly go hard without warning which we think of as a dick move. I dont doubt Bruce might have done stuff to DeMile but he exaggerated so many things who knows? I am curious as to why DeMile left Bruce and created his own system. Dillman is even more of a notorious conman so anything he claims is suspect but as I said sparring is training.
Joey orbillo said bruce touched him as he pleased. I doubt joey takes joy in that. I'm sure orbillo would love to tell people how he touched bruce. But can't as he couldnt lay a finger ger on bruce
Hey guys, John mentioned that Bruce was taking Cortisone for his bad back. Tom Bleecker, in his book, entertained two scenarios that could fit the possibility of Bruce's death, one being Cortisone overuse and one being foul play. Tom seemed to indicate he had a lot of evidence, apparently being contacted by the Autopsy show to use the evidence in the show, as he explains, but declined due to privacy. The Cortisone video is here, I'll put the foul play video above. Has John entertained either of these scenarios? th-cam.com/video/mjxzfzRhfMI/w-d-xo.htmlsi=GNWkdNLttSqZAV4j
When I first saw that Autopy episode it blew my mind because I'd read the Bleeker book and laughed out loud at his cortisone theory. Now it's the one theory that truly makes sense. Although in Seattle student Doug Palmer's recent book, his daughter and son-in-law who are both doctors said that Bruce's physical and mental changes struck them as withdrawal symptoms when someone is going on and off a substance, which they suspected to be the opioid Darvon he was taking for his back.
@randalwung8715 Tom's foul play episode, which I posted below, made a lot of sense too. Alot of people stood to lose alot of money if Bruce moved on to another Production Company, billions in today's money terms and he was breaking up as well with Betty apparently, not to mention the Butler somehow ended up with his house and possessions allegedly, it would of been easy for someone to poison him over a period of time with some exotic poison that mimicked those symptoms as mentioned in Tom's summary of it, as they only did generic poison tests, they didn't test for the exotic poisons. Who knows, I'm now leaning towards foul play, as not all tests were done. Might be the old joke, The Butler did it, lol!
@@bssstphnWu Ngan was more than a butler, since, as I understand it, he was the son of servants to the Lee household who was essentially adopted into the family and considered Bruce's brother. The assets in his name, I'm assuming, were to shield Linda from estate taxes and such when her husband passed. But who knows? Wu was willing to have drug mailings from Bob Baker addressed to him, so I'm assuming he was the dude who knew where all the bodies were buried, lol. I'll watch the Bleeker segment, but you're right: Bruce wanted independence from Chow or anyone, and planned to move back to the States after Enter with a handpicked crop of stuntmen and, I imagine, other industry professionals as well. There's a 2020 documentary about the Hong Kong stuntmen called Never Say No! that discusses how, upon Lee's death, the action industry practically dried up overnight and all the stunt guys were waiting tables and shit wondering if it was gonna bounce back. Can you imagine what would've happened to Golden Harvest if Bruce returned to America and Hollywood and started calling the shots from there, starting his own company or maybe even studio? If anyone had a motivation to stop that from happening it was Raymond Chow. Not saying that's what he did, but given all the cloak-and-dagger shadiness surrounding the Little Dragon's demise and what was and wasn't done in regard to it, let's just say an "assassination" wasn't out of the question. Oh, and I've never seen the claim verified, but I remember Bleeker saying that Brandon had told him once The Crow and his honeymoon were over, he was planning a trip to Hong Kong to conduct a personal, thorough investigation into his father's death. Again, not saying there was foul play, but if that story is true? Hmmmm…
@randalwung8715 Yes, it was definitely boring after Bruce passed away, I was 14 at the time, and I remember waiting until around 78 for Game of Death to be released and was really disappointed. His fight scenes were fantastic of course, but he didn't complete them all, that last fight with Hugh O'Brian after Kareem, you can see they had Jackie Chan and maybe Bruce Li doing the scene and superimposed Bruce's face when he broke free from a headlock, etc. It was highly disappointing. I remember all the Bruce Lee imposters coming out and not bothering to watch and it wasn't until Van Damme brought out Bloodsport that things started to pick-up, Van Damme's movies became predictable with the slomo action and the repeating of a kick in slomo choreography and Chuck's predictable roundhouses all the time became boring also, I didn't bother much until Seagal came out with his style of more realistic fighting and he was phenomenal, I thought. But no one will replace Bruce. I also heard that about Brandon going to investigate as Bruce was receiving all sorts of offers for millions and Warner Bros were asking him to do a movie with Elvis, Bruce was a huge Elvis fan but Bruce put it on the back burner for awhile and the studio wanted to do Silent Flute, which was his baby and he started doing test photographs for the blind swordsman and others through another Company. He had all sorts of offers, and George Dillman was going to introduce him to Ali on his return, and Ali expressed his sorrow of not meeting him. Golden Harvest would have crashed overnight. However, apparently, they profited to the tune of 120 million in insurance money for Bruce, and Linda had to sue to get any. It was definitely suspicious. Yep, I'm leaning towards foul play.
@@bssstphn It's surprising he never met Elvis given the Ed Parker connection. I think I read Presley wanted to produce a movie-a martial arts documentary?-featuring Bruce. As for Ali, I met a filmmaker who claimed he was friends with Ali and was told the two HAD met through their mutual pal, Kareem-makes sense, but I more than suspect bullshit since it's the only story like that I've heard, lol. I've also heard Ali was considered for Game of Death. And I believe those period costume photos of Bruce were all shot at Shaw Bros, the studio he turned down to work with Chow but whose doors he kept open, no doubt to Raymond's chagrin. The blind swordsman photo in that set was him imititating Shintaro Katsu-he was fan of the Zatoichi series and actually toyed with playing the character at some point (his facial expressions chewing on a "roasted dog" in Fist of Fury were SO Shintaro)-and Italian producer Carlo Ponti, who later collaborated with Shaw, wanted Bruce for a "Spaghetti Eastern" with his wife Sofia Loren. Not to mention that a revisiting of The Silent Flute project would have involved Warner Bros, as would Lee's old Warrior proposal had he detoured back to TV. So, yeah, given their 50-50 partnership, Bruce's open courting of other studios, the way he was grooming his stuntmen-they'd literally have taken a bullet for him-and his public disrespect of Raymond by sometimes chewing him out on set, the producer HAD to have been concerned for his future and more than a little pissed with his number-one cash cow. Now am I saying he'd have taken the risk of slaughtering that cow in hopes that his studio, and the kung fu industry itself, could continue without him…perhaps, oh, with a gajillion Bruceploitation flicks? Maybe, maybe not, but the motivation was certainly there. Me? Given the info provided by the Autopsy episode plus the dozens of "drug letters" that surfaced a few years ago, I'm pretty darn sure Lee passed from a life he himself sometimes said was not going to be long; one he burned at both ends with a drive and passion that was unmatched. Still, if plausible news of foul play was to surface? I wouldn't be shocked.
Feb 89 Blackbelt "Secrets of Shoalin Temple" column by Steven Barnes (its online) details Lees loss to Lebell in a real altercation and not just some on set hijinks. For someone to put this story in print in a national publication means something. The story was also verified by Ed Parker in another article. I read both at the time. I dont recall anyone in the Lee family or JKD community close to Lee flatly denying this story. John Little, missing a golden opportunity to call it false in his book on Lee's supposed history of fights ignores this controversy completely. Why? Maybe he cant deny it ever happened in print as much as he claims in breezy conversations on fanboy podcasts. Lets see Shannon Lee say that a real altercation with Lee and Lebell never took place. She hasnt yet. Has Dan Inosanto ever gone on record saying Lee was overpowered in a real altercation with Lebell ? He never has seemed to talk about it at all. The silence by those close to Lee on this is telling. The only one who said something about it was Parker and he would know. Unlike 99% if Lee fanboys, he actually KNEW him. Lets also have John Little interview Steven Barnes and ask him who his sources were back in 1989 who gave him the confidence to write what he wrote. I challenge Goldenbell training to contact Barnes and ask him who his sources were. Barnes is an award winning african american writer and not some lightweight. I also challenge Little, and the Lee estate to say in print that Lebell did not have an heated altercation which concluded with Lebell overpowering Bruce Lee. Gushing fanboy commentary reciting the elements is not journalism.
But why chuck norris doesnt say that bruce lee was his teacher. Why Joe Lewis rejected to play a role in the Way of Dragon because he had to lose to Bruce Lee...likely they trained and shared fighting ideas with each other but Lee never was a teacher or instructor for them.
Maybe because their ego is bigger than their memory or gratitude perhaps? I think John's book makes it pretty clear that both these guys obtained a fair amount of knowledge from Bruce - if that doesn't qualify Bruce as being a "teacher" of sorts, I don't know what does
Are you deaf? Did you not watch this whole podcast? Chuck had to apologise in a written letter for not admitting Bruce was his teacher. Also in the papers, a journalist, witnessed and wrote Bruce was instructing those top martial artists you mentioned.
Theres no way Bruce was 5.6..he was exactly 5.7.5inches. if you see him with Jackie in enter the dragon, there's not much difference in height between them. And jacky is 5.8in minimum.
Certainly not a proven fighter. Yoichi Nakachi says the fight never happened. We know the Wong Jack man fight did happen, but we don't know the details. He won the schoolboy boxing tournament but that's no big deal. Definitely doesn't make him a fighting god as these fanboys keep saying he was, without providing solid evidence.
I do not believe the Carlos Norris story. Norris was a very accomplished martial artist before meeting Lee. I believe Lebell and Lee exchanged techniques as their strength was in different systems. However, in a judo match, Le Bell would ragdoll Lee. Lee probably used PEDs, especially after his back injury. How come you never mention Lee's statement about the two guys he never wanted to meet in an alley? Jim Harrison and Mike Stone. Lee took an Equagesic, but I doubt it was the cause of the cerebral edema. It was probably the result of fluid, electrolyte, and sodium imbalances. He had a similar episode two weeks prior but survived that.
I'm sorry but Norris was no way near Bruce's level. He was a point karate fighter and if you analyse his fights, he was very stiff and linear with the way he fought
@@PowPow-yp9rf He sure beat a lot of people and won many championships with his direct angular attacks. Most Everyone was a tournament point fighter back in the day. That didn't mean we didn't just fight when we trained.
Well, in all honesty, according to Bruce's own statements, and his friend Dan Inosanto has verified this over the years, Bruce was not impressed with Chuck Norris at all. He was quoted as stating he was just a point guy with little or no real fighting potential. Dan quoted Bruce as saying Joe Lewis had potential, but he never actually said any of these guys were "very good", as you stated here. Norris was not even Bruce's first choice to be his opponent in Way Of The Dragon. Furthermore, no one would even know who Norris is today, if not for Bruce starting his film career, to which Norris has NEVER given Bruce credit for.
he kicked his ass , ye thats right masta vic moore is the shit ::::!!!! dam straiht bl was bawling you da man vic. p.s i tot vic every thing he knows and thats how he beaat bl ye ma boy did it made him legit a sifu , sifu vic he the man the best.
TIMESTAMPS
0:00-: Power Factor Training
5:19- John’s Motivations For Writing The Book?
11:50:- Verifying Sources 50 Years Later?
15:36 -: The Lack Of Humility & Spirituality In Martial Arts?
17:35 - Did Bruce Love A Good Fight?
19:44 - Bruce’s Childhood Gender Confusion
22:45 - “Fighting Without Fighting”
25:20 -: Washington Star Quote About Bruce Lee
28:10 - Bruce Lee’s Warning To Chuck Norris
31:13 -Our Favorite Bruce Lee Fights From The Book
42:55 - The Story Behind Tarantino’s Movie Depiction of Lee
45:10 - Gene Lebell’s B.S. Bruce Lee Stories.
50:25 - Did Bruce Lee Says He Could Beat Muhammad Ali?
58:00 - Bruce’s Weight Training & Back Injury
1:06:12 - Bruce Lee - Similarities WIth Mike Mentzer & Arnold
1:10:00 - Arthur Jones Influence
1:12:45 - Thoughts On Matthew Polly’s “Bruce Lee: A LIfe”
1:13:00 - Heat Stroke Hypothesis Of Lee’s Passing
1:16:04 - Bruce Lee’s Drug Use & Drug Letters
1:23:30 - Bruce Lee & Steroid Use?
1:28:35 - Dana White “Lee is the grandfather of MMA but…”
1:35:35 - New Bruce Lee Movie Coming by Ang Lee
1:36:26 - Will John Write A Definitive Book About Bruce Lee?
1:37:20 - Was The Real Fight, “Bruce Lee vs Bruce Lee?”
1:44:45 - Had He Lived, Predictions For Lee’s Movie Career
1:46:35 - John’s New Mike Mentzer Biography Project
1:53:40 - John’s Mike Mentzer Legacy Course On HITuni
1:55:18 - Thoughts on Bodybuilding Today
It seems so many martial artists pride on their ego rather then growth. When I was 14 a guy knocked me out and when I woke up I was so excited I shook his hand and thanked him. Well he didn’t know what to think. I was so happy because it didn’t kill me and that helped to release some of the fear I had about getting hurt. And whenever I sparred in boxing I felt no fear of loosing because I wasn’t geared on wining or afraid of loosing but I just loved the experience. And when I showed no fear I saw fear in their eyes. I’m not bragging but I’m saying that most people are thinking about wining or loosing which disturbs the natural flow. Thank you for this engaging interview.
My pleasure and thanks for that comment. I love learning more about MA and Bruce and people who are more near to that world than me have taught me a lot
i just started watching the interview and its really funny how John talks about the green belt guy shutting him down. I was in a Taekwondo class when i was shut down by the black belt instructor himself saying Bruce was just a movie guy and i had nothing to back up. so kept my mouth shut! :-) i can definitely relate this to my own experience. when i was kid i was learning Kyokushin and they always talked about Mas Oyama. I am almost 53 now and have always believed Bruce's abilities.
My jiujitsu teacher shut me down with the same comment. He couldn't fight he was just a movie guy. I'm glad this book is setting the record straight among the community
just finished reading the book. this is what i have been waiting for. Thanks John!!!!
Great to hear mate. Let me know what you think of the book and interview
It was awesome.
I already knew half of those fights but I discovered a whole other half new to me!
This was a phenomenal interview..Thanks Shawn..🙏
Thanks mate. I really appreciate that you enjoyed this interview as it's a bit different to the usual Bodybuilding content, yet it was too fascinating a topic to pass up. Cheers again for your support
Learned a lot about Bruce Lee that I never knew before. Thanks guys
Me too. Glad you enjoyed it
John’s interviews just like his books are the best around.
Amazing. Loved the interview with these two legends
Cheers mate glad you liked it and yes they're both legends in my book
Be cool to have lunch coffee with john little. His a wealth of knowledge on bruce lee and many things
John has the best books on Bruce Lee, great interview . Of course I’m a big fan of Bruce. Thanks gentlemen, subscribed.
Thanks for subscribing and leaving that kind comment Richard
This was so damn good…you keep killing it!!!
Cheers Richard. Really glad you enjoyed it.
great questions, and a great watch cheers
Thanks! Hope you learned something new while also being entertained by these two great guests
Fantastic interview. I especially look forward to the Mentzer book. Mentzer had an herculean style physique which I admire. I don't necessarily agree with all his beliefs, but I liked the fact that he could articulate them well. Unlike many of his contemporaries his articles were not ghost written.
Yes I'm really looking forward to this book too especially if it's going to be a comprehensive work on the man's life story. Thanks again Stind
Hey Shawn, Randy and John, i would like to add something, the subject is Tarantino on the Joe Rogan podcast. John said Quentin brought this story with Gene LeBell up. Ive watched the scene again a couple times in the past days, and now i would say it was different:
Tarantino didnt mention LeBell at all. He only said Lee hurt stuntmen all the time, and he had a reputation to hit them very quickly.
Then Rogan interruprts him, and he [Rogan] suddenly speaks about LeBell, asking Tarantino: "Did you ever heard about the Gene LeBell story?". Tarantino replied positive, but he wanted to move on very quickly, since he wasnt interested in talking about LeBell.
Tarantino never wanted to mention LeBell, it was Rogan who brought him in the mix. You can easy support this because there was a false rumour that Cliff Booth was basically LeBell. This rumour was also spread a bit by Rogan and his people.
But Tarantino made clear this was never the case. He based the Booth character on Hal Needham, not on Gene LeBell.
So it seems like Tarantino's intention was only to talk Lee down and turning him into an arrogant guy who hated american stuntmen, but his intention was never to mention LeBell. Only the LeBell fanboy Rogan, who was a close friend of LeBell, brought LeBell into the talk, not Tarantino.
Maybe you (Shawn or Randy) can give this message to John, that he can read it here.
Of course he doesnt have to, but if he has time and wants it, he should watch the Tarantino scene on the Rogan podcast again. It was imo only Rogan who brought LeBell up, while Tarantino never had the intention to mentioning LeBell at all.
That's very interesting and thanks for relaying that here in great detail because yes, you're right now that I watched it again. I'll pass this onto John/Randy and maybe they can reply or comment. Thanks Chris (I also caught the stripey episode so thanks.for sharing my podcast with him)
Great interview amazing
Thanks Danny. Appreciate the watch and kind words of support
Hi Joseph here from West Palm Beach USA. I just so your podcast with John little. Mr little made a little mistake about judo Gene training Bruce Lee at his school. Mr.Lebell school was call "Grand Olympic Auditorium" located In downtown Hollywood California. It was brought out in 2005 by a Korean religious church called Glory Church of Jesus Christ, its still there and open. It was called the "Grand Olympic Auditorium" where professional Wrestlers, boxers, and weightlifters trained there. It was own and operated by judo genes mother, who was a professional promoter for professional wrestling, boxing and weightlifting and occasional roller derby.
When his mother died. Judo gene, and his brother ran the place from 1968 to 1982..That's where judo Gene taught Bruce Lee grappling moves which consisted of professional wrestling moves, ( catch-as- catch Can, judo and Jiu-Jitsu ) You can see these moves being performed by Bruce in the opening scene of Enter the Dragon, ending the fight with the crucifix. I personally wholeheartedly believe that judo Gene LeBell taught Bruce Lee for a year there, at the Grand Olympic Auditorium, which it was called at the time. Holler back at me, LOL, LOL, LOL. P.S. just because its not written down in Bruce Lee's daytimer does not make it not true. You have to remember Bruce Lee was always secretive about things, he came from that culture. Give Gene LeBell his credit as being one of Bruce Lee's teachers.
I'll bring this up with John next time we speak
Thank You
Thanks man great podcast 💯
Thank you for watching and leaving a comment
Muhammad ali himself said on the mike douglas show that if he or any top boxer ever fought with a top martial artist the boxer would lose because a boxer might be better at punching but martial artist are better with everthing. Kicks, take downs, etc.
Thanks for that info and quote. I'm a beginner to the Bruce Lee topic, so any additional info is great to know
All true, yes. Ali himself was very realistic. But many ppl on TH-cam or on MMA, Boxing or Joe Rogan podcasts simply dont consider that anymore. They have the habit only to look to height and weight and nothing else.
Fact is:
Ali s street fight record is 0-0-0. That was even confirmed by his long time trainer Angelo Dundee. He said his man didnt have one street fight in his life. And this has nothing to do with Lee, its just a fact.
So how can say Ali would beat XY or would even be a great street fighter, when he never fought in the street?
Anyone who knows what a street fight is, knows Ali s style was first and foremost scoring points with fast punches, not with hard killer punches like Mike Tyson etc. This is great under the Marques of Queensberry rules, but not in the street.
Ali defeated guys like Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, George Chuvalo, Earnie Shavers und Chuck Weppner in the boxing ring, but i tell you all of them would most probably beat him in a street fight, because their weapons are better disigned for the street.
Not long ago retired brithis light heavyweight champion Tony "The Blue Dragon" Bellew, who lost to Olexandr Usyk in his last fight, said: "We are boxers, we arent fighters. That s not the same."
@@chrisbach1533 awesome Input there mate. Thanks for adding those thoughts.
@@carvedouttastone My pleasure :). Great talk from you with John, thx for the uplaod :)!
Here much more:
A couple things more which are maybe interesting for some people. Since guys like Gene LeBell, Chuck Norris, Joe Lewis etc. were always good in talk Lee down, now i point some things out about them which a rarely mentioned:
1) Something in general about Point Karate (not about Lee, only in general). Here are some fight records compared to professional Boxers and Muay Thai fighters:
Sam Langford (Boxer): 314 fights
Saenchai (Muay Thai): 378 fights
Skipper Mullins (Point Karate): 1115 fights
I am not absolute sure, but i think Langford and Saenchai are among the fighters with the most bouts across all full contact combat sports. I couldnt find anyone in Boxing or Muay Thai with 400 bouts and more.
This should underline how "dangerous" Point Karate is compared to Boxing or Muay Thai. Langford and Saenchai togehter had 692 fights. Mullin's doesnt double that, but over 1100 fights just shows how much damage your body takes in Point Karate.
World Champion in Point Karate doesnt make someone a tough guy, a skilled guy in a certain skill contest yes, but not tough or relevant to full contact combat sport or street fights (only adressed to the milenium kids on YT who always claim "Chuck Norris was a real fighter").
Kenpo Karate founder Ed Parker Senior’s record as „fighter“ is 0-0-0. Still he is regarded a martial arts legend, great MA Instructor, and very effective street fighter. Not one of the Point Karate Champions from back in the day ever challenged his status or challenged him.
Parker Sr. about Point Karate:
„Tournament Karate is not full contact Karate. The idea is to execute a Karate technique with full control. You win matches by outscoring your opponent, not by killing them.“
This should underline the Point Karate Champions like Norris, Moore etc. never executed their strikes with full power, and the goal was to outscore the opponent, not by hurting them. And it underlines Point Karate wasn’t full contact, so Norris etc. were never full contact fighters.
Take a look at (full) professional Soccer player Pelé (1940-2022), who was born the same year as Norris and Lee. During the 1960s he was badly injured many times and had to take longer breaks to recover. Back in the day yellow and red cards didn’t exist, and you could attack opponents very hard. Pelé suffered many leg injuries through heavy kicks to his legs. Compare his injury list with Point Karate Fighters. Pelé was much more injured as them, even if he was a Soccer player and not a combat sport fighter.
2) Were Lewis etc. real World Champoins in Kickboxing or not?
A couple weeks ago a new video was uploaded about former Pro Boxer Randall "Tex" Cobb. He fought George Foreman once but also Earnie Shavers.
In the beginning of the clip, the narrator says Cobb won 1980 the first world tournament in kickboxing.
How could Lewis, Bill Wallace etc. be World Champions in Kickboxing in the 1970s when the first real world tournament in Kickboxing was held in 1980?
So if this is true (i cant check it out), then even American Kickboxers like Lewis, Wallace etc. were never real World Champions. At least not in the 70s when they had their prime.
3) Were Point Karte World Champions really world champions?
Bill Wallace to John Little: "Back in those days, you could go to Chicago, fighting three guys from Chicago, and be crowned as world champion."
So it seems these "World Championships" werent real World Championships.
4) Bob Wall
Bob Wall (RiP!) claimed him and Lee were best friends:
Fact is Lee only spoke once about Wall, and it was negative. He was asked by someone why he hires that guy (Wall) always? And he said: "Because he gets hit so damn good."
Not just Matt Polly but also former Lee histotrian George Tan pointed that out, i mean ppl said Lee never liked Wall so much. But Wall made a career claiming he was Lee's close friend.
And in a video podcast in 2018 he even claimed what Lee would do in the late 60s, he himself and LeBell already did in the early 60s.
4) Gene LeBell
Yes we know what a fish Seagal is, and yes we know he lied many times, but there were indeed some people who wanted to find out if LeBell actually has a black belt in the original japanese Jūdō.
They checked out any Kōdōkan, Nippon Budōkan, Judokai etc. and couldnt find one black belt. The Kōdōkan is the headquater of the world wide Jūdō community, and any black belt is listed there.
LeBells Wiki article list him as:
10th degree red belt in Judo
9th degree black belt in Jujutsu
10th degree black belt in Kyokushin Budokai
Kyokoshin Budokai is the style which was founded by dutch Jon Bluming.
I have no doubts LeBells 10th degree in Kyokushin Budokai is legit, and i dont know if his 9th degree black belt in Jujitsu is legit.
But is 10th degree red belt (highest rank) in Jūdō is very sceptical!
Notice:
Jūdō = the original japanese writing when romanized to western alphabet, founded by JIgoro Kano
Judo = western version, but not the original style which was founded by Kano.
So it can be LeBell only has a 10th degree red belt in american Judo, but not in the original art from Japan named Jūdō.
And this would be very cheap since his nickname was Judo Gene LeBell. It would be a total gag if he never studied Jūdō but called himself Judo Gene.
But since he told so many stories from which many are not true, i woudnt be surprised.
Go here on YT for Steven Seagal Bruce Lee Haters and you gonna find a video when Steven talks about Tarantino and LeBell. And he pointed out LeBell made his entire career in lying about who he beat up.
Buttom line: These guys talked negative about Lee from time to time. No problem. But as you see, they arent flawless too.
@@chrisbach1533 excellent read and very educational - I will pin these comments and hopefully John adds his thoughts if he reads the comment. So glad you stopped by Chris.
Great video. Thank you for sharing
You're welcome. Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for leaving a comment. Really helps the channel out :-)
@@carvedouttastone 🙏🏼🙏🏼
It seems that most people like to be around others who tell them what they like to hear and so forth. But they don’t like someone who questions. I love it when someone questions me because then I can give them an answer. There’s nothing like really communicating. But those who don’t follow the path most taken are on their own. Isn’t that the best place to be. Win or loose your being and doing what you want.
Stripey Rambles did a video here on YT about that Lee and Ali statement by Little, and he mentioned your podcast in the video :).
Oh wow that's very cool to hear...I hope the comment was positive lol. I'll check it out and thanks for letting me know
@@carvedouttastone Yes of course he was. He recommended your podcast, the video is about 20 minutes long or so, and he quotes me but mentions your podcast. Stripey Rambles, that s the name of his channel.
Great content as always😊
Thanks always for the comments mate!
It is a brilliant interview.
Wow that's great feedback. Thanks so much mate
@@carvedouttastone you are cordially welcome, Sir
HEY SHAWN YOU REALLY HAVE AN OUTSTANDING PHYSIQUE
Hey thanks mate. Those pics are from starting out to 30 years ago. Ive tried my best to maintain and still hang in there at 50, but Power Factor was all I used in those early days.
Finally someone who asked about training like Bruce and other martial artists to maintain speed and gain power.
According to Tommy Carruthers , Bruces grandmothers surname was Fulton . Maybe Bruces grandmother was Scottish rather than English as John claims. All we know is that Bruces grandmother was British, even Matthew Polly couldn't discover her background. She still remains a mystery.
I loved Muhammad ali but i disagree with most people. My money be on bruce lee to beat ALI IN THE RING AND STREET . BRUCE WAS A GENIUS NATURAL FIGHTER FASTER THEN ALI AND STRONGER NEVER UNDERESTIMATE BRUCE BACK THEN
What is your favourite real fight of Bruce that you have seen ?
Bruce lee said in an interview i herd he has never refused one challenge
I gotta get that book!!!
It's awesome.mate, even if you're not a marital arts fan
Only one Bruce, and the world is still searching
Well said
I love how John exposes Gene 😂😂
Great video sir kindly ask sir John about Gary Elms amateur boxing fight with Bruce Lee in interschool Hong Kong 1958 wear Bruce Lee beat the champion boxer Gary Elms and his boxing coach was Wing Chun master Wong Shung Leung
Cheers mate will do next time we have a discussion
A minor scoolboy boxing tournament is hardly worth mentioning. It's not like he beat Sonny Liston.
Excellent video! I was happy to hear the story about Chuck Norris at the 29:00 minute mark, because I too, have seen Chuck Norris in interviews say that he and Bruce shared techniques, but he never admitted to being a student or sparring. Getting the feel of who Bruce Lee was over the years-especially his philosophy about combat.… I found that hard to believe-thinking they had to have sparred.
Thank you for your research!
@@markj228 As John Little says, it has to be classed as hearsay, because he can't remember who told him the story, Anecdote. There lies the problem, everything about Bruce is an anecdote.
All these stories about Bruce beating this guy and that guy, that may or may not be true. Do we also believe the story of Travador Ramos beating Bruce ? Or doesn't it work that way ?
Dana white might be first to coin the term father of mma. But long before that there was the idea people saw bruce as the first Mixed martial artist and that was common thinking, very common.
Mainly because bruce got his brilliant ideas out there and people thought bruce was the first who knew what he was doing, be proficient in all the 4 ranges of combat, and like water. And people thought if they follow bruces blueprint they are going the right route and are going to progress mush faster in the martial arts than if they didnt listen to bruce. And yes because different styles acknowledge bruce was the best, at a time when the arts were separated and didn't fight each other, so could convince themselves their art was superior than other styles..Lebel and nishioka thought bruce was the best, karate champs did too etc
Damn, 30 seconds in showing off a great physique.. I'm sure there will be Natty or not arguments back and forth..💪🤙
Haha definitely natty back in those days. Didn't take anything until I was 40, but the foundation was there already. Haven't used in two years, so trying to hang on to everything moving forward is definitely a challenge
Hey John, not sure if you’ll see this comment. But KFG claims he’s seen documents about what happened to Bruce. He won’t tell anyone though. Don’t know what that’s about maybe it’s just bs 🤷♂️
I'll pass it onto John. Thanks for letting me know
@@carvedouttastone hey man, thanks for the reply. Amazing episode by the way! Really enjoying it - still watching 👍🏻
@@axelstone3131 really appreciate you watching. I loved the interview - I hope it gets out into the community some more because to have these two legends on at the same time is a rare treat
@@carvedouttastone yes, definitely. I’ve shared it on my page. John really is so informed about Bruce. It would be great if he could get on Joe Rogan to set the record straight. A lot of misinformation is pushed about Bruce.
@@axelstone3131 thanks mate, really appreciate you sharing it! Yeah it's strange that Rogan has never had John on since he's the authority on the topic.
Time stamps please
Shit, I knew I was forgetting to Copy/Paste something! - DONE! :-)
These fights bruce lee had in his life everyone could have on the street..some people fight more often and more serious....it is nothing out of ordinary.
Love Randy’s humour 😂
Great podcast and discussions
Randy's a blast. Honored to have both guys on for the same vid
Didn't bruce beat Skipper mullins in sparring? Skipper said he'd pick bruce in any street situation. I'd think bruce beat Ed Parker too
Sparring is training...not fighting. Ed Parker wasnt a fighter so Bruce might have beat him, nobody knows. I never heard about them fighting or sparring. AFAIK they were friends from the start.
@cuzz63
But I heard bruce went hard in sparring. He touched you up good, so you knew he wasn't playing games, so you need not play with bruce too.
Bruce embarrassed demile, so demile tried hurting bruce. George dillman had to tell bruce to ease up a little, when bruce went to his school to spar with his students
@@iluvcliffrichard well sparring is training and only real dicks go hard when its unwarranted.
Its entirely possible DeMile was humiliated by Bruce which could be the reason he left training with Bruce. Its hard to say when DeMile is known to exaggerate things.
@@iluvcliffrichard yea, I heard that Bruce would go light then suddenly go hard without warning which we think of as a dick move.
I dont doubt Bruce might have done stuff to DeMile but he exaggerated so many things who knows? I am curious as to why DeMile left Bruce and created his own system. Dillman is even more of a notorious conman so anything he claims is suspect but as I said sparring is training.
Joey orbillo said bruce touched him as he pleased. I doubt joey takes joy in that. I'm sure orbillo would love to tell people how he touched bruce. But can't as he couldnt lay a finger ger on bruce
Hey guys, John mentioned that Bruce was taking Cortisone for his bad back. Tom Bleecker, in his book, entertained two scenarios that could fit the possibility of Bruce's death, one being Cortisone overuse and one being foul play. Tom seemed to indicate he had a lot of evidence, apparently being contacted by the Autopsy show to use the evidence in the show, as he explains, but declined due to privacy. The Cortisone video is here, I'll put the foul play video above. Has John entertained either of these scenarios?
th-cam.com/video/mjxzfzRhfMI/w-d-xo.htmlsi=GNWkdNLttSqZAV4j
When I first saw that Autopy episode it blew my mind because I'd read the Bleeker book and laughed out loud at his cortisone theory. Now it's the one theory that truly makes sense. Although in Seattle student Doug Palmer's recent book, his daughter and son-in-law who are both doctors said that Bruce's physical and mental changes struck them as withdrawal symptoms when someone is going on and off a substance, which they suspected to be the opioid Darvon he was taking for his back.
@randalwung8715 Tom's foul play episode, which I posted below, made a lot of sense too. Alot of people stood to lose alot of money if Bruce moved on to another Production Company, billions in today's money terms and he was breaking up as well with Betty apparently, not to mention the Butler somehow ended up with his house and possessions allegedly, it would of been easy for someone to poison him over a period of time with some exotic poison that mimicked those symptoms as mentioned in Tom's summary of it, as they only did generic poison tests, they didn't test for the exotic poisons. Who knows, I'm now leaning towards foul play, as not all tests were done. Might be the old joke, The Butler did it, lol!
@@bssstphnWu Ngan was more than a butler, since, as I understand it, he was the son of servants to the Lee household who was essentially adopted into the family and considered Bruce's brother. The assets in his name, I'm assuming, were to shield Linda from estate taxes and such when her husband passed. But who knows? Wu was willing to have drug mailings from Bob Baker addressed to him, so I'm assuming he was the dude who knew where all the bodies were buried, lol. I'll watch the Bleeker segment, but you're right: Bruce wanted independence from Chow or anyone, and planned to move back to the States after Enter with a handpicked crop of stuntmen and, I imagine, other industry professionals as well.
There's a 2020 documentary about the Hong Kong stuntmen called Never Say No! that discusses how, upon Lee's death, the action industry practically dried up overnight and all the stunt guys were waiting tables and shit wondering if it was gonna bounce back. Can you imagine what would've happened to Golden Harvest if Bruce returned to America and Hollywood and started calling the shots from there, starting his own company or maybe even studio? If anyone had a motivation to stop that from happening it was Raymond Chow. Not saying that's what he did, but given all the cloak-and-dagger shadiness surrounding the Little Dragon's demise and what was and wasn't done in regard to it, let's just say an "assassination" wasn't out of the question.
Oh, and I've never seen the claim verified, but I remember Bleeker saying that Brandon had told him once The Crow and his honeymoon were over, he was planning a trip to Hong Kong to conduct a personal, thorough investigation into his father's death. Again, not saying there was foul play, but if that story is true? Hmmmm…
@randalwung8715 Yes, it was definitely boring after Bruce passed away, I was 14 at the time, and I remember waiting until around 78 for Game of Death to be released and was really disappointed. His fight scenes were fantastic of course, but he didn't complete them all, that last fight with Hugh O'Brian after Kareem, you can see they had Jackie Chan and maybe Bruce Li doing the scene and superimposed Bruce's face when he broke free from a headlock, etc. It was highly disappointing. I remember all the Bruce Lee imposters coming out and not bothering to watch and it wasn't until Van Damme brought out Bloodsport that things started to pick-up, Van Damme's movies became predictable with the slomo action and the repeating of a kick in slomo choreography and Chuck's predictable roundhouses all the time became boring also, I didn't bother much until Seagal came out with his style of more realistic fighting and he was phenomenal, I thought. But no one will replace Bruce. I also heard that about Brandon going to investigate as Bruce was receiving all sorts of offers for millions and Warner Bros were asking him to do a movie with Elvis, Bruce was a huge Elvis fan but Bruce put it on the back burner for awhile and the studio wanted to do Silent Flute, which was his baby and he started doing test photographs for the blind swordsman and others through another Company. He had all sorts of offers, and George Dillman was going to introduce him to Ali on his return, and Ali expressed his sorrow of not meeting him. Golden Harvest would have crashed overnight. However, apparently, they profited to the tune of 120 million in insurance money for Bruce, and Linda had to sue to get any. It was definitely suspicious. Yep, I'm leaning towards foul play.
@@bssstphn It's surprising he never met Elvis given the Ed Parker connection. I think I read Presley wanted to produce a movie-a martial arts documentary?-featuring Bruce. As for Ali, I met a filmmaker who claimed he was friends with Ali and was told the two HAD met through their mutual pal, Kareem-makes sense, but I more than suspect bullshit since it's the only story like that I've heard, lol. I've also heard Ali was considered for Game of Death. And I believe those period costume photos of Bruce were all shot at Shaw Bros, the studio he turned down to work with Chow but whose doors he kept open, no doubt to Raymond's chagrin. The blind swordsman photo in that set was him imititating Shintaro Katsu-he was fan of the Zatoichi series and actually toyed with playing the character at some point (his facial expressions chewing on a "roasted dog" in Fist of Fury were SO Shintaro)-and Italian producer Carlo Ponti, who later collaborated with Shaw, wanted Bruce for a "Spaghetti Eastern" with his wife Sofia Loren. Not to mention that a revisiting of The Silent Flute project would have involved Warner Bros, as would Lee's old Warrior proposal had he detoured back to TV.
So, yeah, given their 50-50 partnership, Bruce's open courting of other studios, the way he was grooming his stuntmen-they'd literally have taken a bullet for him-and his public disrespect of Raymond by sometimes chewing him out on set, the producer HAD to have been concerned for his future and more than a little pissed with his number-one cash cow. Now am I saying he'd have taken the risk of slaughtering that cow in hopes that his studio, and the kung fu industry itself, could continue without him…perhaps, oh, with a gajillion Bruceploitation flicks? Maybe, maybe not, but the motivation was certainly there.
Me? Given the info provided by the Autopsy episode plus the dozens of "drug letters" that surfaced a few years ago, I'm pretty darn sure Lee passed from a life he himself sometimes said was not going to be long; one he burned at both ends with a drive and passion that was unmatched. Still, if plausible news of foul play was to surface? I wouldn't be shocked.
34:14
Hagler did not fight at welterweight
Hey...!!! Quentin...!!! You do realise that Bruce was American, right!!!?🙄
56:16 56:19
John and Pete at least tried to make a difference...
Feb 89 Blackbelt "Secrets of Shoalin Temple" column by Steven Barnes (its online) details Lees loss to Lebell in a real altercation and not just some on set hijinks. For someone to put this story in print in a national publication means something. The story was also verified by Ed Parker in another article. I read both at the time. I dont recall anyone in the Lee family or JKD community close to Lee flatly denying this story. John Little, missing a golden opportunity to call it false in his book on Lee's supposed history of fights ignores this controversy completely. Why? Maybe he cant deny it ever happened in print as much as he claims in breezy conversations on fanboy podcasts. Lets see Shannon Lee say that a real altercation with Lee and Lebell never took place. She hasnt yet. Has Dan Inosanto ever gone on record saying Lee was overpowered in a real altercation with Lebell ? He never has seemed to talk about it at all. The silence by those close to Lee on this is telling. The only one who said something about it was Parker and he would know. Unlike 99% if Lee fanboys, he actually KNEW him. Lets also have John Little interview Steven Barnes and ask him who his sources were back in 1989 who gave him the confidence to write what he wrote. I challenge Goldenbell training to contact Barnes and ask him who his sources were. Barnes is an award winning african american writer and not some lightweight. I also challenge Little, and the Lee estate to say in print that Lebell did not have an heated altercation which concluded with Lebell overpowering Bruce Lee. Gushing fanboy commentary reciting the elements is not journalism.
But why chuck norris doesnt say that bruce lee was his teacher. Why Joe Lewis rejected to play a role in the Way of Dragon because he had to lose to Bruce Lee...likely they trained and shared fighting ideas with each other but Lee never was a teacher or instructor for them.
Maybe because their ego is bigger than their memory or gratitude perhaps? I think John's book makes it pretty clear that both these guys obtained a fair amount of knowledge from Bruce - if that doesn't qualify Bruce as being a "teacher" of sorts, I don't know what does
Are you deaf? Did you not watch this whole podcast? Chuck had to apologise in a written letter for not admitting Bruce was his teacher. Also in the papers, a journalist, witnessed and wrote Bruce was instructing those top martial artists you mentioned.
gosh. wake up dude.
@@HDsharp No apology. Just a letter to clear up any misunderstanding. It's you fanboys that read it as an apology.
I BELEIVE BRUCE LEE WAS 5'6'' AT MOST
WHAT DO YOU THINK
Yes, that's about spot on I think according to what I've read.
Bruce was actually closer to 5 foot 7.5
And actors/men NEVER Lie about their height or weight, do they? Arnold says he's 6'2. Is he fuck. Unless he can pump height.
Theres no way Bruce was 5.6..he was exactly 5.7.5inches. if you see him with Jackie in enter the dragon, there's not much difference in height between them. And jacky is 5.8in minimum.
YOU ARE BLIND@@HDsharp
JL s a liar ....that Sissycha cha dancer was never a fighter
Certainly not a proven fighter. Yoichi Nakachi says the fight never happened. We know the Wong Jack man fight did happen, but we don't know the details. He won the schoolboy boxing tournament but that's no big deal. Definitely doesn't make him a fighting god as these fanboys keep saying he was, without providing solid evidence.
I do not believe the Carlos Norris story. Norris was a very accomplished martial artist before meeting Lee. I believe Lebell and Lee exchanged techniques as their strength was in different systems. However, in a judo match, Le Bell would ragdoll Lee. Lee probably used PEDs, especially after his back injury. How come you never mention Lee's statement about the two guys he never wanted to meet in an alley? Jim Harrison and Mike Stone. Lee took an Equagesic, but I doubt it was the cause of the cerebral edema. It was probably the result of fluid, electrolyte, and sodium imbalances. He had a similar episode two weeks prior but survived that.
I'm sorry but Norris was no way near Bruce's level. He was a point karate fighter and if you analyse his fights, he was very stiff and linear with the way he fought
@@PowPow-yp9rf He sure beat a lot of people and won many championships with his direct angular attacks. Most Everyone was a tournament point fighter back in the day. That didn't mean we didn't just fight when we trained.
Well, in all honesty, according to Bruce's own statements, and his friend Dan Inosanto has verified this over the years, Bruce was not impressed with Chuck Norris at all. He was quoted as stating he was just a point guy with little or no real fighting potential. Dan quoted Bruce as saying Joe Lewis had potential, but he never actually said any of these guys were "very good", as you stated here. Norris was not even Bruce's first choice to be his opponent in Way Of The Dragon. Furthermore, no one would even know who Norris is today, if not for Bruce starting his film career, to which Norris has NEVER given Bruce credit for.
he kicked his ass , ye thats right masta vic moore is the shit ::::!!!! dam straiht bl was bawling you da man vic. p.s i tot vic every thing he knows and thats how he beaat bl ye ma boy did it made him legit a sifu , sifu vic he the man the best.
I love how John exposes Gene 😂😂