When martial arts veteran Bruce Lee passed away, a lot took place after his demise. While fans were grieving a loss to the film industry, his family slowly began drifting apart. It was Lee’s wife and children on one end, and his siblings on the other. In an interview with South China Morning Post in 2013, Bruce’s brother Robert Lee sat down to talk about his brother’s legacy and a certain bitterness surrounding it.
At a time when the family wanted to remember Lee’s contributions to society, they had to spend time negotiating over rights to the star’s works.
The death of Bruce Lee – a saga of rifts in the family
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When Bruce Lee passed away in 1973, leaving behind his wife and two children, there was a giant mess that needed attention. Due to the untimely nature of his demise, the star did not have a will. This left an estate and a bunch of intellectual properties to sort through.
Bruce’s wife, Linda Lee, immediately got down to work and got the appropriate documents for her late husband’s estate. Meanwhile, his family back in China was in the dark about the same. Distance, language barrier, and the lack of common cultures were to blame for the sparse communication between the Lee family. This rift gradually grew as more legal conflicts arose from all over the world regarding the star’s intellectual properties.
Taking into account Bruce’s popularity, Bruce’s brother, Robert Lee, reflected on this invisible wall between his family and his sister-in-law and niece. Speaking to South China Morning Post, he said, “I wish Bruce wasn’t that famous in that respect. We could have a real, complete family.”?
Shannon reflected on her father’s favorite element on his 80th anniversary
Before Bruce Lee passed, one of his key lessons was to become like water. Fluid, gentle, yet strong enough to create storms. On his 80th anniversary, the legend’s daughter, Shannon Lee, reflected upon this teaching in an interview at The Drew Barrymore Show.
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Shannon spoke about how her father would learn the art of balance from one of his favorite elements – water. She mentioned how water was soft, gentle, yet could come in as a tsunami. This teaching has since echoed throughout Bruce Lee’s fandom. While the star may have passed at a young age, his legacy stays immortal in the world.
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