After 50 years in the industry and more than 100 films to his credit, Jackie Chan hardly requires an introduction. Loved by all, respected by all, Jackie Chan is universally hailed as a legend. Jackie has many fascinating aspects of his life, which we, in spite of being his fans, are unaware of.
His Parents Left Him as A Child
Jackie’s father, Charles was a spy working for the Chinese National government and while at his duty he had arrested a stage performer and opium seller named Lee-Lee, whom he later married. Charles and Lee-Lee both had two children on either side from their previous marriages whom them left and fled to Hong Kong when the communists came to power in 1949. Jackie was born five years later and immediate endeavours were made to sell for a price of $26 to the doctor who helped deliver him. Later Jackie was left in a boarding school while the parents went to Australia in search of work.
Life in boarding school was hard as Jackie and his fellows students were given lessons on drama, acrobatics, martial art and music and were beaten up at any mistake. The school didn’t teach reading or writing to its students. At the age of 8 Jackie appeared in a movie for the first time and following Bruce Lee’s death, he slowly established himself as Hong Kong movie industry’s next big star
He Doesn’t Understand Hollywood
Jackie isn’t much of a fan of Hollywood. Even after years of success with blockbuster movies like Rush Hour films and Shanghai Noon films, Jackie says that he doesn’t get American humour nor does he understands Hollywood’s craziness behind car-chase formulated film. Jackie reported didn’t like Rush Hour and would not have done the sequels had they not offered him truck load of money. Around the 1980s during his initial years in Hollywood, Jackie had struggled to establish his own style because his early directors had wanted him to be the next Bruce Lee. None-the-less Jackie Chan has become a revered superstar who might not have worked with Hollywood’s big daddies like Steven Spielberg but it doesn’t matter because, “in Asia, everybody comes to see Jackie Chan in a Jackie Chan film.”
A Stunt That Froze His Blood
Even after years of practise and years of successful stunt performances Jackie find every stunt terrifying. But nothing was quiet as terrifying as the one he managed to pull off in ‘Who Am I?’ If you have seen the film you’d very well remember the climax where he slides down the 21 storied Willemswerf Building in Rotterdam. It wasn’t a straight sliding (how could Jackie be satisfied with a straight stunt). He travelled down the slant side of the building at 45 degree angle, tumbled over, stood up walked down speedily before falling forward and sliding forward. Reportedly it took him two week to work up the courage to do this stunt.
He Sings and Has 20 Albums to His Credit
That’s our wantonly talented Jackie. We already know that he was strictly brought up in a boarding school where no academic lessons were given. His rigorous childhood training made a master singer out of him and since 1984, he has churned out 20 albums featuring his song. From 1980, he has been singing the closing credits of all his Chinese movies and had sung the theme songs of his film ‘Young Master’. The Disney film ‘Mulan’ released in China had Jackie singing ‘I’ll Make a Man Out of You’ for the dubbed versions.
His Body Is Full Of Injuries
Almost every part of his body has suffered pain. Jackie has injured his hand countless time, broken his nose three times, has injured his knee innumerable time so much so that now he uses a body double for shooting sprinting scenes. He has broken his ankle, injured his neck, crushed his thigh between two vehicles and has also dislocated his pelvis, shoulders and sternum. Jackie is known, not just to perform his own stunts but performing even in injury.
His Guinness World Records
He holds two more world records – one for performing the most stunts by any living stuntmen & two, for taking care of as many as 15 different works in his latest film ‘Zodiac’. He was the director, writer, lead actor, executive producer, producer, unit producer, art director, cinematographer, manager, prop man, stunt coordinator, stuntman, gaffer, theme song vocalist, composer and even the food caterer. Yup, that’s our Jackie!
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