What was Bruce Lee’s net worth at death? Who was Bruce Lee’s wife until his death?
Introduction
Bruce Lee was a Hong Kong-American actor and martial arts expert who popularized the quote “Be water, my friend.”
Lee also developed the martial art style called Jeet Kune Do
Biography
He was born in the year of the Dragon on November 27, 1940, in San Francisco, as Lee Jun-fan.
His father was a part-time actor and an opera singer.
Lee had two brothers and two sisters.
When he was four months old, Lee and his family moved to Hong Kong.
During his childhood, Bruce performed in more than a dozen Chinese films.
Bruce Lee in a publicity still for ‘Fist of Fury’ – @Getty
At age 13, Bruce started to study martial arts with Wing Chun Master Yip Man.
At the age of 18, Lee headed back to San Francisco.
In 1961, he enrolled at the University of Washington. He dropped out in 1964.
In 1963, Bruce opened his first martial arts school in Seattle.
1973 – @Getty
From 1966 to 1967, Lee portrayed Kato in 26 episodes of the TV series The Green Hornet.
In 1971, he performed his first leading role in The Big Boss. The film went on to gross close to $50 million worldwide.
In 1972, Bruce founded his production company, “Concord Pictures.”
In March 1972, Lee played Chen Zhen in Fist of Fury. It grossed $100 million worldwide.
At the end of 1972, The Way of the Dragon was released. Bruce directed the film and also co-produced it. He starred in The Way of the Dragon alongside Chuck Norris.
Chuck Norris with Bruce Lee on the set of his movie The Way of the Dragon – @Getty
The film went on to gross an estimated $130 million.
He was named one of the most influential figures of the 20th century by TIme in 1999.
Wife
On August 17, 1964, Bruce Lee married Linda Lee Cadwell.
Linda Lee – wife of Bruce Lee. – 1975 – @Getty
In the same year, he performed the iconic one-inch punch at the Long Beach International Karate Championships.
They first met when Bruce gave a kung fu demonstration at Garfield High School.
Linda published the book — “Bruce Lee: The Man Only I Knew.”
Children
In 1965, their son, Brandon, was born in 1965. Brandon passed away on March 31, 1993, due to being shot while filming a scene for “The Crow.”
Shannon Lee was born on April 19, 1969.
“When he focused his attention on you, it was like having the sun shine on you,” Shannon told People in 2019.
She is the CEO of the Bruce Lee Family Company.
She is the author of the book — “Be Water, My Friend: The Teachings of Bruce Lee.”
Height
1970 – @Getty
Bruce Lee was 5′ 7¾″ (1.72 m) tall and weighed 64 kg (141 lb).
Death
He died in Hong Kong on July 20, 1973, from cerebral edema due to hyponatremia, according to kidney specialists in Spain.
On July 20, 1979, he took the painkiller Equagesic due to a deafache. He went to sleep and eventually passed away.
Lee was 32 years old when he died.
“Your energy is eternal, and it still communicates,” his daughter wrote a later tribute.
His funeral was held in Hong Kong.
In 1993, Lee received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1972 – @Getty
In 2013, a statue of Bruce Lee was unveiled in Chinatown Central Plaza, LA.
Bruce Lee – Net Worth
So, how much was Bruce Lee worth?
Lee earned most of his wealth from performing in a handful of full-length movies, teaching martial arts in his three schools in LA, Seattle, and Oakland, and from is from giving private jeet kune do lessons to Hollywood stars.
At that time, Lee was the highest-paid Asian actor in Hollywood.
1972 – @Getty
Enter the Dragon was released less than one month later after his death. It grossed over $400 million worldwide and has been cited as one of the most influential action films of all time.
In 1972, Lee bought a house at 41 Cumberland Road here in the Kowloon Tong neighborhood.
Therefore, at the time of his death, Bruce Lee had an estimated net worth of $10 million — adjusted for inflation.
“Till the end of 1980 I will have in my possession $10,000,000,” Bruce Lee wrote in his handwritten note (My Definite Chief Aim) from 1969. “I will live the way I please and achieve inner harmony and happiness.”
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I am Bulgarea Candin Stefan, and I founded FamousPeopleToday.com in 2018. I’m using my bachelor’s degree in economics and 9 years of experience in blogging to guide millions of people through the incredibly complex world of celebrity net worths.