Steve
Mostly Harmless
It hurts that you aren't sure whether it was a joke....
Anyone got a complete list of all styles Bruce Lee trained?
- Thread starter Bruce Lee 1127
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Bruce Lee 1127
White Belt
753 is a joke. 17 is more like it. Official training would be his wing chun, boxing, fencing. Official as in actually enrolled in a martial arts school. The rest he learned from friends and acquaintances.
Headhunter
Senior Master
So just wing chun then. He had no formal boxing training he trained with William Cheung for that boxing tournament he won. His other boxing was from watching videos and reading books. Fencing isn't either as he only learnt that from his brother who was a fencer.
No clue about the rest, but like headhunter said he never studied fencing. He had his brother teach him the footwork cause he thought it was useful but thats about it.
JR 137
Grandmaster
Hey... don't forget, he was trained in the Cha-Cha as well!
Photos of Bruce Lee Dancing the Cha Cha - hongwrong.com
Photos of Bruce Lee Dancing the Cha Cha - hongwrong.com
frank raud
Master of Arts
Bruce Lee and Dan Inosanto studied 27 martial arts to develop JKD.
I have the list too. I started typing it in 1987. Just about finished.
Steve
Mostly Harmless
It’s a lot to do. Very long list.
Headhunter
Senior Master
I believe he just used the fencing footwork and not much else. He learnt head kicks off guys like chuck Norris who originated from Korean styles which are kick focused than the Chinese styles
NYFIGHTSOURCE
Orange Belt
What Bruce evaluated, what he studied, and what he felt was useful varies. So many people will look at his notes... and see him mentioning other arts. Esp. when he wrote little passages on the sides of his books. We may miss understand his intent on a statement. He might have been making a statement cause he felt it was bad. Or maybe he was saying it was good.
He originated in taking a style of Tai Chi initially. Of course it wasn't a fit for him... so he quickly moved on to Wing Chun. But 17 styles? Lets look at the 3 main ones that make up the art. Wing Chun. He studies Sil Lim Tao. He never completed the other forms. He never learned the mook Jong form etc. So he never completed the system. And well you would say he probably just got a small portion of it. But probably most important he got the concepts of center line, no wasted energy, directness, straightline etc..
Boxing. Again... never really did a lot of training in it. Researched a lot. Worked with William Cheung to do some chinese boxing to enter into a match which he won. But western boxing... hardly. But he studied Ali and had a ton of boxing books. Which of course now you can't get a copy of without paying through the nose cause they are listed as part of Bruce's library. Fencing... he took principles from. And his brother showed him the lunge step. Couple with the Jack Dempsey drop step... you have a powerful jab. Or straight lead. But he didn't train in Fencing.
People say praying mantis. What I understand is that he trained 2 weeks in the system. Later to do the forms and then say it was a classical mess. Being flowery and cocky. A lot of the John little books has notes on Muay thai and other arts. He was studying and exploring. Sometimes taking small pieces. Sometimes simply figuring out the most simplistic way to beat that art.
Too many times people look at what he evaluated was what he used to build his art. Not soooo. He was simply looking at different arts and finding ways to use what he was doing already to beat that art. Not to pile on more stuff.
Concepts people tend to sometimes add many various arts to the mix. Yet there is a lot of literature of his.... which says do not add to the mix... cut away.
A good analogy I have read is a chunk of clay.... Cut away the pieces that is not needed.... Do not add clumps of clay to create the sculpture.... hack away...
So these long lists.... 753(AHHAHA) I know... joke. but there is long lists of all these arts. Not true.
He originated in taking a style of Tai Chi initially. Of course it wasn't a fit for him... so he quickly moved on to Wing Chun. But 17 styles? Lets look at the 3 main ones that make up the art. Wing Chun. He studies Sil Lim Tao. He never completed the other forms. He never learned the mook Jong form etc. So he never completed the system. And well you would say he probably just got a small portion of it. But probably most important he got the concepts of center line, no wasted energy, directness, straightline etc..
Boxing. Again... never really did a lot of training in it. Researched a lot. Worked with William Cheung to do some chinese boxing to enter into a match which he won. But western boxing... hardly. But he studied Ali and had a ton of boxing books. Which of course now you can't get a copy of without paying through the nose cause they are listed as part of Bruce's library. Fencing... he took principles from. And his brother showed him the lunge step. Couple with the Jack Dempsey drop step... you have a powerful jab. Or straight lead. But he didn't train in Fencing.
People say praying mantis. What I understand is that he trained 2 weeks in the system. Later to do the forms and then say it was a classical mess. Being flowery and cocky. A lot of the John little books has notes on Muay thai and other arts. He was studying and exploring. Sometimes taking small pieces. Sometimes simply figuring out the most simplistic way to beat that art.
Too many times people look at what he evaluated was what he used to build his art. Not soooo. He was simply looking at different arts and finding ways to use what he was doing already to beat that art. Not to pile on more stuff.
Concepts people tend to sometimes add many various arts to the mix. Yet there is a lot of literature of his.... which says do not add to the mix... cut away.
A good analogy I have read is a chunk of clay.... Cut away the pieces that is not needed.... Do not add clumps of clay to create the sculpture.... hack away...
So these long lists.... 753(AHHAHA) I know... joke. but there is long lists of all these arts. Not true.
Not a great analogy since clay lends itself to the additive method of sculpting. In fact, clay works well with all four traditional methods of sculpting: addition, subtraction, manipulation, and substitution. Perhaps carving marble would better illustrate your point?.
NYFIGHTSOURCE
Orange Belt
Yeah... perhaps it would. But since it's not my quote.... but Bruce's....I can't change it.
"In building a statue, a sculptor doesn't keep adding clay to his subject. Actually, he keeps chiselling away at the inessentials until the truth of its creation is revealed without obstructions. Thus, contrary to other styles, being wise in Jeet Kune-Do doesn't mean adding more; it means to minimize, in other words to hack away the unessential.
It is not daily increase but daily decrease; hack away the unessential." - Bruce Lee
Which only proves that he should have kept his mouth shut about things he didn't understand. Because a sculptor most certainly does keep adding clay.
NYFIGHTSOURCE
Orange Belt
Yeah... I am not a sculptor of clay. So I will just take your word that is part of the process. So agree with you that it's not a great analogy that he might of used.
The analogy that he used.... gave many people an idea of what he was talking about with hacking away the inessential.
So it couldn't be that bad...
He got his point across.
JR 137
Grandmaster
He should’ve said ice sculpter or wood carver.
JR 137
Grandmaster
Only if you also drive on the wrong side of the street.No, it would be 2711, 27th November.
