Jackie Chan

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Biography

Hong Kong's cheeky, lovable and best known film star, Jackie Chan endured many years of long, hard work and multiple injuries to establish international success via his early beginnings in Hong Kong's manic martial arts cinema industry. Jackie was born Kong-sang Chan on Hong Kong's famous Victoria Peak on April 7, 1954, to Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, and the family emigrated to Canberra, Australia, in early 1960. The young Jackie was less than successful scholastically, so his father sent him back to Hong Kong to attend the rigorous China Drama Academy, one of the Peking Opera schools. Chan excelled at acrobatics, singing and martial arts and eventually became a member of the "Seven Little Fortunes" performing troupe and began lifelong friendships with fellow martial artists / actors 'Sammo Kam-Bo Hung' shows no sign of slowing down and has long since moved out of the shadow of Bruce Lee, to whom he was usually compared early in his career. Chan is truly one of the international film industry's true maverick actor / director / stuntman / producer combinations - he has done it the hard way, and always his way to achieve his dreams and goals to be an international cinematic star. Off screen he has been directly involved in many philanthropic ventures providing financial assistance to schools and universities around the world. He is a UNICEF GoodWill Ambassador, and he has campaigned against animal abuse and pollution and assisted with disaster relief efforts to the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami victims.

  • Primary profession
  • Producer·actor·stunts
  • Country
  • Hong Kong
  • Nationality
  • China
  • Gender
  • Male
  • Birth date
  • 07 April 1954
  • Place of birth
  • Victoria Peak
  • Children
  • ·Jaycee Chan
  • Spouses
  • Joan Lin
  • Education
  • Dickson College
  • Knows language
  • Cantonese·English language
  • Member of
  • Liberal Democratic Federation of Hong Kong
  • Parents
  • Charles Chan·

Music

Movies

TV

Books

Awards

Trivia

Kong Sang means "Born In Hong Kong."

Sing Lung means "Already a Dragon."

Prefers to do action films with strong humour streaks and physical clowning like Buster Keaton.

In the act of performing his own stunts, he has broken his nose three times, his ankle once, most of the fingers in his hand, both cheekbones and his skull.

Not only does he do his own stunts, but he is a lead-from-the-front kind of guy and expects the actors & actresses in his movies to do their own stunts as well.

Has a son, Jaycee Chan (born December 3, 1982), with wife Feng-Jiao Lin.

Most often dubs his own voice for the English release of his Asian films. He also dubs his Asian films in Mandarin.

Was to star in a film entitled "Nosebleed", but the project was canceled after the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001. He was to play a window-washer at the WTC who has to stop a terrorist plot.

In 1989, he was awarded an M.B.E.(Member of the Order of the British Empire) for his services to entertainment.

His fan club once topped 10,000 members, mostly young girls; one of them committed suicide after she discovered that he was married. Another female fan attempted suicide, but was saved.

Has a permanent hole in his head from a stunt accident.

Admits he did Cannonball Run II just to fulfill his contract with Warner Brothers.

His Opera Academy "brothers" include Sammo Kam-Bo Hung , Biao Yuen , Corey Yuen , Wah Yuen , and Yuen Man Meng.

He has his own stunt team, known as the Sing Ga Ban (Jackie Chan Stuntman Association). Members of the team appear as extras in his films. The team includes Andy Kay , Chung Cheng, Chung Chi Li , and Bradley James Allan.

In 1990, he was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres (Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the French Minister of Culture and Communication.

The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region conferred the Silver Bauhinia Star (SBS) upon him in 1999.

Despite the minimal formal education he received, he was made an honorary doctor of social science of the Hong Kong Baptist University, and an honorary fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts.

In his action scenes, his punches and kicks actually connect with their targets. He has his actors wear special padding in their feet and body to prevent serious injury.

Has a great, long-lasting relationship with Mitsubishi Motors. The company has donated many of their automobiles for his films.

Underwent plastic surgery in 1976 to re-shape his eyelids, giving him a more "Western" appearance. The final film with the old-look Chan is Shao Lin mu ren xiang .

His parents worked at the American Embassy in Canberra, Australia. Jackie lived with them there for a while after one of his attempts in the movie business fell through.

According to his production diary on the official Shanghai Knights website, the producers of the film wanted to throw him a birthday party, but he asked them not to since his mother had recently died and Chinese tradition dictates that you should wait 3 to 12 months after a death to stop the mourning period. The producers threw the party anyway, and Chan did not object because, he said, "it is an important part of the American culture to celebrate birthdays".

He sings in the Chinese version of Mulan . He sings the Chinese version of "Ill Make a Man Out of You".

His role models are Charles Chaplin , Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd , all of whom were more important to him as a child than any martial arts star, the label he was basically forced into at a very young age.

Elaine Wu gave birth to a daughter, Etta Ng Chok Lam, on November 19, 1999. The Hong Kong media alleged that he was the father, but there has as yet been no verification by either party involved.

He worked with Bruce Lee as a stunt coordinator.

He was a stunt/fight coordinator for John Woo during his kung-fu phase.

Is good friends with Steven Seagal and James Lew.

He is also a talented singer. He has released numerous albums in Asia. His music is normally heard in the outtakes of his HK movies. Movies include: Shi di chu ma (The Young Master), A gai wak (Project A; not in US version), Ging chaat goo si (Police Story; not in US version), Lung hing foo dai (Armour of God; not in US version), A gai wak 2 (Project A 2), Ging chaat goo si juk jaap (Police Story 2), Fei lung mang jeung (Dragons Forever), Fei ying gai wak (Armour of God 2: Operation Condor; not in US version), Seong lung wui (Twin Dragons; not in US version), Ging chaat goo si III: Chiu kup ging chaat (Police Story 3: Supercop; not in US version), Jui kuen II (Drunken Master II; not in US version), Hung fan kui (Rumble in the Bronx; not in US version), Pik lik foh (Thunderbolt), Ging chaat goo si 4: Ji gaan daan yam mo (Police Story 4: First Strike; not in US version), Yat goh ho yan (Mr. Nice Guy), Ngo si seoi (Who Am I?), Chin gei bin (The Twins Effect), and San ging chaat goo si (New Police Story).

Some of his favourite films include Gone with the Wind , Singin in the Rain (1952) , and The Matrix .

Says the most painful of all the injuries hes sustained in his career happened on Enter the Dragon , when Bruce Lee accidentally hit him in the face with a nunchuck.

Is best friends with Sylvester Stallone.

Supporter of The Salvation Armys work in China.

Capable of speaking Cantonese, Mandarin, English, and Korean.

Appointed Honorary Ambassador of Peace for the Harvey Ball Foundation along with Brooke Shields , Jerry Lewis , A.V.T. Shankardass , Prince Albert of Monaco , Jack Nicklaus , Greg Norman , Phil Collins , Jimmy Buffett , Dale Earnhardt Jr. , Darrell Waltrip , Heather Mills , Yoko Ono , Patch Adams , Sergei Khrushchev and Winnie Mandela.

Played a policeman in five movies in 1985 alone: Fuk sing go jiu ["My Lucky Stars"], The Protector , Xia ri fu xing ["Twinkle, Twinkle, Lucky Stars"], Long de xin ["Heart of Dragon"], and Ging chaat goo si ["Police Story"]. Ironically, Chan said that if he didnt become an actor, he would have become a police officer.

His family roots originate from the coastal port city of Ningbo, which is located on southern edge of Hangzhou Bay along the Eastern seaboard of Zhejiang province, China.

Received his name "Jackie" from fellow workers on a construction site in Canberra, Australia, who couldnt pronounce his real name.

Was first approached to play Sato in Black Rain but decided the role did not match his values/image.

There is a Chinese Take-away in Hyde Park, Leeds of the United Kingdom named Jackie Chans.

He said the hardest thing about acting is speaking in English. Doing stunts are easy for him compared to speaking in English.

Despite his nearly innumerable injuries, he admits he still has a fear of needles.

While hes classed as a Martial Artist, he has little formal training, and doesnt hold any formal belt for any style. The fighting style he used during filming was a mix of different styles, primarily using Northern and traditional Kung-Fu as the base, then building on that with other fighting styles and slapstick to make the scene work is the most humorous way possible.

On June 10, Jackie Chan received the New York Asian Film Festivals Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award. The presentation was made at a special event at New Yorks Lincoln Center. Jackie also participated in a Q&A session with Grady Hendrix, one of the founders of Subway Cinema, the organization that began and now co-presents the annual NYAFF. The evening concluded with a screening of Jackies most recent film "Chinese Zodiac".

(April 2012) Jelgava, Latvia: Filming for Sap ji sang ciu

(January 2012) Taitung, Taiwan: Filming for Sap ji sang ciu

(April 2008) On 25th April 2008 in Chennai(Madras), Tamil Nadu, Southern India to attend as the Chief guest for the audio release of a great Indian [Tamil] Star KamalaHassans much awaiting movie Dasavatharam along with CM Mr K. Karunanidhi, Amitab Bachan, Mammootty, Vijay, Hemamalini, Jayaprada, Mallika Shravat, Asin etc.

The character Hitmonchan from the Pokemon series is named after him.

Jackie Chan personally holds two Guinness World Records that were awarded to him December 5, 2012. He holds the records of Most credits in one movie and Most stunts by a living actor. The first record was made by him with the movie Sap ji sang ciu where he carried out 15 of the major creative movie-making roles for the film including Director, Producer, Actor, Fight Choreographer and Composer, breaking the previous record of 11 credits held by Robert Rodriguez.

Admits that he is not very good with technology, particularly computers.

Despite being known for his extraordinary combat skills, Jackie abhors violence in real life and claims to having only been in one fight his entire life and only then because his friends dragged him into it.

Was John Carpenters first choice for the role of Wang Chi in Big Trouble In Little China but declined in order to concentrate on his career in Hong Kong.

Turned down the roles of "Wang Chi" in "Big Trouble In Little China" & "Simon Phoenix" in "Demolition Man".

Is trained in Northern & Southern styles of Kung-Fu as well as other styles of Martial Arts including Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Judo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu & Hapkido. Chan also has some experience in Jeet Kune Do having studied under Bruce Lee while working as a stuntman on some of his films.

He and Maggie Cheung made 6 movies together: Ging chaat goo si , A Gai Wak 2 , Ging Chat Goo Si 2 , Ging chaat goo si III: Chiu kup ging chaat , Seong lung wui , and Ruan Lingyu (producer and actress). They also appeared in a music video together.

Won Hong Kong Academy "Best Picture" Award for Police Story, 1986.

Won Taiwan Golden Horse "Best Actor" Awards Two Times: Police Story 3, 1992. Crime Story, 1993.

His father is Charles Chan and his mother is Lily Chan (also known as Lee-Lee Chan).

Has a daughter, Etta Ng Chok Lam (born November 19, 1999), with Elaine Ng Yi-Lei.

Jackie received the Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award at the 12th annual New York Asian Film Festival in 2013.

Ging chaat goo si is his favorite out of "Police Story" series.

Godfather of Tin Chiu Hung.

Co-Founder of JCE Movies Limited in 2004.

Was in consideration for the part of Clouseaus Chinese assistant, Cato Fong in The Pink Panther but the filmmakers decided they didnt want to use a politically incorrect character, and replaced Cato with the Frenchman Ponton.

Chan has played many roles whose character names have the Jackie. Examples include Cannonball Run II , Fei lung mang jeung , Fei ying gai wak , Yat goh ho yan and Chin gei bin .

Has played 7 characters more than once in the movies: Wong fei-Hung from Drunken Master films, Asian Hawk from Armour of God films, Monkey voice from Kung Fu Panda films, Lee from Rush Hour films, Chan Ka Kui from Police Story films, Dragon Ma Yue Lung from A gai wak films and Muscles from Lucky Stars films.

Weighed 5.7 kg at birth.

Performed the voice acting and singing for the Beast in the Chinese (Mandarin) dub of the Beauty and the Beast .

Suffers from dyslexia.

Shares his birthday with Russell Crowe , Francis Ford Coppola , James Garner , Stan Winston , Alan J. Pakula and Ted Kotcheff.

Eight directors cast him at least twice in their films: Sammo Kam-Bo Hung , Stanley Tong , Gordon Chan , Benny Chan , Brett Ratner , Ding Sheng , Yen-Ping Chu and Wei Lo.

Once owns a production company, Golden Way Films Ltd. It was produced for Police Story films (1985-1992), Project A II and Mr. Canton and Lady Rose.

Good friend of Korean actress Hee-seon Kim.

Was in consideration for the part of the King in Ying xiong but turned it down.

Has appeared with Andy Lau in 4 films: Xia ri fu xing , Huo shao dao , Jui kuen II and San siu lam zi .

His fans call him "Big brother".

In 2009, Chan was named an "anti-drug ambassador" by the Chinese government, actively taking part in anti-drug campaigns and supporting President Xi Jinpings declaration that illegal drugs should be eradicated, and their users punished severely. In 2014, when his own son Jaycee was arrested for cannabis use, he said that he was "angry", "shocked", "heartbroken" and "ashamed" of his son. He also remarked, "I hope all young people will learn a lesson from Jaycee and stay far from the harm of drugs. I say to Jaycee that you have to accept the consequences when you do something wrong.

Referring to his participation in the torch relay for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Chan spoke out against demonstrators who disrupted the relay several times attempting to draw attention to a wide-ranging number of grievances against the Chinese government. He warned that "publicity seekers" planning to stop him from carrying the Olympic Torch "not get anywhere near" him. Chan also argued that China was attempting reform and that the Olympics coverage that year would be a chance for the country to learn from the outside world.

He was awarded the title of Panglima Mahkota Wilayah by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia Tuanku Abdul Halim in conjunction with the countrys Federal Territory Day. It carries the title of Datuk in Malaysia. [1 February 2015].

Mentioned in the song Jackie Chan is a Punk Rocker by Heavy Vegetable.

An avid football fan and supports the Hong Kong national football team, England National Football Team, and Manchester City.

Received his Doctor of Social Science degree in 1996 from the Hong Kong Baptist University.

In 2009, he received another honorary doctorate from the University of Cambodia, and has also been awarded an honorary professorship by the Savannah College of Art and Design in Hong Kong in 2008.

Founded the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation in 1988, to offers scholarship and active help to Hong Kongs young people and provide aid to victims of natural disaster or illness.

His movie Jui kuen II was listed in Time magazines All-Time 100 Movies.

He was voted the #70 in Top 101 Most Influential People by Entertainment Weekly in 2001.

Ranked #41 on Channel 4 s 100 Greatest movie stars. [1999].

In 2000, He helped create a PlayStation game called Jackie Chan Stuntmaster, to which he lent his voice and performed the motion capture.

Was not in attendance at Leslie Cheung s funeral due to The Medallion filming in Germany.

Ranked #89 in Premiere magazines 2001 annual Power 100 list. Had ranked #85 in 2002.

His first major breakthrough was film Se ying diu sau , shot while he was loaned to Seasonal Film Corporation under a two-picture deal. Director Woo-Ping Yuen allowed Chan complete freedom over his stunt work. The film established the comedic kung fu genre, and proved refreshing to the Hong Kong audience. Chan then starred in Zui quan , which finally propelled him to mainstream success. Upon Chans return to Wei Lo s studio, Lo tried to replicate the comedic approach of Zui quan , producing Yi zhao ban shi chuang jiang hu and Quan jing . He also gave Chan the opportunity to co-direct Xiao quan guai zhao with Kenneth Tsang. When Willie Chan left the company, he advised Jackie to decide for himself whether or not to stay with Wei Lo. During the shooting of Long teng hu yue , Chan broke his contract and joined Golden Harvest, prompting Lo to blackmail Chan with triads, blaming Willie for his stars departure. The dispute was resolved with the help of fellow actor and director Jimmy Wang Yu , allowing Chan to stay with Golden Harvest.

In 1999, He was cameo role of movie extra in Stephen Chow s Hei kek ji wong and Stephen Chow was cameo role of police officer in Jackie Chan s Boh lei chun .

His Cantonese song Story of a Hero (theme song of Ging chaat goo si ) was selected by the Royal Hong Kong Police and incorporated into their recruitment advertisement in 1994.

He has been the inspiration for manga such as Dragon Ball (including a character with the alias "Jackie Chun"), the character Lei Wulong in Tekken and the fighting-type Pokmon Hitmonchan.

A UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

His movies A gai wak , Rush Hour and San wa have been adapted to a television series.

In 2007, He recorded and released "We Are Ready", the official one-year countdown song to the 2008 Summer Olympics which he performed at a ceremony marking the one-year countdown to the 2008 Summer Paralympics. Chan also released one of the two official Olympics albums, Official Album for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games - Jackie Chan s Version, which featured a number of special guest appearances. Chan performed "Hard to Say Goodbye" along with Andy Lau , Liu Huan and Wakin (Emil) Chau, at the 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.

His greatest regret in life is not having received a proper education, inspiring him to fund educational institutions around the world.

In 2015, Forbes Magazine estimated his earnings for the year to be $50 million.

Ranked #6 in Netscapes Top 10 Hollywood Super Heroes. [July 2006].

His wife Feng-Jiao Lin was former famously Taiwanese actress.

He was voted the #15 in Top 25 Awesome Action Heroes by Entertainment Weekly. [October 2007].

Ranked #94 in Premiere magazines 2003 annual Power 100 list. Had ranked #85 in 2002.

One of Forbes Top 10 Most Generous Celebrities in 2006.

Mentioned in the song Jackie Chan by Japan female musical group Frank Chickens.

During a news conference in Shanghai on 28 March 2004, Chan referred to the recently concluded Republic of China 2004 presidential election in Taiwan, in which Democratic Progressive Party candidates Chen Shui-bian and Annette Lu were re-elected as President and Vice-President, as "the biggest joke in the world". A Taiwanese legislator and senior member of the DPP, Parris Chang, called for the government of Taiwan to ban his films and bar him the right to visit Taiwan. Police and security personnel separated Chan from scores of protesters shouting "Jackie Chan, get out" when he arrived at Taipei airport in June 2008.

Qi ji is favorite out of his own movies.

He was sucker punched by one of his fans while filming Rush Hour 2 because the fan thought he would block the punch. [April, 2001].

Frequent collaborator of Stanley Tong.

Ranked #3 in E!s 2002 Toughest Stars 25 list.

Mentioned in the song "Kung Fu" by Ash.

His exclamation "Duang!", coined in a commercial for Bawang shampoo in 2004, took off as a meme in 2015 on Chinese social media and became one of the top trending words of the year, even though it has no specific meaning.

According to a 2017 interview, he went out bowling with Bruce Lee just days before the latter died in 1973.

Quotes

I have a few rules that I tell my manager: No sex scenes. No make love.

My wish is to bring my heroes to the big screen, and many of them have,already appeared in my films. The firefighter is the only one I have,yet to put in a film. I have dragged this idea on for so many years,even if I want to make it, now I feel that my age makes me unsuitable.

If I do make this film, I would no longer play a firefighter, and would,more likely be a firefighting captain. But if I were to be honest with,you, the role I want to play most is the firefighter.

[in June, 2013 in New Delhi, India for the inaugural Chinese Film,Festival] I used to enjoy action; now I enjoy acting.

When I was younger I thought shark fin soup was good for the skin, for,collagen. I thought tiger bone oil was good for when you get hurt.

These kinds of things are always in your mind - traditional things. You,eat pigs brain and you get clever. When you eat pig knuckles you feel,good.

You cannot mix sports with politics.

I will make action movies, I think, for a few more years, another five years.

When I got depressed, I watched Bruce Lee movies. I learned everything from Bruce Lee.

Every time I make American film I just trust American directors and American writers.

Cinema reflects culture and there is no harm in adapting technology, but not at the cost of losing your originality.

Olympics for me is love, peace, united.

Do not let circumstances control you. You change your circumstances. .

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