Biography

Jackie Chan was born in Hong Kong, China (now part of People's Republic of China). Chan is the son of Lee-Lee and Charles Chan, who emigrated to Canberra, Australia in 1960 as refugees from the Chinese Civil War. Prior to leaving China, Lee-Lee and Charles had worked as a maid and butler, respectively, for the French ambassador to Hong Kong. Chan's Chinese name at birth was Chan Kong-Sang, meaning "born in Hong Kong".

Before he adopted the Westernised name, "Jackie", he was known by a variety of other nicknames. As he was a heavy baby, (12 lb at birth, he claims to have spent 12 months in the womb), his mother nicknamed him "Pao Pao" (meaning "Cannonball"). Later, while studying at the Peking Opera School he was known as Yuen Lo, as a mark of respect to his master, Yu Jim-Yuen.

In his early stuntman and acting career (prior to New Fist of Fury in 1976) he was known as Chen Yueng Lung (or Chen Yuen Lung). It may be an odd coincidence that Sammo Hung's Opera School name was similar - Yuen Lung. He was thereafter known as "Jackie", named by his Australian co-workers when living in Australia in 1976-1977[1]. Working on a building site alongside a labourer named Jack, Chan's co-workers nicknamed him "Little Jack", and later shortened this to Jackie. Because his father's family name was originally Fong and was changed only when arriving in Hong Kong, Chan's Chinese name was changed in family records years later to "Fong Si Lung"[2]. He has also been listed as "Sing Lung" (meaning "young dragon" or "to become a dragon"), particularly in relation to his music and it may be no coincidence that his character in the film Fearless Hyena was called "Shing Lung".

Chan was educated at Nan Hua Elementary Academy, but his parents felt he didn't fit in at school so they sent him to the Chinese Opera Research Institute (1961-1971) and later, due to financial difficulties, they enrolled him at the Peking Opera School. While there, he was taught skills in acrobatics and kung fu under an extremely strict regime. It was here that Chan joined a number of other students who would become members of the Seven Little Fortunes (the Opera school's best students), and ultimately his Hong Kong film industry compatriots. They included Yuen Wah, Corey Yuen (Yuen Kwai) and Yuen Qiu. He also became firm friends with Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, and the three of them would later come to be known as the Three Brothers / Three Dragons.

Upon finishing at the Opera school, and a brief spell in Australia, Chan returned to Hong Kong and like his fellow former students, found work as a film stuntman, before ultimately being offered acting roles. Very early in his career, in 1975, he was in an adult film called "All in the Family". “I had to do anything I could to make a living 31 years ago, but I don't think it's a big deal, even Marlon Brando used to be exposed in his movies,” Chan said. “The porn movie at that time was more conservative than the current films,” he said[1]. Chan got his first international success in 1978, with the film Drunken Master. The movie depicted Wong Fei Hung, played by Chan, as a young and mischievous rascal instead of the venerable Kung fu master that other films had represented him as. Together with the on-screen antics and charm of Chan and Yuen Siu Tien (also known as Simon Yuen), father of renowned martial arts choreographer Yuen Woo-ping, Drunken Master was a radical film for its time. The film was a success and led the way for other international hits.

Chan married Taiwanese actress Lin Feng-Jiao (Chinese: 林鳳娇) in 1983 according to his autobiography, but many Asian sources state he was married on December 1, 1982. His official website states that he was married in 1982. Chan admitted on an interview with Indian Talk Show hostess, Simi Garewal that he married his wife because she got pregnant before marriage [3]. Chan and Lin Feng-Jiao have a son, Jaycee Chan (aka Jo-Ming), who was born on December 3, 1982, although Chan's autobiography lists his son's birth year as 1984. Chan also allegedly has a daughter, Etta Ng Chok Lam (b. November 19, 1999), as a result of an affair with Elaine Ng Yi-Lei.

Between 1983 and 1985, Chan enjoyed his most prolific period of acting alongside his opera school brothers. Just after Hung and Biao had made Prodigal Son, all three appeared together in Chan's Project A and the first of Hung's original Lucky Stars trilogy, Winners and Sinners. All three films came in 1983. These were followed by Wheels on Meals in 1984, and the trio were reunited twice more for the Lucky Stars semi-sequels My Lucky Stars and Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars, both in 1985. Chan appeared once more with Hung in 1985, in Heart of Dragon. This was something of a golden period for Hong Kong cinema-goers, as three of the nation's most loved stars performed together on screen.

Chan is perhaps best known for performing the majority of his own stunts, which he choreographs along with his stunt team. Around the time of Project A in 1983, Chan officially formed the Jackie Chan Stunt Team, allowing him to train and work with a group of trusted martial artists and stuntmen for each of his ensuing movies. Chan stated that this makes it easier to choreograph fight scenes as he already has knowledge of his team's abilities. He and his team also undertake many of the more dangerous stunts for the other characters in his films. These are usually shot from behind or otherwise obscuring the faces so it is not obvious to the viewer. The dangerous nature of the stunts make it difficult for Chan to get insurance, particularly in the US, where his stunt work is contractually limited.

Chan holds the Guinness World Record for "Most Stunts By A Living Actor". The record notes that "no insurance company will underwrite Chan's productions, in which he performs all his own stunts"[4]. Chan has been injured several times during his stunts, and these are sometimes played amongst the bloopers shown over the closing credits of his later movies. He came closest to death while filming Armour of God (1985), when he fell from a tree in a relatively routine stunt and fractured his skull.

In his autobiography, Chan says he originally created his screen persona as a reaction to that of the martial artist Bruce Lee, and the numerous imitators who appeared before and after Lee's death (see "Bruceploitation"). Where Bruce Lee's characters were typically stern, morally upright heroes, Chan plays well-meaning, slightly foolish regular guys, often at the mercy of friends, girlfriends or families. However, his characters always triumph in the end.

Chan repeatedly attempted to break into the American movie industry, appearing in movies like Battle Creek Brawl, Cannonball Run, Cannonball Run II and The Protector in the early 1980s.

In the 1990s, as well as continuing with his successful Asian film career, Chan still wanted Hollywood success and was offered two roles that would portray him as a villain, but he declined both of them as he didn't want to risk being typecast for further Hollywood roles. His friend, Sylvester Stallone, offered him the role of the criminal, Simon Phoenix, in the futuristic film Demolition Man but when he declined the role it was instead taken by Wesley Snipes. He also chose not to play a villain in the film Lethal Weapon 4 with the role taken by Jet Li. He was approached to play the villain in Rambo IV, but turned it down since he felt a lot of children looked up to him and he wanted to be a good role model. Additionally the character was a drug dealer, and Jackie has a very personal reason for avoiding playing any character associated with drugs.

While he did attain cult popularity in the US, his break into the mainstream was Rumble in the Bronx in 1995. He has attained the box-office guarantee that has so far eluded other Hong Kong movie stars like Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh in Hollywood. He also made a successful animated series called Jackie Chan Adventures.

In 1994, MTV honoured Chan with a lifetime achievement award for his action-oriented movies, and a year later, he made his "official" debut in North America with a worldwide release of Rumble in the Bronx.

Chan continued his Hollywood success with sequels Rush Hour 2 and Shanghai Knights and in 2004 Chan returned to Hong Kong box office success with the films New Police Story, in which Chan plays a troubled police officer, and in The Myth where we see Chan as a modern archaeologist who has dreamt he has been re-encarnated from an ancient Chinese Warrior. These are two examples of Chan's growing wish to play a new style of character and to include more dramatic scenes into his films. In 2007 Chan will be starring along side another Hong Kong action star, Jet Li in a film that is rumored to be based on the Chinese folk story Journey to the West.

As well as many on-going projects Chan is also a keen philanthropist and has worked tirelessly to champion many charity works and causes. As a well-respected figure of the Hong Kong entertainment industry, he is often one of the leaders in such works, speaking up for conservation, against animal abuse as well as promoting disaster relief efforts for flooding in mainland China and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. Chan helped raise thousands of US dollars, however this money was later stolen by a third party. In June, 2006, he announced that he would donate half of his assets to charity when he dies. He stated that he admired the efforts by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates to help those in need.