Jackie Chan - A Stunning Fighter

Jackie Chan Records 'We Are Ready,' The Official Countdown Song To 2008 Beijing Olympics

2007-10-27T04:07:00.000-07:00

HONG KONG (AP) - Jackie Chan has flexed his vocal muscles for the Olympics. The 53-year-old actor, best known for his daredevil stunts, has recorded ''We Are Ready,'' the official countdown song to the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.

He spent three hours recording the song during a recent trip to Beijing, Chan said in a blog entry on his Web site Wednesday.

Chan, star of the ''Rush Hour'' movies, dabbles in music and has released several albums.

He praised the lyrics of the Mandarin Chinese song composed by Peter Kam, who won a Silver Bear award for best film music at the Berlin Film Festival last year.

''Waiting year after year/ We can see into the future/ Together with hard work and sweat, we've created the five different (Olympic) colors,'' says one refrain.

Olympic organizers have also recorded a second Chinese version sung by more than 100 pop stars, Kam said.

He told The Associated Press in a phone interview that an English version of the song may be recorded.

Chan said in an earlier blog entry that he got goose bumps when he attended the official one-year countdown event in Beijing on Aug. 8.

''The ceremony made me very emotional and I said to myself, 'That's our China, that's our day!' I felt this moment belonged to our China, this moment belonged to us,'' he wrote.

Jackie Early Life

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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. 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.

Skill of Jackie

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· While not afraid to do his own stunts, he confesses that, like many, he is afraid of needles and hates taking shots. Unlike injuries that may come from a failed stunt, with a shot he "knows that it's coming."

· Though Chan's willingness to do his own stunts was originally the trademark feature of his movies, he has sustained various injuries over the years which render him incapable of performing certain stunts. He tries to avoid stunts where he may suffer severe head trauma due to a near fatal incident that occurred while shooting Armour of God. He has also broken his left ankle so many times, he can no longer rely on it while pushing for a jump and must use his right foot instead. Over the years, he has been forced to use body doubles on various occasions. He has also broken his fingers, toes, nose and ribs on numerous occasions while filming.

· His final fight with Benny Urquidez in Wheels on Meals is considered to be one of the finest fights of the movie genre.

· He knows Kung Fu, and has trained under GrandMaster Leung Ting in Wing Tsun, as well as numerous other masters in Tong Long (Mantis), Bak Mei (White Eyebrow), as well as the traditional northern Shaolin Kung Fu he learned in opera school. Jackie has also learned numerous other styles of martial arts to help his screen fighting, including Hapkido, Boxing, Judo, Taekwondo and Hei Long (Under Master G.J. Torres). Jackie's personal style is said to be a mixture of Boxing, Wing Chun, Hapkido and Judo. He stated that some of his martial arts training has been attributed to Jin Pal Kim, a Korean hapkido stylist.

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

· Chan has won several awards including The American Choreography Award, The World Stunt Award and has a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, along with several awards from Hollywood, Hong Kong, Montreal World and Fant-Asia Film Festivals; but he has never won an Oscar. Currently there is a campaign underway to award him an Honorary Lifetime Achievement Academy Award.

* Was voted 41st in a poll of the 100 Greatest Movie Stars on Channel 4 in the UK.Chan appeared with, and was quickly "killed" by martial arts legend Bruce Lee in 1973's Enter the Dragon in a very short scene where Chan plays one of Kahn's guards.The character Lei Wulong from the Tekken video game series is heavily based on Jackie Chan, due to his looks and similar fighting style.

· A videogame called Jackie Chan Stuntmaster for the Playstation was made, of course with his name. Previously, an NES game called Jackie Chan's Action Kung Fu was released.

· A television show, Jackie Chan Adventures, was based on Jackie Chan, his niece, and his uncle, as well as a shopkeeper. Videogames have also been made based on the show.

· He is the central subject of UK band Ash’s song Kung Fu, which is used for the end credits of the UK and US versions of Rumble in the Bronx.

· The Pokémon Hitmonchan is named after him (similar in style to how the Pokémon Hitmonlee is named after Bruce Lee).

· He helped to open Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in 2005.

· Chan had planned to star as Vin Diesel's role in the movie The Pacifier, but due to busy arrangements, did not take the role.

· He was asked to play Wah Sing Ku in the Mel Gibson film Lethal Weapon 4 but turned down the part as he would have to play a criminal, Chan often says he doesn't like to play real criminals as it is bad for his image, although he doesn't mind playing either comical criminals or anti-heroes as in his newest film Rob-B-Hood. The part of Wah Sing Ku was later played by Jet Li.

· Although he did not voice the part, a likeness of him appeared in the Family Guy episode, Breaking Out Is Hard to Do, when Peter Griffin said, "Oh my god, it's Jackie Chan!" three different times to three different asian people in Asiantown.

· He has appeared along side bodybuilder turned actor turned governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger in a government advert to combat piracy, which can be viewed here.In both the anime and manga series of Dragon Ball, a martial artist named Master Roshi disguises himself and uses the alias "Jackie Chun" to take part in a few martial arts tournaments to secretly test out the powers and abilities of Goku, the main character of the series.

· Appeared in 2 Diet Pepsi commercial in 2006.

· In the Internet movie The Ultimate Showdown, a likeness of him fought Shaquille O' Neal, but was defeated by a Care Bear.

· Sung a duet of the Nat King Cole song Unforgettable with Ani DiFranco.

· He has declared that it is almost certain that he will, for the first time, partner another kung fu cinema legend Jet Li in an upcoming film that will start filming in spring 2007. The film has be dubbed The J&J Project.

· His nickname to the people of Hong Kong is Big Brother .

· He holds the record for the most number of takes for a single shot in a film, over 2900. (Dragon Lord for the marathon 20 minute fight that is the grand finale of the film.)

· In an interview unlocked in the videogame Jackie Chan Stunt master (A game where he was motion captured for game animations), Chan stated that he likes to play video games .

Jackie's 2000

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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 Chinese action star, Jet Li in a film that is rumored to be based on the Chinese folk story Journey to the West. Chan also helped to create a Playstation game based on him called Jackie Chan Stuntmaster. Jackie did the voice over and motion capture for the game.

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.

Film Career

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There are many references to the real Jackie's live-action film career in the cartoon:

· Animated Jackie's all beige/khaki clothes are also similar in appearance to the real Jackie in his film Armour of God.
· In the first episode entitled The Dark Hand, Jackie fights Finn, Ratso and Chow in a playground. There is a similar playground fight scene in the Jackie Chan film Police Story 2.
· In another first season episode Tough Break, Jackie is seen waterskiing with a cast on his leg. This is a reference to the waterskiing scene from the Jackie Chan film Rumble in the Bronx where Jackie performed the scene with a disguised cast under his costume. Jackie had broken his leg shooting a prior stunt where he jumped onto a passing hovercraft.The episode Project A, For Astral is homage to Jackie's film Project A.
· The Season Two episode Showdown in the Old West has Jackie's ancestor during the Old West looking just like Shanghai Noon.
· In The Tiger and the Pussycat, Jackie splits into "good" and "evil" twins. Jackie Chan played dual roles in The Twin Dragons, one is a musical conductor and the other was the lost twin who is the only one with martial arts moves.
· Another possible reference can be seen during the fight between "light" and "dark" versions of Jackie in Tiger and the Pussycat where "Light" Jackie fights balancing onto makeshift stilts; using a ladder split vertically by "dark" Jackie. In the Jackie Chan film, Police Story 4: First Strike(known as Jackie Chan's First Strike in the US), Jackie has a fight scene whilst wearing stilts.
· In a Season 3 episode, Jackie is bitten by a snake. The poison affects him, putting him in a drunken state, which he uses to his advantage. This is an allusion to Jackie's movie Drunken Master.
· Another possible "Drunken Master" reference appears in season 5, in the episode "Clash of the Titanics." Jackie (wearing SCUBA gear) explores a sunken ship which holds the chi of the thunder demon, Tchang Zu. Jackie, pursued by Strikemaster Ice and his gang, is forced to surface too quickly and gets "the bends," a condition which makes him delusional, ie drunken.
· During the episode when Jade went back in time to Jackie's childhood, adult Jackie and young Uncle perform the same double team technique that Jackie Chan used in Rush Hour with Chris Tucker.

Filmography

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Actor

2008 Kung Fu Panda

2007 Rush Hour 3

2006 Rob-B-Hood

2005 The Myth

2004 The Huadu Chronicles: Blade Of The Rose

2004 New Police Story

2004 Chop-Socky: Cinema Hong Kong

2004 Around the World in 80 Days

2003 Jackie Chan: Fast, Funny and Furious

2003 The Medallion

2003 Shanghai Knights

2002 The Tuxedo

2002 Longde Shenchu: Shiluode Pin Tu

2002 The Art of Action: Martial Arts in the Movies

2001 The Accidental Spy

2001 Rush Hour 2

2000 Saturday Night Live: Jackie Chan

2000 Shanghai Noon

2000 Jackie Chan Adventures: Season 01

1999 Jackie Chan: My Stunts

1999 Gorgeous

1999 Fist to Fist

1999 Gen-X Cops

1998 Rush Hour

1998 Who Am I?

1997 Mr. Nice Guy

1997 Burn Hollywood Burn

1996 First Strike

1996 Thunderbolt

1995 Rumble in the Bronx

1994 The Legend of Drunken Master

1993 Crime Story

1992 Twin Dragons

1992 City Hunter

1992 Twin Dragons

1992 Police Story 3: Super Cop

1990 Operation Condor

1990 The Prisoner

1990 Deadliest Art: The Best of the Martial Arts Films

1989 Black Dragon

1988 Dragons Forever

1988 Painted Faces

1987 Jackie Chan's Project A 2

1987 Police Story 2

1986 Operation Condor 2: The Armour of Gods

1985 Police Story

1985 The Protector

1985 Ninja Thunderbolt

1985 Twinkle, Twinkle, Lucky Stars

1985 My Lucky Stars1985 Heart of the Dragon

1984 Cannonball Run II

1984 Wheels on Meals

1983 Jackie Chan's Project A

1983 Fantasy Mission Force

1983 Winners and Sinners

1983 Fearless Hyena 2

1982 Dragon Lord

1981 The Cannonball Run

1980 Battle Creek Brawl

1980 Dragon Fist

1979 The Fearless Hyena

1979 Half a Loaf of Kung Fu

1978 Spiritual Kung Fu

1978 Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin

1978 Snake in the Eagle's Shadow

1978 Magnificent Bodyguards

1978 The Young Master

1978 Drunken Master

1977 To Kill with Intrigue

1976 Killer Meteors

1976 Shaolin Wooden Men

1976 New Fist of Fury

1976 Hand of Death

1974 Rumble in Hong Kong

1973 The Young Tiger

1973 Attack of the Kung Fu Girls

1973 In Eagle's Shadow Fist

1973 Enter the Dragon

1972 Monkey in the Master's Eye

1971 Master with Cracked Fingers

1971 One-Armed Boxer

Action Director

1982 Dragon Lord

1977 The 36 Crazy Fists

1976 Dance of Death

1974 Rumble in Hong Kong

Associate Producer

1980 Dragon Forever

Choreography

1999 Gorgeous

Director

1999 Jackie Chan: My Stunts

1998 Who Am I?

1990 Operation Condor

1989 Black Dragon

1987 Jackie Chan's Project A 2

1987 Police Story 2

1986 Operation Condor 2: The Armour of Gods

1985 Police Story

1983 Jackie Chan's Project A

1982 Dragon Lord

1979 The Fearless Hyena

1978 The Young Master

1976 New Fist of Fury

Executive Producer

2006 Rob-B-Hood

2005 The Myth

2004 Rice Rhapsody

2004 New Police Story

2004 Around the World in 80 Days

2003 The Medallion

2003 Shanghai Knights

2001 The Accidental Spy

2000 Shanghai Noon

1999 Gorgeous

1988 Rouge

Producer

1999 Sam Dung

1999 Jackie Chan: My Stunts

1988 The Inspector Wears Skirts

Screenwriter

2006 Rob-B-Hood

1999 Gorgeous

1998 Who Am I?

1990 Operation Condor

1987 Police Story 2

1986 Operation Condor 2: The Armour of Gods

1985 Police Story

1978 The Young Master

Stunts Coordinator

2006 Rob-B-Hood

2004 New Police Story

1998 Who Am I?

1998 Rush Hour

Discography

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In Hong Kong and across Asia Jackie Chan is a very popular and successful singer. He started professionally producing records in the 1980s. He sings in many languages including Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese and English. He also sings many of his films theme songs, but when the films are released in Britain and the U.S. the original soundtrack is replaced.

Awards

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MTV Movie Award

Year : 2002

Category : Award Best Fight

For : Rush Hour 2

Won

Hong Kong Film Award

Year : 1999

Category : Best Action Choreography

For : Ngo si sui

Won

Hollywood Film Festival

Year : 1999

Category : Actor of the Year

Won

Blockbuster Entertainment Award.

Year : 1999

Category : Favorite Duo - Action/Adventure

For : Rush Hour

Won

MTV Movie Award

Year : 1995

Category : Lifetime Achievement

Won

Golden Horse Award

Year : 1993

Category : Best Actor

For : Zhong an zu

Won

Hong Kong Film Award

Year : 1989

Category : Best Picture

For : Yin ji kau

Won