Jackie Chan was born into an poor
family in
Hong Kong, his parents nearly had to sell him to the
doctor because they couldn't afford the
doctor's
delivery fee. The good
doctor let them go for free, and eventually his parents found work in
Australia. He was sent back to
Hong Kong when he was 6 to the
Chinese Opera Research Institute, a school of traditional
Chinese entertainment. He received very strict training in the
martial arts,
singing,
acting and
acrobatics. He met his friends
Bruce Lee and
Sammo Hung here, together they formed
The Seven Dragons brotherhood.
After graduating from training, he found work in the growing Hong Kong martial arts movie industry. The death of Bruce Lee opened opportunities for Jackie Chan, unfortunately, his unorthodox style did not sit well with audiences. His comical appearance and lack of "macho" did not sell hardcore martial arts films. So he invented his own genre, the comedy kung fu movie. He was given the film name Cheng Long, which can be translated as both "mature dragon" (he was older than Bruce Lee) or "To be the Dragon", referring to the untimely death of Bruce Lee, who was also called "The Dragon".
His amazing stunts won a dedicated fanbase in Asia, especially in Hong Kong and Japan. The SuperCop and Drunken Master series were some of the most popular movies in Asia during that period. By the end of the 80's he was the most famous action star in Asia, but his movies did not do well in America. The 1994 film Rumble in the Bronx opened the American market, because unlike most of Chan's movies, this one was about America. Other Hollywood box office hits include Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon.
Jackie Chan, in the process of doing his insane stunts, have broken almost every bone in his body. He was nearly killed three times while filming. However, his stunts make his movies great. His kung fu is totally genuine. Although his films are all action movies, he abhors violence, hence his role as a "reluctant hero". In addition to great martial arts, he has several records on sale in Asia.