Jackie Chan(English Jackie Chan, Chinese Cheng Long, pseudonyms; born Chen Gangsheng, which means “born in Hong Kong”; sometimes also referred to as Chan Kunsan (Cantonese transcription of the name Chen Gangsheng) and Fan Shilong (original family name, returned many years later) after birth); born April 7, 1954, Hong Kong and American actor, stuntman, film director, producer, screenwriter, stunt and action choreographer, singer. Filmed under the pseudonyms: Jackie Chan, Jackie Chan with a Baseball Bat, Yuan Lung Chan, Yuen-Lung Chan, Lung Chen, Long Cheng, Wellson Chin, Sing Lung.

Biography

Chan is one of the most popular action heroes in the world, known for his acrobatic fighting style, gift for comedy, and the use of a variety of "implements" in his fights. He has starred in more than 100 films and is one of the most celebrated Asian actors in the world. He has sung the title songs in many of his films and released albums since the 1980s. Chan is known as one of the "Seven Lucky Ones" (Peking Opera school graduates who became popular actors).

Jackie Chan was born in Hong Kong (now an administrative region of the People's Republic of China). His parents, Charles Chan and Li-Li Chan, fled to Hong Kong from the mainland during the civil war and moved to Australia in 1960. Before moving, they worked as butlers and maids respectively at the French Ambassador's residence in Hong Kong. Chan's Chinese name "Gongsan" means "born in Hong Kong".

At the age of 6, Chan was sent to the Peking Opera School in Hong Kong. In addition to stage training, this school gave the boy the ability to perfectly control his body. Chan was also interested in the martial art of kung fu. He began acting in episodic roles in films while still a teenager, and took part in the stunt extras of the films Fist of Fury and Enter the Dragon with the participation of Bruce Lee.

Jackie Chan began his film career as a stuntman, sometimes appearing in cameos and small roles. Confident in kung fu, acrobatics, good plasticity and stagecraft skills, Chan began to play larger roles in the mid-1970s, and then directed films himself. He makes frankly entertaining films - unpretentious comedies with "massacres", but over time it becomes clear that this energetic and agile strong man managed to create a new film genre in which only one person can work - Jackie Chan himself. Because no one but him will put his life in danger for the sake of another mind-blowing stunt. Chan's films are in many ways akin to the comedies of the silent film era, when stunts and gags reigned on the screen. Having become the most popular Chinese actor, Jackie Chan worked in Hollywood from the mid-1990s and managed to short term achieve resounding success. Film intellectuals don't notice him, but Chan has no fewer loyal fans than the most bright stars world screen. The most famous films with his participation: First Strike, Thunderbolt, Rumble in the Bronx, Shanghai Noon.

He used many aliases before becoming known as Jackie. Because he was a heavy baby (12 pounds), his mother gave him the nickname Pao Pao ("cannonball"). Then at the opera school (where he studied with Sammo Hong and Yuen Biao), Chan was called Yuen Lo in honor of his teacher Yu Jim-Yen.

Early in his career (before New Fist of Fury, 1976), he was known as Chen Yuen Long. Then only he received the name Jackie from his Australian comrades (1976-1977). A guy named Jack worked at the construction site, and Chan was called Little Jack (then Jackie) for simplicity's sake. Because the real name his father's name was Fang, Jackie's Chinese name was later changed to Fang Shilong. He was also called Shin Long ("young dragon") - this is how he later called the main character of the film Fearless Hyena.

Chan's first breakthrough project was the film Drunken Master. In the film, Chan played an unusual role for himself - the broken and careless fellow Wong Fei Hong. In this sense, the film was quite innovative. Also very successful was the comic duo of Chan and the elderly actor Yuen Hsiu Tien (also known as Simon Yuen), the father of the famous fight director Yuen Woo-Ping. The film became very popular and marked the beginning of Jackie Chan's success.

Chan married Taiwanese actress Lin Feng Chiao (Lam Fung Gyu in dialect). The autobiography indicates 1983, but many sources indicate the date December 1, 1982. Jackie Chan's website also lists it as 1982. They have a son, Chan Cho-Ming (Jaycee Chan), born December 3, 1982, although Chan's autobiography again gives a different year - 1984. Chan also has a daughter, Etta Ou Chok Lam (born November 19, 1999), from an illegitimate marriage. connection with actress Elaine Ou Yi-Lei.

He first studied at Nanhua Primary School, but then his parents found it necessary to send him to the Peking Opera School at the China Institute of Opera Studies (1961-1971). Chan was part of the "Seven Lucky Men" troupe along with Samo Hong, Yuen Biao and Corey Kwai.

Chan claims to do most of his own stunts and sometimes doubles for other actors. But the generally accepted statement that he does all his own stunts is wrong. There is at least one case when it was openly and publicly said that doubles were filmed instead of him - the film "The Tuxedo" - 7 stuntmen. He uses the services of stunt doubles, and has been for a long time. But we can say with confidence that he performed the most dangerous and crazy stunts himself, and very often received injuries during them. (During the end credits of his films, they usually show failed takes and sometimes 1-2 scenes with injuries). There is, perhaps, not an inch on his body that is not damaged: bruises, burns, cuts, knocked out teeth, dislocations, fractures... Therefore, Chan is blacklisted by insurance companies around the world. Chan suffered his most dangerous injury on the set of Armor of God (1986), where he fractured his skull after falling from a tree. Now he avoids dangerous tricks, checks everything carefully and only then performs it.

On the set of "Project A" in 1983, Chan officially created the Jackie Chan stunt team, with which he worked on subsequent films. Chan claims that working with familiar people makes the filming process much easier.

Chan claims that he created his image in contrast to the image of Bruce Lee and his numerous clones (see Bruce exploitation). Bruce Lee played focused and courageous fighters, while Chan played lazy, sometimes simple-minded, but kind and strong guys, often in strained relationships with family, friends or girlfriends. However, in the end, his heroes always win.

Films are characterized by a clear division of characters into “good” and “evil”, but the latter can sometimes repent.

In the 1980s he appeared in several films about " Lucky stars” in supporting roles, the main roles were played by his “older brother” from the school, Samo Hun.

Chan repeatedly tried to break into the American market with the projects “The Big Brawl”, “Cannonball Race”, “The Cannonball Run 2” (“The Cannonball Run”), “The Protector” in the early 1980s -s. Chan was offered villain roles twice in the 1990s, but turned down the offers both times. At first, his friend Sylvester Stallone invited him to play the criminal Simon Phoenix in the film Demolition Man (1993), but Chan refused, fearing being included in the list of stereotypical Hollywood villains. This role was played by Wesley Snipes. He also turned down the role of a criminal in Lethal Weapon 4, which was then played by Jet Li.

In recent years, Chan has been experimenting more and more with genres, characters and plots. In an interview, he said that he wants to prove that he is an actor who can fight and not a fighter who can act (“For the future I want the audience to know I’m the actor who can fight and not the fighter who can act"). That’s why his latest films are so different: “New Police Story” - drama, “The Myth” - fantasy, “Rob-B-Hood” - comedy. And he can really be different, he's a really great actor who can play a variety of characters without losing his individuality.

Although he was popular in narrow circles in the United States, real success came to him after the film “Rumble in the Bronx” in 1995. He became as guaranteed a box office smash as Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeo. The animated series “Jackie Chan Adventures” was also a success.

In 1994, MTV presented him with an award for overall achievement in cinema, and a year later Rumble in the Bronx was released.

Chan has stars on the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong and the Avenue of Stars in Hollywood, as well as on Old Arbat in Moscow. Chan is also a successful pop artist, having released over 100 songs on 20 albums since 1984. He sings in Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese and English. He also often sings the title songs for his films, but these songs tend to be replaced when films are released in the UK and US.

Chan is widely known for his philanthropic work and is involved in many different projects. He often acts as a goodwill ambassador for various causes, such as helping those affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami or the floods in mainland China. In June 2006, he announced that he would bequeath half of his fortune to charity. He also said he has great respect for the philanthropic inclinations of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett.

Jackie Chan and the Berlin Bears: In 2003, Jackie Chan spent several weeks in Berlin while filming the film Around the World in 80 Days. During this time, he fell in love with the Berlin Bears. He advocated for the United Buddy Bears exhibition, whose participants advocate for world peace, to come to Hong Kong in 2004 and be presented there in Victoria Park. During the opening of the exhibition, Jackie Chan was able to present a check totaling HK$4.14 million to UNICEF and two other children's organizations. Since then, the exhibition has traveled across all continents from one metropolis to another.

"Bad Boys"

There is a widespread belief that throughout his entire acting career, Jackie Chan did not play negative roles. But nevertheless, there are at least 5 such films. This:

• An episodic negative role in the film Enter the Dragon with Bruce Lee (1973).
• Minor role as a gang leader in the film Rumble in Hong Kong (1974).
• The role of the main negative character Wa Woo Bin in the film “Killer Meteors” (1976).
• The role of a woman killer in the film "No End to Surprises" (1975).
• He was also a stunt double for karate master Suzuki in the film Fist of Fury with Bruce Lee (1972).

In the future, Jackie Chan did not play negative roles, despite very tempting offers from Western studios.

Filmography

• 1962 - “Big and Little Wong Tin Bar” / Big and Little Wong Tin Bar
• 1964 - “The Story of Qin Xiang Lin” / The Story of Qin Xiang Lin
• 1966 - “Big Drunken Hero” / Big Drunken Hero
• 1969 - “A Touch of Zen” / A Touch of Zen
• 1970 - “Girl of Steel” / Lady of Steel
• 1971 - Master With Cracked Fingers - Jackie Chan
• 1971 - “Stormy River” / Crazy River
• 1972 - “Fist of Fury” / Fist Of Fury - cameo
• 1972 - “Kung Fu Lady” / Kung-Fu Lady
• 1972 - Bloody Fingers
• 1973 - “Fist of Vengeance” / Fist Of Anger
• 1973 - “Bruce Lee and I” / Bruce Lee And I
• 1973 - “Hercules of the East” / Hercules Of The East
• 1973 - “The Heroine” / The Heroine
• 1973 - “Rumble in Hong Kong” / Rumble in Hong Kong - Gang Leader
• 1973 - “Awakened Energy” / Awaken Punch
• 1973 - “Enter Of Dragon” / Enter Of Dragon
• 1973 - “The Young Tiger” / The Young Tiger
• 1973 - “Fist to Fist” / Fist To Fist
• 1974 - “Golden Lotus” / Golden Lotus
• 1975 - “All in the Family” / All in the Family
• 1975 - “There is no end to surprises” / No End of Surprises - killer of women
• 1976 - “Himalayan” / Himalayan
• 1976 - “New Fist of Fury” / New Fist of Fury - street thief
• 1976 - “Hand of Death” / Hand Of Death
• 1976 - “Killer Meteors” / The Killer Meteors - Wa Woo Bin
• 1976 - “The Last Trial of Shaolin” / Shaolin Wooden Men
• 1977 - “36 Crazy Fists” / 36 Crazy Fists
• 1977 - “Kill with Intrigue” / To Kill with Intrigue
• 1978 - “Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow” / Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow - Chien Fu, orphan
• 1978 - “The Snake and the Crane. Art of Shaolin" / Snake and Crane. Arts Of Shaolin
• 1978 - Magnificent Bodyguards
• 1978 - “Drunken Master” / Drunken Master - Huang Feihong
• 1978 - “Astral Kung Fu” / Spiritual Kung Fu
• 1979 - Fearless Hyena (also director) - Shing Lung
• 1979 - “Dragon Fist” / Dragon Fist
• 1980 - “Young Master” / Young Master (also director) - Dragon
• 1980 - “A Little Kung Fu” / Half a Loaf Kung Fu
• 1980 - “Battle Creek Brawl” - Jerry Wong
• 1981 - “Cannonball Race” / Cannonball Run - Jackie Chan, Subaru driver
• 1982 - “Lord Dragon” / Dragon Lord (also director) - Dragon
• 1982 - Fantasy Mission Force - Sammy
• 1983 - “Fearless Hyena 2” / Fearless Hyena II - Chan Lung
• 1983 - “Winners and Sinners” / Winners and Sinners - CID 07
• 1983 - “Project “A”” / Project “A” (also director) - Dragon Ma, Coast Guard Sergeant
• 1984 - “Pom Pom” / Pom Pom - Second policeman on a motorcycle (cameo)
• 1984 - “Cannonball Run 2” / Cannonball Run 2 - Jackie Chan, Mitsubishi mechanic
• 1984 - Wheels On Meals - Thomas
• 1985 - “My Lucky Stars” - Big Man
• 1985 - “The Protector” / The Protector - Billy Wong
• 1985 - “My Lucky Stars 2” / My Lucky Stars 2 - Muskles
• 1985 - “Heart of the Dragon” / Heart of the Dragon - Ted
• 1985 - Police Story (also director) - Kevin Chan
• 1986 - “Rose” / Rosa
• 1986 - “Naughty Boys” / Naughty Boys - Prisoner (cameo)
• 1987 - Armor of God (also director) - Jackie Chan "Asian Hawk"
• 1987 - “Project “A” 2” / Project “A” II (also director) - Dragon Ma
• 1988 - “Dragons Forever” / Dragons Forever - Jackie Lan
• 1988 - “Police Story 2” / Police Story II (also director) - Kevin Chan
• 1989 - “Miracles” / Miracles (also director) - “Charlie” Chen Wa Kwo
• 1990 - Island of Fire - Lan/Steve Tong
• 1991 - Armor of God II: “Condor” operation (also director) - Jackie Condor
• 1991 - “The Best of the Martial Arts”
• 1992 - “A Kid from Tibet” / A Kid from Tibet
• 1992 - Twin Dragons - John Ma/Boomer
• 1992 - “Supercop” / Supercop - Inspector Kevin Chan
• 1993 - “City Hunter” / City Hunter - Rio Saeba
• 1993 - Crime Story (also director) - Inspector Chan
• 1993 - “Project S” / Project S - Inspector Chan
• 1994 - Cinema of Vengeance
• 1994 - “Drunken Master 2” / Drunken Master II (also director) - Huang Feihong
• 1995 - “Rumble in the Bronx” / Rumble in the Bronx - Keung
• 1995 - “Thunderbolt” / Thunderbolt - Chan Fo To
• 1996 - “First Strike” / First Strike - Inspector Chan Ka Kui
• 1997 - “Mr. Cool” / Mister Nice Guy - Jackie
• 1997 - “Burn, Hollywood, Burn” / Burn, Hollywood Burn
• 1998 - “Who am I?” / Who Am I? (also director) - Jackie Chan "Who Am I?"
• 1998 - “Jackie Chan: My Life” / Jackie Chan: My story (also director)
• 1998 - Rush Hour - Inspector Lee
• 1999 - “Magnificent” / Gorgeous - SI En Chan
• 1999 - “King of Comedy” / King of Comedy
• 1999 - “Jackie Chan: My stunts” / Jackie Chan: My stunts (also director)
• 1999 - “Police Generation X” / Gen X Cops
• 2000 - “Shanghai Noon” / Shanghai Noon - Chan Wang
• 2001 - “Accidental Spy” - Buck Yen / Jackie Chan
• 2001 - “Rush Hour 2” / Rush Hour II - Chief Inspector Lee
• 2002 - “Tuxedo” / The Tuxedo - Jimmy Tong
• 2003 - “Shanghai Knights” / Shanghai Knights - Chan Wang
• 2003 - “Twins Effect” - Jackie
• 2003 - “The Medallion” - Eddie Young
• 2004 - “The Appearance of the Phoenix” / Enter the Phoenix
• 2004 - “Around the World in 80 days” / Around the World in 80 days - Passepartout / Lao Xin
• 2004 - “Twins Effect 2: The War of Huadu” / Twins Effect 2: The War of Huadu
• 2004 - “New Police Story” / New Police Story - Inspector Chan Kwo Wing
• 2005 - “Myth” / The Myth - General Meng Yi / Doctor Jack Chan
• 2006 - “Rob-B-Hood” / Rob-B-Hood - Fong Ka Ho
• 2007 - “Rush Hour 3” / Rush Hour III - Lee
• 2008 - “Forbidden Kingdom” / Forbidden Kingdom - Taoist Lu Yan/Hu
• 2008 - “Kung Fu Panda” / Kung Fu Panda - monkey (voice)
• 2009 - “Looking for Jackie”
• 2009 - “Incident in Shinjuku” / The Shinjuku Incident
• 2009 - “The Reason Of China Creating”
• 2010 - “The Spy Next Door” / Spy Next Door - Bob Ho
• 2010 - “Big Soldier” / Big Soldier
• 2010 - “The Karate Kid” / The Karate Kid - Mr. Khan
• 2010 - “Armor of God 3”

All cinema lovers are familiar with the name Jackie Chan. But the actor’s path to fame was not easy. However, Jackie always found the strength not to despair and to get down to business again. Today the artist’s track record includes more than a hundred paintings.

On April 7, 1954, a boy was born into a poor Chinese family, Chan. The child weighed more than 5 kg, which is why the mother for a long time called her son “Pao Pao,” which means “cannonball.” The couple were so poor that they left the baby with the doctor for some time. When they paid the hospital bill, they took the child home and named him Chen Gangsheng. Later world I found out about this guy under the pseudonym Jackie Chan.

At one time, Charles and Lily Chan fled China from the civil war to Hong Kong. There they got a job at the French embassy as a cook and maid. In the 60s, when Jackie's son grew up, the family moved to Australia.

Since the age of 6, Jackie Chan has been attending the Peking Opera School. There he gained stage experience and learned to understand his body. In addition, I became interested in kung fu.

Movies

Jackie Chan got into cinema as a child. From the age of 8, he first acted as an extra, then he was entrusted with the role of his son main character in Peking Opera.

As a teenager, he appeared in martial arts films, but so far only as an extra. Although the list of works includes the films “Fist of Fury” and “Enter the Dragon” with. In these films, Jackie plays negative characters. But then he realized that there was no point in copying Bruce Lee, becoming one of a thousand.

Having moved to his parents in the 70s, he tried to study at Dickson College and worked part-time at a construction site. Along the way, he began acting in films as a stuntman. Jackie Chan is artistic, flexible, charismatic and masters kung fu. This allows him to move on to real roles. He himself produces comedy films where the characters participate in street fights ah, demonstrating fighting abilities. The artist's characters are lazy, sometimes simple-minded. They, simpletons, have a lot of problems, but overall they are brave, kind guys. Jackie Chan came up with his own tricks. In fact, a new genre was being born at that time.

The film "The Snake in the Eagle's Shadow" was a breakthrough in Jackie Chan's career. The director of the film allowed talented actor perform your own stunts and improvise. This was what was needed, because the film was shot in the comedy genre with elements of martial arts. By that time, Jackie Chan had already become accustomed to the genre that interested him.

The film "Drunken Master" showed us the comic tandem of Jackie and actor Yuen Xu Tien. Jackie plays a broken, carefree bully who fights with everyone, disgracing his master father's fighting school. Ewan plays the role of a mentor who takes on the task of re-educating a talented impudent man.

In 1983, while working on the film Project A, Jackie Chan organized a stunt team. In subsequent films he worked with her. Today, the actor is blacklisted by all insurance companies because he often puts his life at risk. Jackie has many “battle wounds” received during filming: a dislocated pelvis, broken fingers, sternum, ankle and ribs. Due to his repeatedly broken right ankle, Jackie is forced to land on his left foot when performing tricks. And on the set of “Armor of God,” a traumatic brain injury received as a result of a fall from a tree almost led to death.

In the 80s there were many attempts to break into Hollywood. “Big Brawl”, “Cannonball Race”, “Patron” did not go unnoticed, but did not have fame.

Success came in 1995 with the film “Rumble in the Bronx,” which was awarded to Jackie by the MTV channel.

“First Strike,” “Mr. Cool” and other films were hitting the box office. The viewer came to be surprised, laugh, and admire Jackie Chan's dexterity.

In 2000, the cartoon “The Adventures of Jackie Chan” was released. The main character of the animated film was archaeologist Jackie Chan, who is a collective image of the characters played by the artist and some others.

Rush Hour, along with its two sequels, grossed billions of dollars and became Hollywood hits. In the western "Shanghai Noon" he plays together with.

Jackie Chan is experimenting. He changes his role, adds a number of expensive and spectacular special effects to his films, although this is not very successful, because the heart of Jackie’s films has always been martial art, these famous fights using all kinds of improvised means.

"The Tuxedo" and "Around the World in 80 Days" were commercial failures. Jackie Chan had seven stunt doubles in The Tuxedo.

After failures, Jackie Chan pulled himself together. He starred in three successful films in a row, continuing to experiment. An interesting film is “Myth,” where the actor plays the role of a Chinese emperor who is crazy about charming girl, and archaeologist: absolutely different heroes, but both know kung fu.

"A fall last empire"is the actor's anniversary film, the hundredth, released in 2011. And not the last.

There are more than 100 songs in Jackie Chan's repertoire, although few people know what he sings. Jackie performs songs in several dialects of Chinese, Japanese and English. For his films, he often creates the soundtracks himself, but in Europe and America they are usually replaced.

Stars with the name Jackie Chan can be seen in Hong Kong, Hollywood and on Old Arbat in Moscow.

In Hollywood, Jackie received offers to play the roles of negative characters. But he always refused. Chan was afraid of ruining his image and ending up on the list of stereotypical movie villains.

In 2010, the premiere of the feature film “The Karate Kid” started, where the son and. Jackie Chan played the mentor of young Dre Parker. The audience warmly received the film, and the role became one of the most important in her career biography.

In 2016, Jackie Chan was awarded an Oscar for his outstanding contribution to cinema.

Creative biography Jackie did not limit herself only to roles in action films. He acted as a voice actor in three Kung Fu Panda cartoons. In addition, Chan produced most of the films in which he starred and directed more than a dozen films.

Personal life

Jackie Chan married Taiwanese actress Lin Fengjiao in the early 80s. Jackie saw his future wife in 1982 and fell in love. A marriage proposal followed immediately in the filming pavilion. Chan, fearing an inadequate reaction from female fans, hid Lin from the public for fifteen years.

The family had a son, Chang Zuming, who followed in his father's footsteps. He acts in films and sings. He gained fame under the pseudonym Jaycee Chan.

In 2014, Jaycee developed... He is in favor of providing space for people who use drugs. Jackie Chan did not interfere with the administration of justice, but in an interview he shared that he was shocked by what happened.

Before imprisonment, father and son had a cool relationship. Jackie even announced that he would rather bequeath some of the money to charity than leave the funds to Jaycee. However, after their release they met and established a connection.

Actress Elaine Wu Qili, talking about an extramarital affair with the actor, claimed that she and Chan had a daughter, Etta Wu Zholin. The artist considered this connection a mistake and refused to officially recognize the child.

There were rumors that when Jackie found out about Elaine's pregnancy, he asked the girl to have an abortion. But she did not take such a step. As a result, the actor agreed that he had two children. But Jackie is not involved in the upbringing and fate of her daughter.

In April 2017, Etta made an unsuccessful attempt. Doctors concluded that the girl was depressed. Besides the fact that her father doesn’t get along with her, her relationship with her mother left much to be desired.

Then Etta went on Instagram and posted a photo with her lover Andy Oth. The girls were hit with a barrage of criticism, but they found the strength to thank those who treated their coming out with understanding.

Star dad Etta also has an official account in “ Instagram" Thousands of fans are watching their favorite actor. Jackie also shares recordings with fans in “

Jackie was born in Hong Kong in 1954. His parents, Charles and Lily Chan, were so poor that the baby was offered to the English obstetrician who delivered the baby as a fee, which was only $26. But fate took pity on the baby - his parents found where to borrow money, and he remained to live with his family.

The parents fled to Hong Kong - a small island of freedom next to communist China - during the Civil War. Chen Gangsheng (陳港生), in Cantonese pronunciation Kong Sung Chan, that is, translated as “Chan, born in Hong Kong,” was the name of their son Charles and Lily, filled with gratitude to Hong Kong for getting rid of the horrors of the Civil War. In 1960, Chan's parents moved to Australia to work at the Chinese Embassy there. But a year later, the family council decided to send the boy back to China to study life at the Peking Opera School. And so it was done: the little boy crosses the ocean for the second time and returns to his homeland. And at the age of 6 years he enters closed school, owned by the Peking Opera.

At school, the pupils got up at 5 o'clock in the morning and until midnight they had to unquestioningly carry out every order of the stern teachers. For every disobedience they could be punished, beaten, and for the slightest mistake they were taken away their daily food allowance, which was already meager and often did not replenish the entire supply of energy spent on classes. The number of subjects studied was measured at four hundred and covered all types of crafts, arts and exact sciences. In addition to singing, choreography and dancing, the main program included a wide range of martial arts and martial arts classes. The harsh education practiced in the Beijing opera school created real men out of boys, who were much more ready for life's trials in the future than the young men around them.

Subsequently, he was grateful to fate that he ended up in this school. In addition to stage training, he acquired excellent skills in controlling his body. At school, he began training in the martial art of kung fu. At school, his first film debuts took place in crowd scenes.

In 1971, Jackie was invited to work as a stuntman at the Shaw Brothers studio. In the same year, he received his first leading role in one of the films - “The Master with Broken Fingers”, but the film was not successful, like the next film in which he starred.

At the same time, he participated as a stuntman in the crowd scenes of the films “Fist of Fury” and “Enter the Dragon” with the participation of. At this time - he was not even twenty years old at the time - he took a new name for himself - Sing Lung or Cheng Lung (成龍), which means “to become a dragon” or “who became a dragon.” In general, before the Chen Kong Sang known to us, he changed his initials more than ten times. Of course, like others, the young man idolized the legendary Bruce Lee. Subsequently, from Jackie Chan's evasive answers, it became clear that they barely knew each other, although they had acted together more than once. But it was not for nothing that this name appeared - in those days, journalists and fans called Bruce the Dragon.

After Bruce Lee's mysterious death in 1973, there were years when producers were looking for a replacement, but all produced only weak copies.
At this time, Chen Kong Sang leaves for Australia to visit his parents and, if possible, earn extra money. It was at this time that he took the pseudonym Jackie Chan. He returned to China in 1976 at the invitation of the famous director Lo Wei, when the studio Lo Wei Motion Picture Co.Ltd. will offer him a contract for cooperation.

Over the next two years, Jackie would star in 9 films, but all of them would be just like Bruce Lee's films. Their mediocre quality and absolutely inexpressive plots will drive Jackie crazy long before the contract expires. And then one fine day there will be a film studio that will agree to pay a penalty for the early termination of Jackie Chan’s contract with Lo Wei’s film studio, and will invite him to join them. This company will be the Hong Kong film company Seasonal Film Corporation, with which Jackie will collaborate for the next few years. Films starring Jackie Chan produced by Seasonal Film Corporation will be some of the best in his extensive filmography. Here for the first time he not only showed an amazing cascade of tricks and kung fu techniques, but also revealed his acting talent and showed the full potential of his abilities. First
The film, when Jackie managed to find her image - “Snake in the Eagle's Shadow”, was distinguished by an excellently written script. The hero Jackie demonstrated excellent mastery of martial arts, while simultaneously playing the role of a comedian. The hero's witty remarks were quoted everywhere - the film became a real hit in Hong Kong. In the same year, an even higher-grossing film “Drunken Master” was shot. In the next film “Fearless Hyena” in 1979, Jackie Chan acts not only as an actor, but also as a director. Jackie Chan created his own image, different from Bruce Lee and his followers. He played brave and uncompromising fighters, while Chan’s character is a simple-minded, even a little lazy guy, often in confrontation with his family or his girlfriend. But in the end, the truth is on his side.

Jackie Chan confidently and boldly burst into Hollywood with his inimitable cry of “Ya-a-a”. Jackie has long realized that his strong point is humor combined with incredible stunts and, of course, fight scenes, in this he has no equal. Thanks to him, Chinese martial arts found many fans and admirers.

After films produced at the Seasonal Film Corporation, Jackie becomes one of the highest paid actors in Asia. But it was at this moment that he breaks the old contract and enters into a new one, with the Golden Harvest film studio. In this film studio, Jackie starred in such wonderful and extremely popular films not only in Hong Kong and China, but throughout the rest of the world as “Police Story”, “Armor of God” and “Project “A”.

Already in 1987, the actor, together with the Golden Harvest studio, created the Golden Way company, where he shot sequels to his best films: “Project “A” 2”, “Armor of God 2: Operation Condor”, “Drunk Master 2” and “Policeman” story 2". Several new very successful projects are also being released: “Miracles: The Godfather of Canton” (1989), “City Hunter” (1992), “Crime Story” (1993).

At the end of the eighties of the twentieth century, it became clear to everyone that Jackie Chan, the founder of the “new wave” of Chinese cinema, a great actor, stuntman, producer and director, who had long become a symbol of the Avenue of Stars in China, must strive for more, he simply must conquer Hollywood . Jackie Chan had made attempts to do this before (in 1980, 1981 and 1984), but viewers and critics greeted him coldly, he was not recognized on the streets and was not offered lucrative contracts. But he never gave up and kept striving towards his goal - to conquer Hollywood.

It was the second half of the nineties of the twentieth century that became the best period in the career of Jackie Chan. During this time, he acted in and produced such wonderful films as “Rumble in the Bronx” (1995), “Lightning Strike” (1995) and “First Strike” (1996), “Mr. Cool” (1997) and “Who Am I?” (1998). It was the commercial success of Jackie Chan's last two works that finally allowed him to conquer Hollywood - in 1998, his action adventure film Rush Hour was released in theaters in the United States. IN leading role of course Jackie Chano. The audience liked the film so much that it was decided to make a sequel, which was released exactly two years later. beginning of XXI century.

Currently, Jackie Chan works more often abroad. Although he is often thrown into Hong Kong by the plot of the next Hollywood blockbuster, as was the case, for example, in the second part of Rush Hour. He performs most of the stunts in his films himself. Often he cannot do without a broken arm or leg, and he had so many dislocations, abrasions and concussions that doctors only marvel at the heroism and recklessness of the actor. During his career, there were even cases when he literally died, but the professionalism of doctors always helped him. During his acting career, he repeatedly became a laureate of awards from various stunt societies; in addition, he himself organized several such societies. For example, in 1985 he organized the Stuntmen Association. And in 1999, the documentary film “Jackie Chan: My Tricks” was released. The film tells the story of the actor's life and examines in detail all his stunts in the cinema.

In the second millennium, Jackie Chan starred in films that became hits: “Shanghai Knights” (2002), “Tuxedo” (2002), “Medallion” (2003), “Around the World in 80 Days” (2004) - all of them had a huge commercial success.

Chan also performs as a singer - he has released 20 albums containing 100 songs in Japanese, English and two dialects of Chinese. He is also widely known for his charity work. For example, during the opening of an international exhibition in Hong Kong, Chan presented a check for four million dollars to children's organizations.

Jackie Chan (birth name Chen Gansheng, in another transcription Chan Kongsan (Chan, born in Hong Kong), English: Jackie Chan) is a Hong Kong, Chinese and American actor, stuntman and martial artist, as well as a singer and philanthropist.

He became famous for playing the leading roles in the action-comedies “Drunk Master”, “Lord Dragon”, “Super Cop”, “Rumble in the Bronx”, “Rush Hour”, “Armor of God”, “Baby for 30 Million” and many others; In total he starred in more than 100 films.

In addition to his many merits, he is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and an Oscar winner for his contribution to cinema.

Family and childhood

Jackie Chan was born in Hong Kong on April 7, 1954. His parents Charles Chan (1914-2008) and Lily Chan (1916-2002) fled to Hong Kong from China to escape political persecution: Charles, an active supporter of the conservative Kuomintang party, was its secret agent during the civil war, and after the Communist victory his exposed and recognized as an enemy of the people. The mother of the future actor, according to some sources, was a drug dealer - she sold opium.

In Hong Kong, the family had to start from scratch, so they lived below the poverty line. Even the money for the doctor who Lily needed at the birth of her son, the father was forced to borrow from friends. Parents were hired to serve at the French embassy: Charles worked as a cook, and Lily became a maid.

Chen's father began introducing him to kung fu with early childhood– he believed that practicing martial arts would help a child gain patience, strength and courage. Mom affectionately called her son Pao-Pao (“cannonball”), because he often rushed around the house, knocking down everything in his path.

At the age of 5, Chan began going to primary school, but after the first grade he was expelled for poor academic performance. In 1960, when he was 6 years old, his parents again faced persecution from the Chinese and were forced to move once again, this time to Australia. In Canberra, Charles got a job as a chef at the US Embassy, ​​but decided that it would be better for his son to stay in his native Hong Kong and learn a useful profession, so he got the boy into the Peking Opera School at the Chinese Theater Academy, where Chan spent the next 10 years.

The school taught martial arts, acrobatics, vocals and acting and prepared the boys for future career in traditional Chinese opera. The strictest discipline reigned here, and severe corporal punishment was practiced. Chan didn't like his school, but he had nowhere to go: his parents were far away, and he almost never saw them. Therefore, the boy studied intensively and at one time was even part of the “Seven Lucky Men” group - an ensemble of seven of the most talented students who traveled to theaters in Hong Kong and abroad.

How actor Jackie Chan changed

He then became close with two bandmates, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, and the three of them formed a show group known as the Three Brothers or Three Dragons. During his studies, while still a teenager, Chan managed to act as an extra and in episodes in several films: “Eternal Love”, “Big and Little Wong Tin Bar”, as well as “Fist of Fury” and “Enter the Dragon” with the participation of Bruce Lee.

At the age of 17, the young man successfully graduated from drama school, but by this time traditional Chinese opera had lost its former popularity, and graduates were left alone with uncertainty. The situation was complicated by the fact that in theater school they didn’t teach general education subjects, and Chan couldn’t even read or write properly. All that remained for him was either unskilled physical labor or a career as a stuntman in films.

Top 10 most dangerous tricks of Jackie Chan

The beginning of a film career

In 1971, Chan played a leading role for the first time in his life - it was the film “The Little Tiger of Kwantung”, where he acted under the pseudonym Chan Yuen Lung. The film was released on the big screen only in 1973, but neither before its release nor in the coming months after that there were no new proposals for filming.

There was also a lull in the work of the stuntman, and the young man was forced to agree to star in the comedy film for adults “All in the Family” (1975). In this film, he starred naked in an erotic scene for the first time; In addition, this is the only film with Jackie Chan that does not contain a single sequence with martial arts or stunts. The Hong Kong film industry was generally in decline during this period, and, unable to find new work, Chan went to visit his parents in Australia in early 1976.

In Australia, the young man took a crash course in secondary education at Dixon College, while working part-time in construction. Here he often worked in tandem with a man named Jack. Since Australians found it difficult to pronounce his Chinese name Gansheng, they began to call young guy after the name of his older and taller comrade “little Jack” or “Jackie” - that’s how he got his new name.

The young man was not happy with life in Australia: work at a construction site was hard and did not provide moral satisfaction, and he could hardly count on anything better. Salvation came in the form of a telegram from a man named Willie Chan, who worked for the famous Hong Kong producer and director Lo Wei. They saw Jackie's stunt work in one of the films and wanted to invite him to the main role in the film "The New Fist of Fury" (1976). Chan happily returned to Hong Kong, and Willy subsequently became his manager and best friend.

In the film “New Fist of Fury,” Lo Wei strongly encouraged and emphasized Jackie Chan’s resemblance to the famous Bruce Lee, also known by his nickname “Little Dragon.” The young man even took on the screen name Xin Long (in another transcription Chen Long), which literally means “become a dragon.” The film was not a great success because Jackie Chan did not look natural in the hand-to-hand fighting style that is characteristic of Bruce Lee. However, Lo Wei made several more similar films with Chan in the title role, and Jackie came up with some of the stunts for these films himself. Gradually, the young actor began to create a new genre - a comedy with a demonstration of martial arts or street fights and an abundance of complex, sometimes even dangerous stunts.

Jackie Chan's first success came after the release of the films "Snake in the Eagle's Shadow" (1978) and "Drunken Master" (1978) directed by Yuan Heping (in another transcription by Yun Wop-hin). In Drunken Master, Jackie played the role of the Chinese folk hero Wong Feihong, who is presented as a simple-minded and careless young man.

After this, he returned to Lo Wei's studio and began to develop the successful comedy style of the "drunken master" in the films Spiritual Kung Fu (1978) and A Little Bit of Kung Fu (1980), and in the film Fearless Hyena (1979) Jackie Chan also acted as co-director. However, after filming Fearless Hyena 2 (1983), Jackie and Willie left Lo Wei's studio and moved to the larger Golden Harvest studio.

Jackie Chan. "Drunk master". Trailer

Worldwide success in cinema

In the early 1980s, Jackie Chan was already a successful actor with his own unique style and role, but his success was still limited to the Asian region. And Jackie dreamed of conquering the whole world and, in particular, the USA. He repeatedly entered the American market with the projects “The Big Brawl” (1980), “Cannonball Race” (1981) and its sequel (1984), “Patron” (1985), “Armor of God” (1986) and many others , but these pictures did not bring big box office receipts in America.

While performing one of the stunts for the film Armor of God, Jackie Chan fell from a tree and received a serious head injury with a skull fracture. This caused serious fears for his life, but the actor recovered fairly quickly.

On the set of the film “Project A” (1983), Chan officially created the “Jackie Chan Stunt Team”, with which he worked in subsequent years (and in 2002, the actor was awarded the annual Taurus Award of the World Stunt Academy). All this time, he was extremely in demand on the Asian film market: from 1983 to 2007, Chan was nominated almost every year at the Hong Kong Film Festival as best actor or best stunt coordinator, and he won this prize five times.

Jackie Chan cries at a meeting with stuntman friends

Real success in the United States came to Chan only in the mid-1990s, after the film Rumble in the Bronx (1995). American critics wrote: “Any attempt to evaluate this film from a rational point of view is doomed to failure. Don't try to look at the plot and dialogues, don't look at the acting. The whole point is in Jackie Chan himself - he does what he can do like no one else. His movements are confident, full of grace and grace. The fight is choreographed with humor (and without unnecessary fanaticism). He's just having fun. And if we allow ourselves to be immersed in this atmosphere, then we will have fun too.”

Showdown in the Bronx. Compilation of Jackie Chan's best fights

And there were many of them: as when working on other films, Jackie did not spare himself at all and was even ready to risk his life for the sake of a spectacular shot. In the same year, the actor received the MTV Movie Awards for achievements in cinema. Chan's other new works, filmed in Hong Kong, also received recognition: “Stormbreaker” (1995), “First Strike” (1996), “Mr. Cool” (1996).

Jackie Chan's 10 Best Tricks

Finally, in 1998, Jackie Chan took the plunge and made his first all-American film, Rush Hour, starring Chris Tucker. The film gained great popularity and became one of the highest-grossing films of the year, and the creative tandem of Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker received the MTV Movie Awards as the best duet. Subsequently, sequels were released with the same cast - “Rush Hour - 2” (2001, brought the “MTV Movie Awards” for best fight) and "Rush Hour - 3" (2007). However, despite the commercial success, the third part was received rather coolly by critics: “This is a dull remake of earlier films, and even a change of scenery cannot mask the lack of new ideas.”

At the turn of the 1990s and 2000s, Jackie Chan began experimenting with his role, trying to diversify it. One of such successful “tests of the pen” can be called the film “Magnificent” (1999), in which Jackie played a hero who is still fluent in kung fu, but at the same time is an incorrigible romantic and dreamer. The comedy western “Shanghai Noon” (2000), where Jackie’s filming partner was American comedian Owen Wilson, was also successful. “Although the plot of the film is not worth discussing, Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson look great together. The filming is great and Jackie Chan is a lot of fun. A wonderful film in the spirit of the good old cinema,” - this is how critics spoke about the film.

The next three years were marked by less successful works, which combined Jackie Chan's own style with expensive special effects. Thus, the film “Tuxedo” (2002) was criticized for its “stupid” plot and blurred perception of stunts, “Medallion” (2003) was called “expensive cheap”, and “Around the World in 80 Days” (2004) was criticized for too free deviations from the original novel by Jules Verne.

And after a series of failures in Hollywood, Jackie Chan decided to return to Hong Kong, where a new triumph awaited him in connection with the release of the film “New Police Story” (2004). This time he managed to successfully combine fights and stunts with the drama of a police hero who has lost his friends. This was followed by the equally successful film “Myth” (2005) in the fantasy style, and then the film “30 Million Dollar Baby” (2006, also called “Rob-B-Hood”), in which “Jackie Chan’s famous comic charm illuminated a farce about a baby being abducted—a farce with a plot that is lively enough so that the eerie contents of the baby's diapers do not have time to soil the playpen."

In 2008, the Chinese-American film “The Forbidden Kingdom,” directed by Rob Minkoff, was released, on the set of which Chan met and became friends with the famous Chinese actor and martial artist Jet Li. Critics greeted the film with ambivalence, noting that “the action scenes are great, but there is too much ‘water’ between them.” After that, he continued to experiment with various genres, starring in Chinese and American films.

In 2010, Chan starred alongside Jaden Smith (Will Smith's son) in The Karate Kid, a remake of the original 1984 film. The role of an elderly kung fu teacher was his first dramatic role in American cinema.

In 2011, the 100th anniversary film starring Jackie Chan, “The Fall of the Last Empire,” was released. Here he acted not only as the leading actor, but also as a co-director and executive producer. In the same year, the actor received the People's Choice Award as favorite action star.

In 2012, at the Cannes Film Festival, Jackie Chan announced his retirement from action films because he was no longer “appropriate” for the genre. However, he later clarified that he did not intend to give up his favorite business completely, but would only perform fewer stunts and, in general, would take more care of his body.

After that, he starred in the films “Police Story 4” (2013), “Dragon Sword” (2015) and “On the Trail” (2016). In December 2016, the action comedy film “Railway Tigers” was released in China, in which the artist starred with his son Jaycee. On November 12, 2016, Jackie Chan was awarded the Academy Award for “extraordinary achievements” in cinema.

Music career

Since childhood, Jackie Chan has studied vocals professionally at the Peking Opera School. In the 1980s, he began recording songs and gained popularity as a performer in Hong Kong and Asian region. Since 1984, he has released 20 albums with compositions in Cantonese, Mandarin and Taiwanese, as well as Japanese and English. He often performed songs for his films himself, but when the films were released in Europe and the USA, these compositions were usually replaced.

Jackie Chan sings Adele's song in Chinese

In 2007, Jackie Chan recorded the song “We Are Ready,” the official song for the 2008 Summer Olympics. He also performed the song at the one-year countdown ceremony for the 2008 Summer Paralympics, and also sang "Hard to Say Goodbye" at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing along with Andy Lau, Liu Juan and Emil (Wakin) Chau.

Political and social activities

Jackie Chan promotes a healthy lifestyle: he himself does not smoke, does not drink alcohol or even coffee. In addition, he actively opposes drug use and supported Chinese President Xi Jinping's campaign on this issue: drug trafficking should be completely eradicated and anyone who takes them should be "severely punished." In 2014, when he own son Jaycee was arrested for smoking marijuana, Jackie Chan said he was "shocked, crushed and disgraced."

In 2009, at the Boao Asia Forum, the actor was asked whether he considered freedom a positive or negative phenomenon. To this he replied: “I am gradually coming to the conclusion that we Chinese need management and control. If we are not controlled, then we will begin to create what we want.” This remark angered many prominent figures in Taiwan and Hong Kong, and Chan's representative was later forced to state that the actor was talking about freedom in the entertainment industry and not about Chinese society as a whole.

In December 2012, Jackie Chan angered many by calling Hong Kong a “city of protests” and calling for restrictions on the right to demonstrate. A little later in the interview, he called the United States the “most corrupt” country in the world, which caused a backlash of criticism. Journalists accused Chan of deliberately belittling America in order to portray China in a more favorable light, as well as of being driven by personal motives and attitudes towards the American film market.

Evening Urgant. Jackie Chan

Despite some controversial statements, the actor has a reputation as a caring person and is active in charitable activities. Back in 1988, he founded the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation to provide scholarships to young people in Hong Kong and help those affected by natural disasters and diseases.

In 2005, the actor organized the Dragon's Heart Foundation to help children and elderly people in remote areas of China: building schools, purchasing textbooks and school uniforms, purchasing wheelchairs, warm clothes, etc. In 2011, this fund expanded and began operating in Europe as well.

In 2004, Chan helped financially help victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami, and after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, he donated 10 million yuan. In addition, he donated a total of HK$4.14 million to UNICEF and two other children's organizations. In June 2006, Jackie Chan announced that he admired the enormous charitable donations of Warren Buffett and Bill Gates and intended to bequeath half of his fortune to charity.

Personal life of Jackie Chan

In matters related to his personal life, the famous actor is quite secretive. By religion he is a Buddhist. On December 1, 1982, he registered his marriage with Taiwanese actress Joan Lin (real name Lin Fengjiao, born 1953), and two days later, on December 3, their son Chang Zuming was born, who later became known as Jaycee Chan as a singer and actor.

The relationship between father and son did not always go smoothly. Jaycee was offended when, in 2011, his father confirmed his previous decision to bequeath half of his wealth to charity, rather than leaving it to him. Jackie Chan then said about his son: “If he is capable of something, he will earn his money himself. And if he is not capable, then he will spend mine in vain.”

In 2014, when Jaycee was arrested for possession and use of marijuana, his father did not defend him, but stated that the young man should take responsibility for his actions. However, when the son was released from prison six months later, they reconciled. “I haven't seen him for too long. And I feel that he has matured,” commented Jackie Chan. “We didn’t go to bed for a long time, we talked almost all night.”

Jackie Chan apologizes for his drug-addicted son

Despite his long and strong marriage, Jackie Chan also has an illegitimate daughter, Etta Wu Zhuolin (born January 18, 1999). Her mother, actress Elaine Wu Qili, who was awarded the title of Miss Asia 1990, decided to raise her daughter without the participation of her father. Chan admits that he "made the mistake that many men around the world have made."

Jackie Chan holds the world record, recorded in the Guinness Book of Records - he is officially “a living actor who has performed greatest number movie stunts."

Jackie’s personal motto: “There is no fear, there are no understudies, there are no equals.” With this lifestyle, the actor “earned” for his career great amount injuries: he was dislocated many times hip joints, broke his skull, fingers and toes, nose, cheekbones, hip bones, sternum, neck, ankles and ribs. The right ankle was particularly unlucky, and now, during any jumps, the actor can only land on his left foot. Due to frequent bodily injuries, Jackie Chan has been blacklisted by all insurance companies and has long been unable to insure his life and health when working on films.

In 1996, Jackie Chan received an honorary doctorate in social sciences from Hong Kong Baptist University; in 2008 he became a professor emeritus at the Hong Kong Branch of the Savannah College of Art and Design, and in 2009 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Cambodia.

Jackie is seriously passionate about motorsports. He co-owns the Chinese racing team Jackie Chan DC Racing with driver David Chan. In addition, he is an active football fan - he supports the Hong Kong national team, the England team and Manchester City.

In 2011, several news agencies reported that the 56-year-old actor allegedly died in a Los Angeles hospital, where he was taken after a heart attack. Before the official denial came, US President Barack Obama managed to speak with words of condolences, and for several hours the whole world mourned for their beloved artist. Fortunately, this information turned out to be a “duck”. The actor himself took the incident with humor.

Jackie Chan now

In October 2017, the Chinese-British film The Foreigner, directed by Martin Campbell, was released, in which Chan acted in partnership with Pierce Brosnan. Here Jackie again played a serious dramatic role, combining it with a demonstration of martial arts.

- from Russian. Public Favorite

Jackie Chan is a successful businessman. Since 2004, he has been producing and selling his own brand of clothing and accessories under the JCD (Jackie Chan Design) brand. He owns a chain of sushi restaurants, several sports clubs and a line for the production of cookies and chocolate.

Chan has stars on the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong, as well as the famous Walk of Stars in Hollywood and the Old Arbat in Moscow. He is the author of the autobiographical books “The Dragon Within” (1997), “I, Jackie Chan” (1998), “Jackie Chan: Old Before I Grew Old” (2015) and “I Am Happy” (2016). The number of books written about him by other people is incalculable.

Jackie Chan's real name is Chen Gangsheng, which translates to "Hong Kong-born Chen." The actor received the nickname Jackie at the age of 22, while working on construction sites in Canberra (Australia). He was a builder's assistant named Jack, so the workers called Chan "little Jack" and then simply Jackie.

Jackie's father, Charles Chan, was an intelligence officer for the Republic of China, and her mother, Lily, was a theater actress who sold opium in her free time from working on stage. They met when Charles, due to his duty, had to arrest Lily. Both were divorced and each had two children from a previous marriage: two boys for Charles and two girls for Lily. When the Communist Party came to power in 1949, the couple, already married, fled to Hong Kong, abandoning their children in China. In 1954, Jackie was born to them.

When Jackie was seven years old, his parents abandoned him too. They sent the boy to a boarding school, and they themselves sailed to Australia to earn money. The orphanage where Jackie ended up specialized in teaching pupils “Peking opera” - a specific genre that combines not only acting, singing, pantomime and dancing, but also acrobatics and martial arts.

Classes at the boarding school began at five in the morning and ended at midnight. Corporal punishment was the norm. At the same time, no time was devoted to reading, writing, arithmetic and other school sciences. Until now, Jackie Chan, although he speaks seven languages ​​(North Chinese, Cantonese, English, German, Korean, Japanese, Thai), has difficulty writing and reading even in his native language.

A year after training, eight-year-old Jackie starred in his first film, “Big and Little Wong Tin Bar.” The role was not the main one, he played one of seven children learning kung fu. In the film, Jackie sang and fought with the adult villain hero.

When Jackie was released from boarding school in 1971, he had appeared in ten films. The roles were small, often he was just one of the extras. Over the next seven years, he appeared in 26 more films. In two of them he had the opportunity to work side by side with Bruce Lee. And although in “Fist of Fury” Chan is almost invisible in the crowd, in “Enter the Dragon” Bruce paid special attention to him!

Chan's star was made by two films released in 1978: The Snake in the Eagle's Shadow and The Drunken Master. It was in them that Jackie first combined martial arts and comedy. Before these films, the Hong Kong film industry was influenced by the style of Bruce Lee, which is why all the countless kung fu action films were filled with whining fighters who struck intimidating poses, then quickly dispatched the enemy, after which they froze in intimidating poses again for some more whine. Jackie Chan showed that you can fight on screen playfully and not with such stupid seriousness.

As soon as Jackie made his way into the stars, he stopped playing negative characters. After 1976, he played only one bad guy - the head of the Chinese mafia in the film "Incident in Shinjuku". To maintain a positive image, Chan refused to participate in many expensive Hollywood films. He said no to Sylvester Stallone when he asked him to play the villain in Demolition Man. He didn't accept Michael Douglas's offer to be the bad guy in Black Rain. He turned down a role in Lethal Weapon 4. Flint, not man!

Having started his film career as a stuntman, Chan, as you well know, always did his own stunts, without the help of special effects or stunt doubles. But the older he got, he shunned less and less outside help. In the film “Tuxedo,” for example, in some scenes he had doubles take the rap for him, as many as six of them. However, this is also due to the fact that the film was shot in Hollywood, famous for its thousand-page contracts. The producers were afraid that any injury could prevent them from filming the film on time and at the right cost.

Jackie Chan's calling card is the bad scenes that accompany the closing credits of most of his films. This signature feature did not appear by chance. The moral of bad takes is “Don’t try this at home.” Jackie Chan wanted to show teenagers that stunts can be done easily and simply only on the screen, but in reality this is a very dangerous thing, even in the hands (and feet) of a professional.

The music lessons she received at the boarding school did not go unnoticed for Jackie. He has 20 on his account music albums. In addition, he often takes part in dubbing Disney cartoons for Chinese viewers.

Jackie Chan has twice entered the Guinness Book of Records. He holds the record for "most big number mentions in the credits of one film." In the action film “Armor of God: Mission Zodiac,” Chan acted as a screenwriter, director, actor, producer, film director, cinematographer, chief artist, line producer, stunt coordinator, prop master, lighting designer, stuntman, composer, songwriter, and even responsible for food for the film crew.