Bruce Lee is the granddaddy of high-kicking, fist-fighting movie
martial artists. He got his start in America as Kato, the sidekick in
the jokey 1960's TV series The Green Hornet. Later he went to
Hong Kong and more or less founded the institution of kung fu movies.
Wiry and charismatic, Lee reached a pinnacle in 1973 with Enter The Dragon. His untimely death before the film's release helped make him an enduring cult figure. Other films include Way of the Dragon (1972), The Big Boss (1971) and Marlowe (1969, with James Garner).
The coroner ruled that Lee died of a brain edema (accumulation of
fluid and swelling) caused by an abnormal reaction to painkillers he had
been prescribed for back pain... His son, Brandon Lee, was killed by a
bullet accidentally fired from a prop gun while making the movie The Crow in 1993.