“I Cared About Bruce”: Steve McQueen, Who Avoided Funerals, Surprisingly Served as Pallbearer for Bruce Lee’s Last Rites
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The first name that comes to the mind of a person when thinking of martial arts is Bruce Lee. The master of martial arts starred in grand movies, like ‘Enter the Dragon’, ‘Fist of Fury’, ‘Be Water’ and more. He had fans all around the globe, and his passing in 1973 shook every soul to its core.
Celebrities like Steve McQueen were clients in Bruce Lee’s martial arts school. Although that was the beginning of a friendship, the loss of Lee later hit McQueen hard.
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Bruce Lee and Steve McQueen were best friends
Bruce Lee had a martial arts school in Washington. He taught martial arts to celebrities in private classes. James Coburn and Steve McQueen were two of his many students. Later, it was revealed that the ‘Sensei’ and McQueen became the best of friends. Jay Sebring, who was a student of Bruce Lee and the best friend of McQueen, introduced the two. Furthermore, their relationship was also written about in Matthew Polly’s ‘Bruce Lee: A Life’.
🐉🎥 If you’re talking about fighting, well, then, baby, you’d better train every part of your body.#brucelee #jkd #jeetkunedo #martialartists #martialart pic.twitter.com/7GLUBorivb
— Bruce Lee (@brucelee) October 16, 2022
McQueen had inspired his teacher to act and become as famous and successful as him. They trained together and had a bit more pranking and rivalries. Their friendship was a topic to talk about.
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Steve McQueen was the pallbearer at Bruce Lee’s funeral
The entire world grieved Lee’s death. Steve McQueen was one of the most heavily hit. Lee left this world at the young age of 32. He didn’t just leave behind a family and a mass of followers, but also his dreams of becoming a Hollywood star.
His wife, Linda Lee Cadwell, had to arrange two separate funerals for the martial arts guru. One in Hong Kong carried more than 10,000 mourners. The second funeral was held in Seattle.
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McQueen was famous for avoiding funerals. It was known that he avoided Sharon Tate’s funeral, although he had been friends with her for years. Steve McQueen flew in from Los Angeles to Seattle to give his friend and teacher his respects.
As per Matthew Polly, McQueen said, “I cared about Bruce. I felt like saying goodbye to a friend.” McQueen was one of the pallbearers, beside James Coburn. As the burial ended, McQueen, Coburn, and the others left their gloves with Lee while saying their farewells.
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Bruce Lee’s passing took a heavy toll on everyone. Martial arts practitioner or not, Lee’s films and quotes have motivated and inspired people like no one else.
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Edited by:
Vineet Nandwana
