Despite His Mother’s Threats, Bruce Lee Broke His Promise Once

Published 04/25/2023, 5:53 PM EDT

Martial art legend Bruce Lee created his successful career with extreme discipline and sincerity. However, he possessed absolutely the opposite of these qualities in his childhood. Growing up, Lee was a notorious kid who constantly indulged in fights and pranks. Oftentimes, he promised his mother, Grace Ho, that he would behave. However, he did not stand by his words. Troubled by his son’s behavior, Lee’s mother once took strict actions when he broke his promise once again.

In Lee’s biography, Bruce Lee: A Life, Grace Ho, recalled an anecdote when he crossed a line while pulling a prank. Worried about his son, she had to take up Lee’s mischiefs with his strict father.

Bruce Lee’s prank had intense consequences for him

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Bruce Lee’s mother revealed in the biography that his son along with his friend, Wu Ngan, once pranked a ticket-taker. At age ten, Lee sneaked into a theatre named the Dongle Theatre. Although he made it inside, Wu Ngan was caught by a ticket-taker who smacked him on the head as a punishment.

This filled Lee with rage, leading the duo to execute a prank on the ticket-taker. After planning for two weeks, they offered hot and fragrant roasted squids to him as an apology. Unaware of a laxative mixed in it, the ticket-taker feasted on it. This was not it! Lee and his friend prepared a bucket full of excrement and stuck a four-inch firecracker in it.

As soon as the man came to the bathroom, the notorious kids slid the bucket under the door right in front of him. When it blew, it covered the man in feces, thus banning Bruce from entering the theatre for six months. Moreover, when Grace came to know about Lee’s prank she was stunned. She worried that she had spoilt her son with her love. Hence, she decided to take up Lee’s behavioral issue with his father.

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She told in the biography, “I would always threaten to tell on him if he didn’t start behaving. He always promised to, but he kept fighting.” Ideally, Grace would hide Lee’s mischief from his violence-hating father. However, the ticket-taker prank was too much, leading her to tell him about Lee’s deteriorating behavior. When Hoi Chuen heard of Lee’s antics, he strictly prohibited his son from acting in films for two years. Working on his films was something Lee loved. Hence, experiencing a “time out” from acting appeared as a tough consequence for him.

Amusingly, even after the tough punishment, Lee’s disciplinary issues saw no end. He once embarrassed his family in 1956.

Bruce Lee was once expelled from school

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During his teenage, Lee’s interest diverted back to fighting and troublemaking. In 1956, when he was studying at La Salle College, one of the most respected institutions in Hong Kong, he brought immense shame to his family. After studying in the institution for five years, he was expelled due to the escalation of his aggressive behavior.

Many sources reveal that Lee would bash British students in his college, assuming their privileges. This terribly embarrassed the Lee family. Moreover, to protect their image in public, they threw multiple fake explanations in about Lee’s expulsion.

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However, soon after three years, Lee decided to make something of his life and moved to America in 1959. And the rest is history!

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Written by:

Muskan Sharma is a sports writer at EssentiallySports, specializing in Martial Arts, NHL, and other American sports. She is a degree holder in Journalism and Mass Communications. Muskan has been able to bring her unique set of skills and sensitivity while covering news stories.

Edited by:

Anupama Ghosh

Despite His Mother’s Threats, Bruce Lee Broke His Promise Once

Bruce Lee’s prank had intense consequences for him

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Bruce Lee was once expelled from school