“I Felt Defeated”: Jackie Chan Was ‘Too Stubborn’ to Take His Godfather’s Life-Changing Advice After Failures in America Once

Published 03/31/2023, 9:11 AM EDT

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Jackie Chan is one of the most prominent names in global cinema. After forty years of tireless work, the veteran actor earned a name as an action-comedy star. But this was not the case always. Even though he faced hardships in childhood, he still had his fair share of struggles as an adult. Notably, the actor failed several times while trying his luck as a stuntman in Hollywood.

Chan was fortunate enough to have someone to guide him apart from his family. As per his book, the soon-to-be actor had a godfather who always supported him in his lows. But once Chan got ‘too stubborn’ and refused to pay heed to the advice of his guide and got a pearl of life-changing wisdom from him. Who was this guide and what was his advice to the

Jackie Chan turned down his godfather

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In his book, ‘Never Grow Up’, Jackie Chan mentioned his godfather who guided him in his early years as a stuntman. Leonard Ho, a producer in Hong Kong always mentored him and guided him on the right path. From advising Chan not to what to do with his hair, and where to find a house, to uplifting him after his failures, Ho was always there for Chan.

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As per the book, the martial artist failed in his several attempts to get a foot in Hollywood. Devastated, he went back to Hong Kong to start from scratch. As he wrote, “When my earliest ventures in America were unsuccessful, I felt defeated and returned to Hong Kong hoping to wipe the slate clean.” But Ho told him to relax and hang out with friends to soothe his stress. Evidently, this felt a bit unusual for the actor. At that time, he was hungry for work and wanted to give his best to get a chance in America. So he ignored Ho’s words.

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But the producer smiled and implied, “I hope one day you understand that life isn’t only about work, but there are more important things to care about.”Indeed, the actor now understands the importance of relationships in his life. However, though this advice helped Chan to value his principles, one opinion of Ho embarrassed Chan once.

Jackie Chan and his long hair

Chan always had long hair which he kept after passing out from the academy, to create a unique look. Leonard Ho too told him to keep his hair long no matter what. However, soon people began thinking of him as a thug for his long hair. In fact, once he was questioned by the police for that.

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Since Chan hadn’t disclosed that he was from Hong Kong, and wasn’t a part of the military, there was a misunderstanding. The star, in his memoir, recalled, “I was questioned by the police…not realizing I was from Hong Kong, the local cops pulled me in for an interrogation.” Seemed like this tip from Ho didn’t help him a lot.

 

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However, even though Chan was stubborn at first to listen to what his godfather said, it took him years to understand the underlying meaning. What did you think of this story? Tell us in the comments below.

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Written by:

Soumili Chatterjee

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Soumili Chatterjee is a US Sports author for EssentiallySports. She secured her bachelor’s and master's degree in English literature from the University of Calcutta. After being a technical and blog writer for nearly three years, it was her ardent love for sports that steered her career toward the sports industry.
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Edited by:

Nidhi Rana