By 1981, Jackie Chan was well on his way to establishing himself as one of Hong Kong cinema’s most sought-after men. Chan’s popularity rose after he starred in films like Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow (1978) and Drunken Master (1978). It was in the year 1981 that Chan came across the love of his life. In chapter 17 of his book, Chan recalled how he met Joan Lin for the first time during an appointment with Annie Wong, the editor of Cineart magazine. The action star also recalled liking Lin during their very first meeting.

Interestingly, Chan and Lin had a mutual friend, Charlie Chin. While he had never met her before 1981, he knew “exactly” what the Taiwanese artist liked, thanks to Chin.

Surprising Joan Lin

Later, the martial arts legend found an opportunity to meet the Taiwanese film star again. “You told me you’d take me out to dinner if I was ever in town,” the honorary Oscar winner told Lin on the phone. While the actress brought her little sister to meet Chan for dinner, “As usual, I was with my entourage.” However, Lin didn’t mind that Chan had brought his entire stunt team for dinner.

Jackie Chan and Joan Lin began seeing one another more frequently. “I behaved like an oaf as usual, but it didn’t bother her. I never felt uncomfortable with her. Not once did she correct my
pronunciation, grammar, or manners,” Chan wrote in his autobiography. “She appreciated me as a person, not because I was a movie star,” added the millionaire actor.

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After realizing he wanted to take things more seriously, Chan found a unique way to win Joan Lin’s affection. During one of their dinner dates, Lin mentioned that she was filming a movie that had an action scene. Since Chan was a martial artist who also choreographed the action scenes for his films, Lin hoped Chan would give her some pointers.

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“The next day, the entire Jackie Chan Stunt Team turned up on Joan Lin’s set to give her some pointers,” wrote the action icon. “That was how I pursued girls: I overwhelmed them,” he revealed in his autobiography Jackie Chan: Never Grow Up. However, things soon became precarious for the couple.

Jackie Chan feared the worst

The Oscar winner wrote that he would visit Lin on the set of her film whenever he could. He would bring her something to eat and ask her to visit him. However, “gossip about our relationship started appearing in various newspapers,” revealed Chan. The martial arts master also wrote that two of his fans killed themselves because of the news.

The actor thought the “lies” about their relationship in the media would “lead to one of us—or more fans—getting hurt.” While the media gossip blew over and no one got hurt, Chan had feared the worst. In his autobiography, the actor mentioned that had the media “been as all-powerful then as it is today, we probably would have split up long ago.”

Watch this story: Jackie Chan’s Son’ Legs ‘Started To Wobble’ After Seeing His Father In An Unusual Condition Once

Jackie Chan and Joan Lin married one another in 1982 and have been happily together for over four decades.