On writing a non-fiction biography of Bruce Lee

Teresa 何 Robeson: The graphic novel can’t cover the entirety of a person’s life. You wouldn’t be able to do it justice. So what they wanted to do was focus on a pivotal period of the person’s life. And for Bruce Lee, even before I did a ton of research on him, because I had to write a short proposal first. I knew I wanted to highlight the point where he became a big thing in Hollywood and introduced Kung Fu to a wider audience, you know, all over the US. 

So I knew that I wanted to focus on that going in. And it’s funny because I started writing a bunch before and a little bit after. But the editor is like, No, No! Keep narrowing. Keep narrowing. So it takes place not too long before he started getting noticed.

Part of the problem with working on so many book projects at the same time is when you finish one, and this one is finished because it’s like printed and stuff. Is that once you’re done with one, you put all that information out of your head so that you can concentrate on the next project. I’m working on like 4 or 5 other projects right now.

 So it’s like, Okay, what was it about for sleep again? But anyway.

She got me to really narrow it down. So it’s just shortly before he got the co-starring role as Kato. And then, just shortly after, when the series was canceled. So it really narrows it down. But it’s really good. I think it’s perfect that they gave me the go ahead to focus on the period of time in his life when he, just became a big star.

PLUGO: Yeah, one of his most iconic roles, right? It’s like talking about superheroes today, they’re on every screen possible. But back at that time there really was only The Batman Show.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yes.

PLUGO: And you know, Green Hornet, which was originally a radio show that got converted to television. And before that, if I remember correctly, Bruce Lee had a walk on role in an episode of Charlie Chan Mysteries, or something like that.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Not that I know of, but he did have walk on roles. Oh, gosh!

Now, I can’t remember the guy’s name. It’s downstairs in my office. But yeah. So there’s a guy who worked with Bruce Lee and wrote a book. It’s kind of a slim volume, but it has a lot of different pictures.

So the guy I wish I could remember who produced Batman, and who ended up producing the Green Hornet was going to do – was it Charlie Chan? Oh, yes, Number One Son. He was going to do a show called Number One Son, and he really wanted Bruce Lee because he wanted a dashing young man who was good looking, and does, the fighting really well. So his hairdresser, J. Sebring – Why do I remember his hairdresser’s name, and not his name?

PLUGO: I think we’re talking about William Dozer.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yeah, thank you. Oh, my gosh. Anyway, he wanted Bruce Lee, and the whole thing was that he started out asking Bruce Lee. He had him signed to a contract basically to use him in number one son, but that never got greenlit by the studio. And he ended up pivoting to another project which was Green Hornet, and he wanted Bruce Lee to play Kato, because, you know, they’re fighting. But Bruce Lee’s like. “I don’t want to be a sidekick. I don’t want to be a manservant” – I think, were his exact words.

Eventually he was convinced to do it, and it turned out to be a really good move, and, you know, just propelled him into the limelight.

PLUGO: One of the great things that came from Bruce Lee not willing to just be subservient was that he elevated the role of Kato to be a partner. So The Green Hornet show had more of a buddy cop vibe to it than say, Batman and Robin, where there was a clear distinction between main person and sidekick. Does your book cover  that history making crossover between both shows?

Teresa 何 Robeson: Absolutely. I really wanted to have that, because that was just like pretty darn awesome. And the prank that he played on Robin, although they had to like, pare it down a whole lot. I thought that was hilarious because the guy, Burt Ward, who played Robin was telling people he knew Karate and blah blah, and I think he may have even – half jokingly, I guess. claimed he taught Bruce Lee some moves, and Bruce Lee, of course, being the prideful man, was just livid. So when the crossover was happening, he’s like, I’m going to teach that guy, something else.

PLUGO: The popular oral history was that Bruce Lee put out the word that this was a personal grudge match. He was gonna treat this as though another martial artist was challenging him, and he would not hold back.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yup, Yup, so yes, that is covered in it, but sanitized for kids.

PLUGO: Oh, that’s just great.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yeah.

PLUGO: That’s awesome. That, That’s reason enough or anyone to want to buy that book, just to imagine the quiet satisfaction of what really should have happened to Robin during that fight scene.  I still have memories of watching that show as a kid, and really kind of noticing the stark difference between what Bruce Lee could do, and what Burt Ward could do.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Absolutely.

PLUGO:  You know, I would lay odds that most  martial artists of that generation pursued martial arts thinking they would rather be Kato than Robin in any of those instances.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yup, Yup, and in in my in the book. I mentioned, too, that Bruce Lee got like far more fan mail than, I don’t know about Burt Ward, but certainly then his co-star in the Green Hornet. So he was super popular. Oh, and the book also covers a little bit what led up to it, because they read the script for the crossover episode, where I think Batman and Robin actually kind of beat the Green Hornet, and Kato but Bruce was like– Heck, no, probably with more expletives.

Teresa 何 Robeson: I just find it absolutely hilarious, I mean not for Bruce Lee, I’m sure. But you know, from my vantage point. Now, I thought. yeah, poor Bruce Lee. Go get him.

PLUGO: He had to fight just for that story to stop at a standstill.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yes.

PLUGO: They like. He had to be content with a draw, you know.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yup!

PLUGO: He’d get his own vindication, later, when he would find out that the same show would be rebranded as the Kato show in Hong Kong.

Teresa 何 Robeson: absolutely. Yeah, it’s satisfying.

PLUGO; and these days we can watch a show like WARRIOR on HBO/MAX, which was built off of a spec-script that he was developing on his own. If he had gotten the KUNG FU TV series that was given to David Carradine, Instead. He would have followed up with this other series that took 50 plus years to actually manifest.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Oh, yeah, it was too bad that he died so young. Because, yeah, he could have a hand in this.

PLUGO: Is there something while you were researching this book? Is there something that kind of surfaced, that sticks out, outside of what you expected? I imagine you probably entered the project with certain ideas of who Bruce Lee was. Did your research. Was there something that really cast Bruce Lee in a new light? 

Teresa 何 Robeson: Well, not so much alternate, but I certainly found it really interesting to learn more about his younger years, like the fact that he was a huge troublemaker in Hong Kong, and that’s why his parents sent him off to San Francisco. I thought it was very interesting. Not really unexpected, honestly, but I just never knew about that aspect of him, because I don’t know why. I never looked into that part of him so much,just you know,  him as a famous movie Star and Kung Fu master. You know he was more cast in this kind of glow previously, but knowing that he was a little Turd as a young man, you know, starting fights, and oh, but the other thing is just the fact that he was a cha-cha champion!

That was pretty awesome like – Oh, my gosh! I can totally see it, because he’s so, you know, fluid. 

PLUGO: He was also a child actor.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Yes.

PLUGO: People may not necessarily be aware that he was on the screen while he was an infant. In front of a camera as a child, he had a very early start in terms of developing screen presence.

Teresa 何 Robeson: Absolutely. I’m thinking that I probably have seen some of his films when I was young in Hong Kong, because I watched a lot of TV when I was in Hong Kong. Oh yeah, so the people who it appeared in, like all their names, are familiar to me, just from  having grown up in Hong Kong watching those old movies and stuff. So yeah, that’s pretty cool.

But dang! I wish I remembered specifically whether I saw those, but I’m pretty sure I saw those.

PLUGO: Was there anything you had to lean into, or steer away from when you’re trying to write a short type story. one that’s more for young readers, you’re aiming for a general audience of young readers. Right? Was there something you had to lean into? Or was there something you had to pull back from in telling this story about Bruce?

Teresa 何 Robeson: Well, definitely had to steer away from the philandering, all the affairs, that one I cannot mention, and the fact that they, you know, basically conceived before they got married. You know, things like that you can’t mention to the middle younger Middle grade crowd. So just steering away from the spicier stuff.

So playing up his determination, because you always need a through line, for every book, and for this book we want to play up the fact that he was very determined. That’s what made him succeed. He was not going to give in to anything that demeaned him, and he kept a certain dignity. Even when things were not going his way, and he just made things happen for himself. Basically, his whole determination and strength of character was what we leaned into going into for this thing.

PLUGO: That’s awesome. So what would be the key points you’d want to convey, to martial artist parents or a martial arts teacher that would move them to make these of this book available to their kids or their students? 

Teresa 何 Robeson: Well, everybody knows Bruce Lee and this highlights a certain, you know, pivotal period in his life that made everybody know Bruce Lee these days. And so, you know, it’s an origin story, really. And and I think that in itself is a good thing to learn, especially martial artists. If you’re really into something, you should know the origin story of that. And besides, who doesn’t love Bruce Lee?

But, if you aren’t so much into reading the story itself. You’re going to love the art because it’s just amazing, it’s just really gorgeous. So yeah, I think it’s just a beautiful package that lots of kids will love. And you know, a new generation of young people can learn a bit about Bruce Lee. And  his determination, because that’s what we really wanted to convey. Sticking up, for Asian American rights. And  I think it’s kind of a timely to showcase more non-white Americans.

PLUGO: Agreed, and the lessons  he was putting forward 50 years ago. They are still relevant today, you know, and bear repeating. This has been so much fun, I could spend another hour or so in conversation about martial arts and comics…

Teresa 何 Robeson: I really appreciate you talking to me and writing a piece about the book, but not just because I wrote it. I think his story is really worth sharing with.the next generation these days. Yeah.

PLUGO: Well, thank you for writing it.