Bruce Lee was an athlete.
Lee Jun-fan ( ; November 27 , 1940 -- July 20 , 1973 ) , known professionally as Bruce Lee , was a Hong Kong and American martial artist , actor , philosopher , filmmaker , and founder of the martial art Jeet Kune Do . His Hong Kong and Hollywood-produced films elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial arts film to a new level of popularity and acclaim , sparking a surge of interest in Chinese martial arts in the West in the 1970s . Chinese martial arts , often named under the umbrella terms kung fu ( [ ˈkʊŋ_ˈfuː ] ) and wushu , are the several hundred fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China . Styles that focus on qi manipulation are called internal , while others that concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are called `` external '' .