Member The Dragon Posted March 31, 2014 Member Share Posted March 31, 2014 Yeah that's obvious. Tien doesnt just avoid discussing Bruce Lee. He avoids discussing period. Ive read or seen Maria Yi and Han Ying Chieh discuss Bruce Lee. Wu Ngan was completely out the industry when Lee died, whereas Tien was relevant for years. Must be some grudge he holds for it to last 40+ years. That's it!!! James Tien murdered The Little Dragon! Right under our noses all this time! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member sdog2006 Posted March 31, 2014 Member Share Posted March 31, 2014 That's it!!! James Tien murdered The Little Dragon! Right under our noses all this time! Shit I never thought of that? Tien at Beacon Hill Road with the candlestick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Coliseum1972 Posted April 1, 2014 Member Share Posted April 1, 2014 I heard Han Ying Chieh refused interviews , at least shortly before he died....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Killer Meteor Posted April 2, 2014 Member Share Posted April 2, 2014 Given Maria Yi ended her career by dropping out of (or being dropped from) The Tournament for refusing to do a nude scene - and hence her character has one scene, then is replaced by a Thai character later - I can understand her being a bit miffed about discussing her film work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member The Dragon Posted April 2, 2014 Member Share Posted April 2, 2014 ^^^ Wow... Never knew that... Thought it to be another sad case of poor continuity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member The Dragon Posted April 3, 2014 Member Share Posted April 3, 2014 It would have been nice if GH could have put an ensemble pic together with their staple of stars from the early 70's ala Shaws, like The Savage Five or The Naval Commandos... using the likes of Bruce Lee James Tien Chang Yi Jimmy Wang Yu Sammo Hung Carter Wang Wong Ing Sik Pai Yin Wow... When you think about it, they had talents to rival Shaws big time! Too bad Raymond Chow was only interested in controlling Lee's destiny, instead of allowing him to lead the studio into the future... Oh, well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member weier78 Posted December 12, 2015 Member Share Posted December 12, 2015 Which movies are James Tien's are his best, that show his ability? Always thought Dragon Fist was the best I saw him in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Morgoth Bauglir Posted December 12, 2015 Member Share Posted December 12, 2015 He's good in Shaolin Plot, and check him out at the end of Gambling Ghost. Also he's not too bad in Bone Crushing Kid where he plays the main villain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted December 12, 2015 Member Share Posted December 12, 2015 Which movies are James Tien's are his best, that show his ability? Always thought Dragon Fist was the best I saw him in.He's good at playing both heroes & villains and if you've not watched Spiritual Kung Fu or Hand Of Death I'd check those out. From the few films Ive watched him in, these two performances stand out. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member thehangman Posted April 15, 2017 Member Share Posted April 15, 2017 I was wondering if he is still about? As havent seen him in any films for along time and also if there is any interviews with him? As never seen any i bet he has some intresting stories on Jackie and Bruce he has worked with pretty much everyone. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Asmo Posted April 16, 2017 Moderator Share Posted April 16, 2017 Last I'd heard (at least a decade ago) was that he'd retired to Taiwan. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 @thehangman according to James Tien's Wikipedia page, he did retire after 1996's How to Meet the Lucky Stars?. I'd love to see an in depth interview with this actor, not only for his own career and connection to the Litle Dragon, but also for his work on the early Jackie Chan/Lo Wei flicks. Someone must have tried to contact this guy over the years?. James Tien as the villian, with Chin Lung, in a scene from The Bone Crushing Kid(1979). 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member shaw golden Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 from 1970s magazine only have a scan myself so not sure on quality 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member TibetanWhiteCrane Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 As far as I heard he's not doing interviews and is a bit on the ornery side. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 1 hour ago, TibetanWhiteCrane said: As far as I heard he's not doing interviews and is a bit on the ornery side. Thats too bad, I bet the guy could tell some stories from the golden era of Kung Fu Cinema. 1 hour ago, shaw golden said: from 1970s magazine only have a scan myself so not sure on quality Cool images, thanks for sharing those on the forums @shaw golden 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member NoKUNGFUforYU Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 Can you blame him? Bruce Lee ate his lunch. Than he later ate and ate himself. I heard he is as big as Samo. I mean, I am sure he isn't to happy to keep getting asked "What was Bruce Lee like to work with?" instead of " 'Naked Comes the Huntress' has some real moral questions, like the girl killing the animals she tries to rescue. What did you think of that?" or "Who was your favorite costar?" We have to remember, acting didn't pay well back then, so it's not like he's made bank from the movies. Some of those guys did well with investments in Real Estate, but Paul Chang Chung was pretty broke and died of cancer, and from what I understand Chen Sing is not financially set well either. Don't get me started on some of the venoms, Li Ching, etc. Chow and Shaw really exploited their talent. I am sure some of those guys did better making crap independents, etc. The move was to create your own production company. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 1 hour ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said: Can you blame him? Bruce Lee ate his lunch. True, that guy ate a lot of people's lunch's at the time, Tony Liu being anohter example, but some still don't mind talking about the star. I dont think he would have been asked to work on G.O.D, if he was public in his dislike of BL at the time?. 1 hour ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said: We have to remember, acting didn't pay well back then, so it's not like he's made bank from the movies. Some of those guys did well with investments in Real Estate, but Paul Chang Chung was pretty broke and died of cancer, and from what I understand Chen Sing is not financially set well either. Don't get me started on some of the venoms, Li Ching, etc. Chow and Shaw really exploited their talent. I am sure some of those guys did better making crap independents, etc. The move was to create your own production company. It's sad to hear former stars falling on hard times, Chan Sing must have had some money to retire to Canada?. There's people still making money off Kung Fu movies, and while they might not be making millions. It's still sad to hear that the stars dont get any profit from this, or in some cases even know they are still admired in the West. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member saltysam Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 (edited) Love to hear what James Tien has to say. Not just on Bruce but the entire era of kung fu movies he was involved with. I watched one with him the other week , a Carter Wong vehicle where he played the villian, film was average but he was still pretty good in it. Edited April 17, 2018 by saltysam 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member NoKUNGFUforYU Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 You have to think, some of these guys may be aware of how much money some of these movies have made and still make while they got a weeks pay or whatever. Acting is very working class back then. That is one of the reasons people cranked out so many roles, even up until the early 90's. Simon Yam (eccentric character) had said he would just crank out an insane amount of work to get rich so he would not wind up like some of these guys. One of the things about Shaw studios was 3 hot meals and a flop. Like working in a factory. Chen Kuan Tai would call Run Run "Boss Shaw". Also, people got punched, kicked and cut all the time making these, and I imagine not everyone was actually "into" full contact martial arts, so that probably was more of a work hazard then fun. It's not like George Clooney or anything for them. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 11 minutes ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said: You have to think, some of these guys may be aware of how much money some of these movies have made and still make while they got a weeks pay or whatever. Acting is very working class back then. That is one of the reasons people cranked out so many roles, even up until the early 90's. Simon Yam (eccentric character) had said he would just crank out an insane amount of work to get rich so he would not wind up like some of these guys. One of the things about Shaw studios was 3 hot meals and a flop. Like working in a factory. Chen Kuan Tai would call Run Run "Boss Shaw". Also, people got punched, kicked and cut all the time making these, and I imagine not everyone was actually "into" full contact martial arts, so that probably was more of a work hazard then fun. It's not like George Clooney or anything for them. Good post @NoKUNGFUforYU. I guess thats another reason why a lot of the H.K starlets of the era, would marry some rich guy, and retire from the business after only a handful of movies. Shaw Brothers was just a factory, and they treated their staff like factory workers, working long hours for little pay, from what I've read about their approach to movie making. 23 minutes ago, saltysam said: I watched one with him the other week , a Carter Wong vehicle where he played the villian, film was average but he was still pretty good in it. He wasnt the best screen fighter, but he always had a good presence, and he could play a variety of parts equally well. Old master, young hero, two faced villain or bully etc. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Fist of the Heavenly Sky Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 Yup. Unfortunately the old "tradition" of manual labor exploitation found it's way to the burgeoning Hong Kong/Chinese film industry. Bruce Lee made no secret of his personal distrust of both Raymond Crow and Run Run Shaw, and indeed, it was one of the main reasons he intended on focusing on Hollywood had he lived. I don't feel James Tien or anyone else resents Bruce for "stealing" the spotlight. No one had the faintest idea he would become such a superstar, and Lee always wanted to ensure his colleagues had a fair chance in that extremely abusive filming climate. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member shaw golden Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 1 hour ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said: You have to think, some of these guys may be aware of how much money some of these movies have made and still make while they got a weeks pay or whatever. Acting is very working class back then. That is one of the reasons people cranked out so many roles, even up until the early 90's. Simon Yam (eccentric character) had said he would just crank out an insane amount of work to get rich so he would not wind up like some of these guys. One of the things about Shaw studios was 3 hot meals and a flop. Like working in a factory. Chen Kuan Tai would call Run Run "Boss Shaw". Also, people got punched, kicked and cut all the time making these, and I imagine not everyone was actually "into" full contact martial arts, so that probably was more of a work hazard then fun. It's not like George Clooney or anything for them. Its true, some of these movies were making money especially overseas, who pocketed these revenes was anyone from film makers and distributors anyone apart from the actors, not james alone but as you says plenty others. lts a shame they were not provided for better, then we would not be having this discussion bruce,maria yi and james having dinner with producer lo wei talking film deal 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted April 17, 2018 Member Share Posted April 17, 2018 7 minutes ago, Fist of the Heavenly Sky said: I don't feel James Tien or anyone else resents Bruce for "stealing" the spotlight. No one had the faintest idea he would become such a superstar, and Lee always wanted to ensure his colleagues had a fair chance in that extremely abusive filming climate. Without derailing this thread, BL became unpopular in some circles, becuase he tried to improve many facets of the behind the scenes goings on. How the stuntmen were treat etc, he was shaking the cage not just on-screen but off too. James Tien himself started at at Shaw Brothers, before later jumping to Golden Harvest studios. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Chu Liu Hsiang Posted April 18, 2018 Member Share Posted April 18, 2018 Very interesting contributions. The "look behind the silver screen" is much too often a sad one. Sorry for being off topic but THANKS for this 13 hours ago, NoKUNGFUforYU said: (...) 'Naked Comes the Huntress' has some real moral questions, like the girl killing the animals she tries to rescue. What did you think of that?" (...) I did not watch that movie thru the end because I got so mad about the hypocrisy. I saw James Tien just the other day in SHAOLIN IRON FINGER, he and Woo Gam were the movie's highlights for me. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShawAngela Posted June 11, 2020 Member Share Posted June 11, 2020 I think that the first time I saw James Tien it was in Big Boss, and later in The chase, Spiritual kung fu, Hand of death and Thunderbolt with Angela Mao. I also saw some of his other movies, and the more I see him on screen, the more I become a big fan of his. He was great in Naked comes the huntress, Seaman N°7, The dragon tamers, The blade spares none and Shaolin plot ! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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