Game of Death: Game Over! - New book on GOD by best-selling author Joe Kenney

[sdog2006]

Whilst everybody is talking about GOD I'll share a funny story - old timers may have heard me say before so please excuse me if this is the case..

In the early nineties, Norman Borine brought his "Bruce Lee prop museum" over to London which included one of the GOD catsuits that bruce wore. It still had a very faded "Kareem" footprint on the chest...apparently because a maid (not sure where) did not know its history and just thought it dirty and so washed it!!

It was 20 years ago mate. I went to the one in Glasgow:bigsmile:

Absolute joke!

[kurtz]

ah fellow old timer! 20 years ago? Blimey..

All I really remember is the aforementioned and a big pasting table covered in "odds and sods" like nuns from way, a few pairs of shoes etc..

so many stories from that era from all the martial club, chris A, Rick Baker type of conventions, london scala kung fu shows - went to them all..still have all the flyers etc...was always conned financially BUT looking back they definately came up with the goods on great guests and footage etc..and just meeting other fans ..nothing like them now..

[shukocarl]

I went to the shows in Birmingham....

[sdog2006]

ah fellow old timer! 20 years ago? Blimey..

All I really remember is the aforementioned and a big pasting table covered in "odds and sods" like nuns from way, a few pairs of shoes etc..

so many stories from that era from all the martial club, chris A, Rick Baker type of conventions, london scala kung fu shows - went to them all..still have all the flyers etc...was always conned financially BUT looking back they definately came up with the goods on great guests and footage etc..and just meeting other fans ..nothing like them now..

Indeed, seen the Big Boss in 1981, Fist of Fury in 1982, Enter the Dragon in 1985 (uncut on ITV), Way of the Dragon in 1986, Game of Death in 1987. The years are approximate but the order is correct.

Borine had the shady yellow fake Game of Death '78 trainers and maintained Bruce wore them. My friends and I were all martial artists with attitude and slagged his silly old ass. He wasn't impressed but I just found the whole set up gaudy and disrespectful.

I found a way to con the conners. Martial Club/ Shaolin Video/ Chris Alexis etc used to set up their videos to purchase like a stall. My friends and I used to pick up two videos and put one back. We would spend thirty quid and come home with six videos. I grabbed a £35 Bruce Lee documentary that was home made and my mates knicked a bunch of other stuff.

They robbed us for long enough, it was time the b*stards got robbed back lol.

[Son Of A Gun]

I don't get your method for scamming Chris Alexis. 'lol You picked up 2 videos and put 1 back? How exactly does that pay off? Did you type that wrong?

I was at the Birmingham convention. It was a disappointment for sure. Especially as my dad had to drive a long way to Birmingham because we couldn't make the London show. Robert Lee was supposed to be a guest there. Err, that didn't turn out to be the case.

I have some photos I took.

Notice how they used posters of Game of Death where Bruce wasn't wearing his shoes. Just so they didn't prove that the addidas shell toes were actually the 1978 double's shoes.

[sdog2006]

Yeah it's the way it's written.

I meant I picked up two videos to look at them, put one back, and pocketed the other one. Worked a charm. They gready gits from Shaolin Video were too busy pocketting £20 notes to notice. There were numerous guys selling them so when they seen you holding the tape the assumptionw as you'd already bought it.

HAHAHAHAHAH That's they shady adidas efforts. What a load of sh*t and the branded bong sau gloves that were meant to be from Enter the Dragon??? hahahahaha

That poster, where Lee has bare feet, was in Glasgow as well. That old plank actually tried to argue with me that they were the ones Bruce wore in Game of Death:tinysmile_angry2_t:

[Son Of A Gun]

That old man really didn't know much. He was a friend of Linda and the kids but I don't think he really knew much about the movies.

And that red Escrima stick with padding on it was supposed to be Dan's from Game of Death, but I don't think it was. It's more likely from that film he did "The Stuntman"

And if I had been older back then, I would have nicked some vids too! I was just 13 back then and the place wasn't very busy atall. It was quite a sad state of affairs really. 'lol

I bought "Bruce Lee the Legend (Uncut alternate version)" VHS and I bought "The Backyard Training footage"

total price = £45!

[sdog2006]

That old man really didn't know much. He was a friend of Linda and the kids but I don't think he really knew much about the movies.

And that red Escrima stick with padding on it was supposed to be Dan's from Game of Death, but I don't think it was. It's more likely from that film he did "The Stuntman"

And if I had been older back then, I would have nicked some vids too! I was just 13 back then and the place wasn't very busy atall. It was quite a sad state of affairs really. 'lol

I bought "Bruce Lee the Legend (Uncut alternate version)" VHS and I bought "The Backyard Training footage"

total price = £45!

LOL I was 15 and didn't give a sh*t lol. Yeah was The Legend £25 and the training footage £20? I got stung for those:xd:

[kurtz]

WOW son of a gun...its like looking at my own photos! Laid out in exactly the same way!

As I say, I was always aware of being ripped off but I enjoyed the conventions and especially Rick Bakers Kung fu Sundays at the Scala! Bey Logan used to be a regular.

The very last "Martial Club" event I believe was going to be held at the IBIS hotel (Euston) as usual and was going to show GOD footage way before it had ever been released.. I went on the day and they didn't turn up - most disappointed/frustrated and later found out that they had apparently been threatened with legal action if they did....not long after that they disappeared and no more shows..

[Son Of A Gun]

I seem to remember it being £25 for the Backyard footage and £20 for The Legend..

but who knows?! It was 20 years ago.

Either way, it was too much.

[shukocarl]

Those pics are exactly like mine....you sure you didn't use my camera?

BTW those Chris Alexis tapes where absolute crap, I think I bought 2 and quickly sold them on to another fan.

The previous Birmingham show was better with John Saxon, Bob Baker and Howard Williams. my claim to fame is having a slash next to John!

[Son Of A Gun]

Pee'd next to Roper! Brilliant.

And no, I'm pretty sure i had my own camera. I hope.

Those tapes were crap? Which ones? I loved the footage on them, so i would never sell them! What didn't you like?

And I have that Bob Baker etc... convention on dvd.

[Karlos]

I think if you weren't ripped off at some point your not an old skool MA - and especially Bruce - fan!!

BTW, does anyone here know anything about the guy roaming the UK in the mid/late 70s, and pretending to be Bruce's cousin or something?

[shukocarl]

I actually meant crap quality and his 3 hour 'Home Made' documentary stole large chunks from 'The Legend' which everybody had seen by then.

Does anyone remember PY TANG who used to sell videos? I remember paying £30 for a German version of Game of Death 2 when it was as rare as rocking horse shit! I was so chuffed with it even though I couldn't understand a word!

Those were the days eh?

[Son Of A Gun]

Oh, you meant picture quality. Well, my Bruce Lee the Legend USA version was good quality, but i have seen that home made documentary and it's terrible quality.

Didn't they like camcorder photos off their fridge? I swear I saw fridge magnets holding up some of the Bruce photos. 'lol

And they had to copy it several times to get all the music and voice overs onto it think. So people were buying was like a 5th generation copy or something.

what was different about the Tower of Death German VHS?

[shukocarl]

Oh, you meant picture quality. Well, my Bruce Lee the Legend USA version was good quality, but i have seen that home made documentary and it's terrible quality.

Didn't they like camcorder photos off their fridge? I swear I saw fridge magnets holding up some of the Bruce photos. 'lol

And they had to copy it several times to get all the music and voice overs onto it think. So people were buying was like a 5th generation copy or something.

what was different about the Tower of Death German VHS?

Absolutely nothing except the German titles/dub. Bear in mind that this was around 1983 and GOD 2 got no release in the uk until about 1987 on Rank video.

[saltysam]

Saw Game Of Death on it's uk cinema release in 1978 at the Scala Cinema in Liverpool.Remember being amazed a couple of years later when i bought a Super 8 German version containing the Inosanto battle

[shukocarl]

Saw Game Of Death on it's uk cinema release in 1978 at the Scala Cinema in Liverpool.Remember being amazed a couple of years later when i bought a Super 8 German version containing the Inosanto battle

I saw it there too! Came out absolutely bewildered ( I quite like it now-yeah i need certifying). It didn't get shown in St. Helens until 5 months later (Dec 1978).

[saltysam]

I saw it there too! Came out absolutely bewildered ( I quite like it now-yeah i need certifying). It didn't get shown in St. Helens until 5 months later (Dec 1978).

Showing our age here Carl... the ABC in Birkenhead were selling the Cinema poster...so i bought it!

[mpm74]

When you guys originally saw it what was your reaction? what was the public's overall reaction? (to the movie, spliced Bruce Lee footage, spliced Bruce Lee footage from other movies, the cardboard cut out, funeral sequence, etc)

Was this stuff even noticed when it was released originally?

[Tigerstyles]

Those pics are exactly like mine....you sure you didn't use my camera?

BTW those Chris Alexis tapes where absolute crap, I think I bought 2 and quickly sold them on to another fan.

The previous Birmingham show was better with John Saxon, Bob Baker and Howard Williams. my claim to fame is having a slash next to John!

cool i had a slash next to Van Damme earlier last year.. true

i was a t the Bham Show Saxon etc.. got plenty of photos

[shukocarl]

When you guys originally saw it what was your reaction? what was the public's overall reaction? (to the movie, spliced Bruce Lee footage, spliced Bruce Lee footage from other movies, the cardboard cut out, funeral sequence, etc)

Was this stuff even noticed when it was released originally?

I was totally pissed off as soon as the opening credits were over and the 'light fell outa the sky'. It took me ages to get over the film (I was only 20 then!)....how poor everything was and obviously no Nunchuck scene which would have redeemed it slightly. I guess the majority of the crowd enjoyed it though....

[shukocarl]

Showing our age here Carl... the ABC in Birkenhead were selling the Cinema poster...so i bought it!

Yeah I got the poster too at the ABC Capital in St. Helens. In fact Game was the last film that ever played there as it closed on Christmas eve 1978:tinysmile_angry2_t:

I spent a lot of my formative years there....Fist of Fury, King Boxer, Danish Dentist on the Job...(errr how did that get in there....)

[mpm74]

I was totally pissed off as soon as the opening credits were over and the 'light fell outa the sky'. It took me ages to get over the film (I was only 20 then!)....how poor everything was and obviously no Nunchuck scene which would have redeemed it slightly. I guess the majority of the crowd enjoyed it though....

Hmm... interesting. Thanks.

"Is Bruce Lee your hero?"

[saltysam]

When i saw Game Of Death in 1978 i was only 14...big for my age and got in to the X certificate film no problem...i knew of Bruce Lee obviously but as this was before the days of even video and me being young & impressionable i was totally taken in and thought it was a bona fide Bruce Lee movie