Exit the Dragon: HK’s Bruce Lee museum closes

At least temporarily, all the assorted ephemera related to the Hong Kong icon will be boxed up and stored. PHOTO: AFP

A Hong Kong museum dedicated to martial arts legend Bruce Lee set up by his fans shut its doors earlier this week, citing financial difficulties.

Considered a must-see by Lee’s overseas admirers visiting the territory, the Bruce Lee Club had put on display items from its collection of over 2,000 artifacts, including sculptures, decades-old magazines and precious film stills from the late star’s early career.

But the club earlier said on Facebook that accumulated expenses had forced them to “rethink how to most effectively utilize our resources to sustain the flame of Bruce Lee’s spirit.”

The club’s operators had expected a recovery after revenue was hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, but “reality fell short,” the Facebook post said. It is not known whether the museum will reopen.

The fan club was founded by Lee’s family to “share our knowledge and closest memories” of the late superstar, who died in July 1973 at the age of 32.

The itinerant archive first opened in a different location in Hong Kong in 2000, before reopening in 2019 after a years-long hiatus.

‘Be water, my friend’

A Hong Kong-American, Lee is known for bringing Chinese martial arts, or kung fu, to Hollywood, and for developing a new school known as Jeet Kune Do.

In 2019, prodemocracy activists in Hong Kong were seen following the advice of “Be water, my friend” from the 1971 TV drama series “Longstreet” featuring Lee as a reminder to stay flexible and constantly shift their tactics in the face of a police crackdown.

The museum’s last day on Tuesday attracted scores of visitors, including Andy Tong, 46, a Jeet Kune Do instructor, and his son Andre, 13, who hailed Lee as a “god.”

“Things related to him or his deeds in Hong Kong are getting harder and harder to come by,” Tong said.