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Bruce Lee Height
Bruce Lee height: 5 ft 7.5 in (171 cm)

Bruce was the classic exponent of Martial Arts in the 70's. A true legend, intelligent and thoughtful. He had pretty extensive measurements of his whole body and his height was listed himself prefame as 5ft 8. Some say 5ft 7. He has written his height as 5ft 8 before he was famous and 5ft 7.5 has been mentioned in some of his books.

His Brother Robert Lee said on the EarlyYears website "Bruce was an inch taller than I. I am 5/7 and Bruce was 5/8 with a shoe size of 7-71/2. I know it’s a little confusing, because we have all heard for years in how small he was, but in fact 5/8 is really not that small."

Lee I think was closer to 172cm, he has been described 170-173cm through the years.

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Dylan says on 16/Nov/09
I am actually surprised that Bob Wall was only recorded as 6'2" I have friends of 6'2" and none of them look as tall as him.
Dylan says on 16/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - I would agree that Ali would beat Bruce, if they fought in the ring by Queensbury Boxing Rules, apart from Ali being a great boxer he was also considerably heavier than Bruce, so he probably would knock Bruce out with a punch. However, if a free for all fight where each of them were allowed to fight according to their own skills, then I definately think Bruce would be the winner as I don't think Ali would get near him and Bruce's kick would be every bit as powerful as Ali's punch I am sure.
Cliff Richard says on 16/Nov/09
Dylan thanks for the Green hornet comment and the comments on Bruce being the best all round fighter of all time. But be careful. With Brad sitting quietly in the wings, he may counterattack with his Ali would knock bruce in the air comments.
You never needed to admit you couldnt see bruce in cuban heels, but because of the gentleman you are, you did, and im not suprised you did. Because you genuinely want a accurate reading for bruce.
All i can say is i've seen all episodes of the Green Hornet and i've never seen any cuban heels Brad is talking about. Brad says in piscs hes seen. Well in all the pics ive seen i've never seen any cuban heels. I'm desperate to find cuban heels on bruce and want Brad to be right. But i can't for the life of me find the elusive picture. With all that jumping in the Green hornet im not suprised though. Twisting your ankles in high heel stilletos is dangerous.
But Bob is recorded as 6ft2 now. In ETD im not sure how tall he was but sounds about right. If Bruce was 6 inches or so shorter that sounds about right.
He dont look outrageously short compared to Bob though to be honest.
Dylan says on 15/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - Thank you and I have to admit I did not see Bruce in cuban heels in the Green Hornet as I said, it was just that Brad had mentioned it several times so I assumed it must be true but I have looked at clip after clip of the Green Hornet and Bruce never stays still long enough for me to see the heels on his shoes. I still hold Bruce in the highest esteem and I still believe he was and still is the best martial artist and all round fighter there has ever been and I doubt he will ever be surpassed. I just watched that clip of him fighting Ohara in Enter The Dragon, he does look short compared to him but then who wouldn't?
Cliff Richard says on 14/Nov/09
Dylan, thanks for your comments. I respect the fact that you do seem honourable and will admit things if you find them to be true. You could easily have said Sammo and Bruce were the same size if you wanted to be stubborn.

I don't know for sure if Chuck was exactly 5ft10, but he doesn't seem short next to Bob Wall, and we know Bob Wall is even taller than Joe Lewis.
Chuck may still have a 5ft9 morning height, but i cannot say with any degree of certainty. I don't really follow Chuck, or haven't seen that much of him of late to be honest.
So i wll be fair. It is possible Bruce never was 5ft8 but 5ft7.5 was his top height.
Bruce may have had delusions of granduer when he measured himself at that height. But we will never know for sure.
Dylan says on 14/Nov/09
Hmmm! I have watched that sequence of Bruce Vs Sammo in Enter the Dragon again and although I dislike being wrong I would have to admit that if Sammo was 5'7" in that sequence (and all the information I have looked up on the internet suggests he was) then Bruce would have to have been at least 5'7.5". Oddly enough there looks a greater height difference between Bruce and Sammo in that clip than there did between Bruce and Bolo in the photograph I saw. Perhaps Bolo was wearing trainers and Bruce flat Kung Fu slippers.
Dylan says on 14/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - No one said Bruce was 5'9" however, Dan C did say that Bruce was 2" taller than Sammo Hung, therefore if that is true and Sammo is the 5'7" Rob has him listed at then 5'7" + 2" = 5'9". I must admit though, in that fighting sequence of Bruce and Sammo, Bruce is taller and he does in fact appear to be taller than in the majority of pictures I have seen him. I am starting to feel an idiot arguing over 1/2". If you are saying Bruce's height of 5'7.5" was his maximum morning height. Then I will go along with that theory. After all what is 0.5" between friends. Despite our disgreements, I really do respect your tenacity. Now Dan C. - I really haven't a clue how tall Chuck Norris was in his prime, however, he is not that old now surely? I noticed on one of the pages on celeb heights a Doctor posted a comment saying all this business about shrinking when you get past middle age is nonsense and that people only shrink up to 2" when they get into their eighties. The point I am trying to make is that if Chuck's peak height was 5'10" then surely he would still be around that height now? Rob has him listed at 5'8.5" surely he isn't old enough to have shrunk 1.5"? Then again, what do I know?
Cliff Richard says on 14/Nov/09
This is getting diabolical Dylan. Can you post a link of Bruce wearing basically stilletos you are saying in the Green Hornet? I can't seem to find any. All the pics of Bruce i have seen in the Green Hornet as Kato he is wearing shoes with absolutely no lift in them.
No one is saying Sammo Hung is 5ft7, apart from Rob. Are you saying Rob don't know his thing? Sammo Hung was at his peak height in ETD yet is shorter than Bruce. Rob can calculate himself how tall Bruce probably is then. He seems very intelligent.
I don't recall anyone saying Bruce is 5ft9. But the fact that he was taller than a peak Sammo suggests to me you shouldnt be crying just because Bruce is being registered as 5ft7.5.
If you do continue to cry about it the problem lies with you.
Dan C says on 14/Nov/09
Dylan stop playing games with the letting our awe of bruce get in the way of our judgement games.

Richard says Chuck Norris was 5,8 in his prime and you dont question that comment. Anyone with an ounce of common sense, (and i believe you do have more than an ounce Dylan) can see Chuck Norris was never 5,8 in his prime. Have you seen him when he is competing? Against the 6feet Joe Lewis he is perhaps a couple of inches shorter. Making the 5,10 in his prime height very likely. Chuck was a strapping lad when he was young.

People want to know Lee at his top height, and not when he was at his shortest. Guiness world record books when measuring the tallest man in the world takes measurements of the waking height over 5 days and then takes the average height as the recorded figure.
Dylan says on 14/Nov/09
Brad - I agree entirely. I have seen the Green Hornet clips and despite the heels he still looks short. Linda Lee said in an article that he was 5'6" and concious of his height. Now would a man be concious of his height if he were 5'8"? Especially as around that time 5'8" was the average height for a European and tall for an oriental. I am bored with arguing the point on here now because unlike the other pages on this site, this is a Bruce Lee Fan page. It is getting even more ridiculous now because they are saying Sammo Hung was 5'7" and Bruce was 2" taller which would make him 5'9". To say Bruce was anything over 5'7" is ridiculous. Maximum Height on rising 5'7" Actual Height after rising 5'6.5", Height in his dreams 5'8".
Cliff Richard says on 14/Nov/09
Dylan, i'll meet you half way. Bruce may have measured 5ft6.5 at some point in his life. But the height of a person is their tallest morning height. Bruce probably did measure 5ft7.5 and i'll admit that is the tallest he probably was.

Some short guys are shy of telling the truth about their heights, but you can't tarnish everyone with the same brush. The famous pic of Bruce Lee standing next to Dan inosanto giving the victory sign, a healthy Bruce is clearly at least 2 inches taller than Dan. So it is not my imagination getting the better me that Bruce was taller than 5ft7.
It is me being fair to Bruce. Thank you for finally watching ETD and seeing Bruce is taller than Sammo. I think Rob would find that interesting as well. I am only trying to help Rob at the end of the day and let him be confident of his recordings.
Brad says on 13/Nov/09
Robert Lee: "Bruce is 5' 8"". You go to the most famous Green Hornet photo, the kick shot of Bruce by the boat and you can see the massive heels he wore that day. At 5' 8" plus those he'd be 5' 10"! Robert Lee was a liar, str8 up.
Dylan says on 13/Nov/09
Richard - I would agree with you. In my opinion Bruce was probably 5'7" peak height on rising and shrinking to 5'6.5" during the day. Anyone who thinks he was taller is letting allowing thier awe of Bruce to let their heart rule their head.
Dylan says on 13/Nov/09
Dan C - Good question and to be honest I am not sure anymore, I tend to have strayed from the point, I was just enjoying the debate on here. Cliff Richard - I lookex at the opening scene of Enter The Dragon and you are correct Sammo Hung is at least an inch maybe an inch and a half shorter than Bruce. Isn't Dan Inosanto the guy who said Bruce was 5'8"? Well he would do if he was two inches shorter than Bruce wouldn't he?
Cliff Richard says on 13/Nov/09
Dan, you are thinking with your head, and not your heart just like me. It's interesting you bring up Dan Inosanto. He always looks a couple of inches shorter than Bruce and he is 5ft6 isn't he? His height isn't scrutinized is it? I don't see Dylan clamouring to see Dan downgraded. Its double standards for Bruce.
I think because Bruce was honest with his height, people assume he must have upgraded himself. If Bruce lied though and said he was 5ft8.5, the critics would be saying he was 5ft75.

Dylan and i know you don't think i spelt noone deliberately. But you would say that wouldn't you? The thing is i don't believe you!
Richard says on 13/Nov/09
I doubt he was ever a solid 5'7. I remember seeing a movie with him and Chuck Norris, and Bruce was dwarfed by the 5'8 - 5'9 (in prime) Norris. He almost looks 5'6ish, maybe a hair over 5'7.
Dan C says on 13/Nov/09
Dylan, what point is it that you want people to admit you have got right?
Is it your point that Samo Hung is 2 inches shorter than Bruce Lee, as is Dan Inosanto?
Dylan says on 13/Nov/09
Oh and incidentally Cliff Richard, I am not desperate to be on this page, I just enjoy debating with you. Once I have got my point across and you admit that I am right and you are wrong I won't post so often.
Dylan says on 13/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - You don't have to be paranoid to notice five different posters spell two words into one and I don't think you did it deliberately, I just think that you are finally getting literate, well done! I have seen the film Enter The Dragon, I don't remember making any observations about whether Sammo Hung was taller than Bruce, in fact I had no idea how tall Sammo Hung was until you mentioned it. I will say one thing though, when Bruce was at his peak the average height of a man was 5'8" and it was a recognised fact that oriental people were shorter than Europeans, therefore if Bruce would have been 5'7.5" or 5'8" he would not have looked so short then. Nowadays, he would have because people are taller. Bruce is wearing platform shoes with flared jeans in that photograph, anyone with half a brain can see that. The platform shoes were designed with a 3" heel so that people could by a longer leg than they normally do, for example if you took a 31" inside leg you would buy 33" which would hang over the jeans. These shoes were at the height of fashion in the early seventies, and I have seen pictures of Bruce wearing them often. Until recently I had no idea how tall Chuck Norris was but people who have met him claim he was only about 5'8.5" even though he claimed 5'10" I think he was probably a similar height to Sylvester Stallone, 5.8" claiming 5'10". Now let me ask you a couple of questions. Do you really think Bruce would have been as tall as say, Tom Cruise? and if you think he was 5'7.5" do you think that was his height on rising? Bearing in mind we all lose around 0.5" during the course of the day.
Brad says on 13/Nov/09
Lee was a small guy, 5' 7" in posture effect tops. 5' 8" is Mamun's height, and my mother, there is no way Lee was that figure. His wife said he was 5' 6" way back in some interview. I think her books were ghosted so I'd blow off figures in those. Again, look with Chuck...just add. I met Lee and 5' 8" is not a short guy, when you get to 5' 6.5" yer looking short, just look at Glenn with Sly or Jenny, you get owned. Watch The Green Hornet he's looking up at every actor he's in a scene with and he's in heels cept the boy wonder. Noone is Peter Noone, he's a fine lad and still looks the same. Manchester bloke.
Cliff Richard says on 12/Nov/09
Dylan i was testing you because i did read that you mentioned how someone spelt noone instead of no one, so i spelt it deliberately this time to see if you was being paranoid still and desperate, and you fell into the trap- and you are. Read my past posts and i have spelt it no one.
My 5ft7.7 was a spelling mistake, which you should have known.
Still havent seen ETD have you? I think you need to question if Sammo hung is 5ft7 instead of questioning bruce. Norris was 5ft10 when Lee was alive. Deal with it. And Bruce wasnt wearing elevated boots with his jeans in that Burby pic. You are assuming he is. The flares cover his shoes, so you are making a guess out of thin air.
Derek Jameson and Co will post in their own time, i have no doubts about that. But because people don't seem as desperate as you and Brad, their visits to this board probably wont be as often.
Dylan says on 12/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - "Noone" as Brad said was a singer with Hermans Hermits, "No one" is two words, yet, you, Derek Jameson, Keith Jones, Edward Todd and Dan Cruickshank who have posted it on here all seem to write it in as one word, so I rest my case on your alias claims. I see you are pushing Bruce's height to 5'7.7" now, just when I thought you were beginning talk sensible on here. Why don't you look at him next to Bolo and then look at him next to Chuck Norris. I have said Bruce may have been 5'7" but those photographs suggest he was probably 5'6.5".
Cliff Richard says on 12/Nov/09
Dylan you want to debate Bruces height so vigourously yet you wont watch the scene with Sammo hung in it! In it there is a split second opportunity to see Bruce is clearly taller than Sammo. Even Dan confirmed my opinion, and so would you if you saw it. Dylan, watch it and then tell me i am right please!
You saying Bruce could have confirmed it by standing barefoot on a stadiometer to confirm it is like saying he should have enter tournaments to show how good he was. He probably has stood on a heightometer or whatever you call it. That is how he knows he was 5ft7.7. Bruce probably didn't film himself be measured because it probably wasn't such a big deal at the time.
He said he was 5ft7.5 and noone on record saying he wasn't when he was alive.
Dylan says on 12/Nov/09
Dan C - First off Phil Collins and Roger Daltrey never went to college, secondly, they were never the heights they claimed to be. Now back to Bruce. I am not saying he was liar and I never have. I am saying he was never in his wildest dreams 5'8". Now you saying that no one would dispute Bruce's height to his face? What are you saying? That because Bruce was the greatest fighter ever we should accept everything he says without question and what do you think he would have done if someone did dispute his height? Beat them to a pulp? GROW UP WHY DON'T YOU? I would definately have disputed Bruce's 5'8" claims because they were ridiculous. Would he have pounded me into the ground for disputing his claim? Possibly, though I doubt it, however, even if he did that wouldn't prove anything. He would have proved his point easier by standing bare foot on a stadiometer and confirming his height claims. Anyone can throw a punch at someone who disagrees with them.
Dan C says on 12/Nov/09
People like Phil Collins, and Roger Daltrey are probably not in the habit of measuring their heights, so the figure they are giving are probably heights they recorded themselves as years ago, probably when they just reached their full heights in college, and that is the height they remembered themselves to be.
But height as we all know changes constantly and is never the same. If someone meausred Bruce at 5,7.5 at one point, i would be inclined to believe it. And unless you accept it, you are calling Bruce Lee a liar.
Because i would unlikely say that to bruces face, i wont say it over the internet. When Bruce told a interviewer he was 5,7.5 the interviewer had the opportunity to say he was not but did not.
Dan C says on 12/Nov/09
I think in the documentary, Curse of the dragon i remember Dan Inosanto say Bruce was 5,8, which if he was ever, it was the tallest he ever was.
Heavy weight training and gravity and disease can lower it eventually, which it probably did in Bruce case.
He could have got as low as low as 5,7. True in the scene with Samo, Bruce does seem to have the edge in height with Samo. Couple of inches wouldn't be far off in my calculations.
Dylan says on 12/Nov/09
Cliff Richard - Well since I have mentioned the other alias names, you have stayed with the one and Rob gets more annoyed at people posting under different names than he does with the people who point it out to him.
Cliff Richard says on 12/Nov/09
Dylan you are changing the subject. I have never heard Linda say Bruce was 5ft6, or a cousin say it.
All i have asked you to do is watch the opening scene of ETD. When Bruce and Sammo Hung are facing the monks in yellow and bowing, there is a window of opportunity to see that Bruce is clearly 2 inches taller than Sammo i would say. I just bought the DVD to check out for myself. I had no idea how tall Sammo was thought to be by rob at celeb heights or anyone else. For all i knew Sammo could have been 5ft10 and taller than Bruce. I expected Sammo to be taller than Bruce, because i thought Bruce wanted a scary looking first opponent.
What a suprise when i realized Sammo actually looked smaller than Bruce. To me he looked a couple of inches shorter, so i predicted he must be 5ft5.5. Which suprised me, as i had thought he was bigger. In everything else i had ever seen of him i never remembered thinking he was particularly small.
And stop mentioning other alias, as im sure you are beginning to annoy Rob as well as myself.
No, i don't think Rob will be changing Bruces height to 5ft6.5 anytime soon. If he did, he would have to make Sammo 5ft5, and i don't think he will.
Do me a favour and watch the opening Scene of ETD.
Dylan says on 12/Nov/09
Because I admire Bruce as a martial artist as you do, I am trying hard to accept his height claims because I don't want to think he exaggerated his height claims but now having seen so many photos and pictures, I think a reality check is in order. For him to have claimed 5'8" is ridiculous, as Brad said, look at him in the Green Hornet. In Enter the Dragaon, he looked barely 5'7". I once heard that Linda Lee stated that Bruce was always concious about his 5'6" height, I also read recently on here that a cousin of Bruce said he was 5'6" now perhaps that is taking things to the extreme but let us face it he was never 5'7.5". It is my opinion that like alot of celeb Bruce inflated his height. Why did he claim to be 5'7.5" you may well ask? Well I think it was because alot of people who say they are 5'7" round their heights up from 5'6.5" and I think Bruce had this in mind so he made himself 5'7.5" instead of 5'7". There are numerous celebs who have claimed to be taller thatn they are. Phil Collins claimed 5'8" when he is barely 5'6", Jason Priestley 5'9" and then 5'8" when he is not over 5'6", Roger Daltrey claimed 5'7" he is barely over 5'5" I could go on and on, it is a fact of life that short people claim to be taller, why I don't know because it only gives them a psychological satisfaction, they still are what they are. Yet for some reason you think Robert Lee and Bruce Lee are above this, why? Bruce was a brilliant martial artist, the only thing he could not do was make himself taller, perhaps that frustrated him, who knows? What gets me with you is that you are prepared to alter everyone elses height just to enforce Bruce's claims. Anyone can see that Bolo was 5'6". You obviously idolise Bruce and there is nothing wrong in that but you shouldn't let that cloud your judgement about his height, that is just fooling yourself. Just look at him, not through rose tinted spectacles but as a person. If it was anyone else who looked just like him, you would admit that 5'8" and even 5'7.5" for him is nonesense. I agree with Brad, Burby and Anonymous. All you do is post your same claims under different names, well it doesn't wash with me and I hope it doesn't with Rob. Incidentally, I think Rob should decrease Bruce's height to 5'7" and that would be generous.
Cliff Richard says on 11/Nov/09
Dylan, you confuse me a bit. You say Bruce could even possibly less than 5ft7 now, when you have also said he was 5ft7.5 as well. Is it possible that Bolo was taller than 5ft6 in ETD? He doesnt look particularly small to me there. Has anyone got accurate records of his height back then? Some people dont believe Bruce was 5ft8 ever, so why believe Bolo was 5ft6. Dylan watch the opening scene of ETD and tell my you dont think Bruce looks possibly 2 inches taller than Sammo Hung in the standing shots? In that scene there are a few windows of opportunity to see that Bruce is clearly taller than Bolo by a fair bit i would say. Not by an inch!
Anonymous says on 11/Nov/09
for the last time Bruce Lee was 5'7 max and most likely 5'6.5.
Dylan says on 11/Nov/09
Well, let's put it this way. If Bolo is 5'6" and Bruce was 5'7.5" there would be a 1.5" difference between Bolo and Bruce. If Chuck Norris is 5'8.5" then there would only be an inch difference between Chuck and Bruce. That's not rocket science that is common sense. I have just looked at photographs of Chuck and Bruce together and he looks clearly 2" taller, I look at a photo of Bolo and Bruce and Bruce is no more than 0.5" taller, if that. On that evidence, the evidence of my own eyes it would suggest Bruce is barely 5'7" possibly less. I don't care what his brother says.
Cliff Richard says on 11/Nov/09
Burby he was visibly taller than Bolo in photos i've seen. In ETD it isn't clear because they are not standing side by side.
I do believe in ETD is when Bruce was at his shortest, but if you look at the beginning scene with Samo Hung, it is clear Bruce looks taller than Samo Hung, who is supposedly 5ft7!
Bruce was probably over 5ft7, even in ETD.
Cliff Richard says on 10/Nov/09
Brad do you realize that when you can't stick to talking about only bruces height, and go on to talk about fantasy fights, your comments on bruces' height lose credibility as a result of you talking about Bruce vs Ali.

Did you get the measuring tape out and measure Bruce for yourself? If the answer is no, you are in no position to say he was never over 5ft7 in his life! I'll show restraint on saying Bruce would destroy Ali in a streetfight, even though i believe he would as do many people, or even most people.
There is not much difference between 5ft7 and 5ft7.5.
If most people say he was at least 5ft7, it is very feasable when he stood up straight, almost unnaturaly so (like yoga teachers do) as has been said. He was 5ft7.5.
Whether he was actually ever was measured as 5ft8, we cannot be certain of. If he was measured at that height, it could have been meaured ever so incorrectly. If you measure yourself it is possible to be slightly out (depending on how you do it) but if someone does it for you the chances of an accurate reading are increased greatly.
burby says on 10/Nov/09
Dylan, you would win that bet easily. I would not go over 5'7", he was barely taller than 5'6" Bolo. I have no agenda against Lee, he just was not that tall.
Dylan says on 10/Nov/09
Brad - I won't get into a dispute as to who would win a bout between Ali and Lee because as I said this is a height page. I would like to ask you however, could Bruce Lee have been 5.7.5" morning height shrinking to 5'7" during the day? I am trying to find an explanation to why he would say he is 5'7.5".
Brad says on 10/Nov/09
He's never been over 5' 7" in his life. Ali was very quick and his counter-punch flurry was a blur. Lee with one of those would be knocked across the ring at 135 pounds. Look at him with Norris, it says it all. Michael Jordan said he was 6' 6" for years, he's 6' 5".
Dylan says on 10/Nov/09
He wasn't just a great martial artist, he was the greatest mmartial artist there ever was or is ever likely to be and in my opinion the greatest fighter. Unlike Brad, I believe in a contest between him and Ali not subject to Queensbury rules, Bruce would have been the victor. I think he would have been too quick for Ali, I don't think anyone would have lived with Bruce. He defiantely wasn't a kidder. This is a height page however and whom he could or could not beat have no real place on here. I still cannot bring myself to say Bruce lied about his height as he was so precise about everything, therefore the only thing I can think of is that 5'7.5" were his measurements on rising after his back injury, which would explain why he always seems to look no more than 5'7" in pictures. I never saw much of him before his injury so maybe just maybe before his injury he was 5'8" on rising and 5'7.5" during the day and then lost 0.5" after his injury. Does this sound plausable?
Cliff Richard says on 9/Nov/09
The reason i put such faith in Bruces 5ft 7.5 height is because i think someone was measuring Bruce, and then told Bruce how tall he was. I dont think Bruce measured himself. The person who measured Bruce would have no reason to not be honest. The person who measured Bruce told Bruce, their findings. It had nothing to do with Bruce.
If Bruce kidded himself how tall he was, you would think he might take shortcuts and kid himself he was a great martial artist also. Bruce wasn't a kidder. He didn't lie to himself, he has proven that time and time again.
Dylan says on 9/Nov/09
I don't think anybody knew his real height for sure. I do put alot of faith in Brad's estimations though. Glenn claimed 5'8" on here for years and he went around getting everyone banned for thinking otherwise, Brad said from the beginning he was only 5'6.5" and he was proved correct when he was measured by Rob. Yet Glenn insisted he was measured previously as 5'8", was he lying or did he just not measure himself properly? Who knows? Either way he was wrong. Now Bruce recoreded his measurements and his height before he was famous and his height was 5'8" I am not necessarily saying he was lying just that he could have made a mistake. I believe my own eyes I have seen dozens of people of 5'8" and when I look at Bruce I do not see a 5'8" man, 5'7" possibly. I myself am 5'7.5" I am on the slim side and alot of people think I am taller, which I am not and incidentally, my brothers always say I am 5'9" because I am the tallest in the family and they want to inflate their own heights(which could be why Robert Lee says Bruce was 5'8", if Bruce was an inch taller than him then Robert cannot claim 5'7" unless Bruce was 5'8")well although I am only 5'7.5" I would bet my house that I am taller than Bruce ever was and incidentally, you said in those two photos that Burby posted that in one of them Bruce was in bare feet and Chuck Norris was in shoes, well we could not see the footwear but I know that in the other photograph of them, Bruce is wearing platform shoes with flared jeans, which had heels of around 3" whereas Chuck has got ordinary shoes, yet still has a height advantage. Just admit it, Bruce was never near 5'8" like Brad said, it is a joke and it doesn't matter how many different names you post under on here to disagree with me, anyone with any height sense would know what I am saying is true.
Dylan says on 9/Nov/09
Oh and just for the record, I don't believe Cliff Richard is your real name but that is neither here nor there, lots of people don't use their proper names on here. You can call yourself Mick Jagger as far as I am concerned just so long as you just post under the one name and not a dozen different ones to add credibility to your opinion.
Cliff Richard says on 9/Nov/09
Dylan, so what you are saying is that there can be nobody who knows what his real height is for sure. But you put more faith in the people who saw Bruce when they were young for a split second, over people who stood face to face with bruce daily. The people who saw Bruce when they were a kid haven't got an agenda and are telling the truth. Brad maybe saying what he actually believes, but he can be wrong. He is not exempt from being wrong. People predict wrong heights for stars even having met them all the time.
If Bruce measures himself at 5ft7.5, why would he not be? Because he is lying you think? So he is lying about how big his forearms were as well, as well as his weight? Where does it end?
You can't just say he wasn't the height he says he was 35 years after he died, because there is no way to prove it now. We cant measure him for ourselves can we? If we did measure him now, he would probably be about 5ft 6 because of his age, and then the detractors would be saying i told you so.
Dylan says on 9/Nov/09
Well it seems strange to me that on this page alone, a whole host of people are posting using their first and second names. Keith Jones, Derek Jameson, Dan Cruickshank, Edward Todd, it seems like somenone is picking out names at random to me. Anyway, getting back to the subject, perhaps Robert Lee didn't know his own height or perhaps like alot of people he was trying to make himself taller, other celebrities do, why should Robert Lee be exempt?
Cliff Richard says on 8/Nov/09
Dylan, Rob knows i am only me. I have posted on many occasions, and Rob has not put my message up, and i was was not genuine i would opt for another name. But i persist with Cliff Richard. Because that is my name. What? Because i have the same name as a pop star, i must be using a false name? Do not sound so paranoid.
Robert Lee said he was 5ft7, and Bruce Lee was an inch taller. So are you saying Robert Lee does not even know his own height, and has got his own height wrong, as well as Bruces?
Anonymous says on 8/Nov/09
Bruce Lee claiming 5'7.5" must have been in shoes, because he's clearly 2 inches shorter than Chuck Norris who's 5'8.5". FACT: Lee has never been 5'7.5" in his life.
burby says on 8/Nov/09
Weak 5'7" tops with perfect posture.
Dylan says on 8/Nov/09
Brad - If Chuck's height is 5'8.5" then I agree with you. I would say Bruce is at least 2" shorter. Notice that Bruce always has his photograph with his arm the shoulder those next to him, which gives him an added height advantage. What amazes me with this site is that the Bruce Lee fanatics say he has a clear 1.5" to 2" height advantage over Bolo, yet in photographs they look the same height and the same people on here say there is hardly any difference between his height and Chuck's when Chuck is at least 2" taller. The question is, how tall is Chuck Norris. If he is 5'8.5" then I would say that Bruce is 5'6.5", 5'7" maximum. Now for the benefit of Cliff Richard, Keith Jones or Derek Jameson (or whatever you care to call yourself), this does not make me a Bruce Lee hater, I have alot of respect for him as a martial artist, in fact I still think he was the greatest fighter of all time and he has still not been surpassed in my opinion. However, you have to appreciate that this is a height site not a fan site and people on here are entitled to give their own opinions on Bruce Lee's height and if you don't like it then tough!!! There are plenty of Bruce Lee fansites around where you spend your time and Rob, please check the names I mentioned and make sure the poster uses one name only.
Brad says on 8/Nov/09
noone, that's a singer in Herman's Hermits. Ali would have torn his head off in a 1968 flurry...Lee was shrimp to 6' people, I saw it. 5' 7.5" is garbage, look at him with Chuck Norris. Chuck has never hit 5' 9" in his life and Lee is getting owned by Chuck. Great shots Burby. 5' 10" for Chuck is a stone cold laugh in any year let alone 5' 9".
Dylan says on 7/Nov/09
Keith Jones and Derek Jameson - It seems a coincidence that you both say "no one" as "noone", you are obviously the same person, in fact I would go as far as to say, Keith Jones, Derek Jameson, Cliff Richard(obviously not your real name) and Edward Todd are all one in the same. I hope you are reading this post Rob, you have said on numerous occasions that you don't like people posting in different names. Are you going to do anything?
keith Jones says on 7/Nov/09
When Bruce was alive he claimed 5ft7.5, and everyone else also claimed him to be that. So why didnt anyone argue it then. Because they knew he was thats why? But now he is dead people coming out of the woodwork saying he wasnt. Too little too late now i think.
Should have raised the topic when he was alive. Same thing as people implying they could have beaten him after he died. Why not imply it when he was alive to his face. Because noone would even dare imply they could beat him when he walked the earth.
Cliff Richard says on 5/Nov/09
Bruce in that pic with Chuck is either barefooted, or in open toed sandals. Ive seen Bruce with that top on, barefoot, and although i may have remembered wrong on this - open toed sandals as well with no real extra height in them. Chuck is quite smartly dressed so i think is wearing proper shoes.
Chuck has probably shrunk a fair bit, so 5ft8.5 for him now might be more accurate than 5ft10.
Bruce has never looked much smaller than Chuck Norris in nearly all pics i've seen.
Dylan says on 5/Nov/09
Apart from Celeb height, every other site on the internet I have come across, list Chuck Norris as 5'10" and the picture of him on celeb heights next to Roland Dantes who is supposed to be 5'10" varifies that because there is hardly any difference between them. If he was 5'10" in that photo with Bruce which Burby posted then Bruce was probably not far off 5'8". If however, Chuck is 5'8.5" in that photo then I would have to say Bruce was 5'7" maximum.
burby says on 4/Nov/09
Sorry Dylan, I don't know about the guy on the left.
Cliff Richard says on 4/Nov/09
In the first pic with the black guy, bruce and chuck together, i think ive seen bruce wearing that outfit before and he was barefooted if i remember correctly.
I dont think Norris was barefooted in that pic, and hes also closer to the camera. So with every photograph you have to take the lower half of the pic into context.
I dont know who that black guy is though.
Dylan says on 4/Nov/09
Burby - Hmm! Norris has a clear 2" advantage in the first photograph. Any ideas how tall the guy on the left of Bruce was?
Cliff Richard says on 4/Nov/09
When Chuck was competing the footage ive seen of him he looks taller than 5ft8.5. He was a middleweight and they arent normally little guys.
Chuck was supposedly 5ft 10 in his prime.
So Bruce was probably 5ft8 in his. When Bruce shrank, he recorded it, and downgraded himself to 5ft7.5
burby says on 4/Nov/09
Next to 5'8.5" Chuck Norris
Click Here
Click Here

Bruce was nowhere near 5'8".
josh says on 2/Nov/09
Thanks Dylan, yes Aleks his back injury. There is cartlidge in between your vertabres and when you get injured you loose cartlidge,which shrinks you.
Brad says on 1/Nov/09
5' 8" is a stone joke.
Dylan says on 1/Nov/09
Aleks - He shrank because of his back injury.
Aleks says on 31/Oct/09
Why would he shrink in his early 30s?
josh says on 31/Oct/09
Like i said 5'8 in the sixties and 5'71/2 1970-1973 july20th that is nuff said people.
Brad says on 28/Oct/09
Bruce was posture, much like Cruise....adds height.
Edward Todd says on 28/Oct/09
I am confident Bruce was close to 5ft8. Now look at manny pacquio who is 5ft6. Bruce definately looks taller than pacman by an inch and a half at least.
Pac to me looks short and i dont quite get that feeling with bruce. Bruce doe look long to me. Definately can tell by the limbs of bruce. Pac has short arms where bruce had long arms.
No matter what anyone says, Bob isnt far off with the estimation
Dylan says on 27/Oct/09
Derek Jameson - Good post and it makes alot of sense, talking on a personal level, I am 1/2" taller when I stand upright and there is no doubt Bruce had better posture than I have.
josh says on 26/Oct/09
Dylan- Watch interviews with Dan and Robert, if you are lucky you might come across the same interviews that I saw. And yes Bruce also states this in his own writing that he is 5'8, this was written in the sixties and remember this was his height before 1970. Bruce would never lie and neither would Dan Inosanto or his own brother about him being 5'8 come on.
dan cruikshank says on 26/Oct/09
I think it was the documentary where it sounded like Dan inosanto say bruce was 5,8, with a reach of a six footer.
So if Bruce had a reach of a six footer, and bruce did look like he had long limbs, ie arms etc, it is safe to say he was above 5,7.
Dylan says on 25/Oct/09
Josh - Where do Dan Inosanto and Robert Lee or Bruce for that matter say he was 5'8"? I know Rob has it in italics above that Robert said his own height was 5'7" and Bruce was an inch taller than him but other than the photo I have of his measurements and height in his own handwriting where he has put his height as 5'8" I have never read or heard anything to support that fact. Please don't misunderstand me, I am not saying, it was never said, just that I have heard and read numerous quotes on Bruce's height and they have ranged from 5'7", a fraction over 5'7" and 5.7.5", never anything over that. One could draw the conclusion that he was 5'7.25" and rounded it up to 5'7.5", just speculation on my part of course.
derek jameson says on 25/Oct/09
Most people who saw bruce say he was a solid 5ft7. But i think when bruce stood bolt upright like there was a ironing board in his clothes he stretched to 5ft7.5. I dont think bruce kept false records of himself.
Most people who comment that lee was 5ft7 were talking about him in terms of his relaxed posture.
Bruce was able to control his body and if he wanted to make himself as long as he could he could stretch himself a a half in thats for certain by standing straight up like he was saluting his army major.
josh says on 23/Oct/09
Before the back injury in 1970 he was 5'8.... after August 1970 he was 5'71/2 for sure,during this period of Bruce's life he was experimenting with steriods to help him recover faster, not that he didn't train hard but he became a better martial artist and improved his physic,just look at his photos before 1970 and you will notice a big difference in his muscle definition and height, just use good judgement, and listen to Dan Inosanto and Robert Lee they state Bruce was 5'8... and Bruce states he was 5'8 in the 1960's...people remember the time period and people can shrink a half inch over time!
Dylan says on 23/Oct/09
I wasn't aware how tall Bolo was, however, in the photograph I saw which showed he and Bruce together, there was hardly any difference in their heights, no more than 1/2" my opinion.
derek jameson says on 21/Oct/09
Even though he was at least 5ft7. It dont matter now. Hes gone. It makes no difference if hes 5ft8 or7.
He wasnt 5feet6.5 in ETD. Was bolo 5ft5 then? Bruce is at least an inch taller than Bolo.
Brad says on 21/Oct/09
Correct Burby, he's a weak 5' 7" standing tall with Norris. I saw Lee do just a few moves in person and he was lightning fast. He kicked a pen or something like that held by some guy high and his leg was explosive high and an amazing drop to a combat stance. Some guy threw a punch at him and he had the guy's arm behind his back like a pretzel in 2 seconds. Very very explosive. He was even shorter in his stance. He did some sort of backwards shuffle after each move with his feet, like Ali did after throwing a flurry but he had no person to fight.
burby says on 20/Oct/09
Good posts Dylan. 5'8" for an Asian person is certainly not small, but I don't believe Lee was 5'8". Seeing photos of Lee next to Norris, I would go 5'6.5" to MAYBE weak 5'7" Tops for Bruce. Very small in Enter the Dragon, even when taking the slippers into account. If he was an inch taller, he would not look as slight, I think an inch would have made a big difference in his appearance. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't want to mess with him!
Brad says on 19/Oct/09
I thought 5' 8" at least. Burt Ward is another guy who really got the cameras to make him taller than he was. Adam West is a tall guy. Davy Jones needed lots of help but it really didn't work at his height except with the box shots. Cruise would own Lee easy.
Dylan says on 19/Oct/09
Brad - Thank you for your response. The reason I asked you about the comparison of Bruce and Glenn's heights was because I once asked Glenn who he thought would be the taller out of Tom Cruise and Bruce Lee and Glenn said he felt that he, Tom and Bruce were all similar heights and that Tom would just edge it. Glenn said that he felt he would be slightly taller than Bruce and that they were both a weak 5'8". Well since then it has been established that Glenn was never 5'8", less than 5'7" in fact.
Dylan says on 19/Oct/09
Burby - I would have thought at that time 5'8" was well above average for an Asian person.
burby says on 16/Oct/09
Well, 2" is a big difference, especially with male height, A 5'5" guy is going to have more problems than a 5'7" guy in society, unfortunate but true. I wish it weren't so. A 5'7" guy can blend in, a 5'5" guy is going to have social problems(getting made fun of, dating, etc.). That's why shorter actors claim a 5'7" height.

Back on topic Brad, how could he have been wild short to what you anticipated, seeing as he only claimed 5'7.5"-5'8". True, 5'8" is below average, but I'd imagine for an Asian person it was above average at the time. What height were you expecting from him?
Brad says on 15/Oct/09
I think he wanted to be taller. Yes he wore lifts in The Green Hornet, there are lots of photos of him in the big huge heels the most obvious being the kick by the boat which is probably the most famous Green Hornet photo of him. Keep looking at him in Green Hornet videos with Van Williams, especially the master shots, that's not 5' 10" in those custom Fox big heels. Great question about Bruce to Glenn. At peak I think Glenn would edge him by a smidge. I'm serious he was a little guy in person, wrapped in the Kato jacket I didn't see him as really out of the norm in people his height.
Dylan says on 15/Oct/09
Brad - If what you say is true (and I have never had the privilage of meeting Bruce so I am not disputing what you say) then why do you think Bruce recorded his height as 5'8" before he was famous and later stated on video that he was 5'7.5"? He never wore lifts and was rarely photographed wearing anything more than Kung Fu slippers. Also, his brother Robert stated Bruce was 5'8" why do you think he would lie? Unlike alot of celebs today who boost up their heights I would have thought being meticulous about measurements, Bruce would have been more concerned about accuracy than inflating his own height. Having said this Brad, I have alot of respect for your posts on celeb heights and I must confess you have been very accurate in your estimations, particularly with Glenn. Just as a matter of interest do you think Bruce would have been taller than Glenn
Brad says on 15/Oct/09
2" is barely taller. '67 he was peak height, I had a foot+ to go plus a fortune cookie. My next door neighbor had a Great Dane named Brutus, he was huge next to Gerge C Scott his owner. Those dogs are whoppers. He made our boxer think it was a horse. Bruce was never 5' 8" in his life. 5' 7" in straight posture with effect tops. He was wild short to what people anticipated, a small guy, full Kato outfit, mask too.
Nismo says on 14/Oct/09
There is really no magic mark where someone men become 'short', but in science statistical significance includes the bottom or top 5% mark. I've stated that 5'7 is 25% of the male population (US or ~UK). It's really not that short. 5'6 occurs at ~10%, it's pretty short, but still a bit over that threshold. Anything at the 5'5 mark or under, occuring at 5% or less, is significantly short. Likewise, for tall 6'2.2 or up is significantly 'tall'.
josh says on 13/Oct/09
Well Brad you are comparing yourself at the time 5'5 to a 5'7 person,so I would not say barely taller its a whole two inches taller which is a lot taller and remember you know your memory might be good but not that good because this was in the sixties, yea right even if you did meet Bruce back then a nine year old boy over 40 years ago is not going to have the best memory of how tall Bruce was! And for your aunt who worked at fox studios, sure Bruce's dog was close to his height he was a Great Dane named BoBo! And if you were 5'5 and you said Bruce was barely taller that would make him about 5'5 1/2 but then you are saying he was 5'7 you don't make any sense, remember Bruce didn't stand up straight all the time just watch the Green Hornet series again! take a good look at him in the 1960s era and he is absolutely 5'8.
jessie says on 13/Oct/09
Bob Wall is a martial artist / actor who played in many of Bruce Lee's films.....enter the dragon, way of the dragon....He also told me Bruce's forearms were bigger then his biceps ( for those who are interested....)
Cliff Richard says on 13/Oct/09
You shouldnt say bruce was 5ft6 something anyway. He was beating big guys like Bob Wall and similar, so dont embarass them by saying bruce was smaller than he actually was.
Its Ok to be beat up by someone 5ft7.5. That dont sound so bad. But if you are being beat up by someone 5ft6 it makes you look rubbish. Not that 5ft6 people cant beat heavier guys up.
But you get my drift.
Nismo says on 13/Oct/09
I agree that 5'8 is ridiculous for Bruce. I remember watching Enter the Dragon where he was standing next to Bolo Yeung in a very straightforward shot, and any height difference was imperceivable. But if Bruce was 5'8 vs. the widely cited 5'6 for Yeung, the difference would be quite obvious from that scene. In fact an inch and a half over 5'6 (5'7.5) should be the very upper limit of the estimate, and Rob has generously (perhaps to himself, more than Lee) assigned. But all the shots with 5'8 1/2 Chuck Norris and Lee, suggest Lee to be somewhere between 1.5 - 2 inches under.
Nismo says on 13/Oct/09
If Lee quoted 5'7.5" then why are some people saying 5'8". If Lee says 5'7.5, 5'7.25 seems very plausible, if Lee was rounding to the closest .5 inch (which is a fairly common protocol). However, self-reported heights (and weights) have been determined to be significantly inaccurate. One study found that 27% of men overestimate their height by 1 inch or more. (Click Here). Another study (Macgregor 2006) found the 'average' overestimate in male height is 1 cm.

So I'd say 5'7.5 TOPS, but if we assumed the average overestimate value, than people should be assuming he was closer to 5'7 even. But intuitvely, this would be generous for a charachter like Bruce Lee, and especially when you judge the numerous shots against the 5'8.5 (tops) Norris, it's not too radical of a departure to consider him a smidgeon under 5'7. So 5'6 3/4.
Brad says on 12/Oct/09
5' 8" is silly for Lee. 5' 7" tops "in effect". He was barely taller than me in heels and I was like 9 years old in PF Flyers at like 5' 5". My aunt worked at Fox in '66 , she said Lee's dog was almost as tall as she was.
josh says on 12/Oct/09
Bruce was 5'8 before august 1970 and after he was around 5'7 1/2 or 5'7 3/4
jessie says on 12/Oct/09
I met Bob wall at a science fiction convention....first question I asked was how tall (short) Bruce was and Wall said he reached the level of my eyes-forehead. I'm 5,9...so he was about 5,7 or a bit less but no taller than that. He wasn't 5,8 for sure.
Dylan says on 11/Oct/09
Derek - I am really surprised that Bruce was over 11 stone in the sixties even if it were for a short period. I never thought he even looked 10 stone because from a distance he looked quite skinny. I know he wasn't skinny by his measurements and up close you could see he was all muscle. If I were to have guessed his weight I would have put him around 9st 7lbs, however, they say muscle weighs heavier than fat so I suppose at a height of 5'7.5" - 5'8" and muscle bound he would look quite slim.
Cliff Richard says on 10/Oct/09
Derek, yes you are right. The only people i am taking serious are the ones questioning where he was in between 5ft8 and 7inches.
When people mention 5ft6 something. My eyes glaze over.
derek jameson says on 10/Oct/09
No people are arguing whether he is 5ft8 or 7. Not 6!
Dylan i dont think he reached 11+ stones ever when he was a superstar. But before he was famous sometime in the 60's, people who knew him said he reach 11+ stones at one point.
WillSmith says on 9/Oct/09
I don't think a difference of 1 inch is noticalbe. You people arguing over 5'6 5'7 are crazy!
Dylan says on 8/Oct/09
Cliff Richard - I did not know Bruce ever reached 11 1/2 stone in weight.
Cliff Richard says on 8/Oct/09
When people say he was 5ft6 something i get the impression they are saying it to belittle bruce. Bruce reached the weight of 11 and a half stone at some point in his life. And at 5ft6 he would have looked stocky and bulky.
But he never did look bulky. Only a 5ft7.5 frame could have carried that weight off.
Dylan says on 7/Oct/09
Rich - On that video clip Steve posted on here (which currently no one by myself seems to have seen or heard) when asked his height Bruce said he was 5'7.5", of course we don't know whether it was his morning or daytime height and as you say we don't know whether he rounded it up or not. I believe that if a guy rounds up his height he is more likely to opt for making himself taller rather than shorter. For example, I cannot see a male of 5'7.75" rounding it down to 5'7.5", he would be more inclined to round it up to 5'8", in my opinion. The interesting thing about Bruce is that in the majority of photos he has had taken with Chuck Norris and guys taller than him, he tends to nearly always have his arm around their shoulders, which has a tendenacy to reduce the difference in height between them. I am not saying Bruce does that deliberately but he did seem to do this consistantly. Brad has met him and he definately dismisses the idea that he was 5'8"
derek jameson says on 7/Oct/09
No he cant be 5ft 6 something. Too skinny and too strong for that size. Noone thinks hes 5ft6 somthing. No one at all.
Rich says on 7/Oct/09
You know that self reported heights can be off for a number of reasons. Bruce saying that he was 5'7.5 could mean he was really measuring himself at 5'7.25. Not a lie, he's just slightly rounding up. But the measurement of 5'7.25 may have easily been off by 1-2 centimeters, because of equipment and technique. I don't know, I just can't see him being less than 2 inches shorter than Norris, but at that same time I have faith in Bruce's honesty. I'll go with a 5'6 3/4.
Brad says on 5/Oct/09
Priestley might be 5' 5", he's so short they never had a master with the guys, it was always with the gals. 5' 8" is a joke for him. Ward was probably 5' 7" tops. I've met him a few times the past 20 years and I don't think he lost much or he wears customs. He wore like Miami Vice Crockett footwear on Batman, a slipper shoe...Lee was in custom heeled boots. Both Lee & Ward are wild short compared to what you may have thought of them upon meeting...sorta like Fonzie.
Dylan says on 2/Oct/09
Priestley, used to be listed as 5'9" which is laughable. Even now he claims to be 5'8". I doubt he is ove 5'6" personally.
artemis says on 1/Oct/09
I can't say taller than strong 5'6, weak 5'7
burby says on 1/Oct/09
Brad, how tall was Burt Ward peak? Is Priestley really 5'6"? He looked more 5'5"ish on an episode of BH 90210, same size as Jennie Garth.
Rika says on 1/Oct/09
I know, i was making an exact height listed on his license in cm instead of feet. At 172 he would be 5'7.5 or 5'7.75, but he is still 5'7.
173 is 5'8.
But he is mostly known as being a 5'7 man. Not very small. He could stll look a 5'10 man in the eye with alittle tilt back of his head.
Dylan says on 30/Sep/09
Rika - I am not saying the documents do not list him as 5'7", however, 172cm is almost 5'8", the equivalent of 5'7" is 170cm.
Rika says on 30/Sep/09
Yet Lee's martial arts license has him at 5'7....in cm his height was listed at 172cm so this is correct :).

Also, there is a doco where his height has been mentioned. There are actually 10 docos, i own 4 lol.
All saying 5'7 and 140lbs.
Brad says on 29/Sep/09
5' 6.5" is short. Ask Glenn who got owned by literally everybody he met and 1/2 of the females. Priestley got away with murder on 90210 with all the short girls on the series...you see him in anything else and he's looking up at women in heels etc..
Dylan says on 8/Sep/09
Cliff Richard - In reality, 5'6" is hardly a midget's height, I think the reason people draw this conclusion is because there are male celebrities like Bob Hoskins, who claim 5'6" when they are really 5'4" and there are those who claim 5'8" like, Phil Collins and Jason Priestley who are really 5'6". Females never seem to be so height consious as Males and the average 5'6" woman does not look short at all.
josh says on 7/Sep/09
5'8 people its very easy to see !
Cliff Richard says on 6/Sep/09
Derek i agree with you. Look how short Hoffman looks against Cruise in Rainman. Bruce looks taller than Pacino, Hoffman and Co.
Leonari i never said anything rotten. Only tongue in cheek really. I wasnt trying to be horrid, but just getting my point across that he dont look as short as Hoffman type guys. But probably as short as Cruise types.
josh says on 6/Sep/09
I think so Dylan If you look at the footage he barely kicks Kareem in the face with a hair ,and a half inch would be more than a hair which looks like he wouldn't reach.
derek jameson says on 6/Sep/09
Leonari, is hoffman, pacino, robin williams 5ft6ish. Well im happy to say bruce definately dont look their size. He def looks longer in frame. So yep bruce is taller than 5ft7.
Dylan says on 5/Sep/09
Josh - Would 1/2" have really made that much difference to the kick you are referring to?
josh says on 4/Sep/09
Wasn't trying to disagree with you Brad I was just stating what I have researched I also feel that Bruce had to be 5'8 because he can kick a 7'2 Kareem Abdul Jabbar in the face which a person who is only person who is 5'7 or 5'7 1/2 couldn't do this. and this was the end of 1972 close to 1973 the year he passed away.
Brad says on 4/Sep/09
Warners didn't want Lee, they wanted a star to bank the series, I'm sure DC wasn't even the first choice. Bolo I think is a cancel, Bob Wall is not exactly the guy to debate with, I'm sure he'd BS it anyway, he just said he'd be there. Saxon is okay to ask, Kelly I think also. Anna, yeah, probably yer right. Burt Ward is a nice guy, he'd know, he lived in the same building with him near UCLA if I remember. Keep in mind, height to height questions are sometimes iffy, Fonzie refused to tell me how tall Stallone was. How stupid is that? True, both Ward & Lee were in fighting stance, not much side by side. I should ask Van Williams but he hasn't been at that show Supermamun & I go to in Burbank in years. I'll ask myself. I think he's only 5' 7" in "effect", 5' 9" easy with 20th Century Fox customs. Lee had an extreme held back temper with the doofusses who brought the throwing weapons they made to show him. One doofus had something like a badminton cock with feathers and 4" needle. Lee just told him to put it away. Throwing stars in the 70's were really cool to make in metal shop. You'd go squirrel hunting with those suckers. My nunchuks (spelling?) were taken away by the NYPD in '76 when we went to get M-80's in Chinatown. Hey man, I saw Cliff Richard in NYC in '81, he rocked, freaking legend.
leonari says on 3/Sep/09
Cliff Richard: You are an idiot to say the least. 5'6 ish guys looks like midgets? You think Pacino , Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman or even Glenn look like midgets? Are you serious or just a tard? The bull you dare to post here is beyond nonsense.
Dan Cruikshank says on 3/Sep/09
The bottom line is with bruces height we are definately with at most, within half and inch of his true height. He could be 5ft8 or 5ft 7 or in between these 2 heights somewhere. That is as close we will get to his true height. Having said that, this is a close prediction than some heights suggested for Tom Cruise or Sylvester Stallone. Sylvester i have read his height anywhere ranging from 5ft8 to 5ft11. So some people havent got a clue for guys like sylvester. For bruce we know he was somewhere ranging from 5ft8 to 5ft725 for sure.
josh says on 3/Sep/09
Bruce was for sure around 5'8 as I stated to Brad two comments under this one. Another good point I would like to mention Brad is if Bruce was under 5'8 he wouldn't be able to kick a 7'2 person in the face by the name of Kareem Abdul Jabar, if you ever seen the game of death photos or better yet go to you tube and type in game of death rare publicity promotional footage , this footage is poor but you can clearly see Bruce in this video kicking 7'2 Kareem and reaching his face. If Bruce was 5'7 or 5'7 1/2 he wouldn't be able to reach, think about that you would have to be at least 5'8 to reach that height with your legs straight up!
Cliff Richard says on 2/Sep/09
In fact i think Burt Ward is a good person to ask how tall bruce lee was.
If you asked burt if he was taller than bruce i think it could go either way. He could either say Bruce was slightly shorter, which is possible or he could say they were the same size. If you asked bruce if he was taller than burt ward. Bruce could possibly say he felt he was a bit taller than ward. An optical illusion when looking at someone.
Cliff Richard says on 2/Sep/09
Bruce was not 5feet 6ish because when you look at guys that tall, they really do look like little guys. Bruce looked like a relatively small guy. Not midgetish which guys of 5feet 6ish nearly do.
Burt Ward looked small as well and hes supposedly 5feet8. I dont know who looked the taller of the two because they werent in scene together that much. But bruce always had a low crouch when in a fighting stance. And while he was in that stance he didnt bounce up and down that much.
josh says on 2/Sep/09
Remember that Bruce wasn't always standing up straight either, oh and Bolo was shorter than Bruce even when Bruce wasn't standing up straight ,look at some of the ETD behind the scenes photos on the tournament field, and when you meet these people please record the footage for evidence, also remember this was over thirty years ago and their memories of how tall Bruce was might be some what faded. The people you want to get the real info from are Dan Inosanto and Bruce's brother Robert lee. Robert was 5'7 and stated in an interview that his brother Bruce was 5'8, so why would he and Inosanto lie about Bruce's height, If you read books from John Little, Tuttle publications or his documentaries, you will find out that they all say he was 5'7 1/2 which is untrue, after his back injury in 1970 he looked only a hair under 5'8 not a half inch shorter, and for the Kung Fu series everybody already knows why Bruce didn't get the part, which is wrong because Bruce came up with the story and the name for the series only to have it stolen from him, Bolo should be most reliable with Bruce's height, John Saxon maybe, and Jim Kelly Maybe, Anna Capri is not going to remember that well.Also remember Robert Lee lived with Bruce on 218 Nathan Road in Hong Kong until 1959 when Bruce left for the u.s, they often visted each other and Dan Inosanto one of Bruce's closest friends and students who met Bruce at Ed Parker's First International Karate Championships in 1964, later to teach in Bruce's Chinatown kwoon , knew pretty much everything about Bruce including his exact height,Dan even worked with Bruce on Game of Death which started shooting in late 1972... so lets see here that would be 9 years that Inosanto knew Bruce and Robert Lee knew his brother all of his life, therefore I would believe these people about Bruce's height more than the actors who worked only a few months on Enter the dragon with Bruce... with the exception of Bolo who tells the truth and has a pretty good memory... Bob Wall should know the truth but doesn't always tell the whole truth about Bruce. Oh the first name for the Kung Fu series was supposed to be called the warrior but Bruce wanted it to be called Gung Fu which is the Cantonese name, But The American name became Kung Fu instead. A day after Bruce recieved the call that he didn't get the part in Kung Fu he was invited to do an interview on the Pierre Burton Show, Bruce tells Pierre that in certain parts of the country that racial stereotypes exist and that is why the warrior is not probably going to be on.
Brad says on 2/Sep/09
He didn't get "Kung Fu" because he was against diction lessons and still kept that Chinese accent. David Carradine told me the network was racist and that was the reason. He was a small guy, 5' 8" is out of the question. True, 5' 8" isn't tall, it is 4" under somebody 6' and as I have said many times if you go up to a 6 footer and go "gee yer tall", you'll get laughed at. I'll ask Bolo, Jim Kelly, Ms. Capri, Saxon & even Bob Wall next month. Go meet the Boy Wonder then watch THE fight with Kato. That's not 5' 8".
josh says on 1/Sep/09
5'8 Brad and dylan this site does state that he was 5'8 if you look at the very top of this page you will see that Robert Lee states his own height as 5'7 and that Bruce was 5'8, I can vouch for this brad because I have seen an interview with Dan Inosanto and Robert Lee and both of them say that Bruce was 5'8, not only that he looked 5'8, remember that 5'8 is not that tall!
Brad says on 1/Sep/09
There are lots of photos of Bruce in The Green Hornet with huge heel, the most famous being the photo of him kicking the man by the boat with huge heel. Rising is about right. Bruce was never tall with Van Williams, he wore custom shoes to make up the around 6". Look at him with the Boy blunder, that's not a 5' 8" person by Burt Ward.
Dylan says on 31/Aug/09
Cliff and Josh, I agree with both of you now, however, to be fair for someone like myself who was not sure how tall Bruce was and surfs the internet to find out, I can honestly say I did not find one place which stated his height at 5'8". The majority said 5'7" some said 5'7.5" and a few said 5'6", which I know is ridiculous. Even this site does not have him as 5'8".
josh says on 31/Aug/09
yes dylan you are right and cliff you are right like i said a hair under 5'8 after his injury.
Dylan says on 31/Aug/09
Anonymous - I agree entirely. Some celebrities lie about their height but Bruce was dedicated to his art and the celeb statust just happened to be part of the deal. I think it was a travesty he was overlooked in favour of David Carrridine for the Kung Fu series. I am not as knowledgeable about Bruce as you, Josh or the majority of people on this site, however, I am convinced Bruce would not exaggerate his height because he was meticulous about everything including his measurements. I would agree he was 5'8" before his back injury, in all the earlier footage he looked that height.
Cliff Richard says on 31/Aug/09
I dont really know what there is to discuss now really as regard his height. If you want to be sensible you will have him just shy of 5ft8 at his peak height.
But we are only discussing for the benefit of those who have no idea how tall bruce was, and want to know. Guys who have seen ETD and just getting to know this guy who are curious.
All the evidence points to him not being 5ft6ish like some people want to think.
josh says on 31/Aug/09
I can assure you that the heels were not thick at all, and remember bruce looked fairly tall next to Williams who was 6'2 I believe.
Dylan says on 30/Aug/09
Josh - I have been looking at some of the earlier footage of Bruce pre-1970 and he does look about 5'8" and as you say his brother Robert and Dan Inosnato who knew him really well say he was 5'8" so I guess that settles the matter. He does tend to look short next to Van Williams in the Green Hornet, I have no idea how tall Williams was but he looked a fairly tall guy. I couldn't see what heels Bruce was wearing because he moved too fast.
Anonymous says on 30/Aug/09
Josh...ur right, he did have that major back injury that had him off his feet for 6 months and he struggled with it for the rest of his adult life...minor pain all the time. 5 feet 8 peak, 5 feet 7.5 from there till death. Bruce was not known to lie and he had no reason too!
josh says on 30/Aug/09
I believe what he stated before he was famous and that is 5'8 and in 1970 he had his back injury which might have caused him to lose less than a half inch, he does not look 5'7 or 5'7 1/2 either 5'8 or a hair under, Bruce never stood up totally straight but then who really does only when your being measured,and why would Dan Inosanto and Bruce's brother Robert lee lie when they said he was 5'8. Why would they lie and we all know Bruce didn't lie when he stated that he was 5'8 and then after his back injury which was during the time of the interview that you saw he stated his closest not accurate height which makes sense. All the evidence is in front of you people so why make it so hard?
Dylan says on 29/Aug/09
Josh - Just as a matter of interest, do you think 5'8" was Bruce's morning height or daytime height? The reason I am asking this is because the majority of people including myself, lose around 1/2" from their morning height during the course of the day.
josh says on 29/Aug/09
I do believe you saw the footage Dylan, but I don't think we will ever see it again, where Bruce states his height on film, well if they ever release it.
Dylan says on 29/Aug/09
Josh - I haven't a clue why it was removed, at the time I heard it, I was not really sure how tall Bruce was but when I saw the footage I thought to myself, well if he says he is 5'7.5" then that must be correct, although I was more surprised when he said his weight was 1401bs. Of course before he was famous, I do recall him writing his measurements down in his own handwriting and he wrote his height as 5'8", so I thought, if he says he was 5'8" then and 5'7.5" later then it could be he lost half an inch through his back injury. I was only guessing Josh, although I did think he could be 5'8" on rising and 5'7.5" daytime height, again this was only speculation on my part. I do have a friend who I rarely see nowadays who was a big Bruce Lee enthusiast and he was adamant that Bruce was the same height as him which was 5'7.75"(172cm) you seem very knowledgeable Josh and appear to have done your research thoroughly therefore I will accept what you say.
RisingForce says on 28/Aug/09
Dylan says on 17/Aug/09
RisingForce - Do you not think Bruce was 5'7.5" as he stated?

It seems a little high. He looked genuinley short in movies and he had perfect posture. 5'7" flat fits better in my opinion.
josh says on 28/Aug/09
Well Dylan now you agree that he might have been 5'8 before his injury, Wow I stated that a long time ago , and I also mentioned that he was probably 5'7 3/4 a hair under 5'8 after the injury , no way he lost a half of an inch , If the he stated that he was 5'7 1/2 he probably was rounding it to the closest half inch . Who says that they are 5'7 and 3/4 or 5'7 and 7/8 nobody right? Remember if that footage was from behind the scenes of Way of the Dragon which I never or almost anyone else has never seen, Bruce was probably mentioning his estimated height and remember way of the dragon was filmed in 1972 after Bruce's injury in 1970 which is two years later,However the footage was removed as I mentioned and the reason probably was that the person who posted it either found it ,borrowed it , or some how got a hold of it and wasn't supposed to use this footage because If I am correct with my research the footage does exist but greedy investors or who ever owns this footage has not released it officially to the public and the footage was demanded to be removed, If you are telling the truth Dylan and did see the footage you are very lucky to have witnessed a piece of Bruce Lee unpublished archive footage that is worth large sums of money, Its not your fault because you don't know that much about Bruce , but If I would have saw that I would have recorded it and had something that almost nobody in the world has! BTW why do think it was removed?
Dylan says on 28/Aug/09
I was hoping someone else who posts on this page would come forward and say that they too saw the video clip, unfortunately it looks like I am then only one currently posting on here who saw it and heard him say he was 5'7.5".
Dylan says on 28/Aug/09
Anonymous - The video was posted by Steve on here on 22/Feb/09. Bruce was asked a number of questions about whether he was religious etc and he was asked his hieght and then his weight to which he replies 5'7.5" and 1401bs respectively. I heard him say it on the video, I don't know whether anyone else did. I have no doubt he may have been 5'8" earlier in his life possibly before the back injury, like I said perhaps when he said he was 5'7.5" on the video clip he was stating his daytime height and he was 5'8" on rising, I don't know, however, I can assure you he definately said on the video clip he was 5'7.5", I don't know whether anyone else on here saw that clip but I certainly did and I have no reason to lie about it.
Anonymous says on 27/Aug/09
what video did bruce speak and say he was 5feet 7.5? Ive never seen that!
But to say bruce was 5feet6 something is ridiculous because Bruce said he was 5feet8 or 7.5, when he was alive and noone argued and laughed at him as far as i know of. Noone said dont be ridiculous bruce. Have you got the little man syndrome and exageratting your height. You dont look like a 5feet8 person to me! It never happened. So why say you think he is 5feet 6.5 or whatever?
He was just shy of 5feet8 IMO.
Dylan says on 26/Aug/09
Cliff Richard - I don't doubt that Bruce state in the Black belt magazine that he was 5'8" because he recorded his height as 5'8" with his measurements before he was famous, however, he definately said his height was 5'7.5" and his weight 140lbs on that video footage and we do know it was him talking. I am not saying he was never 5'8", perhaps he was 5'8" before his back injury and lost half an inch, or perhaps his height first thing on rising was 5'8" and his daytime height 5'7.5". I am only speculating of course.
Cliff Richard says on 26/Aug/09
Many people who squared off with Bruce say he was AT LEAST 5foot 7inches, from Joe Lewis to Chuck Norris to Bob Wall (who has claimed Bruce was taller if i remember reading correctly in the past). When people say that, dont take that as him being 5foot 7inches.
More often than not they will have underestimated his height. Just like whenever i have met famous people in the flesh i say to myself they werent as tall as i expected them to be. I havent ever met anyone in my lifetime when i have thought they were taller than i expected.
Cliff Richard says on 26/Aug/09
Bruce stated in Black belt mag, ( i dont know how many times) that he was 5ft8inches. It is quite possible he rounded the figure up. But its clear he was closer to 5ft8 than 5ft7!
And to Brad i dont get where you are coming from with the cuban heels. Ive seen the Green Hornet and photographs of Bruce as kato and there isnt any cuban heel action going on i have to say. He wears black brogue type shoes with very little heel. We are talking 1 centimetre here for real.
Dylan says on 26/Aug/09
Josh - I have a friend who is really into Bruce Lee as you are and he always said Bruce was the same height as him which was 5'7.75" however, after hearing him on that video footage say he was 5'7.5", I think I will go along with that, after all, if he would have been taller he would have said so don't you think? To be honest I was more surprised when he said his weight was 140 1bs, I never thought he weighed as much as that, although they say muscle weighs heavier than fat and Bruce was all muscle.
josh says on 26/Aug/09
People I do research everyday on Bruce and have many books ,photos ,movies and listen and watch rare footage and interviews, Let me say this Bruce for sure was not 5'7 and when he stated that he was 5'8 he even looks 5'8 and remember many of Bruce's books were edited by people like John little who don't tell the full truth about Bruce and are more interested in making money on writing books about Bruce, Come on people you guys act like 5'8 is really tall and want to make Bruce seem like he was really that short when he wasn't, he was actually an average size male, and tall for a Chinese guy, most Chinese guys are under 5'7, do i believe Bruce shrank ?Yes a little after his back injury probably a quarter of an inch bringing him down to a 5'7 3/4 just under 5'8 and remember Bruce had puffy hair as well.
Brad says on 25/Aug/09
5' 8" is insane for Bruce. An inflate. With those cuban heels he wore on The Green Hornet he'd be around 5' 10" and 5' 10" in my face (he wore the same Kato outfit including mask and hat and Beatle boots!). No way man! I'd push it to 5' 7" with an "effect" tops.
Dylan says on 24/Aug/09
Brad - Interesting. I have never met Bruce I have only seen him in pictures and in movies and I agree sometimes he can look short, however, Bruce recorded his height with his measurements in his own writing before he was famous as 5'8" and his brother Robert seconds this. Also on the video on here which Steve posted when asked his height Bruce said 5'7.5", now what I do not understand is why would someone who was so meticulous about his measurements lie about his height? He would only be lying to himself and that somehow doesn't seem like Bruce. Also those who worked with him, like John Saxon, James Coburn and Chuck Norris have also stated he was over 5'7". I am not saying you or Rising are wrong Brad, I have alot of respect for both of you and I think you are one of the best judges of heights on here. I know alot of celebrities inflate their heights but I don't see why Bruce would.
Brad says on 24/Aug/09
Rising is about right, very close. Just watch The Green Hornet and keep in mind he was in heels, not martial arts fighting footwear. He's short with 6' people with the 20th Century Fox customs on. This 5' 10" figure with the footwear doesn't cut it skipper. He was unbelievably short when I saw him, I thought he'd own me large. I'll ask Jim Kelly/Ahna Capri/John Saxon/possibly Bob Wall in October. Mamun needs to photo-op with them at ETD reunion. I've met Burt Ward, he ain't 5' 8".
Dylan says on 17/Aug/09
RisingForce - Do you not think Bruce was 5'7.5" as he stated?
RisingForce says on 17/Aug/09
Bruce looked really short in Way Of The Dragon. Maybe he was a flat 5'7".
Dylan says on 12/Aug/09
Vizitor - I have seen Bruce and Bolo photographed together and I think Bruce looked slightly taller, also, I think Bolo was wearing trainers whereas Bruce was wearing Kung Fu slippers, I could be mistaken about that, however, if I am right the trainers would have given Bolo a slight height advantage over Bruce.
Dylan says on 10/Aug/09
How tall was Burt Ward?
josh says on 10/Aug/09
dylan the footage was removed by the user, so the bruce height interview is not there.
Vizitor says on 10/Aug/09
5'6 to 5'7. He looks just as tall as Bolo Young (on Enter the Dragon). So Either a bit shorter or a bit taller. 5'8 is a bit of a stretch.
Mr T-Cakes says on 9/Aug/09
Wasn't Lee shorter than Burt Ward in the Batman/Green Hornet crossover episode? It says on the net Ward was 5ft8; I'm skeptical Lee or Ward can be as tall as 5ft7/8.
Dylan says on 7/Aug/09
Josh - If you scroll down this page you will see a post on 22/Feb/09 by Steve, the post encloses the footage I was telling you about where Bruce states his height as 5'7.5" and weight 1401bs.
josh says on 7/Aug/09
well dylan the footage was removed i never seen way of the dragon footage of an interview with bruce talking wow rare stuff hopefully that steve guy will put it back , if you know where i can find this please let me know.
Dylan says on 6/Aug/09
Josh - If you scroll down this page, you will see a post by Steve on 22nd February, where you can click on and see the footage. Bruce states he is 5'7.5" and 1401bs.
Dylan says on 6/Aug/09
Josh - Someone posted it on this page, it had a footage of Bruce and an interviewer was asking him all sorts of questions, like what is your religion etc? Eventually, he asked Bruce how tall he was and Bruce replied 5'7.5". I do have a book though, where Bruce recorded his height and measurements before he was famous and he wrote his height down in his handwriting as 5'8", that is why I wondered if he had lost half an inch through that back injury.
josh says on 6/Aug/09
Think you are right about him getting a little shorter but I think he was a little taller than 5'7 1/2 but still a under 5'8 after the injury, anyways I would love to see that video were he says he is 5'7 1/2 please let me know if it is the black and white screen test it cant be because he never mentioned his height in that interview, anyways please let me know where I can find that footage Dylan thanks.
Dylan says on 5/Aug/09
Thanks for clearing that up for me Josh. I must confess I had no idea that asian people called each other cousins, in that case it could have been anybody. I agree Bruce does look average height, especially next to Chuck Norris and John Saxon. I guess that video of Bruce where he says he is 5'7.5" was probably taken after his back injury, I should imagine he lost about 1/2".
josh says on 5/Aug/09
Well I never believe anyone but his real life students and maybe his wife on that sort of stuff, they might not even be his cousins they might be people who knew him,asian people call each other cousins if they are close, anyways many chinese always try and make Bruce seem as small as they are so that they dont feel small, but people come on if you cant see that Bruce was actually an average height guy then your blind anything under 5'8 is under average, and Bruce was definetly 5'8 , Bruce's brother Robert Lee says it , Dan inosanto says it, and I am 5'8 barefoot and looking at photos of Bruce he looks exactly that.
Dylan says on 5/Aug/09
Thank you Josh. I am interested in Bruce but all I really know about him is that he was the greatest fighter with the best physique I had ever seen. I have one book on him and in it he recorded all his measurements before he was famous and his height was 5'8", however, someone posted a video clip on here when he was asked his height and Bruce himself replied 5'7.5". I had a friend who was a real Bruce fan and had all his memorabilia and he believed that Bruce was the same height as him which was 5'7.75". I was recently, looking up some information on Bruce on the internet and on two clips it said that Bruce's cousin said that Bruce was really 5'6" barefoot, which I find unbelieveable. It did not say who this cousin was by name though, or whether the cousin was male or female. Any ideas who it might be?
josh says on 4/Aug/09
Yes Dylan you probably know that the spine has cartlidge and water in it which had to have been reduced from the injury and all of the bending and stretching that Bruce did, but I still think Bruce was taller than 5'7.5". He was either 5'8 or a hair under.I am always doing my research on Bruce everyday from documentaries,books,his movies,interviews,his friends and family intervirews,and information from Bruce historians, if you have any other questions I can answer only what is fact and If i dont know I will find out the answer, the correct one that is.
Dylan says on 4/Aug/09
Thank you for that information Josh. That was a truly remarkable feat by Bruce, do you think it was the injury which reduced his height from 5'8" to 5'7.5"?
josh says on 4/Aug/09
The injury was in August 1970, he injured the fourth sacruel nerve in his lower back due to an improper work out, not warming up before exercising,The exercise was called good mornings, Bruce noticed pain in his lower back and went to see a doctor and was told of his injury and that he would not be able to perform martial arts for the rest of his life, Bruce was in bed and a wheelchair for under six months and was on a program to heal himself and walk again. In 1970 Bruce would perform martial arts again but at a greater level then before. During his injury he was determined to recover and focused on reading,writng book material, researching martial arts,philosophy,light exercises, and when he recovered he went to Hong Kong in late 1970 and was invited to an hktv appearance with his son,Bruce side kicked boards and broke the and one inch punched through a board as well,All of this occured in under six months thats inspiration!
Dylan says on 2/Aug/09
Bruce recorded his height as 5'8" when he wrote his measurements down before he was famous, then on that video when asked he said his height was 5.7.5", I would be more inclined to believe what he actually said than what is estimated. What year did Bruce have that back injury which supposedly reduced his height?
Derek says on 2/Aug/09
There is no way bruce was 5ft6.5. In photos and on screen even, he comes across as someone long limbed.
The people he is always next to are tallish guys though. On the WOTD set, the directors said there was not much difference in size between Norris and Bruce lee, so they told Norris to eat more to make himself appear bigger.
Bruce wasnt 5f00t 6.5 because he was a slim guy. And if he was a slim guy at 5ft6.5 he would weigh about 120lb.
Personall i think he didnt reach 5ft8. But he was closer to 5ft8 than 5ft7.5
josh says on 2/Aug/09
Anyone can say they met him wheres the proof, and over 42 years ago how would any one remember his exact height after meeting him 42 years ago, And there is no way he was under 5'7" thats bull$h!t and you know it, or maybe you dont take a look at his photos and you will cleary see that he looks 5'8" , people dont always stand up straight which makes them look shorter, 1967 was a very long time ago to use as a reference.Dan Inosanto who is very honest compared to many will tell you that bruce was 5'8" he was Bruce's close friend and student, also Robert Lee Bruce's brother will tell you he is 5'8 why would he lie, remember people like John Little are the ones who lie!
Dylan says on 1/Aug/09
Brad - I have never seen him listed as under 5'7" although as I said in one of my previous posts, I read on here that his cousin said he was 5'6" barefoot. No idea whether that was true but looking at his photos he looks nowhere near 5'8", personally, I doubt he was over 5'7" but that is just my opinion.
Brad says on 1/Aug/09
Very slim and small. He wasn't close to 5' 8" when I met him in '67. My mother is 5' 8" and he wasn't that tall 4-sure. Just under 5' 7" tops.
josh says on 31/Jul/09
Well lock nut or stock cock or what ever your name is, you dont have to know jkd to know it's principles, its called reading you should try it,anyways not only does bruce look 5,8 but why would Dan Inosanto and Robert Lee lie? Ask your self that.Oh by the way nut head you should try learing how to spell, oh and jkd is not intended to follow any core just learning jkd concepts and exploring them in real life situations as freely as you want, you sound like one of those people who has not done any research on bruce or jkd. Always feel free to challenge my knowlege I do my research before I comment.
Dylan says on 23/Jul/09
lockstocknut - I totally agree. None of us knew him, I only put that last post out because I thought it may be of interest. I always assumed Bruce Lee was 5'7.5" because that was what he claimed to be although I must admit he looked shorter in his photographs. I do know that he was a great martial artist and the greatest fighter, I personally have ever seen. I know nothing about use of steroids or other drugs as I never delved much into his personal background. I apologise if my last post annoyed you.
lockstocknut says on 22/Jul/09
you strange people, you all go on like he was your brother, like you know him oh so well, fact is you dont, hes an icon, fact, strong, fast, intelligent-no, smart yes, reason being they report that he never gained any graduations, and as for his height, bulls to you all, only his doctor and wife would really know his true height and weight, and j josh, complete crap, unless you done jkd, keep shut,yer because knowlegde is self knowledge, poeple that pratice dont follow it to the core, they do implement their own style.
Dylan says on 18/Jul/09
Hey guys, I was looking on the internet for some information on Bruce Lee and in two articles it says according to his cousin Bruce was 5'6" barefoot and weighed 135 1bs. I always thought he was 5'7.5", certainly not less than 5'7" not being knowledgeable on Bruce Lee's relatives, does anyone know who this cousin is and whether there is any truth in these 5'6" claims?
j josh says says on 28/Jun/09
i appreciate what you said and its true but what you are telling me is something i already knew i like to hear facts that i didnt know. He did adapt to each situation and also applied philosophy to the martial arts people say that he wasnt a traditionalist and part of him wasnt but adding philosophy to his art is nothing new the chinese have been doing before him hundreds of years so part of bruce is traditional he just wasnt bound by it and that is what people dont understand . the base for jun fan jeet kune do is wing chun basically it is more than a modified wing chun of jun fan gung fu at the time it is a broken rythm wing chun that involves boxing,taekwondo,fencing grappling,eskrima,karate,choy li fat,kickboxing,and being able to react as you wish in real life situations it was not meant to be a style , rather bruces own way to express himself through martial art jeet kune do was a name not a name for a style but for bruce expressing the martial arts, so now it has become a style today as a fixed martial art which was never intended to happen. so people who study jeet kune do think that they have to follow exactly what the are shown and dont even realize that you can learn concepts and then be free to use them how ever they want and not programed to, and that is what jeet kune do is all about finding yourself and not being restricted by what was taught to you, the true essence not to learning jkd because you cant learn jkd, but to fully understanding jkd is gone because only bruce really understood his expression better thsn anyone else and thats why martial artist should look at finding their own expressions to martial arts and not bruces only his concepts!
Josh.J says on 26/Jun/09
The reason bruce lee is still the best is because he had the balance of being both a scholar and a warrior. he worked so hard in applicating the theories and philosophies into real techniques. and the fact that he analyzed many martial arts and knew their advantages and disadvantages meant he could adapt to any opponent with great tactical versatility. he was a true martial artist in body and mind.
josh says on 21/Jun/09
the fact is bruce is still the best fighter till this day not becuase of his hype and his movies, please do research watch every bit of footage out there and you will see the timing,reflexes,flexibility,power,strength,speed is better than any martial artist or fighter compared to even today. if you watch tommy caruthers he is the only martial artist comparable today to bruce and even he isnt as fast as bruce , he demonstrates his speed with all his might while bruce's speed in compared on a video shows bruce at the same speed but very relaxed not moving too fast so the camera can capture what he was doing. bruce from 72-73 started loosing weight if you noticed his photos in the early 70's he has a little double chin and around 72-73 it was gone with the rest of his weight. the shortest bruce got when he shrunk was 57-1/2 to 5,7 5-6/12 no way! And the part about him taking steroids there wasnt any thing wrong because at the time steroids were perfectly legal and were like suppliments so why do many people judge him for that he was only experimenting with his body to become the best! how many martial artist today workout 6-7 days week and run 6 miles a day ,throw 2,000 punches and kicks, electro shock machine, isometrics, weight lifting, stretching, these are facts that all add up to the greatest not the movies, he didnt throw high kicks in real time fighting e threw low kicks and moved in for the kill asap ending it quickly, come on wall ,norris ,or any of these guys can defend themselves becase bruce is not here but did they study martial arts as a science like bruce no! And BTW mr crosby bruce was a martial artist first then an actor watch some of his hk tv and longbeach footage you will be shocked how fast and powerful he was! remeber in the 60's there were too many rules and regulations involeved in tournaments and they were non contact, bruce sparred with people full contact and no rules real fighting so how is he not a real fighter? and linda always covers up for bruce i know that look at here interviews there so phony only half truths just like she wouldnt admit the affair bruce had with betty ting pei! speaking of pei she really knows what happened to bruce as well as raymond chow, bruce all of a sudden getting sick and raymond always there betty comes all of asudden into bruces life?
Austin Powers says on 20/Jun/09
People are intelligent enough to have sent men to the moon, so guys like Davis Miller and Tom Bleeker wont be able to pull the wool over peoples eyes and fool people.
They think Lee is too iconic and legendary so have to tell lies to bring Bruce down a peg or 2.
Davis Miller says lets look at the evidence we have to conclude how good a fighter bruce was. But then so obviously biasly goes about picking and choosing the evidence they want to use.
Conveniently leaving out important little stuff like everyone meeting bruce thinking he was the best fighter who ever lived. Davis Miller dont mention the little fact that Bruce easily handled guys like Bob Wall in serious sparring sessions. As well as all the other karate Gods of that era. Kind of thinking it might not be an important issue when trying to assess how great bruce was as a fighter. Or the fact that bruce said he could beat anyone in the world, and noone diagreeing with him. Joe Lewis, Chuck Norris, BOb Wall, Gene Lebel werent to vocal if they disagreed. Very mouse like quiet in fact.
Chuck Norris went on HKTV and told the audience bruce was the best fighter he'd seen. Little details like this you would think relevant. But obviously not to guys like Davis Miller and Tom Bleeker. Jealous guys indeed with an agenda clearly.
Bruce was 5ft 7.5 btw. Not 5ft6.5 at all.
Cindy Crosby says on 19/Jun/09
I'm no Bruce Lee expert. I'll be the first to tell you Bruce was not a fighter (in the tournament sense), but had unbelievable fighting skills. I'll also tell you he was driven by fame and fortune more than martial-arts. That said, still his contributions to asian culture, martial-arts and martial-arts film were immeasurable despite whatever his personal agenda was.

All I'm saying is to watch what you hear. There's a lot of truth to Bleecker and Miller, but there's also a lot of twisted facts they fabricate for their own gain, at the expense of Bruce. They're in the business of selling books, and just like tabloids, more "dirt" equals more dollars. And anytime you hear even one ounce of lies, you've got to question the source entirely.

Just like how I take Linda Lee and John Little with a grain of salt as well. They obviously have every bit to gain in preserving the Bruce Lee myth. Watch what you hear, especially with regards to Bruce Lee. That's all I'm saying.

About his height - he was probably 5'6.5" on his worse day in the evening and 5'8" in the morning on his best day. Depended on his health and fitness level. Daytime height, I'd put him 5'7.5" peak, 5'7" 1970-72.
josh says on 19/Jun/09
dragon the bruce lee story ha ha ha 80% of that film is fiction why even bring that into the topic ? I think you listened to bleeker after the fact. And you probably think that george tan is a fake as well, george is about getting to the truth you want to wath his biography or interviews go for it. And people say that bruce never drank b s maybe not in the 60's but in the 70's he had a few.
Cindy Crosby says on 19/Jun/09
Yes, I've watched the interview.
Click Here

But I'm a fan of the truth.

There's a few things that are shaky in Bleecker's case. First off, everything he's said about Bruce on anabolic steroids is pure conjecture. Not 1% solid proof. He basically hypothesized Bruce was on roids, and it was one of the primary causes he attributed to his death. Bleecker took them himself, theorizing that experiencing the same effects like roid rage he experienced himself implied Bruce took them also. His book was written over 20 years after Bruce's death, much of the facts had changed including the facts on steroids.

Keep in mind the biography in question is written by Linda Lee's estranged second husband Tom Bleecker. Their marriage did not end well. Linda was remarried to Tom Bleecker in 1988 but they divorced in 1990 before she remarried stock-broker Bruce Cadwell in 1991. Bleecker had lots of access to Bruce's private info during their marriage, exploiting it in writing the 'Unsettled Matters' book published in 1996. Linda attempted to stop its publication, but was unsuccessful. There was a time Bleecker was kicked out of JKD and went back to Kempo Karate. A lot of the information actually comes from a lot of the other Bruce Lee biographies and then Bleecker merely skews it negatively to his favor. This book is very pro Kempo and anti Bruce Lee. It seems to come more from a guy that is still jealous to this day of what Bruce has accomplished and he didn't. He disguises it with sprinkles of praise for Bruce, but the bias is clearly there. He embellishes where he chooses, so take this read with a grain of salt. You can tell Bleecker had much disdain for his "friend" and "teacher. It's an interesting read, but I would read other biographies on Bruce as well before making any final opinion on him.

In the end, guys like Bleecker and Miller are deeply biased and have an agenda. Don't be fooled by their guises in selling you the "truth". They wear very deceitful masks. At the same time, don't believe all the drooling fanboys who say Bruce was invincible and who actually believed 'Dragon the Bruce Lee story' was truth and all that. Bruce was only human no doubt. And humans aren't perfect, make mistakes. The truth is somewhere out there in between all the madness. Use your own judgement and don't take any of the info out there as dogma until you verify it yourself.
Cindy Crosby says on 18/Jun/09
Dylan, your and Jay's assessment seem most correct. 5'6.5" evening height but 5'7" morning height when he died. I do buy your dehydration theory, Bruce went to great extremes for the ripped look. Amazing how he achieved that way back in the 70's without all the fat burning supplements of today. In his prime (mid 1960's) he was 5'7.5" evening / 5'8" morning. He weighed around 145-150 at that point too. He was shorter than, but not dwarfed by American actors (Van Williams, Bob Wall, Chuck Norris and the like). He was medium to tall compared with asian actors (Nora Miao, James Tien, so forth). Anything 5'6" or lower would have made him look smallish and I never got that impression of him. If anything, I was somewhat surprised discovering he was in the 5'7"-range. Based on watching his movies alone, I always pegged him at 5'10"-ish. I'm finding a lot of people on this site don't understand or underestimate height variation due to spine compression, age, diet, disease and so forth. It definitely happens, especially on people who go through extreme physique changes such as Bruce.
Brad says on 18/Jun/09
He couldn't sweat, his skin was painted on like cement. Steroids? Not a chance. Muscle pain killers yes, his back was a mess.
josh says on 18/Jun/09
did you watch the interview? he didnt defame bruce he just told the truth come on i am one of bruce's biggest followers yes he did work for his physic but he didnt do anything wrong , maybe by todays standards he did.
Dylan says on 18/Jun/09
Cindy Crosby - You seem very knowledgeable about Bruce, how tall was he in your opinion?
Cindy Crosby says on 18/Jun/09
Actually Bleeker falls under the category of Bruce liars. After he divorced Linda, the scumbag had an agenda out to seek and destroy Bruce Lee's legacy.
josh says on 18/Jun/09
you should listen to tom bleekers interviews he was married to bruce lees wife
Cindy Crosby says on 17/Jun/09
The only source saying Bruce used steroids was from Davis Miller, the cat who had an agenda against the Lee family and wrote a slanderous book out to make a quick buck. His claims were baseless and he fabricated a lot of things like fake doctor prescriptions and the like. I think 'The Tao of Bruce Lee' is the name of this piece of crap book.
josh says on 12/Jun/09
chuck norris always says one thing and then another about bruce i dont belive everything he says or bob wall bob wall never tells the whole truth either the only people that seem to tell the truth are george tan, inosanto,taki,tom bleeker.
Jay says on 9/Jun/09
There is no evidence of Bruce Lee taking steroids. Cortisone is probably but very limited use as it isn't possible to use it regularly. He smoked weed and had tried diuretic tablets to get a ripped look and did take all sorts of nutritional supplements but no anabolic or androgenic steroids at all. Yes, he did use electroshock pads because he thought they would improve his reflexes.

The coroner found he had ingested cannabis and a pain killer. No other illicit drugs were detected in his system. He was also a tee totaller who never drank alcohol not even a beer with friends.
Josh says on 8/Jun/09
many people also dont know that bruce lee took anabolic steroids and cortisone shots the shots were to heal his injured back which was sustained in 1970 due to an morning work out, the steroids were to improve his phsyic on film , not that he didnt have a body very similar without he worked dam hard he also used isometrics , weight lifting , stretching, and electro-shock to enhance his muscularity. bruce didnt wont bulk because the lack of flexibility, he believe that you can be more functionable with less mass and body fat.
Josh says on 8/Jun/09
Bruces shoes size was indeed a fact he did wear size 7-7/12 like robert said and how do I know this if you had ever seen ETD photos of bruce kicking you will see a 37 under his shoe which is a european size 7-71/2 and also keep in mind that the shoes where chinese but they were probably made in Hong Kong and not mainland china, being at the time Hong Kong was a British colony.
Dylan says on 7/Jun/09
Josh - I read somewhere that at the time of his death Bruce was 5'6.5" but he was very dehydrated. I think at his peak his height was nearer the 5'8" mark though.
josh says on 6/Jun/09
I would have to agree with jay, bruce was actually 5ft8 how because if you look at photos and done your research not only does he look 5.8 but like jay said he wrote it and his brother Robert and Dan Inosanto said in interviews that he was 5.8. I do belived the spine theory that he did shink but not to 5.6 , more like an even 5.7
Jay says on 6/Jun/09
His training diary in 1965 had his body measurements with height at 5ft 8. He appeared as an average height guy in photos at the time but got shorter over the coming years for two reasons. A few years later he damaged his spine and suffered a slipped disc. During the 70s he dehydrated himself to get that ripped look for the movies meaning his spinal discs would have lost water volume. If you add up all the things he was doing to his body then he was around 5ft 6.5 at the time of his death.
Brad says on 5/Jun/09
That's 5' 6.5" with Norris.
Yaspaa says on 29/May/09
I thought you couldn't accept anything under 5'6.5? He's not far off Chuck Click Here
Ztech says on 23/May/09
I can't see him any taller than 5'7.5, and I cant accept lower than 5'6.5
He is exactly as tall as bolo yung, if you watch enter the dragon. Bolo's height is listed at 5'6. As an adult, Bruce Lee probably stood a solid 5'6.
Dylan says on 11/May/09
GF - I agree. I think Doug was exactly right, 5'8" out of bed, 5'7.5" during the day and 5'7" at night.
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