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Bob Wall Interview: "Pulling No Punches"By Paul Bax |
—Editor Black Belt: What was it about Bruce Lee’s demonstration at the 1964 Internationals that set him apart from the others? Bob Wall: Bruce was charismatic and dynamic. He did the blindfolded sparring, one-inch punch and two-finger push-ups. Nobody had seen that before. BB: That tournament also introduced Chuck Norris to Lee, didn’t it? Wall: Chuck Norris saw Bruce Lee but did not meet him at the ’64 Internationals. BB: In your opinion, did Norris influence Lee’s kicks? Wall: There’s no question that Chuck influenced Bruce’s kicking. Chuck, Bruce and I worked out a lot together. Bruce shared his talents and picked up on anything he liked from anyone he worked out with if he respected them. He definitely liked and respected Chuck, and the feeling was mutual. BB: How did the martial arts community view Lee in the early 1960s? Wall: The martial arts community either loved or really disliked Bruce for his statements, which were considered brash for the time. BB: Lee’s demeanor seemed steeped in Taoism. Did his philosophical underpinnings affect your outlook on life? Wall: Bruce’s philosophical viewpoint was very interesting. I loved him for his talent, charm and his whole energetic, exciting personality.
Wall: The broken-bottle scene was made dangerous because we used real bottles. Each time you broke them, they broke differently, and the edges were obviously very sharp. However, we did the scene several times perfectly, except that I had to fall into the glass each time. Then there was a mistiming on the seventh or so shot, and Bruce was cut. Bruce’s only instructions to me were to come at him as fast as I could and aim for his right pectoral [muscle]. He then kicked me with a right-leg-forward crescent kick, which hit me between my wrist and elbow. When the accident that cut Bruce’s hand occurred, the kick landed on my arm above the elbow, so the bottle didn’t move, and as Bruce spun around, he jammed his right hand into the bottle. If Clouse had given us [breakaway] bottles, there would have been no problem. But Bruce was into reality-based filmmaking, including the live snake he snatched, which bit him once during the several takes. Bruce had the talent, guts and speed, and he was fearless. That’s why his films stand the test of time. BB: Clouse has passed on. Do you have any regrets about your feud with him? Wall: Any so-called feud was at Clouse’s doing, as he spread the rumor that Bruce wanted to kill me. Bruce said it didn’t come from him, as he knew it was a dangerous [scene] and we had done it perfectly six times. So we found out Clouse had started the rumor. After a week off, we did the scene in which Bruce side-kicks me, and he hit me exactly where he was supposed to—so much for the alleged rumor. Any problems were Clouse’s problems. He did not like or respect martial artists. That was his misfortune. BB: But Lee also announced that he wasn’t going to kill you because they needed you to finish the movie. So there had to be some substance behind the rumor. Wall: No substance. Bruce had to find a way to stop the [rumor], and he did it.
Wall: Bruce choreographed all the fight scenes except the ones that I did, like the golf-course scene in which a bunch of my black belts—Mike Bissell, Darnell Garcia, Pat Johnson, etc.—get beat up by John Saxon. I also did the establishing scenes in which Tadashi Yamashita breaks boards over my arms and stomach. I break a bag with a side kick, punch bricks in the air and so on. BB: You once mentioned extra footage of you that was shot as a setup to your character’s treachery. Specifically, you kill a bunch of guys at a funeral. Has that ever surfaced? Wall: That film was ruined. That’s why, after I got back in early 1973, Bruce asked Clouse and me to redo Saxon’s golf-course fight and my establishing scenes. BB: There was talk about Enter the Dragon II from Bolo Yeung. Have you heard any news about that? Wall: Not for a long time. BB: Have you ever thought of producing such a project yourself? Wall: If it ever gets done, it will be through my partner, Fred Weintraub. BB: “I am not going to kill Bob Wall because we need him to complete the film.” As you know, Lee spoke those words, yet you had no fear of him. Was his fighting prowess all hype, or did you refuse to even entertain the existence of any possible threat? Wall: More figments of Clouse’s imagination. Bruce and I were friends. Proof of this is when Bruce came back after a week off from the cut and hit me just where he was supposed to. Also, check out the stills of Bruce hugging me when my character, O’Hara, was finally dead. We wrapped Enter the Dragon in March 1973, then came back to Los Angeles and did the John Saxon golf-course scene at Griffith Park. We then shot all the Yamashita-breaking-boards-over-my-arm scenes. Bruce flew to Los Angeles on June 1, 1973, and I met him for lunch two times at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Some death threat, eh? BB: Didn’t you once admit that Lee made the announcement mentioned earlier? Wall: He had to do something to counter the rumor mill, and he did that.
Wall: Bruce was a great fighter and would have always done well. BB: What is your opinion of Lee’s martial art, jeet kune do? Wall: I loved and admired Bruce and his jeet kune do. BB: What sets JKD apart from other martial arts? Wall: The fact that it was Bruce’s brainchild and his blueprint for effective fighting. BB: There’s been a lot of discussion regarding Lee’s certification process in his later years. Did he ever discuss with you the people he authorized to teach his system? Wall: No. Bruce didn’t like structure. He wanted you to see what he did and make it your own. He believed that you should not mimic others but “feel” what works for you. BB: Which of Lee’s students did you meet before he died? Wall: Taky Kimura, Ted Wong, Danny Inosanto, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Richard Bustillo, Mito Uyehara and Larry Hartsell. BB: Did any of them particularly impress you? Wall: Yes, all of them were, or are, outstanding people. Taky, Ted, Danny, Richard and Larry are all extraordinary martial artists who are a terrific legacy for Bruce’s teachings. I admire and respect each of them.
Wall: Bruce and I trained often at his house, at my studio and on the set of Way of the Dragon and Enter the Dragon. BB: What did you work on? Did Lee’s art differ from the others you’d studied? Wall: We ran, stretched and worked on lots of drills. Bruce was always questioning the norm. He was like Gene LeBell, Chuck Norris and Joe Lewis in that he didn’t believe in one system. He believed that you must be in great shape and cross-train. BB: Were you present during Lee’s workouts with any of the celebrities? Wall: Chuck and Joe are the only ones that I remember. BB: You have footage of Lee training Coburn and McQueen. Will that ever be released? Wall: Fred Weintraub and I gave a copy of it—about two hours—to Linda Lee [Cadwell]. It would be up to her and Shannon Lee to decide if they want to release it.
Wall: Seagal made some untrue comments and apologized for them like a real man does. All the Dirty Dozen and I were quite satisfied with the outcome. BB: You recently came face to face with Seagal. What happened? Wall: He apologized, and that’s the end of it. Steven is a fine actor and a very good martial artist. BB: Describe your friendship with Norris. Wall: Chuck and I have been best friends and training partners for 40 years. I greatly respect and admire him for the man and the martial artist that he is. BB: Do you know of any projects we might expect from Norris in the future? Wall: Chuck is like the 500-pound gorilla. He’ll do whatever he wants. BB: Bruce Lee wrote you a letter dated July 20, 1973, that was never sent. Were the contents ever revealed to you? Wall: The contents have not been revealed to me. BB: Do you have any regrets about the interview you did 20 years ago with Albert Goldman in Penthouse? Wall: I never gave Goldman the interview he wrote. He called me, and because of his pathetic viewpoints in his previous books on Lenny Bruce and Elvis, I chose not to give my interview. We talked for a few minutes, and I explained why I wouldn’t do the interview. Then he just made up his own. I’ve done countless interviews about Bruce Lee over the past 31 years and have never said a negative thing about him, as he was a great human and an amazing martial artist. I did three of his five adult-aged films at a great cut in pay because he was my friend. The only regret I have is that he’s not alive for the world to enjoy and that he’s not able to enjoy his terrific family and his richly deserved success. About the author: Paul Bax is a freelance writer and jeet kune do historian. |
