Jon Benn R.I.P

I was very sad to learn today of the passing of Jon Benn. He was a larger than life character and was immensely fun to be around. I was lucky enough to meet him a few years back after he left a comment on my old blog. Someone had inquired as to what had become of him (I think it was on an old post about The Way of the Dragon) and he replied that he was still around and based in Shanghai.

Actually, I don't think Jon read my blog at all but was told about it by his friend Bill Yim (Bill deserves his own biography). Anyway, one thing led to another and a photographer friend (a big Bruce Lee fan) saw the comment from Jon and asked if I could put them both in contact because my friend was very keen to photograph him. Jon was doing a monthly visa runs (in and out of China) at the time and so on his next trip to Hong Kong we all met up for a beer.

Suffice to say Jon was still very much the raconteur and had some great stories to tell (most of which, but not all, can be found in his autobiography). I did catch up with him a few more times after that but he eventually left Shanghai a few years ago and returned to the US.

Jon, Feb 2011

Remembering Bruce Lee...

I thought I would take this opportunity to let everyone know that Jon Benn, who is perhaps most famous for playing the mafia boss in Bruce Lee's Way of the Dragon, has just re-released his autobiography via Blacksmith Books.

The original publication/release in 2013 was a slightly more informal affair and Jon seemed to be trying to do it all himself - meaning it wasn't that easy to grab hold of a copy without contacting him directly. To be honest, the print quality of that version was also slightly lacking. However, thankfully, Jon is now in the safe and professional hands of a renowned local publisher and the newly printed version is high quality - better text quality, better paper quality, sharper picture quality, and the best thing is that the price is only $138 (not including p&p).

So, if you missed out on the initial offering of this book directly from Jon, you can now pick up a copy directly from Blacksmith Books at the following link (if you are not in HK) or locally at one of the many HK bookstores.

I have to say after having a few nights out with Jon over the past few years, I can say that reading his book and chatting to him is a similar experience. He has a lot of funny and interesting stories up his sleeve and you get to read all about them in this book...

...and speaking of nights out. Here is a picture of the man himself, taken a couple of years back at Pier 7 when I went to meet him for a beverage or two. This was before we were all stone drunk. Photo courtesy of Tim Redel.

Order Jon's book...NOW!