Biography
Enter the Black Dragon. Though, he did have talent, he (or his people), believed that he would become a bigger name than Bruce Lee, (the Little Dragon). He never thought much of Lee's skills, though he had never met him. Producers pushed him, because kung-fu movies were big business in Urban areas [back in the early '70's], even when the genre began to fade. With his film - The Black Dragon [the name only], helped it stand out from the pack and garner some interest. It was the first time a Black man was being associated with Chinese kung-fu in the movies (even though he mainly studied Karate styles).
Jim Kelly's performance in Enter The Dragon, gave Black Americans a sense of Pride, by displaying his skill on screens across the nation. Thus, it was felt than Van Clief [because of his credentials], could possibly do even better. Though his skills were probably better than those of Kelly's, he couldn't match his Presence on the screen. Women loved Kelly and he had such a big following, by the time Ron came on the scene, it was [virtually] impossible to steal his fanbase.
Jim Kelly's performance in Enter The Dragon, gave Black Americans a sense of Pride, by displaying his skill on screens across the nation. Thus, it was felt than Van Clief [because of his credentials], could possibly do even better. Though his skills were probably better than those of Kelly's, he couldn't match his Presence on the screen. Women loved Kelly and he had such a big following, by the time Ron came on the scene, it was [virtually] impossible to steal his fanbase.
At one time, he and Kelly were supposed to have a so-called "Death Match" -- to prove who was the best. I think all this came from Van Clief's press people, trying to stir up some hype for the media. Probably, because Ron had a higher Belt-ranking than Kelly and displayed similiar skills onscreen. I think it was just an attempt to get their man, more exposure. But, most knew it was just hype, though many would have liked to have seen it. While, it was rumored that these two could not stand each other, they never confronted each other.
This turned out to be martial-art's own version of an "East Coast - West Coast" rivalry -- which just kept people guessing and nothing more. To add to his fame, [Tamak] the star of the film - The Last Dragon, was one of his students. To his credit, I think that he showed Black (and White) Americans, that a Black man had just as much style and grace, as anyone else on the silver-screen (even when it came to Martial-arts). An expert with the Sais, I would have loved to seen him go up against Chen Sing [another Sai expert], in a fierce battle.