Kung Fu (TV series)

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Kung Fu (1972-1975) was an award-winning American television series which starred David Carradine. It was created by Ed Spielman, directed and produced by Jerry Thorpe, and developed by Herman Miller (who was also a writer for, and co-producer of, the series). David Chow was the technical and kung fu advisor.

Kung Fu follows the adventures of a Shaolin monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the American Old West (armed only with his skill in martial arts) as he seeks his half-brother, Danny Caine. David Carradine portrayed the adult Caine and Rad Pera portrayed the young Caine. Keye Luke (as the blind Master Po) and Philip Ahn (as Master Kan) were also members of the regular cast.

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Notable guest stars

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Overall series plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

In the late 19th century, Kwai Chang Caine was the orphaned son of an American man and a Chinese woman. He was raised in a Shaolin monastery, and was trained by the monks to be a Shaolin master.

After becoming a master, however, due to a violent incident in which Caine killed the emperor's nephew, he fled China to escape legal prosecution. Caine ended up in the American Old West during which time he discovers that he has a half-brother, Danny.

Although it was his intention to find Danny in a way which would escape notice, the demands of his training as a priest in addition to the sense of social responsibility which was instilled within him during his childhood, forced Caine to repeatedly come into the open to fight for justice. He would then leave his new surroundings in a further search for anonymity and security.

This conflict between a desire for anonymity and a sense of social reponsibility is conveyed through the frequent use of flashbacks. In these flashbacks, the adult Caine (Carradine) recalls a particular lesson during his training in the monastery while a child (Rad Pera) by his teachers, the blind Master Po (Keye Luke) and Master Kan (Philip Ahn).

During the concluding four episodes of the third (and final) season (Barbary House, Flight to Orion, The Brothers Caine, and Full Circle,) Caine not only finds his brother Danny, but his nephew Zeke as well.

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Sequels and new series

According to Herbie Pilato on pp. 32 and 157 of his text, The Kung Fu Book of Caine, Carradine (who at the time the show was being cast in 1971/1972, was the better known actor) was chosen for the lead role over Bruce Lee, due to Carradine's abilities as a dancer (it was only after the series began that Lee found fame with Enter the Dragon). Years later, Lee's son, Brandon Lee, would become a pivotal figure in two sequels to the series. In the first, Kung Fu:The Movie (1986) Caine (Carradine) is forced to fight his hitherto unknown son, Chung Wang (Lee). In the second, Kung Fu:The Next Generation (1987), the story moves to the present and centers around the story of Johnny Caine (Lee) who is the great-grandson of Kwai Chang Caine.

Two decades after the first series ended, a second, related series running in syndication followed the adventures of a descendant of Kwai Chang Caine. Entitled Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, it again starred Carradine, and introduced Chris Potter as his son. The second series ran for four years, from 1993-1997.

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Trivia

  • The Shaolin Temple which appeared in flashbacks was originally a set used for the 1967 film, Camelot. It was inexpensively and effectively converted for the setting in China.
  • The nickname given to Caine by Master Po while at the monastery, Grasshopper, would become a pop culture reference.
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Awards

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References

  • Anderson, Robert. The Kung Fu Book: The exclusive, unauthorized, uncensored story of America's favorite martial arts show. Pioneer Books, Inc., 1994. ISBN 155698328X
  • Pilato, Herbie J. The Kung Fu Book of Caine: The Complete Guide to TV's First Mystical Eastern Western. Boston: Charles A. Tuttle, 1993. ISBN 0804818266
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External links

es:Kung Fu (serie de TV) fr:Kung Fu (série télévisée) nl:Kung Fu (televisie) ja:燃えよ!カンフー pt:Kung Fu (série) ru:Кун-фу (фильм)

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