At age eight, he appeared with some of his fellow "Little Fortunes" in the film Big and Little Wong Tin Bar (1962) with Li Li-Hua playing his mother. He began his film career by appearing in small roles at the age of five as a child actor. Film career 1962–1975: Early small appearances They are the descendants of Fang Xuanling, a chancellor of the Tang dynasty. In the late 1990s, Chan changed his Chinese name to Fang Shilong ( 房仕龍; Cantonese: Fong Si-lung), since his father's original surname was Fang. A fellow builder named Jack took Chan under his wing, thus earning Chan the nickname of "Little Jack," later shortened to "Jackie", which has stuck with him ever since. Ĭhan joined his parents in Canberra, Australia in 1976, where he briefly attended Dickson College and worked as a construction worker. After entering the film industry, Chan along with Sammo Hung got the opportunity to train in hapkido under the grand master Jin Pal Kim, and Chan eventually attained a black belt. Chan became close friends with fellow group members Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, and the three of them later became known as the Three Brothers or Three Dragons. He eventually became part of the Seven Little Fortunes, a performance group made up of the school's best students, gaining the stage name Yuen Lo ( 元樓) in homage to his master. Chan trained rigorously for the next decade, excelling in martial arts and acrobatics. In 1960, his father emigrated to Canberra, Australia to work as the head cook for the American embassy, and Chan was sent to the China Drama Academy, a Peking Opera School run by Master Yu Jim-yuen.
Ĭhan attended the Nah-Hwa Primary School on Hong Kong Island, where he failed his first year, after which his parents withdrew him from the school. His parents worked for the French ambassador in Hong Kong, and Chan spent his formative years within the grounds of the consul's residence in the Victoria Peak district. 'Cannonball') because the energetic child was always rolling around.
His parents nicknamed him Pao-pao ( Chinese: 炮炮 lit. His parents were so poor they had to borrow money from friends to pay the doctor. 'born in Hong Kong' ) to Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, refugees from the Chinese Civil War.