Hung Sing USA

History of the Hung Sing U.S.A.-America’s “OLDEST” gung fu school

UNDERGROUND FROM THE MID 1920’s
UNTIL OFFICIALLY ESTABLISHED IN 1939

FIRST AND OLDEST GUNG FU INSTITUTION IN THE UNITED STATES

WRITTEN BY SIFU FRANK MCCARTHY
www.hungsing.com
www.hshlk.zoomshare.com

IN HONOR OF:

PROFESSOR LAU BUN

(1891-1967)

AMERICA’S GUNG FU PATRIARCH

FOUNDER OF THE FIRST AMERICAN HUNG SING KWOON

(FORMALLY EST. 1939)

Try asking any of the elder martial artists such as Ralph Castro, Wally Jay, or even Y.C. Wong, about the Hung Sing Kwoon in America and instantly Professor Lau Bun’s name would come to mind. Because long before any of the “Old School Masters” ever set foot in the United states he had already been well established, tightly locked away within the confines of San Francisco’s Chinatown for some time.

Professor Lau Bun’s memory alone breeds thoughts of what a true master really was, or even should be. A teacher. A fighter. A healer. Not only that, but he was a man with many loves and passions. In one sense you can say as a man, Professor Lau Bun exemplified the very meaning of Yin and Yang. On the hard side of the coin he was a seasoned fighter who grew up during revolutionary turmoil of the Ching Dynasty back in his homeland of Toi San, China. He Survived the extremely bloody “Tong Wars” in America between the 1920’s to the 1940’s, while living in a country that didn’t really welcome him.

On the soft side of the coin, he was a man with many talents from music and Art, to Chinese Philosophy and medicine. However, it has always been the darker side to his life that many Americans like focus on. Still, the Chinese are a very closed society, very rarely allowing outsiders into their world. Therefore, giving up information about someone such as Professor Lau Bun, was something many people that knew him weren’t and still aren’t willing to do so easily, unitl now.

For the first time, a detailed history has been put together of the man, the gung fu pioneer, the Master and the legacy he left behind.

Professor Lau Bun is a highly ranked 2^nd generation master of the Fut San Hung Sing Kwoon (the biggest gung fu organization at that time in Southern China), and the founder of the 1^st American Branch of Fut San’s Hung Sing Kwoon. Meanwhile, he is also the first gung fu pioneer to establish a gung fu school on American soil.

Professor Lau Bun was a native son to Toi San, China. He was born in 1891 and grew up during the tail end of the Ching Dynasty (1644-1911). Starting at a very young age he took up learning the Hung Ga style of gung fu as was very skilled with it. According to Professor Jew Leong (one of Lau Bun’s eldest surviving students) “he didn’t start learning Choy Lee Fut until he lost a friendly test of skills with one of his friends.

As Professor Jew Leong recounts the story: “On his way to meet his friends for lunch one day, Professor Lau encountered two men carrying poles walking along the same path he was using. Words were exchanged between them and a fight ensued, with Professor Lau being the champion. He then continued on to meet with his friends where he excitedly explained what had happened to him. One of his friends who happened to study Choy Lee

Fut politely asked for a light weight match of skills after hearing this story. Lau Bun readily accepted the friendly challenge and as quickly as the match started it was over, with Lau Bun on the losing end.

Impressed with his friends abilities, Lau Bun inquired to whom his teacher was. The friend admitted his sifu was Master Yuen Hai of the Fut San Hung Sing Kwoon, but was now retired from teaching. Still, Lau Bun was determined to locate this old master and convince him to change his mind. Somewhere in Canton Lau Bun finally found Master Yuen, who initially turned down Lau Buns request to be taken in as a student.

Lau Bun wasn’t going to take no for an answer, and offered to take Master Yuen and his wife into his own home and pay for their room and board if he would agree to teach him Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut. After discussing it over with his wife, Master Yuen Hai agreed to move into Lau Buns home where he taught Lau Bun the true essence, art, and spirit of Jeong Hung Sing’s gung fu until his death. Lau Bun would then become Master Yuen Hai’s final student.”

Under Master Yuen Hai, Lau Bun learned bonesetting skills, and Chinese Herbal medicines in which later on he became well known for his Dit Da Jow medicine. Not only that, after Master Yuen passed away, Lau Bun continued to care of Master Yuen’s wife. In turn for his generosity, she honored him by teaching him a rare Shaolin 5 animals Internal form. He was the only person she had ever chose to teach in her life.

Some time after this, Lau Bun chose to leave his homeland and head for “Gum San-Golden Mountain” in search of a better life (however there are a few rumors to why he left china when he did.)

A GUNG FU PIONEER

At the time of Lau Bun’s arrival to California, he entered the United States (via Mexico)illegally under the Paper Name of Wong, On Low during the very early 1920’s. Naturally, he settled down in the Los Angeles Chinatown community, where he opened a small gung fu school called “Wah Keung(meaning Strong Chinese).

In those days it was extremely possible that there were other gung fu masters in America due the to Railroad business, but Lau Bun was the only one known to open a gung fu school and teach Chinese Martial Arts here. Everything was running smoothly for Lau Bun until a gambling establishment was raided by the police. Not wanting to get arrested, and possibly deported back to China, Lau Bun chose to jump out of a second story window.

One of the first Associations that was set up to aid newly arriving Chinese to America, learned of Lau Bun, and made him a member of their Association. At the same time, he was hired as their Chief Gung Fu instructor. This was sometime in the early 1920’s. But in 1931 they approached Lau Bun and offered to get him out of L.A. and send him to San Francisco. Then hired as well as a Body Guard, Bouncer. Some of the things he was hired to do was protect Association owned gambling houses and Opium Dens, as well as a few other duties.

Since Lau Bun was the only one teaching gung fu in the bay area as well, most of the association members took their own children to learn gung fu from him. As the numbers of students and requests to take more students grew, Lau Bun eventually and officially re-opened his Wah Kue Kwoon in San Francisco’s Chinatown in 1939 (exactly 100 years after the founding of the original Fut San Hung Sing Kwoon). Later, in order to reflect their true lineage, Lau Bun changed his schools name to the Hung Sing Kwoon.

Old Style Teacher

When Lau Bun officially opened the doors of his school to the general Chinese community, he set down some very strict rules. First one was “don’t expose your gung fu.” He was dead set against any of his students showing off their skills. If anyone asked about gung fu they were to act clueless, and not answer. Lau Bun looked at gung fu as possessing a gun, you don’t pull it out unless you planned to kill with it.

Another of his most strictist of rules was “never teach outsiders.” With a lot based on his own personal experience with the Americans ill treatment of Chinese, while in his mind “why should I teach the enemy our national treasure, and only form of self protection the Chinese had?” He often instructed his students if an outsider walks into the school stop what you are doing and sit down don’t say anything.

However, Lau Bun was a true master and Old Style Teacher. He trained his students in the exact same way his Sifu Master Yuen Hai taught him. For the first 6 months, you could spend doing the Jot Ma (Horse Stance Training). Unlike most schools today, just learning one hand form could take over 1 year to complete.

Also, during class Lau Bun was known to sneak up behind you while you were practicing, expecting to be hit with effective strikes, or to check if you were using a strong horse. Either way, if you weren’t you would go crashing to the floor because he wanted to you to understand why basic training was so important.

During the 1950’s and 60’s Lau Bun’s name was quickly circulatng amongst the American martial arts community. But dure to the lega issue of his residency here, they were forced to keep their mouths shut about him. However, would regularly come to pay their respects to him.

Talents, Loves, Passions

In hindsight, Lau Bun was well known for more than one reason. A true gung fu master, a known Tong member, a gung fu pioneer and America’s first gung fu teacher, still, this is only one aspect of who he truly was. The strong and tough side of him are almost always the main topics of conversations. Yet, there are sides to him rarely ever discussed outside of his original students.

Aside from being a great gung fu master, Lau Bun was a man with many talents , loves, and passions. Not only was he intelligent, an incredible teacher and skilled fighter, he was also a very cultured individual as well. Some of his talents lay with his love of music and art, while his passions were medicine and philosophy. At the same time he was a very talented Bone Setter as well.

Lau Bun had a strong love for music and art. He was an accomplished Butterfly Harp Player, and loved to perform for the children of his students who were busy practicing their gung fu. While he played, he took this opportunity to share his philiosophy with the children since he had all of their attention.

Chinese calligraphy was another of Lau Buns many talents. He was well known for his calligraphy, and specialized in Dai Gee, the writing of extremely large letters which usually took the skill of a gung fu master to do. At the Hung SIng Kwoon’s current Head Quarters are a pair of couplets that were written in Lau Bun’s own hand writing.

The loss of a great master

In September of 1967 the Hung Sing people, Chinese and martial arts communities were left with a huge void at the passing of Professor Lau Bun, the founder of the American Hung Sing Kwoon. At the age of 76 he passed away from a massive heart attack, while living for some time with a Hernia. He left behind no wife or children, but an incredible legacy.

Since the association was heavily apart of Lau Buns Hung Sing Kwoon history, they felt it was only right that one of their own should fill the position, and backed Jew Leong who was one of Lau Buns more senior desciples. Jew Leong stepped up and assumed the responsibility of keeping the school and Lau Buns memory alive, therefore becoming the first successor of the American Hung Sing Kwoon.

Professor Jew Leong (Jimmy Ming Jew) or Leong Goh (brother Leong) as he is called by his close friends was born on October 02, 1926, and is a native of Southern China’s Say Yup village in Canton. In the late 1930’s Professor Jew’s family left their home and headed for the United States in search of a better life, and decided to move to San Francisco. As did many of the Chinese new to the bay area, they settled down in the city’s Chinatown district.

In 1941 there were only about two gung fu teachers in the whole San Francisco area, they were Lau Bun a Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut master, and T.Y. Wong- a Shaolin Fut Ga master. Professor Jew was just a young boy then and really wanted to learn gung fu. A friend of his mentioned that he could possibly set up a meeting with Lau Bun since he was accepting new students.

At the time Lau Bun, was calling his school “Wah Kueng” meaning “Strong Chinese” which was located at 916 Clay Street. Professor Jew couldn’t wait, and after meeting Lau Bun, at the age of 14 he expressed his wishes to become a student and Lau Bun accepted him into his school which later changed its name to Hung Sing Kwoon to reflect their lineage to the birthplace in Fut San.

Lau Bun was recognized as one of the most authentic gung fu masters ever to set foot on American soil. A true master from the old school, and an old fashioned teacher. According to Professor Jew training under Lau Bun was tough because he demanded a lot from his students. Just the first 6 months could be spent doing the Jot Ma, or Horse Stance training before learning any hands.

It was obvious that Professor Jew was dedicated to learning gung fu. “He was determined to train hard, and when he wasn’t at the gung fu school he would practice at home often. However, due to World War II Professor Jew had to cut his gung fu training short to serve in the Army/Aircore. Once the war was over, he returned to the Hung Sing Kwoon and continued his learning under Lau Bun. Lau Bun taught Professor Jew to pay strict attention to every detail of the techniques he was taught, which according to Grand Master Dino Salvatera later earned him the nickname of “The Master Technician” by his students.

Between 1939-1967 public gung fu performances were a rare treat for most non-Chinese folks. Lau Bun’s Hung Sing Kwoon was the first to ever demonstrate Chinese gung fu to the general public. Professor Jew quickly rose in the ranks amongst the senior studenst while gaining much recognition for his awesome street performances. Due to his great physical shape and massive arms, his hand and weapon forms such as Sup Ji Kau Da, Tiger Fork, Steel Whip, Staff and the Kwan Do to name a few was an incredible sight to behold. One of his trademark sets to perform was the Shaolin internal 5 animal form called Um Ying Kuen.

Professor Jew followed in Lau Buns footsteps and also joined the Hop Sing Tong, . and eventually became a one time President of their association as well as a youth group called Sing Keung. He also took on a night job working as a bartender at the “Buddha Bar” which is still located in San Francisco’s Chinatown today. He also began teaching gung fu to members of the Gee Tuck Sam Tuck Family Association on Waverly Street. Meanwhile, outside of the Hung Sing Kwoon, Professor Jew was keeping himself busy. He learned and began practicing making Dit Da Jow from Lau Bun as well as other herbal medicines and often supplied these medicines to the Chinese community free of charge for those who couldn’t afford it.

Professor Jew and the Hung Sing Kwoon were hit with terrible news on September 06, 1967. The students of the Hung Sing Kwoon were informed that their sifu Lau Bun had passed away and this greatly affected Professor Jew because he often took care of Lau Bun, and truly honored the very close relationship they had together.

As the uncontested and newly accepted successor, Professor Jew Leong moved the Hung Sing Kwoon to 38 Spofford Alley, one of the most notorious alleys in Chinatown known to be the battlegrounds for San Francisco’s tong wars.

To the uninitiated, one would never guess by first glance that behind the doors of 38 Spofford alley would be the oldest gung fu school in the United States. To some of the Chinatown locals Professor Jew was recognized as the sifu of the “Red Door People (Hung Moon).” Some time later he moved the Hung Sing Kwoon to the Gee Tuck Sam Tuck Family Association due to skyrocketing increases in rent prices.

Professor Jew continued to teach Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut in the same manner as Lau Bun had taught him, therefore preserving the integrity and tradition of the Hung Sing Kwoon. Although some may claim that he was a very tough teacher, he was even tougher to speak to since he was a man of very few words. He expected his students to practice hard and always stressed how important it was to perfect their gung fu. More often than not Professor Jew would only demonstrate a move once and expected his students to pick it up quickly.

In 1987, Professor Jew announced in the Chinese newspaper that he was going into semi-retirement, and based on the recommendation of Ms. Adeline Luey, this 1987 news paper article stated that Dino “Jew, Tien Loong” Salvatera was to be his next successor. This article ran in the Sing Tao newspaper for 3 days.

Then in 1995, Professor Jew Leong, a long-standing pillar in the Chinese community finally decided to retire from teaching for good after spending more than 56 years of his life in the martial arts, fully handing over the Hung Sing Kwoon to Dino Salvatera. Jew Leong still resides in San Francisco’s Chinatown and can often be seen walking up Washington Street on his way to either play Mah Jong, make herbal medicines, or just hang out reading his newspaper at the Gee Tuck Sam Tuck Family Association on Waverly Street.

Professor Jew Leong will always be loved and respected by his peers and as “The Man” by his countless number of students and grand students for years to come.

The present Grand Master of the American Branch of Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut is its second-generation inheritor, Dennis “Dino” Salvatera. He is known and respected throughout the Chinese community as Jew, Tien Loong.

On October 20, 1945, Dennis Salvatera was born at San Francisco’s Chinese Hospital. He was raised by someone his father completely trusted, and grew up on the streets of the South of Market district of San Francisco, which was a tough place for any child to grow up in. Since Salvatera (being mixed with Filipino and Chinese) was smaller in comparison to other children his own age. Schoolyard, and neighborhood bullies often thought him to be an easy target. Maybe for a short time he would be, until he got up. Out of necessity for survival, he began to fight back against the bullies and began earning himself a reputation as a fighter.

In 1958, Salvatera got involved with a Chinese street gang called the Chinatown Deacons. The leader of this gang was a student of the Hung Sing Studio under Professor Lau, Bun. Salvatera was so impressed with the gang leaders fighting abilities he asked if he could be taught a few techniques to enhance his own fighting skills. This was his first introduction to the style of Choy Lee Fut.

During the 1960’s, the American pop culture revolved around “Sex, Drugs, and Rock-N-Roll.” Unfortunately, Salvatera fell victim to the temptation of drugs after being turned on to them by someone he completely trusted. His life was becoming more and more complex, and in the meantime the combination of drugs and his gang activity caused him to go in and out of incarceration until 1966.

Feeling the desperate urge to make a change in his life, Salvatera made an attempt at escaping the torments of drugs, jail, and gangs by receiving his High School Diploma, quit abusing drugs, and chose to add some discipline to his life by joining a gung fu school.

On May 11, 1967, Salvatera officially joined the Lup Mo gung fu studio under Master Bing Chan, a student of Professor Lau, Bun. Unfortunately, Master Bing Chan passed away less than a year later, and Salvatera with some of the other students of Lup Mo transferred over to the Hung Sing Studio under Professor Jew Leong, Master Bing Chans Senior classmate.

About this time, Salvatera was introduced to Professor Lau, Bun by a senior classmate (Adeline Louie) who acted as translator when the Professor asked if he wished to become a student of his school. But his current teacher was a student of the Professor, and Salvatera politely declined the gracious offer.

Meanwhile, Salvatera had become a member of the very same association that his sifu, and Grand Master had been apart of, and it was shortly after this that he joined one of San Francisco’s most notorious Chinese gangs. Although he was working at straightening out his life, gangs were the only family he knew. Street fighting came with the territory, and Salvatera often took advantage of these situations by testing out the gung fu he was learning.

On August 10, 1968, Salvatera joined the Hung Sing Gung Fu Studio, which was headed by Grand Master Jew, Leong. He would practice at Hung Sing every day for 4-5 hours, even when he was the only one that showed up to class. Over the years, he developed, refined and perfected his gung fu abilities. He was quickly becoming the main attraction in the gung fu / lion dance street performances, which were held all over the Bay Area from San Francisco to Marysville. It was at this point that he began building his reputation as a gung fu practitioner, becoming the most recognizable and charismatic student in Hung Sing due to his dazzling hand and weapons demonstrations.

In 1970, at the age of 25, Salvatera began to privately teach. His first student (Yusef Hannibal) was a member of San Francisco’s Black Muslims. But many wanted to learn from Salvatera, and the demand was so great, he would need a place to teach. So, at the advice of his first student, he began teaching other members of the Black Muslims, the Black Panthers, and other youths and adults at the Famous Glyde Memorial Church. At the same time, he was teaching San Francisco’s version of the “Red Guard” at the old historical Hungry I.

Approximately 1975, with the encouragement of his students and friends, Salvatera opened his own school in the Sunset District in San Francisco, calling it the “Tien Loong Gung Fu Club”. In the meantime, Salvatera continued to study at the Hung Sing Studio as often as he could and regularly returned to assist his Sifu in supervising all the lion dance performances.

Then, in 1987, Grand Master Jew, Leong went into semi-retirement. *It was at this point when Adeline Louie, Salvatera’s senior classmate, was instrumental in convincing Grand Master Jew that Salvatera had the skill, loyalty, and dedication to handle the welfare of the school, and the responsibilities should be passed on to him. Grand Master Jew then announced that Dennis (Dino) “Jew, Tien Loong” Salvatera was appointed to the permanent position of “Chairperson in Charge” by placing it in the San Francisco Chinese Newspaper.

Salvatera, with his newly appointed title, worked feverishly to promote his school of Choy Lee Fut, teaching students numbering in the many hundreds, as well as from all walks of life. He has performed for many of San Francisco’s city officials such as current Mayor Willie Brown, and former mayors Art Agnos, Diane Feinstien, Joseph Alioto, Police chief Fred Lau, and March Fong Yu. He has also worked along with famous Chinese actors like Jacky Chan, Shek Kin (Mr. Han from Enter The Dragon), the eternal Kwan Tak Hing (original Wong Fei Hung) and the late great Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut Master- Lee Koon Hung.

In 1995, Grand Master Jew, Leong officially retired from teaching gung fu, naming Salvatera as his only successor, as well as next Grand Master of the American Branch of Hung Sing Choy Lee Fut. Salvatera has since changed his school’s name of “Tien Loong Gung Fu Club” to the “Hung Sing Studio” in order to preserve and uphold the prestige, respect, and honor this school has earned over the years. He has moved the Chinatown based headquarters into his home where he has built a small gymnasium and continues to teach select groups of students, and has produced a number of qualified instructors who operate their own schools around the United States.

*Adeline Louie was the first to train Salvatera, and a major influence in the refinement of his movement. Ms. Louie has been an active member of the Martial Arts and Chinese communities for more than 30 years, and is currently active in promoting Chinese Opera. She is also credited with implementing and coordinating the lion dance and martial arts demonstrations for the Self Help For The Elderly Foundation. Together, she and Salvatera continue to work side by side in many of San Francisco’s Chinatown affairs.