Asian Star Jackie Chan: Worldwide Charitable Entrepreneur

Jackie Chan is currently shooting "Rush Hour 3" in Los Angeles with director Brett Ratner and co-star Chris Tucker. Early trailers for the film have already hit theaters. Jackie Chan has been well known throughout the world as a martial arts action movie star and an incredible stunt master. Chan likes to give a comedic twist to his movies, and is loved by fans on every continent. While the media trumpets Chan's every fantastic stunt and broken bone, the philanthropic side of this Asian whirlwind is nearly unknown. I'd like to share with you some of his charitable "feats".

Chan is first to admit he's no saint in his personal life; however, he's been incredibly generous with his time and talents for those in need. It may be an autographed T-shirt to raise money for a child with cancer in Austria, hand-delivering warm coats to seniors in the northern provinces of China, or performing at a concert attended by thousands of fans to fill the charity chest for his JC Charitable Foundation. Years ago, his initial motivation sprang from the kindness shown to him by the Red Cross when he was a young child at the Peking Opera training school in Hong Kong. Now his motivation springs from a mixture of the personal gratification Chan gets from giving, a sense of duty to give to those without, and the urge to encourage others toward charitable work.

While he often portrays characters that are a bit goofy in his films, in reality Chan is a savvy businessman. His ventures are moneymakers: Jackie's Kitchen (a chain restaurant), a line of Jackie Chan Cookies, a new chain of coffee cafes (watch out Starbucks), and a distributorship in Asia for the Segway, among others. His business investments often have some alternative charitable or altruistic goal as well. His clothing line seeks to promote Chinese brand names and products, his recent launch of a skin-care line, Jackie Chan Organic Skin Care, is all natural and environmentally friendly. Chan insists on recycling on every film shoot and is constantly working on redesigning trashcans to promote efficiency.

Chan's website announced that his latest fundraiser, "Build A School for A Dollar", is raising money for more schools in rural China where students sometimes walk for hours to get to school. Donations have come mostly from children in other countries. In California, he helped fund a senior center. In Australia, he donated medical equipment to a clinic. Chan has also backed scientists; one of who won an award in 2006 for a unique system that purifies polluted water and air.

So if you think Jackie Chan is simply "kicking" his way through life acting in films and partying, you are misinformed. Like many other human beings, Chan fills many roles. He is a devoted son, a proud parent, an animal lover, a business-owner, an entrepreneur, a humanitarian, a boss, an employee, and a creative thinker. Like most of us, he is trying to escape stereotype, be the best at what he does, and works hard at leaving the world a little bit better off. And, he puts his money to the best possible use for the benefit of others.