The Legacy of Brandon Lee: 'The Crow'

Brandon Lee’s final film, The Crow, premiered on May 13, 1994, less than a year after the actor died in a tragic on‑set accident. As one of the most successful movies based on a comic book series, The Crow became a cult classic and a lasting tribute to both Brandon and his father, Bruce Lee.

1994: ‘The Crow’ Opens After On-Set Tragedy

Brandon Lee in "The Crow" — Brandon Lee as Eric Drave in *The Crow (TVDB)*

On February 1, 1965, martial artist and actor Bruce Lee became a parent. From an early age, his son Brandon learned martial arts from Bruce and often visited his dad’s movie sets. But, the journey of following in Bruce’s footsteps was a short one. Sadly, Bruce died from a mysterious death in 1973 at the age of 32. Brandon was just eight years old at the time.

Wanting to continue Bruce’s legacy, Brandon continued his training to become a film actor himself. In 1986, he appeared in his first film, Kung Fu: The Movie. He played David Carradine’s son, Chung Wang, in the made-for-TV movie.

In 1991, Brandon was approached to play the role of his father for the biopic Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, but he turned it down. Two years later, Lee signed to appear in an adaptation of James O’Barr’s comic book series, The Crow.

In the movie, Lee plays Eric Drave, a rock star who is murdered and then rises from the grave to seek vengeance against his attackers. Tragically, on March 31, 1993, Lee really did die on set after getting shot with a prop gun during filming. He was just 28 years old.

Having finished most of his scenes for the film, the movie was completed with a few rewrites and the use of a stunt double. Dimension Films released the movie on this day in 1994. It was hit that led to three sequels, a TV series and a 2024 reboot. Unfortunately, none of them did nearly as well as the original.

2004: Fraiser’s Last Episode – Sort of

The cast of "Fraiser" dressed for the opera looking on — Jane Leeves, David Hyde Pierce, Kelsey Grammer, John Mahoney and Peri Gilpin in *Fraiser* *(TVDB)*

The Cheers spin-off, Fraiser aired for 11 seasons on NBC from its premiere on September 16, 1993 to its finale which aired on this day in 2004.

The show was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey and David Lee and starred Kelsey Grammer as a Seattle radio show therapist, Fraiser Crane.

The show also stars David Hyde Pierce as Niles, Fraiser’s therapist brother, John Mahoney as the men’s cranky father, Jane Leeves as the cranky father’s nurse and Peri Gilpin as Fraiser’s assistant.

Fraiser received 37 Emmy Award, a record at the time for a scripted TV series. It also won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series for five consecutive years.

The cast from the "Fraiser" series update sitting in a bar — Jack Cutmore-Scott, Kelsey Grammer, Anders Keith, Toks Olagundoye, Jess Salgueiro and Nicholas Lyndhurst in the *Fraiser* update *(TVDB)*

On October 12, 2023, a revival of Fraiser premiered on the streaming service, Paramount+. Grammer returned as Mr. Crane, but he was the only one of the original cast to star in the updated show. Jack Cutmore-Scott played his son, and new roommate, Freddy.

This time around, Toks Olagundoye starred as fellow professor Olivia Finch, Nicholas Lyndhurst as Professor Alan Cornwall, Jess Salgueiro as Fraiser’s neighbor across the hall and Anders Keith as Fraiser’s nephew, David. Bebe Neuwirth and Peri Gilpin guest starred as Fraiser’s former wife Lilith and co-worker Roz Doyle respectively.

Fraiser 2.0 was renewed for a second season which also starred Gilpin and Patricia Heaton as series regulars. The show was canceled for a second time in late 2024.

1954: ‘The Pajama Game’ Debuts on Broadway

Images from The Pajama Game stage production. (A woman looking down with a row of men's faces looking at her) — *(Wikipedia)*

Based on the 1953 novel, 7½ Cents by Richard Bissell, the musical The Pajama Game opened at the St. James Theatre on Broadway on this day in 1954. The story revolves around a pajama factory where its workers demand for a seven and a half cent raise.

The original show ran for 1,063 performances and starred John Raitt, Janis Paige and Eddie Foy and featured choreography by Bob Fosse. The Pajama Game also served as a start in show business for Shirley MacLaine who understudied for the show.

Warner Bros. created a film version of the musical in 1957 which starred most of the cast except for Paige’s role which was given to Doris Day instead. Since then, the musical has had two revivals on Broadway in 1973 and 2006.