By Kai Curry
Northwest Asian Weekly

Robin Leong with his sons Lucas and Brady. (Photo courtesy of Epigram Books)
He’s been known as that handsome star from Singapore’s Triple Nine and the son of Seattle’s own Grandmaster John S. S. Leong. But what is foremost on Robin Leong’s mind these days is being a dad.
“Becoming a father, my priorities changed,” Leong told the Northwest Asian Weekly. “Everything I do now is for my kids, and that’s not a bad thing—that’s a great thing. I love fatherhood. I think I was born to be a father.”
With fatherhood as inspiration, Leong has written a children’s book, The Kung Fu Force and the Tower of Doom, published by Epigram Books. The book, which will be part of a series, draws from Chinese philosophy and martial arts, as well as Leong’s own family, who feature as characters in the book, to teach children important values. Each book will center around two important concepts —in the first one, perseverance and humility —garnered from Leong’s experience as a son, teacher, and family man. Leong, who was born and raised in Seattle, nevertheless comes from a strong Chinese background.
“People seem to think that if you’re Asian American, you must be very Americanized, but my upbringing was very traditional.”
Leong’s family celebrated all the major Chinese holidays, and Leong was heavily influenced by Chinese philosophy, which shows in his book.
“I love Confucius,” said Leong. “You’ll see Confucius appear in the book. There are a couple of sayings in each book to help kids in this modern day learn and respect the history of Chinese philosophy —but get them to understand it more in a kid’s way because it’s quite deep.” For this purpose, Leong uses what he calls “KIDSPEAK” in the book to take time to explain the deeper meanings, which he believes will also be relevant to parents.
“Kids these days won’t even know who Confucius is, but parents will understand it, and I think it’s relatable to both parents and kids.”
Leong has an affinity for working with children. In 2002, he opened his own martial arts studio, Ch’i Life Studio, in Singapore. Since then, Ch’i Life Studio has expanded to China, and most recently, to Seattle, alongside Leong’s father’s Seattle Kung Fu Club in the International District.
Master Robin Leong with students from Ch’i Life Studio. (Photo courtesy of Epigram Books)
“Any Grandmaster would like their son to follow in their footsteps,” Leong said. “I did it in a different way, honoring my father through Ch’i Life Studio, which is a studio mainly for kids. That was important to me because growing up in the Seattle Kung Fu Club, I was basically in a class with mostly adults. You really had to buckle down, two-hour training sessions, staying in the horse stance for a long period of time can be discouraging for a 4-year-old. I wanted to make it more kid-centric. Especially these days, with this generation, there are a lot of things kids can be distracted with. Their attention span is different [from when I was a kid]. There was no Xbox. There was no PlayStation. I wanted to give kids an outlet to release their energy in positive and dynamic ways.”
At Ch’i Life Studio, Leong teaches his students the Hung Gar style of kung fu he and his father practice. He also teaches Shaolin wushu, by which he was inspired during his filming of the Chinese drama series, The Challenge, which was shot on location at the Shaolin Temple in China. In comparison to the Seattle Kung Fu Club, Leong said, “We share the same philosophy. The only difference is that our kids’ classes are shorter in duration, and the training methods and techniques are more kid-centric and kid-friendly for them to better understand each move and movement.”
Growing up, the topic of whether Leong would follow in his father’s footsteps was not particularly discussed. Kung fu was, of course, important in the Leong household, but “overall expectations were studying hard, working hard, and getting a good job after college,” related Leong, who chose, as he describes it, “the unconventional route.”
“I had no aspirations to become an actor, writer, or kung fu master. I actually wanted to be a professional baseball player. When that didn’t happen, I started to think about being a lawyer.” He earned a degree in speech communications at the University of Washington. Then life—or destiny—took a turn when he moved to Hong Kong after graduation. After a couple of years in Hong Kong, where Leong got his feet wet in the film industry, he was sent to Singapore by his agent to do an ad campaign.
“I was offered a TV series thereafter, I fell in love with the country, and I never left!”
Leong is often asked what it was like growing up as the son of Grandmaster John Leong, and he laughs, “No pressure!”
As the only son, and the youngest among older sisters, Leong admits that, “especially in a Chinese family, there are certain expectations that you can imagine, but it was elevated to a different level being the Master’s son as well.” Today, Leong is a kung fu Master in his own right and spends his time mostly between Seattle and Singapore.
Cover for The Kung Fu Force and the Tower of Doom. (Image courtesy of Epigram Books)
The world of The Kung Fu Force and the Tower of Doom is therefore familiar. The setting is a kung fu studio. The teacher, Shifu Seong, named after Leong’s father, who in Chinese is known as Leong Seong, is a seahorse so full of chi that he manifests his own water bubble to float in. Two students, based off of Leong’s own sons, Lucas and Brady, are characterized as Lucas the Lizard and Brady the Bengal Cat. And there’s one more student, Coco the Cockatoo. In day-to-day life, these are small pet animals, but when called upon to save the world, they become superheroes. The message: “This transformation can occur with anyone! It’s all in the mind. If you believe it, you can make great things happen. This is what I tell my young students. Have no fear. When you are performing or doing a competition, you become that superhero for a period of time, and that will propel you to victory. It’s great for a kid to have an alter ego he can be proud of.” Thus, Lucas turns into a Komodo dragon and Brady into a Bengal tiger—that’s their spirit, even though they are small in stature. “Be a hero in your head and you will always be a winner,” says Leong.
Leong’s book has a message, too, for everyone during this trying time.
“It’s about learning to show mutual respect for one another. It’s important to respect each other’s viewpoints and not to have a narrow mindset. Instead of showing anger through destructive words and physical altercations, try to find a balance and learn to respect each other, then you will see positive change, peace, and prosperity. I’m seeing things in Seattle that I’m saddened to see. It is my hope that everybody can just talk with each other calmly and find that peace and prosperity, together.”
The Kung Fu Force and the Tower of Doom will be available at Kinokuniya Bookstores in August or September 2020. The book can be found now at epigrambooks.sg and localbooks.sg.
Kai can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.