Between 1974 and 1979, theatrical releases of Hong Kong (and other martial arts-related) films in Japan mirrored those sweeping inner city neighborhood theaters in the United States, all intended to capitalize on Bruce Lee's popularity and the resulting rise of martial arts fandom. In 1979, these parallel markets diverged when Michael Hui's The Private Eyes (1977) was distributed in Japan as Mr. Boo! by Toho-Towa.