Chuck Norris - Details

Biography

Chuck NorrisChuck Norris is an Executive Producer of Walker, Texas Ranger as well as the actor in the title role. Norris is familiar to fans worldwide as the star of action films including The Hitman, Delta Force, and Delta Force II. He also starred in Missing in Action and its sequels, Firewalker and Sidekicks. Norris was born Carlos Ray in Ryan, Oklahoma. The eldest of three children, he helped his mother raise his two younger brothers in Torrance, California, where his family moved when he was 12. Norris joined the Air Force after graduating from high school. During a stint in Korea, he began to study the Asian martial art of Tang Soo Do. After returning home, Norris worked for Northrop Aviation and moonlighted as a karate instructor. Two years later, he was teaching full-time and running a number of martial-arts schools. His students included Steve McQueen, Priscilla Presley, and the Osmonds. In 1968, Norris became the Professional World Middleweight Karate Champion. He held the title undefeated until he retired in 1974. He is a black belt in Tang Soo Do and Tae Kwan Do, both Korean fighting arts, and knows all forms of the martial arts. In 1969, he earned the Triple Crown for the highest number of tournament wins, and was named Fighter of the Year by Black Belt magazine. By the time he was 34, Norris had established 32 karate schools and had been a champion for six years. In 1996, he became the first Westerner to be awarded an eighth-degree black belt in Tae Kwan Do. Norris, who was urged to get into acting by his friend Steve McQueen, skillfully incorporates his martial-arts knowledge into his series and feature film projects, stressing action and technique over violence. He is the author of the books The Secret of Inner Strength and The Secret Power Within - Zen Solutions to Real Problems.. He works for many charities, including the Funds for Kids, Veterans Administration National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans, the United Way Make-a-Wish Foundation, and Kick Drugs Out of America, a nonprofit organization he created to help battle drugs and violence in schools. Norris recently completed production on the television movie The Hitman: Bound by Honor for broadcast on CBS. He lives on a ranch when not filming. His birthday is March 10.

Events

  • 10th March 1940 - Birth