Action icon and all-around legendary guy Chuck Norris is celebrating his 80th birthday today… Or maybe his birthday is celebrating him.
Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, the famous martial artist and film producer had a surprisingly melancholy childhood. His father was a drunk who would often put his family in financial crisis, causing Norris to exhibit introverted tendencies throughout his younger years – obviously a stark contrast from his action-packed career as a no-nonsense ass-kicker later in life. He picked up the nickname “Chuck” while serving in the United States Air Force where he began studying martial arts and soon started teaching karate. He eventually became the first ever westerner to earn the rank of 8th-degree black belt in taekwondo.
In 1972, Norris earned himself a long-term spot in Hollywood when he starred as Bruce Lee’s nemesis in The Way of the Dragon, which went on to be Hong...
Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, the famous martial artist and film producer had a surprisingly melancholy childhood. His father was a drunk who would often put his family in financial crisis, causing Norris to exhibit introverted tendencies throughout his younger years – obviously a stark contrast from his action-packed career as a no-nonsense ass-kicker later in life. He picked up the nickname “Chuck” while serving in the United States Air Force where he began studying martial arts and soon started teaching karate. He eventually became the first ever westerner to earn the rank of 8th-degree black belt in taekwondo.
In 1972, Norris earned himself a long-term spot in Hollywood when he starred as Bruce Lee’s nemesis in The Way of the Dragon, which went on to be Hong...
- 3/11/2020
- by Billy Givens
- We Got This Covered
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