‘Missing in Action’ Chuck Norris dies at 86

Chuck Norris, the martial arts grandmaster whose tough-guy movie persona spawned one of the internet’s first and most enduring memes, died Thursday at age 86 following a medical emergency in Hawaii.

His family announced his death Friday morning in an Instagram statement, describing the passing as “sudden” while noting that Norris “was surrounded by his family and was at peace.”

“To the world, he was a martial artist, actor and a symbol of strength. To us, he was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather, an incredible brother and the heart of our family,” the family wrote.

Norris had been hospitalized earlier this week on the island of Kauaʻi after an unspecified medical emergency.

Just over a week before his death, he celebrated his 86th birthday by posting a sparring video on Instagram with the message: “I don’t age. I level up.”

Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940, he grew up poor and moved with his family to California at age 12. After graduating high school, he joined the U.S. Air Force in 1958, serving as an Air Policeman.

It was during a deployment to Osan Air Base in South Korea that Norris began his martial arts journey, training in Tang Soo Do and judo.

“I was never really athletic until I was in the service in Korea,” he told The Associated Press in 1982.

After his honorable discharge in 1962, Norris opened a chain of karate schools that attracted celebrity students including Steve McQueen, Bob Barker, Priscilla Presley, and Donny and Marie Osmond . McQueen later encouraged him to pursue acting.

Norris’s competitive record was formidable: he became a six-time undefeated World Professional Middleweight Karate champion. Black Belt magazine ultimately credited him with holding a 10th degree black belt, the highest possible honour. He also founded his own martial arts discipline, Chun Kuk Do (“The Universal Way”), and established the United Fighting Arts Federation, which has awarded more than 3,300 black belts worldwide.

Norris made his film debut in the 1968 Dean Martin vehicle “The Wrecking Crew,” but his breakthrough came in 1972 when he faced Bruce Lee in the iconic Colosseum fight scene in “Way of the Dragon” (released as “Return of the Dragon” in the U.S.).

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Norris became a reliable action star with films including “Good Guys Wear Black” (1978), “The Octagon” (1980), “Lone Wolf McQuade” (1983), and “Missing in Action” (1984)-the first of three films in that series dedicated to his younger brother Wieland, who was killed serving in Vietnam.

“I wanted to project a certain image on the screen of a hero. I had seen a lot of anti-hero movies in which the lead was neither good nor bad. There was no one to root for,” Norris said in 1982.

His most recognizable role came in 1993 when he starred as Cordell Walker in CBS’s “Walker, Texas Ranger.” The series ran for nine seasons, and in 2010, then-Gov. Rick Perry awarded him the title of honorary Texas Ranger.

In the mid-2000s, Norris experienced an unexpected cultural resurgence when “Chuck Norris Facts” became one of the internet’s first viral phenomena. The memes featured absurd, hyperbolic claims about his toughness: “Chuck Norris had a staring contest with the sun and won”; “They wanted to put Chuck Norris on Mt. Rushmore, but the granite wasn’t tough enough for his beard.”

The phenomenon traces its roots to Conan O’Brien’s “Walker, Texas Ranger lever” sketches on “Late Night” in 2004, followed by a Something Awful forum thread that evolved from Vin Diesel facts to Chuck Norris facts. Ian Spector, a teenager at the time, created a “Chuck Norris Fact Generator” that helped spread the jokes across the web.

Unlike many celebrities who might have bristled at being turned into a punchline, Norris embraced the meme. He co-wrote “The Official Chuck Norris Fact Book,” which raised money for a youth martial arts nonprofit he founded with President George H.W. Bush.

Norris continued acting sporadically in his later years, appearing in “The Expendables 2” (2012), a 2020 episode of “Hawaii Five-0,” and the 2024 sci-fi action film “Agent Recon.”

He was outspoken about his Christian faith and conservative on political views, endorsing Mike Huckabee in the 2008 Republican primary and Donald Trump in the 2016 general election.

Norris received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1989.

He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Gena O’Kelley; five children-Mike, Eric, Dina, Dakota, and Danilee; and several grandchildren.