R.I.P. Chuck Norris, star of Walker, Texas Ranger and legendary martial artist
Chuck Norris, known worldwide as Cordell Walker in Walker, Texas Ranger and as a martial arts champion, has died. According to Variety, the actor was hospitalized on Thursday, March 19, in Hawaii after a medical emergency and passed away, his family shared in a heartfelt post on Friday, March 20.
Norris was born in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940. As the oldest of three, he joined the United States Air Force as an Air Policeman in 1958 before entering martial arts competitions around 1962. In 1967, Norris won a karate tournament and in June was declared champion at S. Henry Cho's All-American Karate Championship at Madison Square Garden.
In 1972, viewers saw Norris on the big screen as Bruce Lee's nemesis in the acclaimed martial arts movie Way of the Dragon. He began acting classes at MGM after his friend and martial arts client, Western star Steve McQueen, encouraged him. That same year, he played the supporting role of the main antagonist in Lo Wei's Yellow Faced Tiger.
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As an action film star, Norris appeared in movies such as A Force of One, playing world karate champion Matt Logan, The Octagon, An Eye for an Eye, and the lead in the action horror film Silent Rage, his first film released by a major studio, Columbia Pictures. He also starred in Forced Vengeance and more.
In 1993, he brought Cordell Walker to life in Walker, Texas Ranger. The series followed Walker and his partner, James Trivette, as Texas Rangers who made it their business to battle crime in Dallas and throughout the state of Texas. The action series ran for nine seasons.
Norris was 86.