{"id":213138,"date":"2026-03-20T17:00:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T17:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/213138\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T17:00:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T17:00:19","slug":"chuck-norris-walker-texas-ranger-star-and-martial-artist-dies-at-86","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/213138\/","title":{"rendered":"Chuck Norris, ‘Walker, Texas Ranger’ star and martial artist, dies at 86"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chuck Norris, longtime actor and martial artist, has died, his family said in a statement Friday. He was 86.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is with heavy hearts that our family shares the sudden passing of our beloved Chuck Norris yesterday morning,\u201d the family said. \u201cWhile we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norris was hospitalized in Hawaii earlier this week after an undisclosed medical emergency, according to TMZ<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo 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,\u201d the family said. \u201cHe lived his life with faith, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved. Through his work, discipline, and kindness, he inspired millions around the world and left a lasting impact on so many lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chuck<\/p>\n

Chuck Norris practices martial arts with his trainer in 1978.<\/p>\n

(Nik Wheeler\/Corbis via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

The family added: \u201cWhile our hearts are broken, we are deeply grateful for the life he lived and for the unforgettable moments we were blessed to share with him. The love and support he received from fans around the world meant so much to him, and our family is truly thankful for it. To him, you were not just fans, you were his friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norris, who turned 86 on March 10, posted an Instagram video on his birthday showing him sparring with a trainer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t age. I level up,\u201d he wrote in a caption. \u201cI\u2019m 86 today! Nothing like some playful action on a sunny day to make you feel young. I\u2019m grateful for another year, good health, and the chance to keep doing what I love. Thank you all for being the best fans in the world. Your support through the years has meant more to me than you\u2019ll ever know.\u201d<\/p>\n

Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Okla., in 1940, he moved to Torrance, Calif., with his family when he was 12. Norris joined joined the U.S. Air Force after high school, in 1958, and learned martial arts while serving in South Korea.<\/p>\n

After returning to the United States, Norris competed in martial arts competitions (he was a six-time World Professional Middleweight Karate champion) and opened his own studio, training celebrity clients including Steve McQueen.<\/p>\n

Over the years, he developed his own style of karate<\/a>, known as Chun Kuk Do or the Chuck Norris System.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck<\/p>\n

Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee in “The Way of the Dragon.”<\/p>\n

(Screen Archives\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Norris got his first big break in Hollywood in 1972, appearing opposite Bruce Lee in Way of the Dragon.<\/p>\n

He went on to star in a steady stream martial arts movies and action films<\/a>, including Breaker! Breaker! (1977), Good Guys Wear Black (1978), A Force of One (1979), The Octagon (1980), An Eye for an Eye (1981), Silent Rage (1982) and Missing in Action (1984), Missing in Action 2 (1985), The Delta Force (1986) and Firewalker (1986).<\/p>\n

Also read: Chuck Norris: 5 of the greatest fight scenes from his legendary career<\/a><\/p>\n

His television career took off in 1993 with the debut of Walker, Texas Ranger. The show ran for eight full seasons on CBS.<\/p>\n

Norris continued making films during and after TV success. The last mainstream movie he appeared in was The Expendables 2, in 2012. Norris starred in Agent Recon, a 2024 sci-fi action film, and he\u2019s due to appear in Zombie Plane alongside Vanilla Ice.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck<\/p>\n

Chuck Norris in “Hero And The Terror” in 1988.<\/p>\n

(Cannon\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

He appeared with Christie Brinkley in a long-running series of cable TV infomercials promoting fitness equipment.<\/p>\n

In the mid-2000s, Norris and his action hero image gained internet fame when when people began posting “Chuck Norris Facts” online (\u201cThey wanted to put Chuck Norris on Mt. Rushmore, but the granite wasn\u2019t tough enough for his beard\u201d). Norris himself embraced the meme and even authored a book<\/a> collecting the absurd facts.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo some who know little of my martial arts or film careers but perhaps grew up with \u2018Walker, Texas Ranger,\u2019 it seems that I have become a somewhat mythical superhero icon,\u201d Norris wrote in the forward. \u201cI am flattered and humbled.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chuck<\/p>\n

Chuck Norris and Gena O’Kelley in 2009.<\/p>\n

(Vince Bucci\/WireImage via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Norris had five children: two from his with first wife, Dianne Holechek, who he was married to from 1958 to 1989; twins with his wife, Gena Kelley, who he had been married to since 1998; and one from an extramarital relationship in the early 1960s, which he revealed in a 2004 memoir. He also had more than a dozen grandchildren.<\/p>\n

This is a breaking news story. Refresh this page for updates.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chuck Norris, longtime actor and martial artist, has died, his family said in a statement Friday. He was…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":213139,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[83434,83365,21087,83433,27,29,28],"class_list":["post-213138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-carlos-ray-norris","tag-chuck-norris","tag-getty-images","tag-martial-artist","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=213138"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213138\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/213139"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=213138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=213138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=213138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}