He was an actor, controversial gun activist and the main character of countless jokes: Carlos Norris, known as Chuck.
In a time when the Internet was still relatively innocent, everyone probably had their favorite Chuck Norris joke. “Chuck Norris doesn’t get wet. Water gets Chuck Norris,” one read. “It’s not Chuck Norris who is afraid of death, but death who is afraid of Chuck Norris,” another. Neither of them is true (anymore): Norris died on Friday at the age of 86 in Hawaii.
It is thanks to his image as an actor that he became the main character in countless jokes that exalted him. Norris, born Carlos Ray Norris Jr. on March 10, was a martial artist before switching to film. He had his breakthrough alongside kung fu superstar Bruce Lee in 1972 in “The Deathclaw Strikes Again”. Action was his main subject and he was invincible at it. This didn’t always seem believable, not even in the comparatively long-running television series “Walker. Texas Ranger”, which ran from 1993 to 2001. In it he played law enforcement officer Cordell Walker, a silent loner, patriotic and hard-hitting – many characters in his career were similar. He was linked to Walker by his ancestry; he was the son of an Indian and a white mother and fought for law and order and against racism. Norris’ parents were both half Cherokee, and he himself was politically close to the right. He was a staunch Republican, a supporter of the NRA gun lobby and Donald Trump. Norris was married twice and had five children.
Norris was never nominated for major film awards; his strength lay in the skillful use of his arms and legs and his expression, which remained stoic and serious, even in the most absurd situations. For example, when he emerges from the water standing upright with a pump gun ready to fire, like in the trashy film “Missing in Action 2: The Beginning”. But when he smiled, he smiled broadly.
Just as his career was waning around the turn of the millennium, he became omnipresent on the Internet. It was the first heyday of memes: the grumpy Grumpy Cat, the sweaty superhero who can’t decide between two red buttons, both of which lead to similar (mostly bad) options. And the muscular Chuck Norris, often in a wide-open, sleeveless blue denim shirt with two guns in his hand. In white capital letters there were sayings like “Chuck Norris died. But he’s doing better again.” It will live forever as an internet meme. (here)
