Happy 70th Birthday Chuck Norris (And Chuck Norris’ Beard) w/ Trivia!

I know what you are thinking… Chuck Norrris doesn’t age! How can this be? Well, believe it or not, the demi-god that he is, Chuck Norris does in fact age.  And today, he turns 70-years-old.  Happy Birthday Chuck Norris!

In honor of Chuck Norris’ birthday, here is some trivia from tv.com —

• Late in 2007, Chuck commenced legal proceedings, suing book publisher Penguin over a book entitled Mythical Facts. Chuck claims the book exploits his name as it lists a number of ‘facts’ that have been circulating on the internet since 2005.
• Chuck Norris wrote a short story entitled The Purple Belt for the book Chicken Soup for the Kid’s Soul.
• In March 2007 Commandant Gen. James Conway made legendary martial-arts and action movie star Chuck Norris an “Honorary Marine” during dinner at the commandant’s residence in Washington, D.C. The honorary award was the first such given by Conway and was the result of a nominative process, said Col. Frank McKenzie, military secretary for Conway. The title of Honorary Marine “is not given lightly,” McKenzie said.
• The World Karate Union Hall of Fame bestowed the Golden Lifetime Achievement Award to Chuck Norris on July 1, 2000. The recipient of this award is recognized for their selfless humanitarian work and displayed distinction in the world of martial arts.
• Chuck Norris is supporting former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee for the Republican Presidential Nomination in 2008. Chuck has previously been seen on the campaign trails for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott and Texas Lieutenent Governor David Dewhurst in 2006.
• Chuck endorsed Texas Governor Rick Perry in his bid for re-election in 2006.
• Chuck has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
• In 1975, Chuck was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as Instructor of the Year.
• Chuck Norris was once named Jewish Humanitarian Man of the Year.
• Chuck wrote his autobiography titled The Secret of Inner Strengh in 1988. It became a New York Times Best Seller. A few years later he published his second book The Secret Power Within: Zen Solutions to Real Problems.
• In 1991, Chuck with his team and sponsor Popeye Chicken won the World Off Shore Powerboat Championships. Chuck went on to set a new world record by racing a 38 foot Scarab boat 605 miles across the Great Lakes from Chicago to Detroit. It took him 12 hours and 8 minutes.
• Chuck Norris was once an offshore powerboat racer with speeds of 140 miles per hour.
• Chuck Norris received the honor of Man of the Year in 1977.
• In 1968, Chuck Norris was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as Fighter of the Year.
• Before becoming an actor, Chuck Norris also taught the martial arts.
• In the early 70’s, Chuck co-starred in The movie Way of the Dragon (which was renamed in the U.S. Return of the Dragon). This movie starred the late great Bruce Lee.
• Both on Chuck’s brothers, Weiland and Aaron, served in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War, but Weiland was killed in action.
• Chuck and his wife Gena were guest hosts on TBN’s Praise the Lord on May 3, 2006.
• On December 12, 2000, Chuck received the “Veteran of the Year 2001” honor at the 6th Annual ‘American Veteran Awards’.
• He was a student of Bruce Lee.
• He is the son of Ray and Wilma Norris.
• Chuck campaigned for George Bush in the 1988 U.S. elections.
• In the video game magazine Nintendo Power, the volume 203 ‘Pulse’ section features 11 humorous references to Chuck Norris, which were all stated in numerous letters and responses from Nintendo Power writers and the magazine’s subscribers. One article features a photograph of a Chuck Norris look-alike “…about to break a man in half with his bare hands.”
• He had a cameo role in the movie Dodgeball as a judge at a dodgeball tournament.
• Norris appeared as himself on an episode of Yes, Dear, where he shadows one of the main characters (Jimmy) to understand the life of a security guard.
• Norris served as a guest referee at the WWF’s Survivor Series 1994 for the casket match between ‘The Undertaker’ and the late ‘Yokozuna’. A similar match had taken place at Royal Rumble 1994 where ten other wrestlers beat down ‘The Undertaker’. Norris was called upon to ensure a similar situation didn’t take place. As guest referee, he kicked then-WWF star Jeff Jarrett square in the stomach.
• He was discharged from the U.S.A.F. in August of 1962.
• It was in Korea that Carlos got the nickname ‘Chuck’.
• He has two brothers: Wieland and Aaron Norris.
• He was executive producer of Walker, Texas Ranger for most of the series.
• He is 5′ 10″ tall.
• He changed his name from Carlos to Chuck, but his close friends and his family still call him Carlos.
• Chuck’s real name is Carlos Ray Norris.
• Chuck Norris is a born-again Christian and he has spoken out in favor of getting bible classes taught as an elective in public schools.
• Chuck Norris began his acting career in 1969, when he appeared in the movie entitled The Wrecking Crew.
• In 1958, Chuck Norris joined the United States Air Force and he served as a military policeman while stationed in South Korea.
• Chuck Norris is an avid golfer and he has participated in several celebrity golf events throughout his lifetime.
• Chuck Norris has trained many celebrities in the martial arts, including The Price is Right host Bob Barker.
• Chuck Norris has appeared in several infomercials throughout his career. The most recent was the infomercial for Total Gym Fitness.
• In 2005, Chuck Norris founded the World Combat League, a full contact, team-based martial arts competition.
• Chuck Norris has recently been the subject of an Internet phenomenon, in which many individuals have created false facts about Chuck Norris that typically describe his character. Chuck Norris has seen these facts and he has expressed that he had found some of them funny, though he believes some of them go too far.
• Chuck has a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under the Machado Brothers.
• Chuck is the founder of the National Tang-Soo-Do Congress (NTC) and the United Fighting Arts Federation (UFAF).
• Chuck founded two of his own martial arts: Chun Kuk Do (“the Universal Way”) and American Tang Soo Do.
• Chuck has a set of twins, Dakota Alan (boy) and Danilee Kelly (girl), with Gena O’Kelley, born on 30 August 2001.
• After his first marriage ended in divorce, Chuck Norris married his second wife, Gena O’Kelley, on November 28th, 1998.
• His fight record at retirement was 65 wins and 5 losses.
• Chuck retired from fighting as the undefeated Professional Full-Contact Middleweight Champion on January 17, 1970.
• Chuck has a Black Belt in Tang Soo Do and Eighth-degree Black Belt in Tae Kwan Do (the first westerner to receive such an award).
• In 1997, he became the first man ever in the Western Hemisphere to be awarded an 8th degree Black Belt Grand Master recognition in the Tae Kwon Do system. This was a first in 4,500 years of tradition.
• Chuck Norris has an autobiography entitled Against All Odds: My Story, which was released in September 2004. He was also involved in editing the final version of The Justice Riders, a novel which was released in early 2006.

Post your favorite Chuck Norris Joke in the comments below!