Scene 4: Rise to Fame


In 1968, Norris became Middleweight Karate Champion (non-contact), a title he held for seven consecutive years. In 1969, he won Karate's triple crown for the most tournament wins of the year, and the fighter of the year award by Black Belt magazine. It was also in 1969 that Norris made his acting debut, in the Dean Martin movie 'The Wrecking Crew'.


In 1970, his younger brother Weiland was killed in Vietnam. Norris later dedicated his 'Missing in Action' films to his brother's memory.


At a martial arts demonstration in Long Beach, Norris met the soon-to-be famous Bruce Lee. In 1972, he acted as Bruce Lee's nemesis in the movie 'Way of the Dragon', and in 1974, McQueen encouraged him to begin acting classes at the MGM Studio.


Norris' first starring role was 1977's 'Breaker, Breaker!', and subsequent films such as 'The Octagon' (1980), 'An Eye for an Eye' (1981), and 'Lone Wolf McQuade' proved his increasing box office bankability.


In 1984, Norris starred in 'Missing in Action', the first of a series of POW rescue fantasies produced by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus and released under their Cannon Films banner. Also in that year, he was offered the part of the sensei of the villain dojo in the movie 'The Karate Kid', but declined the part. He reportedly did not want to take part in depicting martial artists in an unfavorable light.


Over the next four years, Norris became Cannon's most prominent star, appearing in eight films, including 'Code of Silence', 'The Delta Force', and 'Firewalker', in which he co-starred with Academy Award winner Louis Gossett, Jr.


Scene 5: Walker, Texas Ranger


Chuck Norris as Texas Ranger Cordell Walker in Walker, Texas Ranger.


By the close of the 1980s, Cannon Films had faded from prominence, and Norris' star appeal seemed to go with it. He reprised his Delta Force role for MGM, who had acquired the Cannon library after the latter's Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Norris went on to make several more largely ignored films before making a transition to television. In 1993, he began shooting the series 'Walker, Texas Ranger', which lasted eight years on CBS and continued in heavy syndication on other channels.


On October 16th, 2005, CBS Premiered the Sunday night 'Movie of the Week' 'Walker Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire'. The production was a continuation of the series, and not scripted to be a reunion movie. Norris reprised his role as Cordell Walker for the movie. He has stated that future Walker Texas Ranger 'Movie of the Week' projects are expected.


Sources: Wikipedia
The Chuck Norris Official Website

Biogs.com
The Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Star Pulse