Volkswacht Bodensee - Chuck Norris, roundhouse-kicking action star, dead at 86

Norris died Thursday morning, the family said on Instagram, after media reports that he had been hospitalized for an undisclosed condition while on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.

"To the world, he was a martial artist, actor, and a symbol of strength," the statement read. "To us, he was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather, an incredible brother, and the heart of our family."

The family said it wanted to keep the details of Norris's passing private, adding that "please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace."

Tributes quickly began pouring in.

"All of Texas mourns the passing of Chuck Norris. He was not only a martial arts champion, action icon, and the one and only Walker, Texas Ranger," said Texas Governor Greg Abbott.

"My heart and prayers are with his family. He will never be forgotten," said fellow action movie star Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Norris could be outspoken about his conservative political views, and President Donald Trump hailed him Friday as a "great supporter."

"He was a really good, tough cookie. You didn't want to fight him," Trump, who has cultivated deep connections with mixed martial arts and its fan base, told reporters at the White House.

- Big screen icon -

Born in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940, Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris took up martial arts while serving in the US Air Force in South Korea.

He left the military in 1962 and set up a martial arts studio in Los Angeles, finding his calling in teaching and delivering roundhouse kicks.

His acting debut came with a cameo in a 1968 Dean Martin film, "The Wrecking Crew." Four years later, his epic fight with the kung-fu superstar Bruce Lee in "The Way of The Dragon" helped turn Norris into an icon on big and small screen alike.

A slew of leading roles in karate films followed, from a US commando in "Good Guys Wear Black," an all-American riposte to a slew of Hong Kong action flicks harnessing Lee's fame, to the action horror feature "Silent Rage."

As his acting career grew, he became a legendary martial arts figure, winning six world professional middleweight karate championships from 1968 to 1974 and earning black belts in multiple disciplines.

- Norris v Superman -

In 1983, Norris slipped into the role of a taciturn Texas ranger waging war against an arms dealer in "Lone Wolf McQuade," which provided the template for the cult TV series "Walker, Texas Ranger."

The show ran for eight seasons and spawned countless action-man jokes and memes, one being that Norris and Superman had a fight, with the loser (Superman) forced to wear their underpants on the outside.

The success of the bearded, ass-kicking Ranger marked a stunning reversal of fortune for Norris, who grew up a shy, unathletic child who "used to daydream about being strong... to beat up the bullies."

By midday Friday fans had begun placing flowers at Norris's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles.

"We grew up on Chuck Norris because he was more like a father figure to us," 59-year-old Los Angeles resident Mike Ravizza told AFP on Hollywood Boulevard.

"He'll tell you what's wrong, what's right, what not to do, what to do -- and he will fight everybody."

An evangelical Christian, Norris was born into a family of three boys raised mainly by their Irish mother after her divorce from their alcoholic father.

He had two sons from his first marriage to his high school sweetheart Dianne Holechek, which lasted 30 years, and a son and a daughter with his second wife, Gena O'Kelley.

Norris also had a daughter from an affair during his first marriage.

A dyed-in-the-wool Republican, he urged his compatriots to vote out Barack Obama in 2012. A year later, he offered his bare-chested support to Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu in a video.

On Friday, Netanyahu called Norris "a great friend of Israel and a close personal friend."

In 2017, Norris recovered from two cardiac arrests. He was mired in controversy two years later by becoming the public face of the arms company Glock, despite an epidemic of gun violence in the United States.

C.Stoecklin--VB