“Actor Chuck Norris is celebrating his 80th birthday Tuesday.

“Born Carlos Ray Norris in 1940, he would get his nickname while serving in the Air Force as an 18-year-old.

“While stationed at the Osan Air Base in South Korea, he began studying martial arts. He left the service in 1962 and started working as a karate instructor. Norris was the first westerner ever to hold the rank of 8th-degree black belt in taekwondo.

“It was in 1972 when Norris got his big break in the martial arts film “The Way of the Dragon,” where he and Bruce Lee had their iconic fight scene in the Roman Colosseum.”

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