13 best Chuck Norris jokes to celebrate the life of legendary martial artist and his cultural impact

TMZ reported on the morning of Friday, March 20, that Chuck Norris had passed away. This was confirmed by a statement from his family. He was 86 years old. 

Norris is one of the most iconic pop culture figures of all time. He is most known for his titular role as Walker, Texas Ranger, but he also reached critical acclaim as a talented martial artist. Norris starred alongside Bruce Lee in "The Way of the Dragon" in 1972. 

The martial-arts champion-turned-actor became a symbol of all things manly, and a lore grew around him, turning into memes in his honor, not at his expense. Norris had a cameo in "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story" in 2004 and then next popped up in "The Expendables 2" in 2012. Still, even with a seven-year gap, Norris' legend grew even further with these jokes and memes that kept him a household name.

Here is more on Norris, and the best jokes made in his honor. 

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Chuck Norris cause of death

Norris passed away at the age of 86 in Hawaii. His official cause of death is unknown. Norris was hospitalized suddenly in Hawaii on Thursday. There was a report that he had actually improved and even returned to training, but less than 24 hours later, his death was reported. 

Chuck Norris martial arts and acting career

Norris was born in 1940 in Oklahoma. When he was 18 years old, he joined the United States Air Force as an Air Policeman. Norris was stationed at Osan Air Base in South Korea. There, he began training in martial arts and went on to earn his black belt in Tang Soo Do. Norris was discharged from the Air Force in 1962 as an Airman first class. 

He fell in love with martial arts while in South Korea and opened a martial arts studio when he returned to the United States. Norris then began competing in martial arts tournaments. While competing, he met Lee and the two became not only friends, but training partners. Norris helped to train actors in martial arts in Hollywood and retained some minor roles in small films. 

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His breakout role in 1972 was alongside Lee in "Way of the Dragon." Norris continued training actors in Hollywood while continuing to appear in martial arts movies, often depicted as an American hero. 

He starred in the titular role of Walker, Texas Ranger in a long-running series from 1993 to 2001, spanning 196 episodes. After the culmination of the series, Norris largely stayed away from the small or big screen, outside of some fun cameos like his surprise appearance in "Dodgeball" or his role in "Expendables 2" and "Expendables 3." 

Why did Chuck Norris jokes become so popular?

Chuck Norris jokes are among the earliest memes to hit the internet. They were always humorous, combining dad jokes with Norris' persona, which he retained in his movies and TV show. They were hyperbolic and made him a larger-than-life figure, but were branded as "Chuck Norris facts," and were mainly things no human could actually do. The Chuck Norris persona developed into more of an idea and embodiment of all things manly and badass. Jokes about Norris resemble the same idea as Dos Equis' commercials around "the most interesting man in the world," but came out first. 

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Best Chuck Norris jokes

If you grew up in the 2000s, there is a good chance you had a favorite "Chuck Norris joke." Some of them are ludicrous, others are clever, but all of them are made in honor of Norris and the lore that has been built around him.

Here are the best Chuck Norris jokes. 

• Chuck Norris uses pepper spray to season his meat.
• Chuck Norris is able to slam a revolving door.
• Chuck Norris plays Jenga with Stonehenge. 
• When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris.
• The flu gets a Chuck Norris shot every year.
• Ghosts tell Chuck Norris stories at the campfire. 
• Chuck Norris made a Happy Meal cry.
• Chuck Norris can build a snowman out of rain. 
• Chuck Norris' calendar goes straight from March 31 to April 2nd. No one fools Chuck Norris.
• Chuck Norris can divide by zero.
• Chuck Norris has counted to infinity. Twice. 
• Voldemort refers to Chuck Norris as "You Know Who."
• On the 7th day, God rested. Then, Chuck Norris took over. 

Norris himself had a favorite Chuck Norris joke. He used it in his appearance in "Expendables 2."