As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in hosting a few weekly live tweets on twitter and occasionally Mastodon. I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of Mastodon’s #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We snark our way through it.
Tonight, for #MondayActionMovie, the film will be 1991’s The Hitman!
It should make for a night of fun viewing and I invite all of you to join in. If you want to join the live tweets, just hop onto Mastodon, find the movie on YouTube and hit play at 8 pm et, and use the #MondayActionMovie hashtag! The watch party community is a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.
Hi, everyone! Tonight, on both twitter and Mastodon, I will be hosting a watch party in memory of the late Chick Norris! Join us for 1986’s The Delta Force!
You can find the movie on Tubi and then you can join us on twitter and mastodon at 9 pm central time! (That’s 10 pm for you folks on the East Coast.) We will be using #TheDeltaForce hashtag! See you then!
The Delta Force (1986, dir by Menahem Golan, DP: David Gurifinkel)
Chuck Norris was there for me at the very beginning. When I fell in love with action movies, it was primarily because of three men, first Charles Bronson, followed by Clint Eastwood and Chuck Norris. Back in the 80’s when I was too young to drive, I couldn’t just pull a movie up on my phone or TV anytime I wanted. I had to rely on certain TV channels, like Fox 16 out of Little Rock, and the occasional trip to the video store. Chuck Norris was a megastar on Fox 16 and on the shelves of the video store. Fox 16 would have movie weeks filled with movies like SILENT RAGE, LONE WOLF MCQUADE, MISSING IN ACTION, and CODE OF SILENCE. These movies are just a part of who I am, and Chuck Norris always came across as a fundamentally decent and courageous man on screen.
Chuck may not have been a critical darling, but he had a presence and charisma about him that drew me in from the very beginning. Even today, Norris has his own unique section in my massive collection of physical media. Up to this point, only the loss of my hero Charles Bronson back in 2003 has stirred up these same kinds of feelings that I’m feeling today. I remember when my son discovered the “Chuck Norris Facts” when he was about 10 years old or so. He loved them so much and would tell me his favorites constantly. It made me happy that my own son knew who Chuck Norris was, even if it was through extreme comedic myth making! I was so happy when Norris cameo’d in THE EXPENDABLES 2 and even told one of this Chuck Norris facts. We loved it and it’s definitely my favorite EXPENDABLES movie.
A little part of me is gone tonight knowing that Norris has passed away. From this point forward, anytime I think of Norris or watch his movies, it will be from a perspective that he’s know longer alive. But one of the great things about movies is that whenever I want to see a young, vibrant Norris, I just have to go to my movie shelves and I can be watching THE DELTA FORCE in a matter of moments. I had to learn how to deal with it for Charles Bronson. Now I’ll do the same with Chuck Norris.
I honestly never thought I’d write those words. Chuck Norris has passed away at the age of 86. Chuck inspired generation of martial artists. He won the respect of Bruce Lee. He choreographed some of the best fight scenes of the early 70s. He never claimed to be a great actor but he still starred in some of the most entertaining films ever made. He is survived by five children and 13 grandchildren. By all accounts, he was a genuinely good guy who took his position as a role model seriously. He will be missed. It’s hard to know what else to say right now so I’ll let Chuck do the talking:
As a teenager of the late 1980’s, I’ve always been a huge fan of Chuck Norris. And my favorite Chuck Norris movie has always been CODE OF SILENCE. My wife and I are celebrating the action star’s 86 birthday by watching the classic from director Andrew Davis! Norris was never better than he is here!
4 Shots From 4 Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!
Today, we celebrate the birthday of Chuck Norris. It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Chuck Norris Films
Silent Rage (1982, dir by Michael Miller, DP: Robert Jessup and Neil Roach)
Missing In Action (1984, dir by Joseph Zito, DP: João Fernandes)
The Delta Force (1986, dir by Menahem Golan, DP: David Gurifinkel)
Invasion USA (1985, dir by Joseph Zito, DP: João Fernandes)
Today, Chuck Norris celebrates his 86th birthday and it only feels appropriate that today’s scene that I love should come from one of his greatest films. From 1985’s Invasion U.S.A., watch as Chuck Norris saves America from Richard Lynch!
Through the Shattered Lens 