Chuck Norris, the martial arts legend and star of Walker, Texas Ranger, discovered he had a secret daughter in 1991 after receiving a letter from a woman named Dina, who claimed to be his child from a brief affair during his first marriage.
Dina was born in 1964, but Norris remained unaware of her existence for 26 years. She learned the truth about her parentage at age 16, but her mother chose not to tell Norris, fearing it would disrupt his marriage. After Norris's marriage ended, Dina decided to make contact, writing to him with the support of her husband, Damien.
In his memoir Against All Odds: My Story, Norris recalled meeting Dina for the first time after his mother had met her. He wrote: 'I walked into the living room and nearly had my breath knocked out of me. There, standing before me, was a beautiful young lady.' He added that he did not need DNA tests, saying: 'There was no doubt in my mind that she was my daughter.'
Norris embraced Dina as his daughter, integrating her into his wider family. He wrote: 'I am blessed to have her as my daughter,' and stated that he believed 'there is no such thing as an “illegitimate child”.' Dina remains married to Damien and has three children, with Norris becoming a grandfather to them.
The revelation came after Norris separated from his first wife, Dianne Holechek, in 1988, after 30 years of marriage. He later married Gena O'Kelley in 1998, with whom he had twins, Dakota and Danilee, in 2001. Norris died at age 86 following a medical emergency in Hawaii.
