Chuck Norris and 140 characters messages
Posted By RichC on March 12, 2009
This past week, folks on Twitter celebrated the birthday of popular actor, martial arts/fitness star and conservative political supporter Chuck Norris as he turned a very young 69 — Happy Birthday. (Chuck Norris search) In keeping with one of the curious trends started some years ago, fans began sharing the short “tough guy” jokes, or one liner quips, in a birthday recognition on the popular 2 year old social networking service through “tweets.” No doubt those using the Internet have run across at least one of the one liners like — “Chuck Norris doesn’t wear a watch, HE decides what time it is.” These quips were so popular that they even found their way into a Gov. Mike Huckabee’s campaign ad the Republican Presidential nomination last year, so was no surprise to see the 140 character short messages of Twitter begin relaying (and creating new) Chuck Norris facts in celebration of his birthday.
Elizabeth Holmes of the WSJ included a few in her article Chuck Norris is Your New Bicycle.
“Chuck Norris” became the No. 1 trend on search.twitter.com.
American Idol host Ryan Seacrest got in on the game as well, alerting his 73,000+ followers to Mr. Norris’s birthday and asking them to send in their favorites. Here’s a sampling of some of the birthday tweets that have responded to Mr. Seacrest’s call:
superman2789: @RyanSeacrest Chuck Norris doesn’t read, he just stares the book down til it gives up it’s information.
kaner_A: @RyanSeacrest Chuck Norris doesn’t wear a watch, he decides what time it is.
PingTech: @RyanSeacrest There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures Chuck Norris has allowed to live.
bbrearle: @RyanSeacrest Giraffes were created when Chuck Norris uppercutted a horse.
AHalbers: @RyanSeacrest Chuck Norris destroyed the periodic table, because he only recognizes the element of surprise.
Interesting anecdote: “Chuck Norris Facts originally started appearing on the Internet in early 2005. Conan O’Brien‘s Chuck Norris jokes on Late Night with Conan O’Brien (which generally center on Walker, Texas Ranger) have been seen as an inspiration for the fad.”
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