During this « Military Appreciation Month » of May, I’m often asked about my brother Wieland, who was killed in Vietnam on June 3, 1970. I’ve often shared about his heroic actions in war, but let me explain why he was also a fighter from the day he was born. When Weiland was born, on July 12,…
During this « Military Appreciation Month » of May, I’m often asked about my brother Wieland, who was killed in Vietnam on June 3, 1970. I’ve often shared about his heroic actions in war, but let me explain why he was also a fighter from the day he was born.
When Weiland was born, on July 12, 1943, our mom wanted to name him Jimmy, but alcoholic dad named him Wieland – unfortunately after his favorite beer. Mom was upset, but there was nothing she could do. His name was already on the birth certificate.
As boys, when Wieland and I got into fights, mom would make us sit down in chairs, across from each other. We’d be huffing and puffing, our cheeks red, our necks wet with perspiration, and mom would say, « Now sit there and look at each other, and don’t say a word until I tell you to move. »
Wieland and I would sit there and glare at each other. Before long one of us would start to giggle, and then we’d bust up laughing. In a matter of minutes, we couldn’t even remember what we had been fighting about.
Years later, when I was discharged from the Air Force and before I became world karate champion, I would supplement my income from Northrop Aircraft by teaching karate classes in my parents’ backyard. My first students were my brothers – Aaron, who was 9 years old, and Wieland, who was 19. Wieland was the outgoing Norris brother, and he excelled at everything he did.
Soon word began to spread around the neighborhood about the Norris brothers, three fair-haired boys doing karate. We started getting invitations from the Rotary Club and other civic organizations to put on martial arts demonstrations. Aaron was a cute kid, so we had a demonstration in which he threw us « big guys » around. Audiences loved it!
At the height of the Vietnam War, both of my brothers, Wieland and Aaron, enlisted in the U.S. Army. As a veteran myself, I understood their desire to serve, and I concurred with their decision to enlist.
