Chuck Norris has passed away after being rushed to hospital in Hawaii following a “medical emergency”. The legendary actor and martial artist fell ill on the island of Kauai.

But while the star was known for his roles in several iconic movies, he was perhaps also very well known for making his mark in the meme hall of fame with social media users. Memes – a humorous image, video, piece of text etc that is spread rapidly on social media users – are often a good scale of fame for youngsters.

After his death, fans shared their favourites in tribute. Ian Spector was the man behind the Chuck Norris Facts meme where people would make up funny facts about the actor and martial artist.

The idea was born out of something similar that had been done about actor Vin Diesel. However, in part because of Chuck Norris’ appearance on the film Dodgeball, that had been released just a few months prior, the memes took off.

The hilarious jokes included: Chuck Norris doesn’t do push-ups, he pushes the Earth down; death once had a near-Chuck-Norris-experience; and Chuck Norris beat the sun in a staring contest.

Following the star’s death, a family statement said: “It is with heavy hearts that our family shares the sudden passing of our beloved Chuck Norris yesterday [Thursday] morning. Whilst we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace. He lived life with faith, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved.”

It’s understood he had been seen training on the island on Wednesday. According to TMZ, the star was in “good spirits” and had been “cracking jokes”. This information came from a friend who told the outlet he spoke to Chuck over the phone, though no further details have been provided at this stage.