Just a few months after Chuck Norris’s younger brother, Wieland, was born, their father was drafted into WWII. In his memoir, “Against All Odds: My Story,” Norris recounted his family getting one of the worst messages imaginable: Ray Norris was MIA. When he ultimately returned to the family, his time in the war weighed heavily on him, and his alcohol addiction grew worse.

Norris recalled some harrowing incidents, writing about his father threatening his mother, trying to get her to give him the five dollars she’d put aside for food. “When he was drunk, little things often sent him into a rage. If he heard the water running while he was suffering from a hangover, he would explode in an abusive tirade, roaring threats and expletives … While Mom tried to calm him down, Wieland and I hid in the bedroom,” he wrote.

He reflected on the role models he had growing up, saying that they were the cowboys he saw on the big screen … on the days when he had an extra dime and could afford to go there, that is. Even as he lauded his mother for her strength, he also wrote about how trying it was to grow up with a father caught in a vicious cycle of drinking, abuse, and apologies never followed through on: “My father was a negative role model, the kinds of person I didn’t want to be, a bad example to be avoided.”

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).