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38 Celebrities You Didn’t Know Were Veterans

at5:03 pm | By

They were proud to serve their country!

With 23.2 million military veterans in the United States, chances are there’s someone in your life that needs to be honored this Veteran’s Day. If not, here’s a list of celebrity Vets that you can thank for their services. You may already regard them as personal heroes, but this handful could also be considered war heroes:

Elvis and Nixon

Credit: National Archives

Check out our slideshow of military vet celebs!

38. Chuck Norris

Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Chuck Norris saw his first spinning heel kick while watching locals practice martial arts while in service for the United States Air Force in South Korea: “I was mesmerized by their incredible ability. I wanted to ask them what they were doing, but they looked very intense,” says Norris. “So I returned to the base and described what I had seen to my judo instructor, Master Ahn. He said it was called Tang Soo Do. I told him that I’d love to try it, since I couldn’t do judo with my injured shoulder.”

Before he left the country, he’d already gained his black belt in Tang Soo Do and brown belt in judo. Hee-YAH!

37. Hugh Hefner

Credit: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Playboy

Hugh Hefner published cartoons in various military newspapers as an infantry clerk–so it’s possible that Playboy actually got its’ first start in the armed forces.

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