Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian American bodybuilder, actor, model, businessman, and politician, currently serving as the 38th Governor of California.Schwarzenegger was born in Thal, Austria, a small village bordering the Styrian capital Graz, and was christened Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger. His parents were the local police chief Gustav Schwarzenegger (1907–1972), and his wife, Aurelia Jadrny (1922–1998). His father served in World War II with the German Army as a Hauptfeldwebel of the Feldgendarmerie and was discharged in 1943 after contracting malaria. They were married on October 20, 1945 – Gustav was 38, and Aurelia was a 23-year-old widow with a son named Meinhard. According to Schwarzenegger, both of his parents were very strict: "Back then in Austria it was a very different world, if we did something bad or we disobeyed our parents, the rod was not spared." He grew up in a Roman Catholic family who attended church service every Sunday.
Gustav had a preference for Meinhard, the elder of the two sons. His favoritism was "strong and blatant," which stemmed from unfounded suspicion that Arnold was not his child. Schwarzenegger has said his father had "no patience for listening or understanding your problems… there was a wall; a real wall." Schwarzenegger had a good relationship with his mother, and kept in touch with her until her death. In later life, Schwarzenegger commissioned the Simon Wiesenthal Center to research his father's wartime record, which came up with no evidence of atrocities despite Gustav's membership in the Nazi Party and SA. At school, Schwarzenegger was apparently in the middle, but stood out for his "cheerful, good-humored and exuberant" character. Money was a problem in the household; Schwarzenegger has recalled that one of the highlights of his youth was when the family bought a refrigerator.
As a boy, Schwarzenegger played many sports—heavily influenced by his father He picked up his first barbell in 1960, when his football coach took his team to a local gym. At the age of fourteen, Schwarzenegger chose bodybuilding over football (soccer) as a career. Schwarzenegger has responded to a question asking if he was age thirteen when he started weightlifting: "I actually started weight training when I was fifteen, but I'd been participating in sports, like soccer, for years, so I felt that although I was slim, I was well-developed, at least enough so that I could start going to the gym and start Olympic lifting." However, his official website biography claims: "At 14, he started an intensive training program with Dan Farmer, studied psychology at 15 (to learn more about the power of mind over body) and at 17, officially started his competitive career." During a speech in 2001, he said, "My own plan formed when I was 14 years old. My father had wanted me to be a police officer like he was. My mother wanted me to go to trade school." Schwarzenegger took to visiting a gym in Graz, where he also frequented the local movie theaters to see bodybuilding idols such as Reg Park, Steve Reeves and Johnny Weissmuller on the big screen. "I was inspired by individuals like Reg Park and Steve Reeves." When Reeves died in 2000, Schwarzenegger fondly remembered him: "As a teenager, I grew up with Steve Reeves. His remarkable accomplishments allowed me a sense of what was possible, when others around me didn't always understand my dreams ... Steve Reeves has been part of everything I've ever been fortunate enough to achieve."[11] In 1961, Schwarzenegger met former Mr. Austria Kurt Marnul, who invited him to train at the gym in Graz.[1] He was so dedicated as a youngster that he was known to break into the local gym on weekends, when it was usually closed, so that he could train. "It would make me sick to miss a workout … I knew I couldn't look at myself in the mirror the next morning if I didn't do it."[2] When Schwarzenegger was asked about his first movie experience as a boy, he replied, "I was very young, but I remember my father taking me to the Austrian theaters and seeing some newsreels. The first real movie I saw, that I distinctly remember, was a John Wayne movie."
In 1971, his brother Meinhard died in a car accident. Meinhard had been drinking and was killed instantly, and Schwarzenegger did not attend his funeral.[5] Meinhard was due to marry Erika Knapp, and the couple shared a three-year-old son Patrick. Schwarzenegger would pay for Patrick's education and help him to immigrate to the United States.[5] Gustav died the following year from a stroke.[1] In Pumping Iron, Schwarzenegger claimed that he did not attend his father's funeral because he was training for a bodybuilding contest. Later, he and the film's producer both said this story was taken from another bodybuilder for the purpose of showing the extremes that some would go to for their sport, and to make Schwarzenegger's image more cold and machine-like in order to fan controversy for the film. Barbara Baker, his first serious girlfriend, has said he informed her of his father's death without emotion and that he never spoke of his brother. Over time, he has given at least three versions of why he did not attend his father's funeral.
In an interview with Fortune magazine in 2004, Schwarzenegger told how he suffered what "would now be called child abuse" at the hands of his father:
My hair was pulled. I was hit with belts. So was the kid next door. It was just the way it was. Many of the children I've seen were broken by their parents, which was the German-Austrian mentality. They didn't want to create an individual. It was all about conforming. I was one who did not conform, and whose will could not be broken. Therefore, I became a rebel. Every time I got hit, and every time someone said, 'you can't do this,' I said, 'this is not going to be for much longer, because I'm going to move out of here. I want to be rich. I want to be somebody.'
Schwarzenegger served in the Austrian army in 1965 to fulfill the one year of service required at the time of all 18-year-old Austrian males. He won the Junior Mr. Europe contest in 1965. Schwarzenegger went AWOL during basic training so he could take part in the competition and spent a week in an army jail: "Participating in the competition meant so much to me that I didn't carefully think through the consequences." He won another bodybuilding contest in Graz, at Steirer Hof Hotel (where he had placed second). He was voted best built man of Europe, which made him famous.
"The Mr. Universe title was my ticket to America – the land of opportunity, where I could become a star and get rich." Schwarzenegger made his first plane trip in 1966, attending the NABBA Mr. Universe competition in London.[9] He would come in second in the Mr. Universe competition, not having the muscle definition of American winner Chester Yorton.
Charles "Wag" Bennett, one of the judges at the 1966 competition, was impressed with Schwarzenegger and offered to coach him. As Schwarzenegger had little money, Bennett invited him to stay in his crowded family home above one of his two gyms in Forest Gate, London, England. Yorton's leg definition had been judged superior, and Schwarzenegger, under a training program devised by Bennett, concentrated on improving the muscle definition and power in his legs. Staying in the East End of London helped Schwarzenegger improve his rudimentary grasp of the English language. Also in 1966, Schwarzenegger had the opportunity to meet childhood idol Reg Park, who became his friend and mentor. The training paid off and, in 1967, Schwarzenegger won the title for the first time, becoming the youngest ever Mr. Universe at the age of 20. He would go on to win the title a further three times. Schwarzenegger then flew back to Munich, training for four to six hours daily, attending business school and working in a health club (Rolf Putzinger's gym where he worked and trained from 1966–1968), returning in 1968 to London to win his next Mr. Universe title. He frequently told Roger C. Field, a friend in Munich at that time, "I'm going to become the greatest actor!"Schwarzenegger moved to the United States in September 1968 at the age of 21, speaking little English. "Naturally, when I came to this country, my accent was very bad, and my accent was also very strong, which was an obstacle as I began to pursue acting. There he trained at Gold's Gym in Santa Monica, California, under Joe Weider. From 1970 to 1974, one of Schwarzenegger's weight training partners was Ric Drasin, a professional wrestler who designed the original Gold's Gym logo in 1973. Schwarzenegger also became good friends with professional wrestler "Superstar" Billy Graham. In 1970, at age 23, he captured his first Mr. Olympia title in New York, and would go on to win the title a total of seven times.
Schwarzenegger may have been an illegal immigrant at some point in the late 1960s or early 1970s because of violations in the terms of his visa.
In 1969, Schwarzenegger met Barbara Outland Baker, an English teacher he lived with until 1974. Schwarzenegger talked about Barbara in his memoir in 1977: "Basically it came down to this: she was a well-balanced woman who wanted an ordinary, solid life, and I was not a well-balanced man, and hated the very idea of ordinary life." Baker has described Schwarzenegger as joyful personality, totally charismatic, adventurous, and athletic" but claims towards the end of the relationship he became "insufferable – classically conceited – the world revolved around him". Baker published her memoir in 2006, entitled Arnold and Me: In the Shadow of the Austrian Oak. Although Baker, at times, painted an unflattering portrait of her former lover, Schwarzenegger actually contributed to the tell-all book with a foreword, and also met with Baker for three hours. Baker claims, for example, that she only learned of his being unfaithful after they split, and talks of a turbulent and passionate love life Schwarzenegger has made it clear that their respective recollection of events can differ. The couple first met six to eight months after his arrival in the U.S. – their first date was watching the first Apollo Moon landing on television. They shared an apartment in Santa Monica for three and a half years, and having little money, would visit the beach all day, or have barbecues in the back yard. Although Baker claims that when she first met him, he had "little understanding of polite society" and she found him a turn-off, she says, "He's as much a self-made man as it's possible to be – he never got encouragement from his parents, his family, his brother. He just had this huge determination to prove himself, and that was very attractive ... I'll go to my grave knowing Arnold loved me."
Schwarzenegger met his next love, Sue Moray, a Beverly Hills hairdresser's assistant, on Venice Beach in July 1977. According to Moray, the couple led an open relationship: "We were faithful when we were both in LA ... but when he was out of town, we were free to do whatever we wanted." Schwarzenegger met Maria Shriver at the Robert F. Kennedy Tennis Tournament in August 1977, and went on to have a relationship with both women until August 1978, when Moray (who knew of his relationship with Shriver) issued an ultimatum.
Schwarzenegger has said his big dream from the age of 10 was to move to the U.S. He questioned what he was doing "on the farm" in Austria, and believed bodybuilding was his "ticket to America": "I'm sure I can go to America if I win Mr. Universe." LA Weekly said in 2002 that Schwarzenegger is the most famous immigrant in America, who "overcame a thick Austrian accent and transcended the unlikely background of bodybuilding to become the biggest movie star in the world in the 1990s".Schwarzenegger is considered among the most important figures in the history of bodybuilding, and his legacy is commemorated in the Arnold Classic annual bodybuilding competition. Schwarzenegger has remained a prominent face in the bodybuilding sport long after his retirement, in part because of his ownership of gyms and fitness magazines. He has presided over numerous contests and awards shows.
For many years, he wrote a monthly column for the bodybuilding magazines Muscle & Fitness and Flex. Shortly after being elected Governor, he was appointed executive editor of both magazines, in a largely symbolic capacity. The magazines agreed to donate $250,000 a year to the Governor's various physical fitness initiatives. The magazine MuscleMag International has a monthly two-page article on him, and refers to him as "The King".
One of the first competitions he won was the Junior Mr. Europe contest in 1965. He won Mr. Europe the following year, at age 19. He would go on to compete in and win many bodybuilding contests, as well as some powerlifting contests, including five Mr. Universe (4 – NABBA [England], 1 – IFBB [USA]) wins, and seven Mr. Olympia wins, a record which would stand until Lee Haney won his eighth consecutive Mr. Olympia title in 1991.
Competition Weight: 240 lbs (top 250 lbs)
Off Season Weight: 260 lbsSchwarzenegger's goal was to become the greatest bodybuilder in the world, which meant becoming Mr. Olympia. His first attempt was in 1969, when he lost to three-time champion Sergio Oliva. However, Schwarzenegger came back in 1970 and won the competition, making him the youngest ever Mr. Olympia at the age of 23, a record he holds to this day.
He continued his winning streak in the 1971–1974 competitions. In 1975, Schwarzenegger was once again in top form, and won the title for the sixth consecutive time,[9] beating Franco Columbu. After the 1975 Mr. Olympia contest, Schwarzenegger announced his retirement from professional bodybuilding.
Months before the 1975 Mr. Olympia contest, filmmakers George Butler and Robert Fiore persuaded Schwarzenegger to compete, in order to film his training in the bodybuilding documentary called Pumping Iron. Schwarzenegger had only three months to prepare for the competition, after losing significant weight to appear in the film Stay Hungry with Jeff Bridges. Lou Ferrigno proved not to be a threat, and a lighter-than-usual Schwarzenegger convincingly won the 1975 Mr. Olympia.
Schwarzenegger came out of retirement, however, to compete in the 1980 Mr. Olympia. Schwarzenegger was training for his role in Conan, and he got into such good shape because of the running, horseback riding and sword training, that he decided he wanted to win the Mr. Olympia contest one last time. He kept this plan a secret, in the event that a training accident would prevent his entry and cause him to lose face. Schwarzenegger had been hired to provide color commentary for network television, when he announced at the eleventh hour that while he was there: "Why not compete?" Schwarzenegger ended up winning the event with only seven weeks of preparation. After being declared Mr. Olympia for a seventh time, Schwarzenegger officially retired from competition.In 1977, Schwarzenegger's autobiography/weight-training guide Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder was published and became a huge success.[1] After taking English classes at Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, he earned a B.A. by correspondence from the University of Wisconsin–Superior, where he graduated Business and International Economics, in 1979.[1]
On April 26, 1986, Schwarzenegger married television journalist Maria Shriver, niece of the past President of the United States John F. Kennedy, in Hyannis, Massachusetts. The Rev. John Baptist Riordan performed the ceremony at St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church.[59] They have four children: Katherine Eunice Shriver Schwarzenegger[60] (born December 13, 1989 in Los Angeles); Christina Maria Aurelia Schwarzenegger (born July 23, 1991 in Los Angeles);[61] Patrick Arnold Schwarzenegger (born September 18, 1993 in Los Angeles);[62] and Christopher Sargent Shriver Schwarzenegger (born September 27, 1997 in Los Angeles).[63]
Schwarzenegger and his family currently live in their 11,000-square-foot (1 022 m²) home in Brentwood.[64][65] They used to own a home in the Pacific Palisades.[66] The family owns vacation homes in Sun Valley, Idaho and Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.[67] Schwarzenegger does not have a home in Sacramento. However, whenever he is in the state capital, he lives in a Hyatt Regency hotel suite. The suite costs about $65,000 a year.[68]
On Sundays, the family attends Mass at St. Monica's Catholic Church.[69]
Schwarzenegger has said he believes the secret of a good marriage is love and respect.[2] "If you have the ultimate love for your wife and she has it for you, I think you have a great head start … That's not to say it won't be difficult sometimes. You go through your ups and downs but you work through it."[2] Schwarzenegger has talked about parenthood in 2000: "One of the best things you can do with your children is play with them. At the same time, I act very silly. Many times I do a lot of sports with them. I play games with them. Act out parts. We do little plays, sometimes."[2]
His official height of 6'2" (188 cm)[9][70][71] has been brought into question by several articles. In his bodybuilding days in the late 1960s, he was measured to be 6'1.5", a height confirmed by his fellow bodybuilders.[72][73] However, in 1988 both the Daily Mail and Time Out magazine mentioned that Schwarzenegger appeared noticeably shorter.[74] More recently, before running for Governor, Schwarzenegger's height was once again questioned in an article by the Chicago Reader.[75] As Governor, Schwarzenegger engaged in a light-hearted exchange with Assemblyman Herb Wesson over their heights. At one point Wesson made an unsuccessful attempt to, in his own words, "[s]ettle this once and for all and find out how tall he is".[76] by using a tailor's tape measure on the Governor. Schwarzenegger retaliated by placing a pillow stitched with the words "Need a lift?" on the five-foot-five inch (165 cm) Wesson's chair before a negotiating session in his office.[77] Bob Mulholland also claimed Arnold was 5'10" and that he wore risers in his boots.[78] The debate on Schwarzenegger's height has spawned a website solely dedicated to the issue,[79] and his page remains one of the most active on CelebHeights.com, a website which discusses the heights of celebrities.[72]
In 2005, Peter Pilz, from the Austrian Green Party, demanded that parliament revoke Schwarzenegger's Austrian citizenship. This demand was based on Article 33 of the Austrian Citizenship Act that states: A citizen, who is in the public service of a foreign country, shall be deprived of his citizenship, if he heavily damages the reputation or the interests of the Austrian Republic.[49] Pilz claimed that Schwarzenegger's actions in support of the death penalty (prohibited in Austria under Protocol 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights) had indeed done damage to Austria's reputation. Schwarzenegger explained his actions by referring to the fact that his only duty as Governor of California was to prevent an error in the judicial system.
Schwarzenegger's home town of Graz had its soccer stadium named The Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium in his honor. It is the home of both Grazer AK and Sturm Graz. Following the Stanley Williams execution and after street protests in his hometown, several local politicians began a campaign to remove Schwarzenegger's name from the stadium. Schwarzenegger responded, saying that "to spare the responsible politicians of the city of Graz further concern, I withdraw from them as of this day the right to use my name in association with the Liebenau Stadium", and set a tight deadline of just a couple of days to remove his name. Graz officials removed Schwarzenegger's name from the stadium in December 2005.[80] It is now officially titled UPC-Arena.
The Sun Valley Resort has a short ski trail called Arnold's Run, named after Schwarzenegger (It was named after him in 2001).[81] The trail is categorized as a black diamond, or most difficult, for its terrain.[82]
He bought the first Hummer manufactured for civilian use in 1992, a model so large, 6,300 lb (2900 kg) and 7 feet (2.1 m) wide, that it is classified as a large truck and U.S. fuel economy regulations do not apply to it. During the Gubernatorial Recall campaign he announced that he would convert one of his Hummers to burn hydrogen. The conversion was reported to have cost about US$21,000. After the election, he signed an executive order to jump-start the building of hydrogen refueling plants called the California Hydrogen Highway Network, and gained a U.S. Department of Energy grant to help pay for its projected US$91,000,000 cost.[83] California took delivery of the first H2H (Hydrogen Hummer) in October 2004.[84]
People in Thal celebrated Schwarzenegger's 60th birthday by throwing a party. Officials proclaimed A Day for Arnold on July 30, 2007. Thal 145, the number of the house where Schwarzenegger was born, belonged to Schwarzenegger and nobody will ever be assigned to that number.[85]
On February 12, 2010, Schwarzenegger was the 18th runner on the 106th day of the Vancouver Olympic Torch relay. His leg was along the Stanley Park Seawall, and he exchanged a "torch kiss" with the next runner, Sebastian Coe.[86]
Accidents and medical issues
Schwarzenegger broke his right femur while skiing in Sun Valley, Idaho with his family on December 23, 2006.[87] He tripped over his ski pole on Lower Warm Springs run on Bald Mountain, an 'easy' or green level run. He is an expert level skier. On December 26, 2006, he underwent a 90-minute operation in which cables and screws were used to wire the broken bone back together. He was released from the St. John's Health Center on December 30, 2006.[88] Schwarzenegger did not delay his second oath of office on January 5, 2007, although he was still on crutches at the time.
Schwarzenegger has twice crashed motorcycles on public highways, injuring himself in the process. On January 8, 2006, while riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle in Los Angeles, with his son Patrick in the sidecar, another driver backed into the street he was riding on, causing him and his son to collide with the car at a low speed. While his son and the other driver were unharmed, the governor sustained a minor injury to his lip, forcing him to get 15 stitches. "No citations were issued", said Officer Jason Lee, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman.[89] Schwarzenegger, who famously rode motorcycles in the Terminator movies, has never obtained an M-1 or M-2 endorsement on his California driver's license that would allow him to legally ride a motorcycle without a sidecar on the street. Previously, on December 9, 2001, he broke six ribs and was hospitalized for four days after a motorcycle crash in Los Angeles.[90]
Schwarzenegger opted in 1997 for a replacement heart valve made of his own transplanted tissue; medical experts predict he will require heart valve replacement surgery in the next two to eight years as his current valve degrades. Schwarzenegger apparently opted against a mechanical valve, the only permanent solution available at the time of his surgery, because it would have sharply limited his physical activity and capacity to exercise.[91]
He saved a drowning man's life in 2004 while on vacation in Hawaii by swimming out and bringing him back to shore.[92]
Schwarzenegger's private jet made an emergency landing at Van Nuys Airport on June 19, 2009 after the pilot reported smoke coming from the cockpit, according to a statement released by the governor's press secretary. No one was harmed in the incident.
Business career
Schwarzenegger has also had a highly successful business career.[4][24] Following his move to the United States, Schwarzenegger became a "prolific goal setter" and would write his objectives at the start of the year on index cards, like starting a mail order business or buying a new car – and succeed in doing so.[13] By the age of 30, Schwarzenegger was a millionaire, well before his career in Hollywood. His financial independence came from a series of successful business ventures and investments. In 1968, Schwarzenegger and fellow bodybuilder Franco Columbu started a bricklaying business. The business flourished thanks to the pair's marketing savvy and an increased demand following the 1971 San Fernando earthquake.[94][95] Schwarzenegger and Columbu used profits from their bricklaying venture to start a mail order business, selling bodybuilding and fitness-related equipment and instructional tapes. Schwarzenegger rolled profits from the mail order business and his bodybuilding competition winnings into his first real estate venture: an apartment building he purchased for $10,000. He would go on to invest in a number of real estate holding companies. In 1992, Schwarzenegger and his wife opened a restaurant in Santa Monica called Schatzi On Main. Schatzi literally means "little treasure," colloquial for "honey" or "darling" in German. In 1998, he sold his restaurant. He invested in a shopping mall in Columbus, Ohio. He has talked about some of those who have helped him over the years in business: "I couldn't have learned about business without a parade of teachers guiding me... from Milton Friedman to Donald Trump... and now, Les Wexner and Warren Buffett. I even learned a thing or two from Planet Hollywood, such as when to get out! And I did!" He has significant ownership in Dimensional Fund Advisors, an investment firm.
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