Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Professor Leo StevensThanks in large part to Professor Attila, New York City was a hotbed of strongman activity during the early 20th century. One of his pupils was Professor Leo Stevens who is shown here balanced precariously on a few chairs with a heavy barbell strapped around his neck at the same time. Professor Stevens was sickly for most of his life and took up regular physical (at 46 years old!) to cure his ills - it looks like it worked.
Labels: Hand Balancing, Hand Balancing Feat, Neck Strength, New York Strongman, Professor Attila, Professor Leo Stevens
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, June 08, 2009
| Originally hailing from Ashtabula, Ohio, Adolph Nordquest began his performing strongman career in Buffalo, New York in 1901. A year later he moved to New York City to study and train under Professor Attila. Due to Nordquest's similarities to one of Attila's former students he was dubbed the "American Sandow." Teaming with another great strongman, Otis Lambert, Nordquest performed very successfully in music halls and vaudeville for the next decade and a half. When his performing career came to an end, Nordquest focused very intently on his strength training, so much so that he briefly held the world deadlift record with a lift of 638 pounds. He was also very good at finger lifting. His brother Joe Nordquest was also a famous strongman with many records to his credit. |  Adolph Nordquest |
Labels: Adolph Nordquest, American Sandow, Deadlift, Deadlift Training, Eugen Sandow, finger lifting, Joe Nordquest, Oldtime Strongman, Performing Strongman, Professor Attila, Vaudeville
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Andre ReverdyAndre Reverdy was a Massachusetts strongman who was most active in the 1920's. He weighed only 113 pounds but could bent press 168 pounds, tear cards, bend steel and, as shown above, pull a car with his teeth. He was coached in these classic strongman feats by Professor Attila.
The above photo was taken at one of Bernarr Macfadden's Physical Culture shows held at Madison Square Garden. Reverdy pulled this car full of passengers -- with his teeth -- the entire length of the arena.
Labels: Andre Reverdy, Bent Press, Bernarr Macfadden, Car Pulling, Professor Attila, Steel Bending, Teeth Lifting
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Sig KleinProfessor Attila created several pieces of training equipment for building ab strength. Among them, the Roman Chair, the Roman Column and the Roman Board, seen here demonstrated by Sig Klein. Sig is lifting 35 pounds here in the "layout," a terrific test of abdominal power.
Labels: Abdominal Development, Abdominal Exercise, Abdominal Training, Professor Attila, Roman Board, Roman Chair, Roman Column
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Friday, December 12, 2008
| Sig Klein inherited much of his great equipment when he married Professor Attila's daughter and took over his gym in New York. Of course, Sig had pretty good taste in equipment anyway often having custom-made barbells, dumbbells and kettlebells made. |  Sig Klein |
Labels: Globe Barbell, Kettlebell, Oldtime Strength Equipment, Professor Attila, Sig Klein
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
| A look at Sig Klein using the Roman Column at his famous gym. It was actually Sig's father-in-law Professor Attila who invented the Roman Column. The Roman Column was actually used more as a demonstration of strength than as a means of developing strength. When used for strength feats, the performer would lower his body directly to the ground, pick up a weight and then sit up with it. Eugen Sandow was a master at this strength feat. |  Sig Klein's Roman Column |
Labels: Abdominal Strength, Oldtime Strength Equipment, Professor Attila, Roman Column, Sig Klein, Sig Kleins Gym, Strongman Equipment, Training Equipment
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
 Lionel Strongfort | Lionel Strongfort, (Real name Max Unger) began his strongman career as a pupil of Professor Attila Strongfort went on to thrill audiences all over the world with his incredible and very dangerous Human Bridge feat where he supported over 7,000 pounds in the Tomb of Hercules position. Strongfort was also one of the most successful Mail Order Muscle Barons and his training courses on "Strongfortism," which only required bodyweight and some light dumbbells, were incredibly popular in the early 20th century. |
Labels: Human Bridge, Lionel Strongfort, Mail Order Muscle Courses, Max Unger, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Professor Attila, Strength Author, Strongfortism, Supporting Feat, Tomb of Hercules
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, January 05, 2008
The Roman ColumnAs mentioned several times on this blog, it was Professor Attila who invented the Roman Column.
Shown here, the Roman Column is an actual column in which the traineee hangs suspended vertially and moves to a horizontal position using the power of his legs and abdominal muscles.
Eugen Sandow used to perform this feat either holding a heavy barbell or a human being.
On the left is the original Roman Column, in one corner of Sig Klein's Time's Square Gym.
Labels: Equipment, Eugen Sandow, Professor Attila, Roman Column, Sig Klein, Sig Kleins Gym, Strongman Equipment, Vintage Strength Equipment
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Friday, January 04, 2008
| Professor Attila was one of the true innovators of the Iron Game. It was Attila who came up with the idea for hollow equipment which could be loaded with shot to increase the weight. Professor Attila also invented several oldtime strongman exercises such as the bent press, the Roman Chair, the Roman Column and the feat of tearing decks of poker cards in half. It was also Attila who inspired a young Eugen Sandow to start strength training after Sandow watched Attila's strongman performance -- eventually, Attila became Sandow's mentor and coached him to even greater heights. |  Professor Attila |
Labels: Bent Press, Eugen Sandow, Oldtime Strongman Exercises, Professor Attila, Roman Chair, Roman Column
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
The Rolandow BarbellThe Rolandow Barbell once belonged to the Swiss Strongman G.W. Rolandow who would bent-press it each night in his performance. This barbell has been lifted by many famous strongmen, including Eugen Sandow.
The Rolandow Barbell has had many famous owners over the years. It was purchased by Professor Attila, then Sig Klein (as shown). The Rolandow Barbell can currently be seen in the York Barbell Company Museum in York, Pennsylvania.
Labels: Barbell, Bent Press, Challenge Weight, Eugen Sandow, Famous Barbell, G.W. Rolandow, Professor Attila, Rolandow Barbell, Sig Klein, York Barbell Company Museum
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Louis Durlacher aka Professor Attila It was Louis Durlacher aka Professor Attila who trained a young Fredrick Mueller and changed his name to Eugen Sandow.
It was also Professor Attila who invented many of the feats of strength we know today, such as the Roman Column, the Roman Chair, supporting feats in the human bridge position, tearing packs of playing cards; and the the hollow globe-ended barbells and dumbbells we know today.
Attila was also the first man to bent press over 200 pounds and in addition to Sandow, Professor Attila could also list many other famous strongmen among his students:
Including: Warren Lincoln Travis, Anthony Barker, Horace Barre, Arthur Dandurand, Lionel Strongfort, George Rolandow, Louis Cyr, Bobby Pandour and Adolph Nordquest.
In 1894, Professor opened his famous Studio of Physical Culture in downtown New York city. His daughter, Grace, later married Sig Klein.
If Eugen Sandow was the "Father" of Oldtime Strongmen, surely Professor Attila, was the Grandfather.
Labels: Bent Press, Eugen Sandow, Globe Barbell, Louis Durlacher, Oldtime Strongman, Professor Attila, Roman Chair, Roman Column, Sig Klein, Strongman Equipment, Strongman Feat
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Sig Klein's Classic Old-Time GymHere's another look at one of the classc gyms we have featured before: Sig Klein's place in New York City. This was the original location -- he moved into a facility overlooking Times Square later on.
Notice the mirror on the right revealing a set of globe barbells on the far wall, block and ring weights in the foreground and you can just make out a Roman Column on the extreme left.
There's nothing like Classic Equipment to make your training special. You can tell a lot of great workouts happened down at Sig's Place.
Sig Klein inherited much of the equipment after he married Professor Attila's youngest daughter in 1927. Professor Attila, of course, was the man who taught Eugen Sandow how to train.
Labels: Blockweights, Classic Strongman Gyms, Eugen Sandow, Globe Barbell, Oldtime Strongman, Professor Attila, Sig Klein, Strongman Equipment
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Welcome to the Strongest Blog on the Net!
This is THE PLACE where you will find interesting bits of Iron Game history, lore and training tips from the strongest men of all time.
Previous Posts
Featured Products
Monthly Archives
Not yet a member? Subscribe now to receive daily doses of Strongman history, training tips, and site updates!
Copyright © 2010 Thunderdome Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved