Sunday, February 07, 2010
Steve Reeves ~ Hercules!Another classic shot of Steve Reeves as the mythical Hercules. It is a little known fact that Steve did all his own stunts in his movies, including the horse riding and chariot scenes -- this came as a relief to the directors he worked with, after all, finding a stunt double for Steve Reeves would not have been easy!
Labels: Actor, Classic Physique, Hercules, Hercules Movies, Steve Reeves
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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, August 21, 2009
Hercules!Who better than a real live Hercules to play Hercules in the movies? 1947 Mr. America Steve Reeves first played and set the standard for the character - heavily influencing the look and style for every portrayal which came afterwards. Reeves played the mythological strongman twice, in "Hercules" and "Hercules Unchained".
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, Hercules, Hercules Movies, Steve Reeves
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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, August 13, 2009
Eric PedersenMany people know that Steve Reeves famously won the 1947 AAU Mr. America Contest, but what a lot of people don't know is that it was a lot closer than you would think. Steve Reeves only won the contest by a half a point over a relatively unknown and very impressive California bodybuilder named Eric Pedersen.
Pedersen had competed in the Mr. America Contest once before, in 1945 he had not even placed. He won Mr. California title in 1947, had his showdown with Reeves in Chicago at the Mr. America contest, appeared on the cover of a few magazines in the late 1940's and then pretty much disappeared!
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, Bodybuilder, Eric Pedersen, Mr. California, Steve Reeves
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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, August 05, 2009
Steve Reeves - THE Classic PhysiqueIt's not hard to see why Steve Reeves was known as THE Classic Physique - just take a look. During his career Reeves won the 1947 AAU Mr. America , Mr. Pacific Coast and Mr. Western American Contests, the 1948 Mr. World contest, and the 1950 NABBA Mr. Universe contest.
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, AAU, Bodybuilding, Classic Physique, Mr. America, Mr. Pacific Coast, Mr. Universe, Mr. Western American, Steve Reeves
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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, July 13, 2009
Steve Reeves: Dumbbell Incline PressHow does Hercules build his upper body strength? Here's one answer: Dumbbell Incline Press. It's a good variation for building pressing power, and - needless to say - it worked pretty well for Steve Reeves. He also was a fan of doing dumbbell curls on an incline bench, an exercise he used to build his arms before his 1947 AAU Mr. America Contest win.
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, Dumbbell Exercise, Dumbbell Incline Press, Dumbbell Lift, Dumbbell Training, Hercules, Incline Bench Press, Incline Press, Steve Reeves
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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, March 05, 2009
Ed YarickWe have featured his gym, his equipment, even his wife... the only thing missing is the man himself, so here he is: Ed Yarick.
In addition to running one of the most popular gyms in the land, the 6'4" Yarick won the tall class in the "Mr. Pacific Coast" bodybuilding contest and was also the coach of the 1952 National Jr. Weightlifting Team.
Yarick's Gym was located at 3355 Foothill Blvd. in Oakland, California and was one of the centers of the strength world on the West coast. It was also where Steve reeves got his start and the training headquarters at various times of Roy Hilligenn, John Davis, Clancy Ross, Jack Delinger, Tommy Kono and Doug Hepburn (among others)
Labels: Clancy Ross, Doug Hepburn, Ed Yarick, Ed Yarick's Gym, Jack Dellinger, John Davis, Roy Hilligenn, Steve Reeves, Tommy Kono
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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, February 19, 2009
The Steve Reeves DeadliftHere's a unique feat by 1947 Mr. America Steve Reeves ... he may not have invented it but he became very well known for it: The Steve Reeves Deadlift. It involves an extremely wide-grip deadlift performed by grabbing the rim on a pair of York Deep Dish Plates. It's tougher than it looks and a tremendous feat of finger strength.
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, Deadlift, Finger Strength, Grip Feat, Grip Strength, Mr. America, Steve Reeves, York Deep Dish 45 Pound Plate
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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, November 28, 2008
Steve ReevesSteve Reeves, the 1947 Mr. America shows why he was known as THE Classic Physique. Reeves' favorite exercises for building his 23-1/2" wide shoulders were lateral raises and the behind-the-neck press.
Labels: 1947 Mr. America, Behind The Neck Press, Bodybuilding, Classic Bodybuilder, Classic Physique, Lateral Raise, Steve Reeves
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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, November 07, 2008
Steve Reeves - HERCULES!Many actors have played the mythical Greek hero Hercules, but certainly one of the most memorable was bodybuilding legend Steve Reeves. Although the 1947 Mr. America winner played Hercules only twice -- in the 1958 film "Hercules" and its sequel "Hercules Unchained" (1960) -- they became very popular, and many more "Sword and Sandal" pictures followed.
Labels: Bodybuilding, Hercules, Steve Reeves
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, July 01, 2008
One Corner of Ed Yarick's GymThis picture represents approximately 50% of Ed Yarick's Gym out in Oakland, California. As you can see, there wasn't much to it -- a couple rows of dumbbells, a few platforms, barbells and benches -- but that is all it takes.
These spartan surroundings produced some of the greatest strength champions the world has ever known: Olympic Champion John Davis, THE clasic physique, bodybuilding champion Steve Reeves, Mr. Americas Roy Hilligenn, Clancy Ross and Jack Dellinger all trained there. As did Doug Hepburn and Reg Park when he visited the west coast.
Labels: Clancy Ross, Classic Gym, Doug Hepburn, Ed Yarick's Gym, Oakland California, Reg Park, Roy Hilligenn, Steve Reeves
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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, February 06, 2008
Sig Klein's Gym You've seen Sig Klein's Gym plenty of times on thsi Blog before, but I guarantee you've never seen it from this angle. This candid shot was actually reflected in a mirror. That's the old master Sig Klein in the middle, teaching someone how to use the gymnastic rings.
To the right, you can just make out Steve Reeves.
Klein's Gym sure had a lot of character, plenty of dark wood and globe dumbbells. Notice the Sandow and Saxon statues and Klein's world famous beer stein collection.
Labels: Classic Strongman Gyms, Gymnastic Rings, Sandow Statue, Saxon Statue, Sig Klein, Sig Kleins Gym, Steve Reeves
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
| You can see why they say Steve Reeves has the classic physique -- he looked like a Greek statue brought to life. He was also one of the most successful bodybuilders of all time, winning almost every contest he entered including the 1947 AAU Mr. America title. Reeves trained at the York Barbell Club in York, PA for the 1950 NABBA Mr. Universe contest (which he won.) While there, John Grimek, watched him train, and later wrote an article about what he saw in the November, 1964 issue of Muscular Development Magazine. |  Steve Reeves |
Labels: AAU, Bodybuilding, Classic Physique, Exercises, John Grimek, Mr. America, Mr. Universe, Muscular Development, NABBA, Steve Reeves, Workout
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, November 21, 2007
Vic Tanny's GymJust a stone's throw from the original Muscle Beach in Santa Monica, California, was Vic Tanny's Gym.
Shortly after World War II, Tanny converted a 7,000-square-foot USO center, which was located in a basement on 4th Street, into the best-equipped gym in the United States. It was huge, with 15 foot ceilings and, as you can see all kinds of training equipment.
Vic Tanny's was affectionately known as "The Dungeon" and was the place to train during the 1940's and 1950's -- regular members included Steve Reeves, George Eiferman, Joe Gold (of Gold's Gym fame) and Arthur Jones, along with a whole host of others.
It was where Bob Hoffman and the York gang trained on West Coast trips.
Labels: Arthur Jones, Classic Strongman Gyms, George Eiferman, Joe Gold, Muscle Beach, Steve Reeves, Vic Tanny
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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, August 13, 2007
Steve Reeves
The Man:
Steve Reeves is known as THE classic physique of all time. His Herculean good looks led to a number of movie roles and dozens of magazine covers. Steve Reeves won the following bodybuilding titles over his career:
1946 - Mr. Pacific Coast
1947 - Mr. Western America
1947 - Mr. America
1948 - Mr. World
1950 - Mr. Universe
The Exercise:
A full lateral raise with a pair of MILO kettlebells... a highly underrated movement for shoulder development made that much more enjoyable with classic iron. The rotating handles of the MILO kettlebells allow for certain exercises that are difficult to do with cast-iron kettlebells. (As a side note, Steve Reeves was well known for his broad shoulders which were measured by Armand Tanny at an unbelievable 23-1/2 inches.)
Labels: Bodybuilding, Kettlebells, Steve Reeves, 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
Thursday, July 05, 2007
The New Bodybuilding for Old School Results by Ellington DardenThe New Bodybuilding for Old School Results is Ellington Darden's latest strength training book. It's over 300 pages, features hundreds of rare photos and unlike any of Dr. Darden's other books, is in full color.
In it, you'll find an equal dose of strength history and training knowledge and each of its 34 chapters is designed to help you get stronger.
BEHIND-THE-SCENES INTERVIEWS:
• Appreciate Ben Sorenson, who was the manager of Vic Tanny's famous gym in Santa Monica (near Muscle Beach) from 1947-1949. Sorenson details the 1949 Mr. USA competition between John Grimek and Steve Reeves and voices his opinion of why Grimek won, even though Reeves had the best physique.
• Uncover authentic adventures at Muscle Beach, which involve certain legends of bodybuilding. There are meaningful lessons among these episodes.
• Reminisce with Jim Flanagan about Milo Steinborn, the last of the old-time strongmen, as he describes what it was like to train in Steinborn's Gym.
• Laugh with Kim Wood as he shares a report of the 1971 NABBA Mr. Universe in London. The men entered included Pill Bearl, Hergio Saliva, Egg Park, and Rank Fane.
• Is the barbell squat the single best free-weight exercise? Find out from Dan Riley, strength coach of the NFL's Houston Texans.
• Dissect the Best Golden-Age Bodybuilders, muscle by muscle, as judged by experienced insiders who were there. Review the outstanding physiques of Larry Scott, Freddy Ortiz, Tom Platz, Scott Wilson, and Mike Mentzer.
Labels: Bodybuilding, book, Ellington Darden, Henry Milo Steinborn, John Grimek, Kim Wood, Muscle Beach, New Bodybuilding for Old School Results, Steve Reeves, Strength Author
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
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