Untitled - The World Of Muscle

Muscle, Smoke & Mirrors Volume III
Book 1
Prologue: The 1980s
The Glory Years of Modern Bodybuilding
A bodybuilder in the Oval Office? Arnold? Close, but no cigar in
the White House! The blue ribbon actually goes to Sealtest Dan, The
MuscleMan.Ithadbeen27yearssinceDanLurieappearedinfrontofthe
CBSnetworkcamerasasthefamedSealtestBigTopStrongman.These
werenowthe1980sandthe60-year-oldbodybuildingentrepreneurwas,
onceagain,backinthemediaspotlight.However,thistimehisstagewas
thatprestigiousWashington high office where he squared off in an arm
wrestling match with the 73-year-old President of the United States of
AmericaoverthefateoftheColdWar.Well,actually,itwasn’treallythat
climactic.We’llleavetheColdWartoArnoldasweshallsoonsee,but
theWhiteHousedefinitelydidinfactreceiveDanLurieonFebruary16,
1984toinductPresidentRonaldReaganintoLurie’sWorldBodyBuilding
GuildHallofFame,andtoawardhimasthemostphysicallyfitPresident
of all time. And yes, the two men actually did arm wrestle, and Lurie
claimed to have thrown the match! IfAmerica’s Most Muscular Man
from1942through1944could40yearslatermusclehiswayintotheOval
OfficeasDanaccomplished,thenbodybuildinghadfinallycarveditself
positivelyintotheculturallandscapeofAmerica.
The actual tools of the bodybuilding trade, such as the barbell and
resistance training, had already begun receiving more acceptance for
general fitness and increased athletic performance in the 1970s. But
now,evenhardcorecompetitivebodybuilding,ifjudgedpurelyonpublic
appeal, could claim its glory years circa 1977 through the 1980s. This
wasduetoanumberoffactors,oneinparticularbeingacontinuinghefty
publicignoranceofthecompleterealmofperformanceenhancingdrugs
(PEDs).Theironyherewasthatthesportofbodybuildingexperienced
muchmorepublicreceptivenessduringsomeheavydrugyearsthanitever
receivedthroughitsnaturalera.
Although the sport did in fact begin to delineate itself along the
lines of drug usage with ChetYorton’s first drug-tested show in March
of1978,mostlaymen,andevensomenaïveyoungmusclebuilders,still
wereconfusedoverthe“natural”label.Theriftbetweendrugandnondruguserswouldfurtherwidenenormously.InJuneof1985atWayne
DeMilia’s Night of Champions, a 22-year-old Rich Gaspari turned his
back to the audience and exposed a look that bore great significance in
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the next evolution in contest conditioning and judging criteria—and it
wasn’thisbackthatdrewtheattention! Thelookandrazor-sharp shape
thatGaspariattainedwouldhaveramificationsthatwouldmanifestmuch
moreinthe1990s.
Thepublicnaiveteregardingtheuseofperformanceenhancingdrugsin
the fields, courts, rings, and stages of athletics came to an end in
September of 1988 in Seoul, South Korea, when Ben Johnson ran his
world record 9.79 second 100-metre dash and then tested positive for
anabolic steroids; the media drug circus commenced. Wayne DeMilia,
headoftheProDivisionfortheInternationalFederationofBodyBuilders
(IFBB),wastravellingwiththetopprofessionalphysiquestarsintheworld
ontheirEuropeanGrandPrixtourandtookcarefulnoteoftheheadlines
ofthemajornewspapersacrossWesternEurope.Theheightenedmedia
attentionthatDeMiliaobservedonJohnson’spositivedrugtestledhimto
immediatelyinformhisathletesthattheirsportwouldneverbethesame.
Thegloryyearsofbodybuilding,whicharguablybeganwiththelaunchof
“PumpingIron”in1977,wouldinfactdiminishfollowingthemagnitude
ofexposurenowfocusedonanabolicsteroidsasDeMiliapredicted.
JoeandBenWeiderbythattimehadbeensuccessfulinmonopolizing
mostoftheworldofbodybuilding. Thishegemonywassecuredwhen
theyfinallywontheallegianceoftherelativelylargeAmericanamateur
bodybuilding infrastructure previously governed, for decades, by the
AmateurAthletic Union (AAU) and Bob Hoffman. However, coming
into the 1980s, theAAU Physique Committee, freed from theAAU by
law,emergedasitsownautonomousbodyoperatingunderthenameof
theNationalPhysiqueCommittee(NPC).Thisacquisitiondidnotcome
easily for theWeiders, as initial efforts were faltering very early in the
decade.Theiracemechanic,KenSprague,hadtobecalleduponforone
morejob.However,unbeknownsttoSprague,thistimehewouldnotbe
operatingalone,asacovertapprenticeworkedsimultaneouslytokeepthe
IFBBincontroloftheNPCattheAAUConventionheldatCaesarsPalace
in late 1981. With the IFBB/NPC affiliation secured and using the
Weider empire as leverage, Joe and Ben would proceed to rule
bodybuildingwhileinvokingeveryconflictofinterestunderthesun.As
towhetherJoeandBenbuiltbodybuildingtotheheightofitspopularity,
orsimplylootedtheeconomythatcamewithit,isupforquestion.
TheAAUwouldnotdisappearentirely.Intheirsignificantlyweakened
capacity, they would actually attempt a resurgence against the IFBB by
teamingwithSergeNubret’sWorldAmateurBodyBuildingAssociation
(WABBA) and Oscar Heidenstam’s National Amateur Bodybuilders
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Association(NABBA).DanLuriemayhavebeenpopularintheWhite
House,buthisWorldBodyBuildingGuildwouldalsofaderapidlyinthe
wakeofthegrowingWeidership.ThebigdogintheIronGameyardfor
decades,BobHoffman,wasnolongerapowerandtheindustrywouldlose
himandagoodnumberofthemusclepioneersbeginninginthe1980s.
Asspeculatedin“Muscle,Smoke&Mirrors,VolumeII”,theWeiders
and their IFBB may never have gained such power had it not been for
theanticsofKenSpragueandthelackofdesireofArthurJonestofocus
histenacity,finances,andperipheralresourcesinthatdirection.Arthur’s
financialdistractionswoulddiminishhisindustryinfluenceandhewould
actually, himself, fire a torpedo into the Nautilus ship by selling the
Companyin1986.Indoingso,hissomewhatestrangedsonGaryJones
wouldteamwiththepowerfulmidwestNautilusduoofKimWoodand
Pete Brown to HAMMER their own imprint into the Iron Game/fitness
industry.TheywouldinfactbecometheNautilusofthe1990s.
WithArthurJonesandtheNautilusshipexperiencingmoreturbulent
waters,itstillwasnotclearsailingforJoeandBenWeiderandtheirIFBB,
asamoreseriousthreatcametheirwayintheveryearly1990s.Infact,
ifnotforthatapprenticingWeidermechanicwhobythenwasmuchmore
seasonedinthepoliticsofthegame,theWeidersmayhavebeenplaying
second fiddle in professional bodybuilding. Also indirectly aiding the
survivalofJoeandBenwasthearrivalofDr.MauroDiPasqualeontothe
drugtestingscene,duetothegovernmentandmediafrenzysurrounding
performance enhancing drugs. The use of anabolic steroids wasn’t the
only media fodder impacting the bodybuilders in the 1980s. A much
bigger issue would finally come to a head, earlier in the decade,which
occupiedmainstreamnewsthroughouttheindustrialworld.
Fat Phobia
The medical community, beginning in the mid-1950s, had declared
that a dietary menace was at hand. Their persistent promotion of the
theorythatanimalfats–andespeciallycholesterol–werethecausalfactor
forheartdiseasereachedafeverpitchbytheearly1980s.Didmedical
academiareallyhaveabasisforthisassertion,orwastheindustrialized
worldavictimofperhapsthebiggestmedicalfraudinmodernhistory?
With mainstream investigative journalism sound asleep at the
wheel, the general public, the burgeoning fitness community, and even
the hardcore, close-knit bodybuilding circle would all feel the dramatic
impact from these medical and nutritional politics. No other era saw
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such change to its dietary landscape due to generated fear and a totally
unleashed food processing industry. We would become a culture that
consumedmanufacturedfoodpartswithourdailysustenanceconsisting
ofonepartgrown,fivepartsmanufactured.
Regardingourtwodietarytemplatesestablishedin“Muscle,Smoke&
Mirrors,VolumeI”,wasthelongreignoftheHighProteinandFat(HPF)
templateover?DefinitelytheschismbetweenitandtheLactoVegetarian
(LV) template lessened considerably.
Would the atmosphere
surrounding fat and cholesterol become so hostile that even a Vegan
Vegetarian model would be considered optimal for muscle building?
Howwouldourbodybuildingnutritiongurusreacttothisaffronttotheir
long-standingnutritionalparadigmpremisedonanimalfats?Confusion
definitelymadeitswayintothegame.
Withthedawningofthecarbohydrateera,thenewly-forgedfat-phobic
culturewouldbedemandingalargervarietyoffoodproductsfromwhich
tochoose.Industrywouldhaveabonanzaandtheinevitableexpansion
offoodtechnologieswouldmoveustothenextsupplementtier.There
was a whole new generation of younger players coming into the game.
TheyweremoredistantfromtheoriginsofPhysicalCulturefromwhich
bodybuildingandthefitnessindustrysprang,butmuchmoreintunewith
whatopportunitiesmoderntechnologywouldoffer.
Regardless of the debate over whether the food supply was being
expandedormauled,itwasdefinitelybeingconsolidatedandtakencontrol
of behind the scenes. The 1970s and 1980s were certainly decades of
furtherunderlyingchange.Thegreatmeltingpotsofthewesternsocieties
would continue with their cultural delineation and dilution. Those
growingseamsofdivisionwithintheirsocialandeconomicfabricwere,
inactuality,aslowunweavingoftheirnationalconstitutions,orchestrated
covertly by powerful global architects. Much of this new transnational
economic and governing framework and erosions of freedom would
not reveal themselves until the 1990s and the 21st century. Of course,
mainstreamjournalismwouldbecomatoseonthisfrontaswell.However,
themediawasmuchmoreawakeandalerttotheburgeoningbodybuilding
look in the 1980s, especially from Hollywood motion pictures and the
majortelevisionnetworks.
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The Beauty and The Beast
For mainstream western society, the 1970s closed with what could
be deemed retrospectively as a symbolic foreshadowing of the cultural
agendaforthecomingdecade.Twoeventsunfoldedin1979thatwere
totallyoppositeintheirrepresentation,yetsignificantintheirbearing,and
a bit ironic in their subtle interplay. They would be the literal “beauty
andthebeast”ofthe1980s.Wherethebeastleftgeographicalandsocial
destructionthroughtheunfoldingofthenewdecade,thisbeautywould
alsoleaveitsshareofemotionalandphysicaldisruption.
The beauty debuted with the release of Blake Edwards’ 1979 movie,
“10”.Thetitleitselfprobablyboremoresignificancethanthenewstarlet
it unleashed; albeit, Bo Derek did in fact showcase an incredibly lean,
conditioned,butstillcurvyfeminineform.Notonlywouldshebeelevating
thestandardforthenewimage-consciousAmerica,butalsosignifyingthat
ourphysicalpresentationswouldnowbesubjecttoanewtypeofscale(1to
10),andthebarwasresetveryhigh;formost,probablytoohigh.
Complicatingtheevolvingphysicalstandards,the1980sfacilitatedyet
anevenmoredaringnewmeasureneverreallypresentedtothemainstream
before.Infact,theatmospherewassuchthatauniquegroupofwomen,
liberatingthemselvesfromtheirownhistoricalsocialandathleticbondage,
literallykickedofftheirheels,clenchedtheirfists,andstruckposesnowhere
near resembling that of their Miss America predecessors. Women’s
bodybuildingwasmeteoricinitsascentascomparedtothedecades-long
plightoftheirmalecounterparts.Theculturewasbecomingpermeableto
womenwithnoticeablemuscles,butcoulditacceptasignificantbreachin
thegenderbarrierorabsorbanentirelynewarchetype?Whatthewomen
couldnotdisguiseaswellasthemenwastheeffectofanabolicsteroids,and
theirfallwasimminent.Regardless,betweenBoDerekandthearrivalof
women’sbodybuilding,thefemaleformwouldfeelthepressuretoanteup
physically.
Asdiscussed,culturalbarriershadalreadybeenbreachedthroughthe
1970sintermsofimprovedsportsperformancethroughincreasedsizeand
strengthalongwithaheightenedawarenessofphysicalfitness.Butnow,
inatotalreversaloftheBobHoffmanphilosophyoffunctionalmuscleand
goodhealth,thenewmottohadshiftedto“musclesjustshouldn’tperform,
theyhadbetterlookgoodtoo.”Itwasdefinitelythedecadeofthe“hardbodies.”NewtermsenteredtheEnglishlexiconsuchas“ripped”,“buffed”,
and “shredded”, right along with “bulimia”, “anorexia”, and “anabolic
steroids.”
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Yes,bodybuildinghadfinallyarrivedintermsofpublicacceptance,
but it was recognized far more for what it could do for our physical
image,asopposedtoastrivingcompetitivesport.Couldthetoolsofthe
bodybuildingtradereallygivethemajorityoflaymenwhatGodseemedto
haveneglected?Toagooddegree,yes,but“PumpingIron”andthenew
booksmarketingthesportfellfarshortofexposingthepublictothefull
arsenalofthebodybuilders.Asthedecadeprogressed,manyyoungmen
andwomeninpursuitoftheimagelearnedoftheadvancedchemistryof
musclebuilding,evenbeforetheBenJohnsonmediahoopla.
Theprobodybuildersofthe1970sbeganthe“cartoon”eraofthesport,
asmanybythenwereactuallymoreimpressivephysicallythanthecomic
book caricatures they grew up reading. Some even brought these superheroestolifewhencasttoplaythemoutontelevision,andthenlateronto
thebigscreen.LouFerrignogainedalargefanbasewithhisoutstanding
portrayalofTheIncredibleHulkfrom1978through1982.SuperstarBilly
Graham,Jesse“TheBody”Ventura,HulkHogan,andtheUltimateWarrior
carriedthecartoonlookintotheprowrestlingcircuitwithenormoussuccess.
Asmentioned,thebiggestimpactoftheeffectofbodybuildingwas
showcased through the mainstream Hollywood media. A number of
celebritieshadalreadybeenworkingoutwithweightsinsilenceformany
years.VinceGironda,TerryRobinson,andtheEastonbrothershadbeen
takingcareofmostofthemsincethe1940s.ClintWalker,RobertBlake,
William Smith, John Saxon, and even comics such as Sid Caesar were
seriousliftersgoingbacktothe1950s.Theynolongerhadtohidethefact
thattheytrainedwithweights;itwasnowalmostmandatory.
Hollywood, who unleashed the Bo-dacious “beauty” and a judging
scaleoutofbalancewithculturalcontext,alsowouldlendthevenuethat
assistedinslayingthe20thcentury“beast”loomingbehindthatpolitically
divisiveandoppressiveIronCurtain.
The Beast
Counteringthebeautysprungin1979,the“beast”inthemannerofwar
intensifiedwhentheSovietUnioninvadedAfghanistaninDecemberof
that year to embark on their own eight year Vietnam. In typical Cold
War fashion, US President Jimmy Carter would respond by firing
indirectlyuponthecityofMoscow. Hisartillerywasnotyourstandard
military weapons of war, but something resembling more of a sociopolitical missile, deployed in the form of a US boycott of the 1980
OlympicGamestobehostedbytheSovietUnionthatyear.
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Leaning on the tragic shootings of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972
MunichGames,Carterclaimedtobeoperatingundertheguiseofcaution
andsafety.Nevertheless,manysimplyvieweditasthe1980athletesbeing
used to deliver a political slap in the Soviet face. The boycott served
nothinginminimizingthe devastationtoAfghanistan, but only resulted
inreciprocationoftheSovietswiththeirownboycottofthe1984Games
hostedinLosAngeles.Obviously,theimageconsciousnessofthe1980s
extendedfarbeyondthatofjustthehumanbody.
Using athletes as pawns in global military-style socio-politics was
again at play that very same year at the IFBB’s World Bodybuilding
ChampionshipsbeingstagedatCaesarsPalaceinLasVegas.Aligning
withtheInternationalOlympicCommittee’s(IOC)banonSouthAfrican
Olympic athletes due toApartheid, Ben Weider was forced to suspend
IFBBrulesprohibitingpoliticsandreligionfromcontaminatingthepure
atmosphereofsport.Indoingso,theSouthAfricandelegationwasforced
to withdraw in order to prevent 21 other delegations from pulling out
becauseofambassadorialpressures.
Howlargearolethebanningofathletesplayedinthedissolutionof
Apartheid a decade later, as compared to other economic and political
sanctions,isdebatable.However,thelattertwowouldplayabigrolein
tearingdownthecommunistIronCurtain,beginningwiththefallofthe
BerlinWallin1989.Addingtothedebate,manyattributedthedemiseof
theSovietUniontothestronganti-CommunistinitiativesofRepublican
arm-wrestling President Ronald Reagan. The former actor turned
CaliforniaGovernorwouldreceiveassistancefromhisformerprofession,
includingonewhoactuallyfollowedinhisfootsteps.
Furthering the Hollywood/political merger, already decently
developedstarsofthe1970slikeSylvesterStalloneshowedupinthe80s
in “Rocky III” and “Rambo: First Blood Part II” much more muscular
than before. Stallone would be joined by Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude
Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren and bodybuilding’s favorite son,Arnold
Schwarzenegger. They filled the cinema screens with bigger-than-life
actionheroeswhowouldthwartthesinisterplotsoftheterrorists,thugs,
andyes,eventheevil,Afghanistan-invadingSovietempire.
Ofcourse,theimage-crazy1980scastthenewColdWarWarriorhardbodiesinsuchamoldthatmanyoftheirbigscreenendeavorswereshot
shirtless—ifnotforsheerfictitiousintimidation,thensurelyasareminder
tothevastmajorityofthemaleaudiencethatthey,too,hadbestanteup
physically.
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Schwarzenegger’s rise in this field was well engineered or outright
miraculous. He had received some good reviews for his performance
in “Stay Hungry” and was quite a natural when doing his own thing in
“PumpingIron”,butnoteventheassetsofAnn-Margret,andtheexperience
ofKirkDouglas,couldsalvagehiminthe1979releaseof“TheVillain”.
Hisperformancepickedupsomein“TheJayneMansfieldStory”in1980,
butitwasstillnotatallindicativeofwhatArnoldwouldaccomplishin
thisfield.
Fortunately, the 1980s action movies required more style over
substance, and many of the new action stars were liberated from the
pressures of having to deliver Academy Award winning performances.
Arnold was well cast in “Conan the Barbarian” in 1982. The film
showcasedhimfarmorephysicallythanverbally,aformulathatworked
very well for Schwarzenegger, and they further nailed it down in “The
Terminator”!Arnolddidimproveonhisskills,andputoutsomefairly
entertainingperformancesinavarietyofrolesintheensuingyears.
In the meantime, he had become an American citizen in 1983,
and showed his strong political leanings by attending the Republican
Convention in 1984. Schwarzenegger’s arch-rival for box-office
supremacy through the 1980s, Sylvester Stallone, was also known to
donatetothesamepoliticalparty.Notsurprisingly,thetwomega-stars
flexed their cinema muscle with films depicting shades of propaganda,
seeminglysynchronizedwithRonaldReagan’smemorablepoliticalplea,
“Mr.Gorbachev,teardownthiswall!”
Ardent Stallone fans cheered his fourth casting as the fictional
PhiladelphiasluggerRockyBalboain1985.Afterpoundingthe“pinko”
outoftheevil,stoned-faced,cold-heartedRussianfightingmachineIvan
Drago(DolphLundgren),theRockdeliveredabrotherlylovespeechtothe
Russianspeakingcrowd,ineffortstounitebothEastandWest.Sylvester
“Rocky”Stallonehadsuccessfullylaunchedapoliticallycorrectlefthook
tothechinoftheColdWar.
Schwarzenegger followed with a finishing Republican right cross in
“RedHeat”whencastasaRussiancop,IvanDanko,whowouldcometo
Americainpursuitofadrugdealer.Onceagainportrayedashumorless,
stone-faced,androbotically-disciplined,theSovietEnforceruniteswithhis
muchmoreunregimentedAmericancounterpartArtRidzik(JimBelushi.)
Farmoreinterestingthantheplotwasthenotionthatafterdecadesof“Cold
War”,ittookthehardbodyimageofabuffedmuscle-boundactortokicka
holethroughthe“IronCurtain”,deflatingthedecades-longColdWar.
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In February of 1988, Arnold Schwarzenegger and the rest of the
castandcrewof“RedHeat”werethefirsttobeallowedtorollcameras
in Moscow’s Red Square. Ironically, the very day they were shooting,
GorbachevsupposedlygavethewordthattheSovietswouldbepulling
outofAfghanistan.Who’dathunk it,eh?
Politics,themedia,andmovieswereworkingquitewellfortheAustrian
Oak.Hiscelebritystatuswaselevatedevenhigherinthespring of1986
when he married Maria Shriver, to become the Republican oddball in
America’s most Democratic family, the Kennedys. By the end of the
1980s, Arnold Schwarzenegger, according to the estimates of Forbes
magazine,wouldgross34milliondollarsfor1989toeasilycrackthetop
10highestpaidentertainers.Arnoldwasontopoftheworldbytheend
of a decade that began riddled in controversy in his bodybuilding
comeback after a five year absence from the sport. In seeking his
seventh Mr. Olympia crown, would Arnold Schwarzenegger derail the
glory years of modern bodybuilding in 1980? Compounding the
question,wouldhisbestfriend,FrancoColumbu,exacerbatefurtherthe
negativeatmospherewithhisowncomebackin1981?
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