Muscle Beach History - by Stuntmovie

[stuntmovie]

I can only ID three of the guys in that group shot, FUN K.

Draper, Eifferman, and Collras....

Any help with the others?

[stuntmovie]

nJ, take a look at the group shot above with Dave and George and Chuck and you can see that Chuck was on the short side and that was most likely his disadvantage.

Great physique though.

Thanks, POLY!

[funk51]

Funk, would you happen to have exact dates for the photos of Paul at Muscle Beach- I mean when he was there as shown?

no joe , first time i saw pic was in a mid60's ironman mag.

[stuntmovie]

Regarding George Eifferman ..... Many years after all of these above photos, we would become good friends.

He presented me an award at a formal gathering and his wife took me aside while he was making the presentation and said something like, "He really wants to give you this because you deserve it!".

I have forgotten her exact words but it was really appreciated.

George was hospitalized when his good friend Steve Reeves passed away and we were asked to not tell George until he fully recovered, so I am unaware if George was aware of Steve's death before he himself passed away.

[stuntmovie]

DAMN!!!! Why am I confusing Terpak with Grinik???

I met them both at one time or another but for some dumb reason I get them confused.

[njflex]

nJ, take a look at the group shot above with Dave and George and Chuck and you can see that Chuck was on the short side and that was most likely his disadvantage.

Great physique though.

Thanks, POLY!

DAMN UR RIGHT LIKE PADILLA SHORT MINUS THE MASS DANNY HAD,,THANKS..

[funk51]

DAMN!!!! Why am I confusing Terpak with Grinik???

I met them both at one time or another but for some dumb reason I get them confused.

maybe because both were york men i used to confuse terpak with the teralazzo's john and tony.. when i was young everytime i went to york for equipment it seemed john terralazzo waited on me. never thought to get john grimek's autograph. i'm talking mid-60's here.another pic of cally guys.

[Joe Roark]

Regarding George Eifferman ..... Many years after all of these above photos, we would become good friends.

He presented me an award at a formal gathering and his wife took me aside while he was making the presentation and said something like, "He really wants to give you this because you deserve it!".

I have forgotten her exact words but it was really appreciated.

George was hospitalized when his good friend Steve Reeves passed away and we were asked to not tell George until he fully recovered, so I am unaware if George was aware of Steve's death before he himself passed away.

I happened to be in contact with George's ex-wife (who took him into her home and cared for him while he was failing) and she asked me not tell him that Steve had passed. George lived about 21 more months after Steve passed and I suspect he did not know about Steve.

   George's Marriages: Tobi 1962 - 1963, and 1968 - 1974
   Bonita Oct 19, 1978 - 1988
Gerrie- this is a confusing situation but he was technically married to Gerrie when he died as I understand it.

[funk51]

maybe because both were york men i used to confuse terpak with the teralazzo's john and tony.. when i was young everytime i went to york for equipment it seemed john terralazzo waited on me. never thought to get john grimek's autograph. i'm talking mid-60's here.another pic of cally guys.

joe nista

[Joe Roark]

no joe , first time i saw pic was in a mid60's ironman mag.

The photos may have been taken the first week of June 1957, but I cannot prove it.

[njflex]

COOL SHOTS GREAT BUILDS,SOLID,,,

[stuntmovie]

Great shot with Nesta, Mcardel, Scott and Dadigan.

I met them all at one time or another. Most recently Larry Scott at one of  the Expos.

Back in the mid-60's Larry Scott was training Bill Mcardel for the prestigious Mr. California contest and since Larry was the best in Cal at that time, everyone felt that Mcardel would be unbeatable.

But that was  the year when a relatively unknown by the name of John Corvelllo was training for the same contest up north near San Jose in a small club called Moonlight Heath Studio (or a similar name).

It was a damn close contest but John managed to win that year and take the 'bacon' home.

Soon after that John moved to the LA area and was involved with a major health club within the Century City area (if I recall correctly).

Then he was featured in Playgirl magazine and .... that's the rest of the story!

[Joe Roark]

Scott, Do you recall the year when Ralph ha that LAKESIDE GYM? His gym along the Pacific Coast Highway was a small stand-alone building with the beach directly  behind it somewhere in the vicinity of the race-track south of Oceanside.

I have a feeling it was  just before he moved to Hilo, Hawaii and opened a small place there.

According to MTI July 1979 p 11, Kroger "...bought four acres of land on Hilo in Hawaii and should be moving in as this sees print'. So, the summer of 1979?

[funk51]

The photos may have been taken the first week of June 1957, but I cannot prove it.

that would have been my guess year wise as it was shortly after the olympics.

[stuntmovie]

Thanks , Joe! I'm bad when it comes to dates but '79 sounds about right.

Here is more stuff that I may not be too accurate about.

Ralph's Hilo gym was a small place on the second floor of  a very old building in the center of Helo which was across from the 'beach' or more accurately "HILO BAY".  Many years earlier that part of the Big Island was devestated by a huge tsunami and may people were hurt or killed.

The gym itself was not too impressive when I saw it.

And arond that time there was another gym about a mile otr two away that was owned by a gentleman named Herb Ishibashi, which was pretty darn impressive for a small town like Hilo.

If I recall correctly, Herb promoted a contest and Ralph was signed up to enter but failed to appear for the weigh-ins.

And if I recall correctly once again, Jeff and Cory Everson were there to participate as guest posers.

Haven't thought of this since it occured so this is coming off the top of my head .... but the contest was held in some town or HS auditorium and was running late.

And one of the high school kids was in charge and was told by his boss that we'd be out of there by 10 PM.

So 10 PM arrived and the kid started to pull the curtain down and told us that he was locking up and going home and that we sholuld continue this event in the parking lot.

I forgot how we solved that problem but an hour or so later Jeff and Cory did their thing while the curtain was still up and after that we all went home or back to our hotel rooms.

Hilo is the kind of town that closes up at 9 and expects everyone to be safe at home and sound asleep by 9:30. In fact most of all the neighbor islands think it's time to go to bed soon after the sun sets.

Needless to say that we were never invited back to use  that particular venue.

Correct me if I've forgotten anything, Jeff.

[stuntmovie]

Joe, Even back then four acres of land in Hilo or on the ouuskirts of Hilo was very expensive unless that 4 acres was situated on the side of Haleakala.

I rode up the side of that volcano once to look at some residential property and the land was nothing but ancient lava and semi-flat residential lots which some industrious 'pioneers' had 'flattened' over many months of chain gang type labor.

Much of that lava had been untouched since that lava  flowed and sometimes it would look and feel like you were sitting on a surfboard with lava 'waves' of twenty to thirty feet on either side of you.

Those lava fields were the least expensive 'land ' in the state and there was a lot of marijuana growing on up 'thar'.

[cswol]

tribute to bill and arnold

[The Scott]

SCOTT ….. You said someplace above …. “you had to at least present yourself in a decent manner with good manners.  No grapefruit bangers would have been allowed.”

That so very TRUE, but not jus about boybuilding competition entries! Itt was the TRUTH about LIFE in general.

Compared to the way we live today, it was similar to the VICTORIAN AGE back then.

That is one of the reasons why I find it difficult to  intelligently discuss any use of roids back in the 50’s except for minor instances previously noted among a certain group of individuals.

Times were so much different then and even marijuana was taboo until a few years later.

You mentioned Reeves and Grimek …… As mentioned earlier I met Reeves on a number of occasions and had the honor of working with him a few years before he passed away.

Steve was always great to telk with but John Grimek always seemed to be a bit cantankerous and a bit annoyed about something that was never too evident. But I only met Grimek while some major Olympic lifting event was underway so that could have been the reason for his ‘cantanker-ness’.

I’ll also add that Gironda was always great to talk with and very concerned about any competing gym member. No matter how bad one of his members appeared on stage, Vince was always supportive and always thought the best.

Many think that VINCE was way ahead of his time when it came to  muscle growth, but no one seems to defend Vince for his stand against squatting.

I have been told that even Larry Scott had to train elsewhere on leg day.

JOE …. Nothing too much to tell about Paul Anderson because I can’t find any of the photos I took when he was visiting San Francisco but I did pay $3 for a ticket one evening to watch him wrestle another big opponent at the San Francisco Auditorium opposite City Hall (I think the name was changed recently but I have not lived in that city for way too many years.)

So I paid my  $3 and went inside and the place was full of Anderson fans had better seats than I had. They must have paid $5 to get inside.

If I recall right, Paul was the main attraction and everyone stood and yelled a lot when he was introduced.

And from that point on it turned into something like a Barnum and Bailey Side Show  with Paul breaking 2x4’s and lifting heavy things before getting into something that looked like a dancing contest with his opponent.

In other words  …. It looked rehearsed but one half of that two man group appeared to have missed the rehaersal ……. But after a few minutes Paul was declared the winner and the crowd showed its approval and left the place to get a drink somewhere before heading home ….. San Frncisco was a major drinking town back the with way more drunk drinkers I’ve ever seen since them good old days.

I went to the back door to see if I could get an autograph but only got a couple of photos with an old but reliable Brownie.

And without the photos I took back then, that’s all I can say about Paul Anderson  ….. but he was a great man and even started a home for “troubled kids” which I’ll have to Goggle to refresh my memory.

It was better back then because people behaved as people, and not mindless animals.  Bodybuilders were interested in strength and health.  They worked for what they had.   

People didn't wear their pajamas to the store and you earned your  way in life.   Steve and George are two of the genuine greats.  I was in Studio City in the mid 70s and called Gironda's gym to ask directions.  Whoever answered asked my name and I naturally replied, "This is Scott"....

Ooops.  "Larry!  Can't you ******** remember how to get here?!

I hastily hung up the pay phone (remember those?) as I didn't want any part of looking like I was trying to fool someone into thinking I was Larry.  I was often mistaken for Draper in the late 70s and early  80s.  We share a similar look, but he is much larger than I.

I miss those days.  The folks I trained with that did take drugs never lied about it.  They even shared their regimen, if you will.  They took breaks from it and never over did that stuff.  But still, they took it.  The ones I knew are more than likely still alive and doing well.

Thanks for the memories, Stuntman!

[stuntmovie]

SCOTT!   "This is Scott!" ..... funny story.

SCOTT... here are some memories that these GetBiggers won't appreciate too very much...

I'm glad you agree that THINGS WERE SO MUCH DIFFERENT THEN!  I could expound on that till the cows come home!

Many times the younger generation thinks I'm full  of shit when we talk about the good old days and those involved in the business or those who were competing in skimpy trunks for a plastic trophy.

Back then gyms were social hangouts  .... but only AFTER the serous training was completed and any use of roids was discussed openly without hearing a lot of shit from those outside the 'game'.

Those "outside the game" were not gym members yet, but a President named Kennedy would change that real soon.

I personally believe thatt the following three events changed gym atmospheres for the worse over time.

I can't blame President Kenney but he was very active and convincing about the general public getting in some form of decent shape. ANd that was when the gym "outsiders' entered the picture and changed just about everything.

Chrome this and chrome that and fancy shit that the original gym members never used.

Gyms became places where inividuals who knew nothing about lifting heavy things, started trying  lifting heavy things with no real interest in doing so.

And these new members failed to understand the mind-set of those who took lifting heavy things and gaining muscular size ... very seriously.

SO there were sort of two very different groups of gym members and over time it became very noticealbe and somewhat resentful.

The commeradity slowly evaporated and never did return.

And then the Personal Trainer Business raised its ugly head. And the guys who knew how to train were replaced by the guys who only thought they knew how to train  but passed a written test.

That problem is not as bad today as it was back then but back then when there were no PT's, you'd simply ask anyone in the gym if you could  work arms or legs or chest with them.

Or if you didn't really know what to do, there was always someone there willing to help you out without a $60 to a $100 consultation fee.

But that PT business grew and continues to grow today because gyms  are now full of  people who have no idea what the hell they are supposed to do and it's an easy increase to the bottom line.

But it's difficult to argue about the PT business because  some PT's have proved themselves to be very helpful.

But it was so much more simple in the good old days when you could walk up to anyone in the gym and ask for help with a spot or for help on just about anything regarding your particular workout.

It was  so much better in them good old days.

And then they made the use of roids a felony which created big business and big incomes for those who look for income opportunities such as this.

And roid discussions and advice and even help and advice from the medical profession went underground. It became dangerous to discuss it openly and honestly.

An a few good men got arrested by those in authority who used the roids and  still do to this day.

YADA, Yada, yada,,,,,, gottta  go to the airport.

[jpm101]

Stunt is still the man, but nice to see some of the other BB'ing veterans adding to this thread.

Any one hear of a guy called Big Danny, back in the day, who hung around Santa Monica & Venice beach.. Don't know the last name but heard a lot of stories about him.

 Padilla, no doubt, another outstanding Italian BB'er. If tall as Arnold, he might have ruled the BB'ing world, even over Columbo if he was taller. Too  bad about Paul DeMayo, unreal development.

Keep the good stuff coming. The personal things , witnessed first hand, are worth their price in gold.

[stuntmovie]

JPM, I worked with both Danny and Paul but I'm having difficulty recalling anything that occured back then.

Gottta make some phone calls to see if  I can get my memory refreshed.

Will also ask about Big DANNY. That name is kind of fuzzy in the back of my head.

Heading out to see WWZ.

[funk51]

JPM, I worked with both Danny and Paul but I'm having difficulty recalling anything that occured back then.

Gottta make some phone calls to see if  I can get my memory refreshed.

Will also ask about Big DANNY. That name is kind of fuzzy in the back of my head.

Heading out to see WWZ.

the kennedy influence probably the first president to appear on the cover of a musclemag.,,,give us your take on wwz. gable boudreaux?

[njflex]

the kennedy influence probably the first president to appear on the cover of a musclemag.,,,give us your take on wwz. gable boudreaux?

another great build,,awesome stuff,not to throw the thread off,,funk51 is a great contributor to this ,,his mr america thread in the history section was epic yr to yr pic's was just great work,i read every page and enjoyed the 70/80's guys the ones i remember when i started training late 80's,,respected those builds still do,,

[stuntmovie]

Gable Boudreaux ......

WOW! That's a long time forgotten name.

I never did meet Gabe (very short) because I was overseas during most of the time that he was in SoCal. (He's originally from Louisiana and may be residing in Louisiana as we speak).

If I recall correctly, he trained with Scott at Vince's and placed second in the Cal contest the year after Corvello took the overall.

I believe Corvello won the Cal in 1965, so that would put Gable second in the 1966 Cal.

Joe, Can you tell us who won the Cal title in 1966??

[jpm101]

Believe that Boudreaux was one of the front men for Rheo Blairs (Irv Johnson) protein, etc. Like a before and after thing and what Blairs protein diet did for Boudreaux. Larry Scott also endorsed this line of products, probable before signing with Weider.  (that was a very advanced diet for that day...maybe better thought out than even the master Gironda)

I'm thinking that maybe Dan Vadis was the Big Danny I had in mind. Very strong but a somewhat strange dude. Behavior was to the extreme, at times. Sort of like Ed Fury. Reminds me the time that Draper was slipped LSD (or so the story goes) at a party and went nuts. Police was called in and he was arrested. Heard nothing much came of that. Lot of acid that people were playing around with even back then.

Told that if Gordon Scott  (Tarzan in the movies) focus seriously on strict BB'ing he could have given Reeves a run for his money. Really had to see him in person, great BB'ing frame it's been said. Reeves had a funny walk for awhile, where he would raise on his toes with each step......sort of like walking on springs. For the calves, he said.