Muscle Beach History - by Stuntmovie

[stuntmovie]

THANKS, ED!

I gotta add that the help I've been getting from some of you GetBiggers is appreciated too.

FUNK! I honestly don't recall anything about the AAU's five athletic points but i do recall the following incident which I believe was at the very beginning of the NPC take-over. It could have been during the AAU days though but I'lll leave that up to Joe for a correction if one is required.

Nothing of genuine interest here but ...... Back in the day on an early Saturday morning in Santa Monica, California during a major, national bodybuilding contest (either the AAU Mr America or the NPC National Championships), I ran into an old friend (Peter Grymkowski) who was rushing out of the hotel in which the weigh-ins were being held.  

Since I knew Pete well and since I was raised to  be somewhat polite, I asked him what the rush was! And Pete said that he was in a hurry because he had forgotten his NPC card (AAU card?) and had to get it immediately or he would  fail to register for the contest on time.

I told him to relax and I'd go and get it and bring it back.

Pete's card was in the top drawer of his desk in Gold's (he was one of the owners at that time) and it was only about four blocks away so I came back within 20 minutes and handed the card to Pete so he could prove that he was a member in good standing (meaning that his card was current) .... and then he was happy all went well.

Once he was registered he had to stand in a very long line of competitors for a very long time of standing.

That line of competitors was for the INTERVIEW process whereby every contender was interviewed by three or four officials before the prejudging process.

I didn't sit in that interview nor did I hear what that interview consisted of .... but most of the after-interview comments ddisclosed that it was little more than .... Name / Rank / and Serial # which was meant to insure that the potential winner could communicate well if he were to represent the Sanctioning Organization.

As far as I can recall, that was one of the three steps that was required before the prejudging  ... Registration with your current membership card / Weight-In / and the Interview.

That Interview Process was dropped shortly thereafter, but many felt that it would be a good idea to incorporate some sort of athletic event as a substitution.

But needless to say that never happened..... and now that I think of it after proof-reading the above .... I have some doubts that weigh-ins were even necessary back then.  (HELP, JOE!!)

[jpm101]

Don't know about the five athletic points for the old Mr America, but had been told about some other requirements that were athletic. Do well in a few of the Olympic lifts, press over bwt, hand balance or whatever. Also had to be well spoken, before the judging panel, and answer questions. Just like the Miss America, strange back than. Harold Poole, who was clearly a top contender, had a speech problem and was said to have lost points for that. Maybe being black was another thing. Good posture and well groomed included in all this.

Also prejudging had different phases of posing. One was under national/outdoor sun. The other under overhead stage lighting. There was also a relaxed  side, front and rear view of the BB'ers. Judges looked for all kind of physical flaws. When standing relaxed and natural, a lot of flaws will be noticed, big time.

Might be quite a sight if the modern Pro's had to do any of this.  Some have a hard time walking and chewing gum at the same time.. Some even get out of breath just walking.

[Joe Roark]

Stunt, athletic points were a part of SOME AAU Mr. America contests over the years, but were eliminated at the 1969 contest in Chicago. The AAU switched scoring systems and characteristics from time to time. Hair, teeth, posture/carriage, were at various times parts of the judging. Sometimes the categories were weight based, other times height based. Without giving a year by year analysis, it was (in my view) a mess.

There were also strict time limits of posing at some events.

[The Scott]

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.

It was mid to late 70s, perhaps 77 or so.  He was very nice guy.  A real gentleman and as shown in the photographs posted here, a handsome man with a great build.  

Now to the point of judging and especially on the standing relaxed.  They relaxed back then.  None of this stupid posturing that goes on now and yes, you had to at least present yourself in a decent manner with good manners.  No grapefruit bangers would have been allowed.

I believe Reeves lost the Universe to Grimek due to the latter's muscle control display and hand balancing act after a tie was declared.  Reeves later said he was under the impression that the contest was based upon one's physique but took the loss in a gentlemanly way and returned a couple of years later to win it over Reg Park.


I appreciate this thread and the photos put up by you, Funk and the others.  Great memories worthy of remembering and sharing.

[Joe Roark]

Stunt, please remember your Paul Anderson story.

[stuntmovie]

JPM, Sorry for the length of this reply but I'm trying my best to explain some details that may be unknown to the younger GetBiggers with the hope that they may find some of this to be of interest.


I don’t recall any of those athletic requirements except for the interview.

But I do recall the Relaxed Round which was the first thing that the judges called for when the contestants lined up on stage for the  prejudging and were asked to stand relaxed and look straight ahead.

This allowed the Head Judge to ensure that the contestant numbers were correct and visible for all the judges to see.

And this was the time when each of the judges would make their first unofficial calculation ranking eack of the contestants first through last while they were standing relaxed.  (Subject to change at any time of course.)

Then the contestants were asked to take a quarter turn to the right and look straight ahead and remain relaxed.

This allowed the slower judges time to finish what the faster judges had already accomplished. (Judging placements while standing sideways was difficult.)

Then aother quarter turn so the judges could see the backs, then another quarter turn and then another quarter turn so that once again all the contestants were facing front.

All of the above was  called the Relaxed Round and if any contestant was not relaxed he would  be told to “Relax!” and that round would not proceed until he did so.

Based on my experience the judges were somwwhat tougher back then when it came to strict standards and any error on the part of anyone on that stage would be corrected before the prejudging round would continue.

This ‘strictness’ during the relaxed round allowed onw and all to have an equal opportunity.

Gradually over the years, the relaxed round became anything but relaxed and I would not be surprised if the Relaxed Round was removed from the current NPG Rule Book or NPC Guidelines.

Then immdiately following the  Relaxed Round, the Head Judge would call for the Comparisson Round and call for the following poses while all contenders are standing  side by side in that lineup:
Front Fouble Bicep
Front Lat Spread
Quarter turn  
Side Chest
Side Tricep
Wuater turn …
Double Bicep from the Rear
Lat Spread with Calfs
Quater turn …
Side Chest
Side Tricep
Fae Front ….
Hands behind head Abs
Most Muscular

Sometimes (and this happened frequently) a contestant would take an extra long time to get into one of the above poses …. and that problem would best be solved by calling for the next pose before he got into the previous pose. At that point he would catch on and get with the program).

By now the judges would have a damn good idea how/where to place each contestant on his individual score sheet, but if any judge needed more time or a further look, the Head Judge would call out various contestants to stand side by side and  hit various poses until each judge was satisfied that his ranking were as he/she saw fit.

Then the Individual Posing part of prejudging would begin and each contestnt was allowed to do his 60 second posing routine without music.

This would give the judges additional time to compute their individual score-sheet if he or she needed time to do so.

And then the judges would sign their score sheet and pass it on the the Head Judge for computation.

The big change now-a-days is that there is no longer an individual posing round during the prejudging. I think that the main reason for the elimination of the inividual posing round was to expidite prejudging due to the increase of competitors over the years.

Joe / Scott  ... More to follow regarding your posts ..... Thanks!

[funk51]

Stunt, please remember your Paul Anderson story.

anderson at muscle beach

[funk51]

 ;)stunt did you ever encounter any of these fellows pic'd chuck ahrens, dan vadis,chuck collras, peter lupus?

[njflex]

;)stunt did you ever encounter any of these fellows pic'd chuck ahrens, dan vadis,chuck collras, peter lupus?

3RD PIC PETER LUPUS SHOULD BE TURNED AND HANDING TROPHY OVER TO RIGHTFUL OWNER WITH GREAT MIDSECTION/LINES..

[Joe Roark]

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

[stuntmovie]

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.

[stuntmovie]

 FUNK, You asked the following  .... "Did you ever encounter any of these fellows pic'd chuck ahrens, dan vadis,chuck collras, peter lupus?"

Yes!
Chuck Colllras - Often. Chuck was one of the competitors you coulld always count on to enter a So Cal contest. .... Ditto for Reg Lewis. (And Sheri also!)
Peter Lupus - Couple of times
Chuck Ahrens - I don't think so,
Dan Vadis - Never, but I seem to recall that his name was changed for some movie work. It appears that he is making a Herk film in the above photo. I'll see if I can find out his real name.
Don Peters - You failed to mention DON but I saw him frequently

[stuntmovie]

That photo above of Peters, Lupus, Chuck and an unknown guy was taken at at a ball park in Palm Springs. I was there that day and have always been under the impression that Lupus also entered the contest that day but I am apparently mistaken..... Oe maybe Lupus competed against Don the fnext year.

This was also the day when Gypsie Boots did about 20 minutes of a "football throwing" demonstration. Gypsie had a long white beard which made him appear older than he actually was, but regardless of his age, that demonstration was impressive.

I can recall being impresse, but I forget exactly what he did that impressed me.

That was also the day I had to drive back to Camp Pendleton through a massive wind storm which sand-blasted all the blue paint offf my VW. Stripped it down to the primer!

[stuntmovie]

Notice the guys in the suits standing in the shade behind Anderson.

Suits and ties and even hats were in vogue back then but I don't recall anyone showing up on the beach dressed like that .

[stuntmovie]

Nothing earth-shattering here but I should have mentioned it above .....

To the best of my knowledge Gypsie Boots was the first individual who made and sold protein in tablet form. They were packaged somewhat like Life-Savers and tasted something like grass or alfalfa. Can any of you GetBigggers recall the name of those tablets?

This was many years before the supplement industry was on  its feet .... and around the time when the very few "health food stores" were relatively unknown and considered to be where the 'crack-pots' (crazy people) shopped for wheat germ oil, yogurt (plain only), and bowel movement stuff.

And regarding Don Peters .... Not sure here but I think he had a job at one of the major Hollywood movie studios. And I never did attend any of his parties but I have been told that it was mandatory to sit through a half hour or so of the 'movies' that were shot of him while on stage competing in a number of contests.

SO in many cases, his friends would just show up late.

[njflex]

That photo above of Peters, Lupus, Chuck and an unknown guy was taken at at a ball park in Palm Springs. I was there that day and have always been under the impression that Lupus also entered the contest that day but I am apparently mistaken..... Oe maybe Lupus competed against Don the fnext year.

This was also the day when Gypsie Boots did about 20 minutes of a "football throwing" demonstration. Gypsie had a long white beard which made him appear older than he actually was, but regardless of his age, that demonstration was impressive.

I can recall being impresse, but I forget exactly what he did that impressed me.

That was also the day I had to drive back to Camp Pendleton through a massive wind storm which sand-blasted all the blue paint offf my VW. Stripped it down to the primer!

U THINK PETERS SHOULD HAVE BEAT GUY OPPOSITE LUPUS BEHIND HIM...

[stuntmovie]

FUNK, I’m very surprised that I never met nor can hardly recall anything about Don Vadis.
But I am sure we had mutual friends while he was alive due to the fact that he did some stunt-work back them.

The following info is provided by IMDB.

DAN  VADIS (1838 – 1987)
Birth Name …Constantine Daniel Vafiadis

Born in Shanghai, China

Died in Lancaster, California, USA (in auto, in desert) (Accidental drug overdose; acute ethanol and heroin-morphine intoxication.)

Served in the Navy.

Member of the Mae West Muscleman Revue in the late 1950s.

Was good friends with fellow muscle man Gordon Mitchell, who helped him get into the film business.

He began his film career as a star in the Italian produced sword and sandal/mythological muscleman movies. His films were produced in the waning years of that genre. However, unlike the other stars of that genre, he was able to obtain roles in the next popular Italian produced genre, the spaghetti westerns.

IMDB lists 27 film and TV credits under his name

[funk51]

Notice the guys in the suits standing in the shade behind Anderson.

Suits and ties and even hats were in vogue back then but I don't recall anyone showing up on the beach dressed like that .

the guy with the sunglasses is john terpak a lifter and employee of york barbell. the york guys were said to make MJ brownies for their summer picnics. read this in john fair's book.

[funk51]

FUNK, You asked the following  .... "Did you ever encounter any of these fellows pic'd chuck ahrens, dan vadis,chuck collras, peter lupus?"

Yes!
Chuck Colllras - Often. Chuck was one of the competitors you coulld always count on to enter a So Cal contest. .... Ditto for Reg Lewis. (And Sheri also!)
Peter Lupus - Couple of times
Chuck Ahrens - I don't think so,
Dan Vadis - Never, but I seem to recall that his name was changed for some movie work. It appears that he is making a Herk film in the above photo. I'll see if I can find out his real name.
Don Peters - You failed to mention DON but I saw him frequently

:)collaras was said to pose everywhere he went even weddings.

[stuntmovie]

NJ, I think you mean Peters vs. Chick Collras.

That was a really long time ago, but I think that the Peters deserved that win.

Peters had the CLASSICAL type of physique that most bodybuilders trained for ... don't forget that these were still the days when Reeves was considered the 'ultimate' bodybuilder on planet earth.

And Chuck was always in great shape but he was short and not as impressive as Peters in 'real life'.

But I gotta admit that that is a damn good shot of Chuck.

I'm gonna do my best to contact old friend from back then and try to find out what ever happene to these guys who actually were the pioneers of bodybuilding and the lifting of heavy things.

[polychronopolous]

Great thread stuntmovie.

Nothing I can really add except ask the occasional question but I always enjoy reading about your reminiscence of the older days.

[funk51]

:)collaras was said to pose everywhere he went even weddings.

got the story from lydia t zabo k's ex-wife.and the girl in the arnold pic.

[funk51]

 

[stuntmovie]

FUNK.... You are right about Collras. I don't think I ever saw him with a shirt ON.

ANd he was always on stage when it came time to compete.

Actually there were about four or five others who always showed up also. Those were the days when a bodybuilding contest would have roughly 8 - 10 guys in the line-up and I don't recall if there were any wt or height divisions back them

[njflex]

stunt I see your point,certainly not to argue 40/50 yrs ago pics,just like that guys look there collaras sp?its a impressive thread to say the least.