the origin of world gym according to drasin.

[epic is back]

             yes    Did actor Robert Blake murder his wife?
In 1967, Robert Blake, who worked as an actor on and off for years, starred in the adaptation of Truman Capote’s 1966 true crime novel, In Cold Blood. Blake played Perry Smith in the film, who murdered the four members of the Clutter family in 1959 with Richard Hickcock. Blake, apparently, had a “chilling” resemblance to Smith.

Either way, it makes for an ironic coincidence when, years later, Blake would be the prime suspect in the murder of his second wife, Bonnie Lee Bakley. While a jury found Blake not guilty, there are still doubts. Did Robert Blake kill his wife? Or he is as innocent as the jury believed him to be?


Obsession
Bonnie Lee Bakley was a woman obsessed with celebrity and wanted to be with someone famous. She didn’t really care who, saying “Being around celebrities, it makes you feel better than other people.” Bakley was a woman determined, pursuing relationships with Jerry Lee Lewis, Dean Martin, Frankie Valli, Gary Busey.


When she married Robert Blake in 2000, this was Bakley’s tenth marriage. It also had some stipulations attached to it. When Blake and Bakley met in 1999, Bakley was in a relationship with Christian Brando, the eldest son of actor Marlon Brando who was also in prison for voluntary manslaughter.

In June 200, Bakley would give birth to a daughter, Christian Shannon Brando. While she initially believed Brando was the father, she thought there was a chance that Blake could be her daughter’s father. Blake took a paternity test, which confirmed he was the father.


Ultimate Netflix guide: Dark comedy specials
×

With paternity established, the baby’s name was changed from Christian Shannon Brando to Rose Lenore Sophia Blake. With this news, Blake agreed to marry Bakley on the condition that she sign a temporary custody agreement. Given Bakley’s past marriages and her career running lonely heart ads scams, it makes sense that there would be some kind of agreement in place.

The agreement went like this, Bakley agrees to supervised visits with Rose, if her family/friends want to visit the property she needs to get permission from Blake, and if either party decides to end the marriage then the other would get custody of Rose. Bakley ignored an attorney’s advice about the agreement being “lopsided” and signed, wanting to marry Blake, which she did in Nov. 2000.

About seven mothers later, on May 4, 2001, Bakley would be dead.



May 4, 2001
Blake took Bakley out for dinner at Vitello’s Restaurant on May 4, 2001. After the meal, Blake and Bakley headed out to the car. Blake, however, forgot his gun inside of the restaurant. So he left Bakley to wait in the car and headed back to pick his gun. While Bakley sat in Blake’s vehicle, she was shot in the head.

Bakley’s window was open when she was shot, which police believed meant she was familiar with her attacker. The murder a Walther P38 pistol was found in a dumpster near the crime scene.



Blake definitely was in the restaurant when Bakley was shot. Police analyzed his hands for gun residue: nothing. The gun Blake forgot in the restaurant was not the murder weapon.

Despite this, however, police felt Blake had a strong motive to murder Bakley. Their marriage was not a happy one. The couple never lived together with Bakley and Rose living in a guest house. Blake didn’t trust Bakley, who was continuing to run her lonely heart scams.



Murder for Hire
Nearly a year later on April 18, 2002, Blake was arrested for Bakley’s murder. His bodyguard Earle Caldwell was arrested on conspiracy charges. So what brought on the charges? Two people came forward and said that Blake tried to hire them to kill Bakley, Ronald “Duffy” Hambleton, and Gary McLarty.

Blake and Caldwell entered pleas of Not Guilty. Blake even posted Caldwell’s $1 million USD bail. Blake, however, was denied bail. After nearly a year in jail in March 2003, he was allowed to post a $1.5 million USD bail for himself and was under house arrest until his trial.

During this time, the conspiracy charges against Blake and Caldwell were dismissed by a judge. A junior prosecutor admitted to 48 Hours Investigates that the case was very thin.



That’s what pretty much proved to be the prosecution’s undoing. The defense was brutal in their cross-examinations of Hambleton and McLarty, brought witnesses to contradict the prosecution’s case, and just wrecked it. Blake was found Not Guilty on March 16, 2005.

Reactions to the verdict were mixed. Some felt that Blake was guilty, but others felt that the defense did its job to prove his innocence. After his acquittal, Blake celebrated at the scene of the crime, Vitello’s.

But, as the O.J. Simpson case taught us, just because you’re found Not Guilty in criminal court, doesn’t mean civil court will be as kind.



Civil Suit
Bakley’s three older children from previous relationships filed a civil suit against Blake and Caldwell for the wrongful death of Bakley. This was a wild trial too. See the defense attorney, Eric Dubin, called Caldwell’s girlfriend to the stand and asked if she thought Blake and Caldwell did it.

Dubin recalled, “Tears filled her eyes as she paused for what seemed like a decade, then leaned into the microphone and said that yes, she did believe that they were involved.”



In Nov. 2005, months after his acquittal, Blake was found liable in his wife’s death and was ordered to pay $30 million USD to Bakley’s family. In 2006, Blake filed for bankruptcy.

Attempts to give the verdict for the civil suit overturned failed, though the price was cut in half from $30 mil to $15 mil. In 2010 the state of California put on a tax lien on Blake for $1,110,878 in unpaid back taxes. Blake has since, largely, faded from the public consciousness with his last role being in 1997.

—

[epic is back]

The Birth Of World Gym
07/26/2016 03:01 pm ET Updated Dec 06, 2017
Joe Gold, the owner and developer of Gold’s Gym had visions way back in the 60’s of having his own gym and in 1965 he built his dream gym, which became the Mecca Of Bodybuilding, we know it and we know it as Gold’s Gym. 1006 Pacific Street, Venice, CA.

2016-07-24-1469388986-2091389-frontofgoldsgym.jpg

In 1973 the gym was sold. Joe was a merchant marine and wanted to go back out to sea.  At that time he not only sold the gym but the rights to his name as well.  Sometimes we do things in life without realizing the big picture. In this case, once the name is sold, you can’t get it back.

Well as we know, Gold’s began to grow and within a couple of years it was becoming the gym to train in.   Gold’s was in all the magazines and sponsoring bodybuilding shows.  The gym’s popularity was huge and moving up the ranks fast. Joe Weider owner of Muscle & Fitness Magazine shot a lot of photos there for his magazine which increased the popularity a lot!

2016-07-24-1469389397-9619629-ricarnoldken.jpg

Then the owners sold it again and those owners sold it again and it was moved to 2nd street in Santa Monica.  The building it was in was owned by actor Robert Blake.  They only stayed in that location a few years and then moved to Hampton Street in Venice where it is now.

2nd street

2016-07-24-1469390065-7310810-secondgoldsgroup595.jpg

Today’s Gold’s Venice on Hampton

2016-07-24-1469390239-8828433-santamonica220120383.jpg

Joe Gold returned from sea in 1976 and saw the popularity of his former gym and wanted back into the business.  Here’s where the problem came in.  He sold his name so therefore legally was not able to open another gym with the name Gold in it.  This frustrated him because it’s his name!  I think any of us would feel that way, but legally there were no rights.  So, he decided to open a bigger and better gym and call it World Gym - Owner Joe Gold.  This actually sufficed and the gym opened up on Main Street in Santa Monica

2016-07-24-1469390462-268446-maxresdefault.jpg

Almost immediately all the die-hard bodybuilders came running back to support Joe and joined his club.  Arnold, Franco, Waller, Zabo,Giuliani, Zane, Platz, etc. You name it, they were there.  The support was unbelievable.

Everyone liked Joe and they were thrilled to be back in one of his gyms.  Now many of you don’t know but Joe made ALL his equipment by hand, including even the dumbbells.  This was what made his gym so unique.  Everything was well thought out with angles and pulleys that made the greatest bodies in the world.

He still had the same rules, and that was if you drop the weights you’re kicked out and absolutely no music in the gym.  He just thought it was distracting.

I was fortunate to have an apartment right across the street on one side and on the other side I had the ocean.  This was the way to live. I could walk over and train and then walk to the beach to get some sun.  Everything was within three blocks.  Boy, those were the days.

2016-07-24-1469390576-9412527-JoeGoldMe.jpg

2016-07-24-1469390762-3800669-worldgymbuddies.jpg

After a few years, I bought a house in Sherman Oaks, which is considered the valley and about 17 miles from the beach.  I drove to the gym everyday back and forth to train because that was home to me.  But, one day Joe told me that he was building another world gym out by me so I wouldn’t have to drive as far.

Subscribe to The Morning Email.
Wake up to the day's most important news.
address@email.com
This is the World Gym that not too many people know of.  It was built in Panorama City and was twice the size of his other gym.  The weights and machines were all custom built by Joe as well, and the workouts there were some of the best.  Joe didn’t believe in having heat or A/C in any of his gyms mainly because they were at the beach and it wasn’t needed but in the valley it was different. 112 in the summer was normal and 30 at night in the winter wasn’t unusual but still no heat and AC.

2016-07-24-1469390820-9504607-worldgymvalley.jpg

Never the less we all trained through it and had magnificent workouts.  Some of the better bodybuilders there were Dave Johns, Mike Sable, and Rufus Howard at the time. 

2016-07-24-1469390871-2649226-ricWorldValley1.jpg

Joe held onto this gym for a few years but quickly tired of the drive back and forth from the beach to the Valley. 

Joe then sold the gym to bodybuilder Steve Davis.  All of us still trained there and new members would come from time to time but the gym was off the main path and hard to find.  It wasn’t drawing the people like we did at the beach and the Valley crowd was much different.  I never trained at night there but was told it became a pretty rough crowd of gang bangers.

Steve held on to the gym for a few years and tried to make a go of it, but then decided to sell it and sold it cheap for $25,000.   Had I known at the time, I would have bought it up but it happened so fast no one knew it.

A couple of men from Sunland bought and one day we arrived and the gates were chained up.   This is a similar story for many gyms across the world when they lose money.  These people moved the gym to Sunland, which was quite a distance from where it was so none of the members went along.

From what I’m told the gym went out of business and no one knows whatever happened to the equipment.  To me, this is very sad because as I said, it was hand made equipment by Joe Gold himself and has a certain value to it if nothing else than for historical reasons.

Joe moved the gym in Santa Monica over to Venice in another huge building that he made by hand and it was tri-level.  It was a very unusual shape but lacked the charisma  of his other gyms.  Arnold gave a hand in some of the financing and it stayed there for a few years.   Then Joe moved it again to an old Sizzler Steak House in Marina Del Rey.  I don’t think it drew the membership to keep it going by then. It had been moved too many times and people lost track of it. Joe passed away  in 2004, the gym closed down and then the members all moved back to Gold’s gym to train again.  It’s like everything went full circle.

World Gym Franchise is owned today by the Cammilleri family and re-growing fast.

2016-07-24-1469399528-6962723-ComingSoon.jpg

Gold’s Gym today has the same face but is a modern house inside.

2016-07-24-1469391040-1232486-boysoldgolds2.jpg

 Inside today

2016-07-24-1469397580-8358130-IMG_2010.JPG

But the memories remain and some of the guys are still around to talk about it.  Let’s hope it never fades.

ricdrasin.com

[stuntmovie]

MEGA! MEGA, You are absolutely correct about my Sand Castle error.

The building in question is THE SEA CASTLE.

My error! Thanks for the correction.

Regarding the year in which I first met DOUG STROHL … I gotta think hard here but that same week we were invited to see the opening of WAR AND PEACE at the Egyptian Theater and we met Jeff Hunter (now deceased) and Phyllis Thaxter who was in a wheelchair, and we were kind of special guests at the Art Linkletter TV show, followed by Bob Crosby, and some famous character by the name of Muzzy something, and Marlon Brando bought us beers because we were too damn young (I had just gotten my driver’s license)  in a run down bar called THE LAMPLIGHTER (probably still there), and then got in a short auto race with Eddie Fisher (we lost that  one).

Having said all of that…. it must have been 1956 because that was the year of the War and Peace premier.

Regarding REEVES, John Corvello, and Larry Scott ….

Reeves was a friend of my dad’s and visited Muscle Beach way before I started my Santa Monica Beach runs …. but somewhere on this Board there is a photo of Steve taken with my good friend Timmy Leong (now both deceased).

I’m guessing …. but I think that photo was shot in the late 40’s or early 50’s.

And Steve once briefly mentioned that he once stayed at Pudgy’s Beach House which was close to Muscle Beach, but I have no idea what year that was but much later (mid  1950's) we were present when Steve got sucker punched and knocked on his ass at a summer resort called Rio Nido on the Russian River ... Northern Cal.

That guy hit and ran pretty damn swiftly.

More on Pudgy later if there is any interest.

To the best of my knowledge … John Corvello  was only in Los Angeles when he won the Cal contest in the early 60’s … but years later to the best of my knowledge he managed a major health club in the L .A. Basin.

Larry Scott was more of a gymnast when I first met him in the early 60’s.

Larry was one of many who took advantage of getting a tan in front of that windless Sea Castle sea wall.

I had the opportunity to work with Larry many years later.

And also with Reever a couple of years prior to his passing.

I’m not familiar with the  Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich Sr. name but I am 98% positive that the present day Sea Castle was a drug rehab facility way back when  and I’m sure I  could recall the  name of the individual involved if someone was to mention it.

You mentioned the Club Casa Del Mar which I kind of recall had a very nice restaurant on the second floor directly above the walkway that runs down to Venice. I believe that this was the building which had a private club area directly on the beach itself.

More to follow if interested and after I take a close look at te photos you attached.

Thanks again for you help... And I still believe that was Joe's first gym.

[stuntmovie]

MEGA,FUNK, and IRON,

If you guys don't mind ... I'd like to add more history stuff to this topic and answer some questions that you put forth.

I'll continue this conversation tomorrow but before I forget ... let me mention the following ....

MEGA, Regarding the '3rd from the bottom' photo: That pier in the background may possibly be POP(Pacific Ocean Park) off of Rose Avenue I think or else the long  gone pier off Venice Beach where Lawrence Welk and his band played for dancing couples ... which all occurred before my time.

You may be aware that one of the Barbarian Bros gathered up a lot of that POP Pier after it was destroyed by a fire and made some decent household furniture.

I could be wrong but I believe he made a bedroom set for Arlold and Maria.

FUNK, Dave showed up in the Santa Monica area around ___?___ . He was working on or had just finished DON'T MAKE WAVES when I first met him while he was working in Joe Weider's little store across the street from Zucky's where every bodybuilder inSo. Cal. would eventually have a meal or two.

Joe had yet to movie his publishing business form back east so I believe that Dave was his first west coast employee.

And the photo of Dave and George Eifferman also brings back lots of old memories as George was a good find of mine for too short a time , but his best friend was Reeves for many years.

More on that if there is any interest.

[Megalodon]

Stunt, I want to discuss more of this and please keep the stories coming but in looking into some of these things and I'm kind of stuck on "The Dungeon".

From what I understand, it was located on Broadway and 4th and was Vic Tanny's 2nd Santa Monica gym. Vic Tanny himself called it "the dungeon".

Then, from this article:

https://theironwitness.com/muscle-beach-history-part-1/

It says

Into the basement they went, down the familiar creaky steps four blocks from The Beach Formerly Known As Muscle. In their desperation, the Muscle Beach Boys retreated to Vic Tanny’s old place. Unfortunately, the place wasn’t Vic’s no more. Vic had packed up and moved to brighter pastures years ago.

That's the part that doesn't make sense and this:

Whether Santa Monica liked it or not (and it seems it really, really didn’t), the Iron had come to California, and it wasn’t going anywhere that easy. From the rubble of Muscle Beach, the muscle men gathered what weights and bars and racks that they could and headed underground(to the Dungeon).

If Vic Tanny no longer owned "The Dungeon"(packed up and moved) and bodybuilders were grabbing equipment from the shut-down SM outdoor Muscle Beach and bringing it to "The Dungeon".... how were they gaining access to the 4th and Broadway building and putting their own equipment inside?

And was the Dungeon was also called "The Muscle Beach Weightlifting Club"?

Thanks, Stunt.

[Body-Buildah]

Robert Blake lifting.

Looks like Vinces gym, or the NY gym Louie trained in, in PI movie "I wanna beat 'em"!!!  "Arnolds got spaghetti arms Louie"!!

Could be any gym I guess, wood paneling was the thing in those days!

[funk51]

MEGA,FUNK, and IRON,

If you guys don't mind ... I'd like to add more history stuff to this topic and answer some questions that you put forth.

I'll continue this conversation tomorrow but before I forget ... let me mention the following ....

MEGA, Regarding the '3rd from the bottom' photo: That pier in the background may possibly be POP(Pacific Ocean Park) off of Rose Avenue I think or else the long  gone pier off Venice Beach where Lawrence Welk and his band played for dancing couples ... which all occurred before my time.

You may be aware that one of the Barbarian Bros gathered up a lot of that POP Pier after it was destroyed by a fire and made some decent household furniture.

I could be wrong but I believe he made a bedroom set for Arlold and Maria.

FUNK, Dave showed up in the Santa Monica area around ___?___ . He was working on or had just finished DON'T MAKE WAVES when I first met him while he was working in Joe Weider's little store across the street from Zucky's where every bodybuilder inSo. Cal. would eventually have a meal or two.

Joe had yet to movie his publishing business form back east so I believe that Dave was his first west coast employee.

And the photo of Dave and George Eifferman also brings back lots of old memories as George was a good find of mine for too short a time , but his best friend was Reeves for many years.

More on that if there is any interest.

                  your input is always welcomed.

[IroNat]

MEGA,FUNK, and IRON,

If you guys don't mind ... I'd like to add more history stuff to this topic and answer some questions that you put forth.

I'll continue this conversation tomorrow but before I forget ... let me mention the following ....

MEGA, Regarding the '3rd from the bottom' photo: That pier in the background may possibly be POP(Pacific Ocean Park) off of Rose Avenue I think or else the long  gone pier off Venice Beach where Lawrence Welk and his band played for dancing couples ... which all occurred before my time.

You may be aware that one of the Barbarian Bros gathered up a lot of that POP Pier after it was destroyed by a fire and made some decent household furniture.

I could be wrong but I believe he made a bedroom set for Arlold and Maria.

FUNK, Dave showed up in the Santa Monica area around ___?___ . He was working on or had just finished DON'T MAKE WAVES when I first met him while he was working in Joe Weider's little store across the street from Zucky's where every bodybuilder inSo. Cal. would eventually have a meal or two.

Joe had yet to movie his publishing business form back east so I believe that Dave was his first west coast employee.

And the photo of Dave and George Eifferman also brings back lots of old memories as George was a good find of mine for too short a time , but his best friend was Reeves for many years.

More on that if there is any interest.

Stunt, that was Dave Draper who collected the wood from the old pier and made furniture, including the monstrous bedroom set for Arnold.



Draper the furniture maker.

[stuntmovie]

IRON, Thanks! Once again for your Draper correction!

I stand corrected ....and I appreciate it.

But, but, but ..... I could be wrong once again ..... I kinda/sorta recall that one of the brothers had something to do with that old pier and made some huge furniture for the house one of them owned near or at the top of Topanga Canyon

I usually check this old history stuff out before I post it, but the individuals with whom I check historical stuff out ... have slowly passed away  or fallen off my radar ... such as Ed Corney, Wayne Anderson, Gene Mozee, Joe Valdez, Arty Zeller, etc.

But there is still one individual among the living who may be able to clarify my mind regarding the possibility that one of the bros built something of importance from the charred remains of the POP Pier.

Other than that ... All is well!

Thanks again ..... I'll be sending you some inteesting shit that is somewhat associated with the above and the subject at hand.

PS ...Regardless of my apparent stupidity ... I still believe that Joe's first gym was located within the Sea Castle.

[stuntmovie]

Thanks, FUNK!

Believe me when I say that I always appreciate corrections.

[stuntmovie]

MEGA, Sorry to say but my Dungeon recollection is extremely limited and I was only down there once.

But  here is what I can recall about that 3 minute visit.

I'm bad at dating stuff such as this so you'll have to allow me the opportunity to make updates after I get a chance to read the links you provided above.

To the  best of my recollection the Dungeon was one or two blocks south of the former Santa Monica Gold's gym, but it was sometime in the late to mid 50's .... so Gold's  gym wasn't even situated in Santa Monica back then.

The entrance was located in the middle of an old building near the center of whatever the street address was.

Back in them old days some buildings within major cities had freight elevators in front and I sorta do recall such a freight elevator present.

In fact there most likely had to be a freight elevator because the old wooden steps leading down into the Dungeon appeared to be too dam 'weak' to carry a heavy load and gym stuffs are considered to be heavy loads.

Once down those old stairs, it appeared to be lit by a 30 watt light bulb which gave a bit of light to see scattered weight equipment on the floor.

It was dead silent so no one was there, so after a short look around, I return back up into the sunlight where someone asked me if I locked up.

So I assume that back then the Dungeon members had key access.

MEGA, Now I will will read the link you provided to see if any of the above makes sense .... And I'm sure that Dave D. has had a lot to say about the Dungeon someplace on this internet thing.

I sorta recall that Dave arrived in California in the early 60's to work at what I believe was Weider's first store across from Zucky's.

At present I can't recall the names of any others except Dave who ever trained or visited the Dungeon, but some of the guys in that photo do look familiar especially the shorter uy. Any ID help would be appreciate.

(Kind of like checking to see if my old-day memory banks are still functional.)

[IroNat]

Looks like Vinces gym, or the NY gym Louie trained in, in PI movie "I wanna beat 'em"!!!  "Arnolds got spaghetti arms Louie"!!

Could be any gym I guess, wood paneling was the thing in those days!

That wood paneling was popular in the 60s/early 70s.  People were even putting it in their living rooms.  Seemed a good idea at the time. 

[funk51]

That wood paneling was popular in the 60s/early 70s.  People were even putting it in their living rooms.  Seemed a good idea at the time.

             my current home gym has that wood paneling . i bought the house in late 70's.

[Megalodon]

Stunt, these appear to be some of the names based on other photos in the article.

If I'm not mistaken Santa Monica Vic Tanny 1 was on 2nd and Santa Monica blvd and Santa Monica Vic Tanny 2 (Dungeon) was on 4th and Broadway.

Thanks for your recollections on the dungeon.




 

[stuntmovie]

MEGA, Thanks again. I sent that photo to some of the old timers but no one we able to ID anyone except for DRAPER and Eifferman.

Chuck Collras is the one individual whom I can recall from those good old days .... but I could not recall his name. I think it was Chuck who held a record for competing in more contests the anyone else.

I knew Dave before he got famous and he had a weekly TV job introducing gladiator movies for some local TV station. I believe that was around the same time that he worked in Weider's first Cal store ensuring that the mail orders were sent out in time.

And he also had a decent role in Don't Make Waves with Sharon Tate and Tony Curtis.

Regarding Vic Tanny. I had no idea about his Gym involvement in So Cal back then but but I find it interesting that he had a gym for a short time in Santa Monica before his chrome plated enterprises .... one of which was a  Vic Tanny gym on Market St in the City of San Francisco .... all chrome and glass.

I believe it was Armand mostly who hung around the beach in Waikiki with a good number of apparently out of shape pro Hawaii wrestlers ... Lord Blears, the Rock's  dad, the two young brothers who passed away way too young, and others whom I have since forgotten.  (Armand - Vic's brother.)

We all lifted heavy things at Dean's Gym while a very young Rock(2,3, or 4) ran around getting in everyone's way (kinda).

And .... Eifferman was like a short term dad to me. He and Reeves were very close and long term best friends ... and Reeves died while George was recovering from some illness.

We were heading down to pay him a visit and met someone outside of his hospital room who begged us to not tell George about Reeve's passing as it would possibly hinder his recovery.

That was pretty damn awkward.

Sorry, MEGA, this is probably more info than you requested

Anyone here recall American Health Studios? That one is an interesting story in itself.

[Megalodon]

Thanks, Stunt. No info is ever too much.

The Stark Center would be interested in your Sea Castle Gold's info or maybe they know about it:

https://starkcenter.org/


Here's an Iron Game History pdf article with a lot of history on Tanny Gyms. I can imagine reading Iron Game History on a regular basis would make anyone in the top .001%  of bodybuilding historians. A lot of detail.


https://www.starkcenter.org/igh/igh-v13-v14/igh-v13-n4-v14-n1/igh1304-1401p17.pdf

Images and info on 4th and Broadway Vic Tanny "Dungeon":





What info can you share on American Health Studios, Stunt?

I found a tiny bit:

American Health Studios Incorporated in 1957

https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_fl/812045



Post Card:

What a sparse gym, at least for the building size. They were practicing social distancing decades ago. 




Reeves connection:

[Big Pat]

Good Evening Stunt,

From what I remember hearing and reading, Mr. Eifferman had very serious heart problems toward the end of his life. Mr. Stern and George Coates both made the decision not to let Mr. Reeves, who had just had stomach cancer surgery know what was going on with Mr. Eifferman. If I remember correctly, Mr. Coates was visiting with Steve the at the time he died from complications of the surgery. I think that Mr. Coates is still alive and living here in the San Diego area.

If you get a chance, please pick up Harold Zinkin's book, "Remembering Muscle Beach". It's a fascinating read and should provide lots of fine memories for you.

Be safe and strong,

Big Pat
 

[funk51]

MEGA, Thanks again. I sent that photo to some of the old timers but no one we able to ID anyone except for DRAPER and Eifferman.

Chuck Collras is the one individual whom I can recall from those good old days .... but I could not recall his name. I think it was Chuck who held a record for competing in more contests the anyone else.

I knew Dave before he got famous and he had a weekly TV job introducing gladiator movies for some local TV station. I believe that was around the same time that he worked in Weider's first Cal store ensuring that the mail orders were sent out in time.

And he also had a decent role in Don't Make Waves with Sharon Tate and Tony Curtis.

Regarding Vic Tanny. I had no idea about his Gym involvement in So Cal back then but but I find it interesting that he had a gym for a short time in Santa Monica before his chrome plated enterprises .... one of which was a  Vic Tanny gym on Market St in the City of San Francisco .... all chrome and glass.

I believe it was Armand mostly who hung around the beach in Waikiki with a good number of apparently out of shape pro Hawaii wrestlers ... Lord Blears, the Rock's  dad, the two young brothers who passed away way too young, and others whom I have since forgotten.  (Armand - Vic's brother.)

We all lifted heavy things at Dean's Gym while a very young Rock(2,3, or 4) ran around getting in everyone's way (kinda).

And .... Eifferman was like a short term dad to me. He and Reeves were very close and long term best friends ... and Reeves died while George was recovering from some illness.

We were heading down to pay him a visit and met someone outside of his hospital room who begged us to not tell George about Reeve's passing as it would possibly hinder his recovery.

That was pretty damn awkward.

Sorry, MEGA, this is probably more info than you requested

Anyone here recall American Health Studios? That one is an interesting story in itself.

                   

[stuntmovie]

BIG PAT,

Steve Reeves passed away May 2000 and George passed away 2 years later, so George was in the hospital May 200  when Steve died and George himself die 2 years later.

Im bad at recalling dates such as this though.

MEGA, I'll be checking out the Stark link later tonite.

The only American Health Studios that I was aware of wee the two in San Francisco,

One club was on Golden Gate Avenue (down town) and the second club was in the West Portal area of the city.

Both were open for a very short period of time and I see to recall that Clancy Ross was involved as a partner as well as Reeves who watched me doing some heavy benches with words of encouragement.

Also a well known bodybuilder of that time period who I have written about years ago on this board who ended up manufacturing  8 station fully equipment . He enjoyed a couple of cocktails and fell off a bar-stool and broke his leg if I recall correctly.

Until now I was unaware that AHS was located any place else.

AHS also had chrome equipment and decent carpeting.

[stuntmovie]

MEGA, That Stark Center site is interesting and I'd like to send them the history as I have seen it, but as you may have noticed  ....  I have a tendency to make mistakes and am definitely ignorant when it comes to the correct dating of specific events.

And if  if was yo be a real honest, tell-all 'epistle' ... some of us would end up behind bars for brief periods of time.

I myself prefer to tell these  'remembrances' in bars and not behind them.

I'll probably be contacting that organization though.

[Big Pat]

Hello Stunt,

It makes sense that they did not tell Steve, who was recovering from stomach cancer surgery at that time, that his good friend George was ill and in the hospital himself.

Here is the info on Mr. Zinkin's book:

Remembering Muscle Beach: Where Hard Bodies Began ...www.amazon.com › Remembering-Muscle-Beach-Phot...
Remembering Muscle Beach: Where Hard Bodies Began : Photographs and Memories: Zinkin, Harold, Hearn, Bonnie: 9781883318017: Amazon.com: Books.


Big Pat
PS. You will enjoy Terry and Jan Todd's Stark Center collection. I've been a subscriber to their periodical Iron Game History for decades.

[Humble Narcissist]

Where are the weights in that Knoxville gym?

[funk51]

MEGA! MEGA, You are absolutely correct about my Sand Castle error.

The building in question is THE SEA CASTLE.

My error! Thanks for the correction.

Regarding the year in which I first met DOUG STROHL … I gotta think hard here but that same week we were invited to see the opening of WAR AND PEACE at the Egyptian Theater and we met Jeff Hunter (now deceased) and Phyllis Thaxter who was in a wheelchair, and we were kind of special guests at the Art Linkletter TV show, followed by Bob Crosby, and some famous character by the name of Muzzy something, and Marlon Brando bought us beers because we were too damn young (I had just gotten my driver’s license)  in a run down bar called THE LAMPLIGHTER (probably still there), and then got in a short auto race with Eddie Fisher (we lost that  one).

Having said all of that…. it must have been 1956 because that was the year of the War and Peace premier.

Regarding REEVES, John Corvello, and Larry Scott ….

Reeves was a friend of my dad’s and visited Muscle Beach way before I started my Santa Monica Beach runs …. but somewhere on this Board there is a photo of Steve taken with my good friend Timmy Leong (now both deceased).

I’m guessing …. but I think that photo was shot in the late 40’s or early 50’s.

And Steve once briefly mentioned that he once stayed at Pudgy’s Beach House which was close to Muscle Beach, but I have no idea what year that was but much later (mid  1950's) we were present when Steve got sucker punched and knocked on his ass at a summer resort called Rio Nido on the Russian River ... Northern Cal.

That guy hit and ran pretty damn swiftly.

More on Pudgy later if there is any interest.

To the best of my knowledge … John Corvello  was only in Los Angeles when he won the Cal contest in the early 60’s … but years later to the best of my knowledge he managed a major health club in the L .A. Basin.

Larry Scott was more of a gymnast when I first met him in the early 60’s.

Larry was one of many who took advantage of getting a tan in front of that windless Sea Castle sea wall.

I had the opportunity to work with Larry many years later.

And also with Reever a couple of years prior to his passing.

I’m not familiar with the  Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich Sr. name but I am 98% positive that the present day Sea Castle was a drug rehab facility way back when  and I’m sure I  could recall the  name of the individual involved if someone was to mention it.

You mentioned the Club Casa Del Mar which I kind of recall had a very nice restaurant on the second floor directly above the walkway that runs down to Venice. I believe that this was the building which had a private club area directly on the beach itself.

More to follow if interested and after I take a close look at te photos you attached.

Thanks again for you help... And I still believe that was Joe's first gym.

[The Scott]

Stunt, more information please on the beautiful Pudgy Stockton!  Did she and her husband have a family of their own?  I always thought she was quite beautiful.

[stuntmovie]

SCOTT, I am not familiar with Pudgy Stockton other than .... she had a beach-house in the Santa Monica area(?) which I believe was called "Muscle House" and that Reeves stayed there once or twice ... or possibly just visited.

And I have no idea where/when I heard that one.

FUNK, Thanks for posting those photos. That Strohl photos was most likely taken in the mid-1950's around te same time that I met him and appears to have been taken a bit south of the Sea Castle and the building in the background had a restaurant on the second floor (curved window space) ... and to the best of my recollection had a private beach club associated with it.

That private beach club on the sand is now gone but that building is still there and very close to the parking lot area.

I can't recall when the Leong/Reeves photo was  taken (late 50's?)  but Timmy Leong was a good friend of mine whom I still  consider to be one of best individuals within the world of bodybuilding .... very kind and considerate and quiet and modest.

And lastly ... John Corvello up there on the stage with Oliva.

John won the prestigious Cal Contest in the 60's beating Bill McArdle who was expected to win because he  was trained by Larry Scott.

I forget the details but I believe that Bill died way too young.

Recaling a lot of long forgotten memories here.