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Arnold Schwarzenegger has lived an extraordinary life.
A Hollywood A-lister like no other, he has gone from champion bodybuilder to box office banker to politician and is still going strong as he turns 75.
Arnie, this is your life...
Arnold Schwarzenegger has lived an extraordinary life. A Hollywood A-lister like no other, he has gone from champion bodybuilder to box office banker to politician and is still going strong as he turns 75. Arnie, this is your life...
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was born in Thal, Austria, on July 30, 1947 to policeman Gustav Schwarzenegger and his wife, Aurelia. Though money was tight, young Arnold was encouraged by his dad to take up sports and he eventually found bodybuilding in his teenage years. He said of the hobby that changed the course of his life: "I actually started weight training when I was 15, but I'd been participating in sports, like soccer, for years, so I felt that although I was slim, I was well-developed, at least enough so that I could start going to the gym and start Olympic lifting. My own plan formed when I was 14 years old. My father had wanted me to be a police officer like he was. My mother wanted me to go to trade school."
Despite training heavily in bodybuidiling in his teens, at just 18 years old Arnie was required to fulfil one year of service in the Austrian Army. During basic training, Arnie went AWOL so he could Junior Mr. Europe contest. He won the contest but his actions landed him in military prison for a week. Years later, he said: "Participating in the competition meant so much to me that I didn't carefully think through the consequences."
Shortly after serving in the army and winning the Junior Mr. Europe contest, Arnie was voted the "best-built man of Europe" and flew to London in 1966 to compete for the title of Mr Universe. Though he placed second in the contest to the late Chester Yorton, he remained thankful to the competition because it gave him the chance to make it in America. He said: "The Mr. Universe title was my ticket to America - the land of opportunity, where I could become a star and get rich." He arrived in the US at the age of 21 and spoke little English but captured the first of his seven Mr. Olympia titles just two years later in New York. He had a long-running bodybuilding rivalry with 'Incredible Hulk' star Lou Ferrigno, and their competitive relationship was explored in the docudrama 'Pumping Iron', which focused on the 1975 IFBB Mr. Universe and 1975 Mr. Olympia competitions.
Though Arnie moved to America in the late 1960s, he was not officially granted US citizenship until 1983, and up until this point had become an illegal immigrant due to a technicality on his visa. LA Weekly later remarked: "Arnie is the most famous immigrant in America, who overcame a thick Austrian accent and transcended the unlikely background of bodybuilding to become the biggest movie star in the world in the 1990s." By 1983, Arnie had learned English by attending a variety of night classes, graduated with a degree and had published his autobiography.
By the late 1970s, although his career in bodybuilding was soaring, Arnie had expressed a desire to move into acting. He made his acting debut in title role of 'Hercules in New York' in 1970 and won a Golden Globe for his role in ' Stay Hungry'. But in the beginning, Arnie was consistently told by agents that he had "no chance" of making it on screen. Years later, he reflected: "It was very difficult for me in the beginning – I was told by agents and casting people that my body was 'too weird', that I had a funny accent, and that my name was too long. You name it, and they told me I had to change it. Basically, everywhere I turned, I was told that I had no chance." But in 1982 he made his major breakthrough playing the titular character in the sword and sorcery epic 'Conan the Barbarian', changing the course of his Hollywood career.
The year 1984 proved to be a pivotal one for Arnie as he appeared in fantasy sequel 'Conan the Destroyer' and then played the titular villain in James Cameron's 'The Terminator', a role which would go on to define his career with him playing the T-800 cyborg in multiple sequels, the most popular and successful of which was 1991's 'Terminator 2: Judgment Day'.
In 1977, Arnie met journalist Maria Shriver - who is the niece of late President John F. Kennedy - but he was already dating hairdresser's assistant Sue Moray at the time. Though he and Sue had an open relationship and Arnie had a relationship with both women, he ultimately picked Maria when Sue gave him an ultimatum. At the height of his fame in Hollywood in 1986, Arnie tied the knot with Maria and the couple went on to have children Katherine Christin, Patrick and Christopher together. But the pair split in 2011 after it came to light that Arnie had fathered a son more than 14 years earlier with an employee in their household. Arnie later reflected: "I'm least proud of the mistakes I made that caused my family pain and split us up."
Not content with being a champion bodybuilder and lauded Hollywood star, Arnie decided to venture into politics and in 2003 was elected as the Governor of California, having been a member of the Republican Party for several years. His new position earned him the title of the 'The Governator' in a nod to his famous movie role in 'The Terminator'. He served his first term between 2003 and 2007 and a second from 2007 until 2011. During his time in office, Arnie vetoed 52 bills that would have legalized same-sex marriage, raised the minimum wage and signed a bill that tripled the amount of damages celebrities could claim in court if assaulted by paparazzi. Upon his election, he said: "As you know, I don't need to take any money from anybody. I have plenty of money myself. I will make the decisions for the people. We have to make sure everyone in California has a great job. A fantastic job! The public doesn't care about figures."
During his time in office, Arnie only made a few cameo appearances and had featured in 'The Simpsons Movie' as the President of the United States - although he was voiced by Harry Shearer. Just weeks after leaving office in early 2011, Arnie was reading scripts for potential new roles. His comeback came in the form of 'The Expendables 2' and the Terminator franchise with 'Terminator: Dark Fate' in 2019. However, in July 2022, the Hollywood star appeared to hint at his retirement by tweeting: "As we get older, there are phases of life that we enter into, and being an actor-politician-businessman-bodybuilder just isn't fun anymore." Shortly afterwards, #ThankYouArnold trended on Twitter as fans rushed to pay tribute to his beloved movies.
Arnie has had a number of health issues over the years and born with a bicuspid aortic valve, an aortic valve with only two leaflets, where a normal aortic valve has three. After undergoing open heart surgery in 2018, he said: "I underwent open-heart surgery this spring, I had to use a walker. I had to do breathing exercises five times a day to retrain my lungs. I was frustrated and angry, and in my worst moments, I couldn't see the way back to my old self." In 2021, 23 years after his first-ever surgery, Arnie had surgery for a new aortic valve. The star is said to now follow a vegan diet and urged fans during the COVID-19 pandemic to wear a mask and get vaccinated. Even at the age of 75, Arnie still goes to the gym and will continue to do so forever. He said: "Training is such a big part of my life. It's that simple. Nothing will ever change until I die."
Originally published on celebretainment.com, part of the TownNews Content Exchange.
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