September 17, 2018 Arnold Schwarzenegger celebrated as a holiday. On this day, he turned 35 years old since he received US citizenship. 55 years ago, 16-year-old Arnold told his father: “I want to be the best bodybuilder in the world. Then I want to go to America and act in films. I want to become a film actor. " The father, in response to these words, told his wife: "I think that it is better to show him to the doctor, he, in my opinion, is not all right with his head."
Childhood and the path to success
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was born on July 30, 1947 in the Austrian town of Thal, near Graz. His father served in the police, was a physically very strong man, was engaged in curling. He wanted his son the same fate, hoped that he would become a policeman. At the age of 10, his father sent Arnold to the football section. Arnold has been playing football for five years, but very soon he realized that this was not his sport. He dreamed of individual achievements, so team sports did not suit him. He tried running, swimming, boxing, but these sports did not bring him complete satisfaction. Once a football coach decided that the players needed to pump up their muscles and sent them to the athletic hall. Arnold walked around the hall, looked at the huge guys and realized that this is exactly what he really wants.
Within a few months, training in the gym became the most important part of life for Arnold. Everything else was subordinated to one goal: to help build your body. He began to study with interest the biology that he had not loved before, because it allows him to learn how muscles are arranged and work. He studied six days a week, despite the objections of his parents. Even relationships with girls and sex, he perceived only as another physical exercise, useful for the body.
First successes in sports
Parents did not share his passion for bodybuilding. At that time and in those parts it was difficult to find a less popular sport. The father looked at his son's passion with a grin, and his mother openly showed displeasure. The only thing that held her back was that her son was not doing anything illegal. The mother's attitude to her son's sports activities changed when he first took part in competitions, won them and brought home a prize. She showed everyone this prize, and neighbors and acquaintances said: "This is the mother of the guy who recently won the weight lifting competition, the mother of a strong man."
In the first months of his service in the army, Arnold received an invitation to the "Mr. Europe" competition among juniors. He knew that he would win this competition, but the problem was that young soldiers were not allowed to leave. Arnold was AWOL. He climbed over the fence and went to Germany to compete. On his return, right at the station, he was arrested by a patrol. The soldier spent seven days in a punishment cell, but then the authorities decided that the champion title, which he won, could benefit the army. He was released before the two-week deadline expired and was soon formally ordered to train.
Moving to Germany and then to the USA
After the army, Schwarzenegger travels to Munich, where he works in the athletic hall. By 1968 he won all European bodybuilding competitions and moved to America. In 1970, he won the first time at the Mr. Olympia competition. In total, he won this title 7 times.
Like many bodybuilders, he begins acting in films. In 1969, the film Hercules in New York was released with his participation. Arnold said more than once that he was dissatisfied with his performance in this film. Schwarzenegger's first film was also received coolly by the audience. Subsequently, he starred in several more films, but did not receive success, as well as large fees. Viewers and critics perceived him only as a mountain of muscles, and not as an artist. The directors tried to make Arnold's role in the film as less verbose as possible. Schwarzenegger's German accent also contributed to this attitude of the directors. However, no one imagined that the Austrian athlete was not used to stopping in front of obstacles. He enters acting courses, is engaged in his pronunciation with a teacher and in the athletic hall - to reduce his own weight.
In 1982, the film "Conan the Barbarian" was released, which, unexpectedly for critics, became very grossing. Two years later, Arnold appears in the title role of the film "The Terminator" and the demand for him as an actor is growing sharply. True, as before, the filmmakers see him in the roles of a laconic strong hero, without any special claims to drama or lyricism. The image of a terminator robot was entrenched, it would seem, forever for the Austrian athlete. However, Arnold sees this as just another obstacle that he is used to overcoming. He is seeking a role in the comedy "Gemini". The film makes a splash. Including because before that no one could have imagined "Iron Arnie" in the role of a comedian.
Family and personal life
In 1986, Arnold married the niece of US President John F. Kennedy, Maria Shriver, whom he had met for about 9 years. His wife bore him four children - two daughters and two sons. The couple lived together for 25 years, but divorced in 2011. Schwarzenegger has an illegitimate child, who was born by his former housekeeper.
Business and politics
By the beginning of his fourth decade, Arnold Schwarzenegger had become a millionaire. He invested the money he earned in competitions and in the cinema in business: construction, real estate, financial services, postal service.
In 2003, Schwarzenegger wins the election for governor of California. In his tenure as head of state, he focuses on cost reduction, which has drawn much criticism. A wave of compromising evidence falls on him. However, in 2006 he wins the elections again and remains governor for a second term. In the course of his political career, he takes a centrist position and has repeatedly appeared in controversy with the US president. In particular, he had a negative attitude towards the war in Iraq.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has starred in 56 films and acted as a director or producer in 6 films. In bodybuilding, he has repeatedly won all the most prestigious titles. He made a dizzying political career in a foreign country. He wrote a book on bodybuilding, which for many decades has been a reference manual for bodybuilders. During his life, Arnold Schwarzenegger earned about a billion dollars.
When Arnold's father said that his head was wrong, he did not know his son well. There are no obstacles that could stop him on the way to success.
