Arnold Alois
Schwarzenegger ( born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian-American actor, filmmaker,
businessman, investor, author, philanthropist, activist, former professional
bodybuilder and former politician. He served two terms as the 38th Governor of
California from 2003 until 2011.
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| Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger - |
Schwarzenegger
began weight training at the age of 15. He won the Mr. Universe title at age 20
and went on to win the Mr. Olympia contest seven times. Schwarzenegger has
remained a prominent presence in bodybuilding and has written many books and
articles on the sport. He is widely considered to be among the greatest
bodybuilders of all times as well as its biggest icon. Schwarzenegger gained
worldwide fame as a Hollywood action film icon. His breakthrough film was the
sword-and-sorcery epic Conan the Barbarian in 1982, which was a box-office hit
and resulted in a sequel. In 1984, he appeared in James Cameron's
science-fiction thriller film The Terminator, which was a massive critical and
box-office success. Schwarzenegger subsequently reprised the Terminator
character in the franchise's later installments in 1991, 2003, and 2015. He
appeared in a number of successful films, such as Commando (1985), The Running
Man (1987), Predator (1987), Twins (1988), Total Recall (1990), Kindergarten
Cop (1990) and True Lies (1994). He was nicknamed the "Austrian Oak"
in his bodybuilding days, "Arnie" during his acting career, and
"The Governator" (a combination of "Governor" and "The
Terminator", one of his best-known movie roles) during his political
career.
As a Republican,
he was first elected on October 7, 2003, in a special recall election to
replace then-Governor Gray Davis. Schwarzenegger was sworn in on November 17,
to serve the remainder of Davis's term. Schwarzenegger was then re-elected on
November 7, 2006, in the 2006 California gubernatorial election, to serve a
full term as governor, defeating Democrat Phil Angelides, who was California
State Treasurer at the time. Schwarzenegger was sworn in for his second term on
January 5, 2007.[5] In 2011, Schwarzenegger completed his second term as
governor
Early life
Schwarzenegger
was born in Thal, a village in Styria, and christened Arnold Alois. His parents
were Gustav Schwarzenegger (August 17, 1907 – December 13, 1972), and Aurelia
Schwarzenegger (née Jadrny; July 29, 1922 – August 2, 1998). Gustav was the
local chief of police, and had served in World War II as a Hauptfeldwebel after
voluntarily joining the Nazi Party in 1938, though he was discharged in 1943
following a bout of malaria. He married Arnold's mother on October 20, 1945; he
was 38, and she was 23. According to Schwarzenegger, both of his parents were
very strict: "Back then in Austria it was a very different world, if we
did something bad or we disobeyed our parents, the rod was not spared." He
grew up in a Roman Catholic family who attended Mass every Sunday.
Gustav had a
preference for his elder son, Meinhard (July 17, 1946 – May 20, 1971), over
Arnold. His favoritism was "strong and blatant", which stemmed from
unfounded suspicion that Arnold was not his biological child. Schwarzenegger
has said his father had "no patience for listening or understanding your
problems". Schwarzenegger had a good relationship with his mother and kept
in touch with her until her death.In later life, Schwarzenegger commissioned
the Simon Wiesenthal Center to research his father's wartime record, which came
up with no evidence of Gustav's being involved in atrocities, despite his
membership in the Nazi Party and SA. Gustav's background received wide press
attention during the 2003 California recall campaign. At school, Schwarzenegger
was apparently in the middle but stood out for his "cheerful,
good-humored, and exuberant" character. Money was a problem in their
household; Schwarzenegger recalled that one of the highlights of his youth was
when the family bought a refrigerator.
As a boy,
Schwarzenegger played several sports, heavily influenced by his father.He
picked up his first barbell in 1960, when his soccer coach took his team to a
local gym. At the age of 14, he chose bodybuilding over soccer as a career.
Schwarzenegger has responded to a question asking if he was 13 when he started
weightlifting: "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." However, his official website
biography claims: "At 14, he started an intensive training program with
Dan Farmer, studied psychology at 15 (to learn more about the power of mind
over body) and at 17, officially started his competitive career." During a
speech in 2001, he said, "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."
Schwarzenegger
took to visiting a gym in Graz, where he also frequented the local movie
theaters to see bodybuilding idols such as Reg Park, Steve Reeves, and Johnny
Weissmuller on the big screen. When Reeves died in 2000, Schwarzenegger
fondly remembered him: "As a teenager, I grew up with Steve Reeves. His
remarkable accomplishments allowed me a sense of what was possible, when others
around me didn't always understand my dreams. Steve Reeves has been part of everything
I've ever been fortunate enough to achieve." In 1961, Schwarzenegger met
former Mr. Austria Kurt Marnul, who invited him to train at the gym in Graz. He
was so dedicated as a youngster that he broke into the local gym on weekends,
when it was usually closed, so that he could train. "It would make me sick
to miss a workout... I knew I couldn't look at myself in the mirror the next
morning if I didn't do it."When Schwarzenegger was asked about his first
movie experience as a boy, he replied: "I was very young, but I remember
my father taking me to the Austrian theaters and seeing some newsreels. The
first real movie I saw, that I distinctly remember, was a John Wayne
movie."
On May 20,
1971, his brother, Meinhard, died in a car accident. Meinhard had been drinking
and was killed instantly. Schwarzenegger did not attend his funeral. Meinhard
was due to marry Erika Knapp, and the couple had a three-year-old son, Patrick.
Schwarzenegger would pay for Patrick's education and help him to emigrate to the
United States. Gustav died the following year from a stroke. In Pumping
Iron, Schwarzenegger claimed that he did not attend his father's funeral
because he was training for a bodybuilding contest. Later, he and the film's
producer said this story was taken from another bodybuilder for the purpose of
showing the extremes that some would go to for their sport and to make
Schwarzenegger's image more cold and machine-like in order to fan controversy
for the film. Barbara Baker, his first serious girlfriend, has said he informed
her of his father's death without emotion and that he never spoke of his
brother. Over time, he has given at least three versions of why he was absent
from his father's funeral.
In an
interview with Fortune in 2004, Schwarzenegger told how he suffered what
"would now be called child abuse" at the hands of his father:
"My hair was pulled. I was hit with belts. So was the kid next door. It
was just the way it was. Many of the children I've seen were broken by their
parents, which was the German-Austrian mentality. They didn't want to create an
individual. It was all about conforming. I was one who did not conform, and
whose will could not be broken. Therefore, I became a rebel. Every time I got
hit, and every time someone said, 'You can't do this,' I said, 'This is not
going to be for much longer, because I'm going to move out of here. I want to
be rich. I want to be somebody.'"
Early
adulthood
Schwarzenegger
served in the Austrian Army in 1965 to fulfill the one year of service required
at the time of all 18-year-old Austrian males. During his army service, he won
the Junior Mr. Europe contest.He went AWOL during basic training so he could
take part in the competition and spent a week in military prison:
"Participating in the competition meant so much to me that I didn't
carefully think through the consequences." He won another bodybuilding
contest in Graz, at Steirer Hof Hotel (where he had placed second). He was
voted best built man of Europe, which made him famous. "The Mr. Universe
title was my ticket to America – the land of opportunity, where I could become
a star and get rich."Schwarzenegger made his first plane trip in 1966,
attending the NABBA Mr. Universe competition in London. He would come in second
in the Mr. Universe competition, not having the muscle definition of American
winner Chester Yorton.
Charles
"Wag" Bennett, one of the judges at the 1966 competition, was
impressed with Schwarzenegger and he offered to coach him. As Schwarzenegger
had little money, Bennett invited him to stay in his crowded family home above
one of his two gyms in Forest Gate, London, England. Yorton's leg definition
had been judged superior, and Schwarzenegger, under a training program devised
by Bennett, concentrated on improving the muscle definition and power in his
legs. Staying in the East End of London helped Schwarzenegger improve his
rudimentary grasp of the English language. Also in 1966, Schwarzenegger had the
opportunity to meet childhood idol Reg Park, who became his friend and mentor.
The training paid off and, in 1967, Schwarzenegger won the title for the first
time, becoming the youngest ever Mr. Universe at the age of 20. He would go on
to win the title a further three times. Schwarzenegger then flew back to
Munich, training for four to six hours daily, attending business school and
working in a health club (Rolf Putziger's gym where he worked and trained from
1966–1968), returning in 1968 to London to win his next Mr. Universe title. He
frequently told Roger C. Field, his English coach and friend in Munich at that
time, "I'm going to become the greatest actor!
Governor of
California
Schwarzenegger
announced his candidacy in the 2003 California recall election for Governor of
California on the August 6, 2003 episode of The Tonight Show with Jay
Leno.Schwarzenegger had the most name recognition in a crowded field of
candidates, but he had never held public office and his political views were
unknown to most Californians. His candidacy immediately became national and
international news, with media outlets dubbing him the "Governator"
(referring to The Terminator movies, see above) and "The Running Man"
(the name of another one of his films), and calling the recall election
"Total Recall" (yet another movie starring Schwarzenegger).
Schwarzenegger declined to participate in several debates with other recall
replacement candidates, and appeared in only one debate on September 24, 2003
On October 7,
2003, the recall election resulted in Governor Gray Davis being removed from
office with 55.4% of the Yes vote in favor of a recall. Schwarzenegger was
elected Governor of California under the second question on the ballot with
48.6% of the vote to choose a successor to Davis. Schwarzenegger defeated
Democrat Cruz Bustamante, fellow Republican Tom McClintock, and others. His
nearest rival, Bustamante, received 31% of the vote. In total, Schwarzenegger
won the election by about 1.3 million votes. Under the regulations of the
California Constitution, no runoff election was required. Schwarzenegger was
the second foreign-born governor of California after Irish-born Governor John
G. Downey in 1862.
As soon as
Schwarzenegger was elected governor, Willie Brown said he would start a drive
to recall the governor. Schwarzenegger was equally entrenched in what he considered
to be his mandate in cleaning up gridlock. Building on a catchphrase from the
sketch "Hans and Franz" from Saturday Night Live (which partly
parodied his bodybuilding career), Schwarzenegger called the Democratic State
politicians "girlie men".
Schwarzenegger's
early victories included repealing an unpopular increase in the vehicle
registration fee as well as preventing driver's licenses being given out to
illegal immigrants, but later he began to feel the backlash when powerful state
unions began to oppose his various initiatives. Key among his reckoning with
political realities was a special election he called in November 2005, in which
four ballot measures he sponsored were defeated. Schwarzenegger accepted
personal responsibility for the defeats and vowed to continue to seek consensus
for the people of California. He would later comment that "no one could
win if the opposition raised 160 million dollars to defeat you". The U.S.
Supreme Court later found the public employee unions' use of compulsory
fundraising during the campaign had been illegal in Knox v. Service Employees
International Union, Local 1000.
Schwarzenegger
then went against the advice of fellow Republican strategists and appointed a
Democrat, Susan Kennedy, as his Chief of Staff. Schwarzenegger gradually moved
towards a more politically moderate position, determined to build a winning
legacy with only a short time to go until the next gubernatorial election.
Schwarzenegger
ran for re-election against Democrat Phil Angelides, the California State
Treasurer, in the 2006 elections, held on November 7, 2006. Despite a poor year
nationally for the Republican party, Schwarzenegger won re-election with 56.0%
of the vote compared with 38.9% for Angelides, a margin of well over one million
votes.[68] In recent years, many commentators have seen Schwarzenegger as
moving away from the right and towards the center of the political spectrum.
After hearing a speech by Schwarzenegger at the 2006 Martin Luther King, Jr.
breakfast, San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom said that, "[H]e's becoming a
Democrat [… H]e's running back, not even to the center. I would say
center-left".
It was
rumored that Schwarzenegger might run for the United States Senate in 2010, as
his governorship would be term-limited by that time. This turned out to be
false
Wendy Leigh,
who wrote an unofficial biography on Schwarzenegger, claims he plotted his
political rise from an early age using the movie business and bodybuilding as
building blocks to escape a depressing home. Leigh portrays Schwarzenegger as
obsessed with power and quotes him as saying, "I wanted to be part of the
small percentage of people who were leaders, not the large mass of followers. I
think it is because I saw leaders use 100% of their potential – I was always
fascinated by people in control of other people."Schwarzenegger has said
that it was never his intention to enter politics, but he says, "I married
into a political family. You get together with them and you hear about policy,
about reaching out to help people. I was exposed to the idea of being a public
servant and Eunice and Sargent Shriver became my heroes." Eunice Kennedy
Shriver was sister of John F. Kennedy, and mother-in-law to Schwarzenegger;
Sargent Shriver is husband to Eunice and father-in-law to Schwarzenegger. He
cannot run for president as he is not a natural born citizen of the United
States. In The Simpsons Movie (2007), he is portrayed as the president, and in
the Sylvester Stallone movie, Demolition Man (1993, ten years before his first
run for political office), it is revealed that a constitutional amendment
passed which allowed Schwarzenegger to become president.
Schwarzenegger
is a dual Austrian/United States citizen. He holds Austrian citizenship by
birth and has held U.S. citizenship since becoming naturalized in 1983. Being
Austrian and thus European, he was able to win the 2007 European Voice
campaigner of the year award for taking action against climate change with the
California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 and plans to introduce an
emissions trading scheme with other US states and possibly with the EU
Because of
his personal wealth from his acting career, Schwarzenegger did not accept his
governor's salary of $175,000 per year.
Schwarzenegger's
endorsement in the Republican primary of the 2008 U.S. presidential election
was highly sought; despite being good friends with candidates Rudy Giuliani and
Senator John McCain, Schwarzenegger remained neutral throughout 2007 and early
2008. Giuliani dropped out of the presidential race on January 30, 2008,
largely because of a poor showing in Florida, and endorsed McCain. Later that
night, Schwarzenegger was in the audience at a Republican debate at the Ronald
Reagan Presidential Library in California. The following day, he endorsed
McCain, joking, "It's Rudy's fault!" (in reference to his friendships
with both candidates and that he could not make up his mind). Schwarzenegger's
endorsement was thought to be a boost for Senator McCain's campaign; both spoke
about their concerns for the environment and economy.
In its April
2010 report, Progressive ethics watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and
Ethics in Washington named Schwarzenegger one of 11 "worst governors"
in the United States because of various ethics issues throughout
Schwarzenegger's term as governor.
Governor
Schwarzenegger played a significant role in opposing Proposition 66, a proposed
amendment of the Californian Three Strikes Law, in November 2004. This
amendment would have required the third felony to be either violent or serious
to mandate a 25-years-to-life sentence. In the last week before the ballot,
Schwarzenegger launched an intensive campaign against Proposition 66. He stated
that "it would release 26,000 dangerous criminals and rapists".
Although he began
his tenure as governor with record high approval ratings (as high as 89% in
December 2003), he left office with a record low 23%, only one percent higher
than that of Gray Davis's when he was recalled in October 2003.
Personal life
Early
relationships
In 1969,
Schwarzenegger met Barbara Outland (later Barbara Outland Baker), an English
teacher he lived with until 1974. Schwarzenegger talked about Barbara in his
memoir in 1977: "Basically it came down to this: she was a well-balanced
woman who wanted an ordinary, solid life, and I was not a well-balanced man,
and hated the very idea of ordinary life." Baker has described
Schwarzenegger as "[a] joyful personality, totally charismatic,
adventurous, and athletic" but claims towards the end of the relationship
he became "insufferable – classically conceited – the world revolved
around him".Baker published her memoir in 2006, entitled Arnold and Me: In
the Shadow of the Austrian Oak. Although Baker, at times, painted an
unflattering portrait of her former lover, Schwarzenegger actually contributed
to the tell-all book with a foreword, and also met with Baker for three hours.
Baker claims, for example, that she only learned of his being unfaithful after
they split, and talks of a turbulent and passionate love life. Schwarzenegger
has made it clear that their respective recollection of events can differ. The
couple first met six to eight months after his arrival in the U.S – their first
date was watching the first Apollo Moon landing on television.They shared an apartment
in Santa Monica for three and a half years, and having little money, would
visit the beach all day, or have barbecues in the back yard.Although Baker
claims that when she first met him, he had "little understanding of polite
society" and she found him a turn-off, she says, "He's as much a
self-made man as it's possible to be – he never got encouragement from his
parents, his family, his brother. He just had this huge determination to prove
himself, and that was very attractive … I'll go to my grave knowing Arnold
loved me."
Schwarzenegger
met his next paramour, Sue Moray, a Beverly Hills hairdresser's assistant, on
Venice Beach in July 1977. According to Moray, the couple led an open
relationship: "We were faithful when we were both in LA … but when he was
out of town, we were free to do whatever we wanted."Schwarzenegger met
Maria Shriver at the Robert F. Kennedy Tennis Tournament in August 1977, and
went on to have a relationship with both women until August 1978, when Moray
(who knew of his relationship with Shriver) issued an ultimatum
On April 26,
1986, Schwarzenegger married television journalist Maria Shriver, niece of
President John F. Kennedy, in Hyannis, Massachusetts. The Rev. John Baptist
Riordan performed the ceremony at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church. They have
four children: Katherine Eunice Schwarzenegger (born December 13, 1989 in Los
Angeles); Christina Maria Aurelia Schwarzenegger (born July 23, 1991 in Los
Angeles); Patrick Arnold Shriver Schwarzenegger (born September 18, 1993 in Los
Angeles);and Christopher Sargent Shriver Schwarzenegger (born September 27,
1997 in Los Angeles).Schwarzenegger lives in a 11,000-square-foot (1,000 m2)
home in Brentwood. The divorcing couple currently own vacation homes in Sun
Valley, Idaho and Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. They attended St. Monica's
Catholic Church. Following their separation, it is reported that Schwarzenegger
is dating physical therapist Heather Milligan
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