From the Olympia Stage to the Silver Screen

It’s not too late to catch the third installment of MuscleSport Radio, the weekly Internet podcast bringing you the best of bodybuilding, pro sports and anabolic steroids. This week’s special guest was none other than Gunter Schlierkamp, who speaks frankly about some of the frustrations he faced in bodybuilding and why he has turned to acting the past two years and not the Olympia stage. Gunter also comments on the passing of the great Ben Weider and what the entire Weider family has meant to his career.

The World Series and the bad weather effecting it is also discussed on this show, as well as the seven NFL players testing positive for the diuretic Bumetanide.

All past broadcasts are archived and can be heard via MuscleSport Mag, Blog Talk Radio (www.blogtalkradio.com) and iTunes.

Please be advised that we have already scheduled our special guest for the Tuesday, November 18 show - legendary bodybuilder Boyer Coe.

Be sure to listen live every Tuesday afternoon from 3 to 4 pm (Eastern time). Our call-in number is (347) 884-8157.

Aesthetic Dexter Jackson Unseats Jay Cutler for 2009 Mr. Olympia

The following article will appear in the November 2008 issue of New York Sportscene magazine.

Heading into the 2009 Mr. Olympia contest, the two names being thrown around were Jay Cutler, the two-time defending champion, and an up and coming Dennis Wolf. Three other names heard often were of the men who were to miss the show due to injury: Victor Martinez (the 2007 runner-up), Branch Warren and Kai Green.

Dexter Jackson kind of stayed under the radar, which was quite all right by him. While Cutler and Wolf trained all year for the show, Jackson was piling up first place trophies at the Arnold Classic, Australian Pro and New Zealand Grand Prix. When asked two days prior to the Olympia if dieting down and all of that preparation and travel would be a detriment to him, Jackson replied, “You just have to know how to pace yourself. It’s not going to affect me in any way. I’ll still be 110 percent on that stage.” Continue Reading »

The First Three Mr. Olympia Contests Proved Weider’s Vision Correct

The world was a very different place in 1965. The Cold War was raging, Vietnam was beginning to brew and bodybuilding was in need of a ‘real’ title to crown its champion. Before then, Mr. America, Mr. World and Mr. Universe all reigned supreme next to one another. It was more confusing than finding the one unanimous overall king of college football every year.

Joe and Ben Weider changed all of that by sending out invitations and placing ads in their own magazine, “Muscle Builder,” which was the pre-cursor of “Muscle & Fitness.” With Mr. Universe being the highest-acknowledged contest at the time, all winners of that illustrious title were invited to take it up a notch. Take it up another level. Take it to the heights of Mr. Olympia. Continue Reading »

More Than Half the Issue are Advertisements; Fluff Features

When people ask what is the leading publication for bodybuilding and people that work out, most would answer without hesitating, “Muscle & Fitness,” the Joe Weider magazine that has been around (under a few different names) since 1940. How many of us received our first diet and routine from the pages of this title? Through the years, we have kept it by us almost like a security blanket, updating our workout from recommendations taken from pages of ‘The Bible.’ .

But have you seen one lately? Take the June 2008 issue for example. A robust 280 pages makes handling this mag a workout all in itself. But a closer look reveals that only 129 of those pages are completely advertisement-free. That’s only 46 percent editorial. You have yo navigate all the way to page 14 just to reach the ‘Contents.’ Continue Reading »

Muscle Mags from Yesteryear Paved the Way for Today’s Giants

If you ever have the opportunity to purchase one of the vintage muscle magazines, I totally recommend doing so. If you search on eBay, it’s pretty easy to find them, and for the most part, they will be in good condition.

For a complete list of old titles - and even cover scans of the majority of them - you have to check out www.vintagemusclemags.com. There’s everything from Your Physique (the pre-cursor of Muscle & Fitness, and the Weider brothers first publishing endeavor - August 1940 inaugural issue shown), to Strength (the first American publication, which ran from 1914 to 1930), up to the latest titles. Continue Reading »