WHY IS HE FAMOUS
Are you kidding? This is Arnold Schwarzenegger we are talking about. He won seven Mr. Olympia titles and put bodybuilding on the map. Then he set his sights on Hollywood and proceeded to become one of the biggest movie stars of all time, with starring roles in Total Recall, True Lies and the Terminator movies. Then Schwarzenegger turned to politics and was elected California's governor on October 7, 2003 and served until just four months ago, ending his two-term run in January 2011. Arnold
Schwarzenegger Quote
" I would rather be Governor of California than own Austria."
69 MAGNETISM
Through the years, we've come to realize that women don't necessarily like the guy with the biggest muscles, but with Arnie it is a different story. In his single days, Arnold Schwarzenegger boasted of his many conquests (and he had many), and women were drawn to him like a moth to a flame. He married Maria Shriver in 1986, but the couple announced their separation on May 9, 2011, saying in a joint statement that it is "a time of great personal and professional transition for each of us." Schwarzenegger and Shriver have four children.
70 SUCCESS
When he arrived to California in search of stardom, Arnold Schwarzenegger never could have guessed that he would become the Hollywood heavyweight he is today -- especially not with the roles he was getting. However, in the early '80s, he was slowly making his mark as a force to be reckoned with, as the title role in Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer, and the smash hit The Terminator. He even showed his softer side in comedic films like Twins and Kindergarten Cop.
After incredible success in the '90s, with roles in blockbusters like Total Recall, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Last Action Hero, True Lies, and End of Days, Schwarzenegger was out of the spotlight for a while. He returned to the big screen in 2000 with The 6th Day (which was blasted by critics), and again in 2002 with Collateral Damage (whose release date was delayed due to the 9/11 terrorist attacks).
Schwarzenegger has also shown his entrepreneurial side as a former part owner of Planet Hollywood and Schatzi On Main.
A stout cigar smoker, family man and Republican, Schwarzenegger was elected Governor of California in the 2003 recall elections and maintained the position until 2011.
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER BIOGRAPHY
Born on July 30, 1947, in Graz, Austria, Arnold Schwarzenegger was raised with strict rules and morals instilled by his parents. The second son of a police officer in his native town, his childhood was a very difficult one and proved to contribute to his character today.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Mr. Universe
The beginning of his bodybuilding career began when he wanted to join the soccer team. He began lifting weights, and his destiny was already starting to pan out. He later joined the Austrian army at 18 in order to follow his strict diet. His stay was very short as he went AWOL to take part in the Mr. Junior Europe competition, which he won by the way.
And so a legend was born. Arnold Schwarzenegger started piling up professional titles and later went on to win the International Powerlifting Championship before he made the move to the U.S. in 1968.
After winning Mr. Universe as an amateur and a professional, he was gradually becoming the talk of the weightlifting industry. This launched his weightlifting career and he won six consecutive Mr. Olympia titles from 1970 to 1975 (and again in 1980). He had pretty much realized his dream of becoming the "best-built man in the world." He temporarily ceased competing as he felt he "wasn't giving others a chance to win."
His first role in a motion picture was for the movie Hercules Goes to New York in 1970, which later landed him an appearance on the The Merv Griffin Show.
Arnold Schwarzenegger In Stay Hungry
A short-lived venture into show business led him to start a construction company with his bodybuilder friend Franco Columbu. The profits were going to fund a mail-order business of fitness material such as books and cassettes. Driven by his passion to be taken seriously and be wealthy, he managed to obtain a correspondence degree in business and international economics from the University of Wisconsin. His constant inflow of money allowed him to live the life of a superstar even before his bodybuilding documentary Pumping Iron was released in 1977.
Arnold Schwarzenegger won a Golden Globe for Best New Actor in the 1976 movie Stay Hungry. His acting career didn't take off, however, until he obtained the lead role in Conan the Barbarian in 1982. But his most memorable and career-launching role came with The Terminator in 1984, directed by James Cameron.
This sci-fi flick presented Schwarzenegger as a cold-hearted cyber killer. His following movies were also box-office champs: 1985's Commando, 1988's Twins, and 1990's Total Recall and Kindergarten Cop.
Arnold Schwarzenegger In True Lies And Eraser
His personal life also turned out to be a success. After dating Maria Shriver for eight years, they finally got married in 1986. Niece to former president John F. Kennedy and, therefore, part of the Kennedy legacy, Maria had now brought an avid Republican to the forefront.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was often seen alongside president George Bush during his administration, as Chairman of the President's Council on Sports and Fitness.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day made its presence felt in theaters when it was released in 1991, as it became one of Schwarzenegger's most commercial hits to date. However, the success of The Last Action Hero was followed with the even more disappointing film, Junior.
True Lies (1994), Eraser (1996) and Batman & Robin (1997), however, managed to bring back some of his action superhero credibility. The "Austrian Oak," as people often refer to him, returned to the big screen in the 1999 movie End of Days, as a hero trying to confront Satan in an "end of the world" millennium movie.
Arnold Schwarzenegger In Collateral Damage
After his role in 2000's The Sixth Day, Arnold Schwarzenegger was seen blowing up more stuff in Collateral Damage in 2002 (whose release date was pushed back from its original fall 2001 release date due to the terrorist-themed plot). Fans were pleased to see Schwarzenegger back in full force, reprising his role as the "good cyborg" in 2003's Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, costarring Claire Danes and Kristanna Loken.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Governor Of California
It might seem a little strange to announce your candidacy for the Governor of California on The Tonight Show, but when you're Arnold Schwarzenegger, you can pretty much do whatever you want. His candidacy immediately became national and international news, with media outlets dubbing him the "Governator." Two months after his August 2003 visit to Jay Leno's talk show, Schwarzenegger was elected as Gary Davis' replacement in the recall elections, earning nearly 3.4 million votes.
Schwarzenegger won re-election in 2006. In January 2008, Schwarzenegger publicly endorsed John McCain as the Republican presidential candidate. Then, that September, he signed legislation that banned drivers from text messaging on their phones while behind the wheel, a controversial move given the tech-savvy nature of Californians.
Because of his personal wealth from his acting career, Schwarzenegger did not accept the governor's salary of $175,000 per year.
Arnold Schwarzenegger And Maria Shriver Separate
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Shriver announced their separation on May 9, 2011, just four months after his two-term run as California governor ended. The couple ended their 25-year relationship after saying in a joint statement that it is "a time of great personal and professional transition for each of us."
In January 2011, just weeks after leaving office in California, Schwarzenegger announced that he was reading several new scripts for future films, one of which was the World War II action drama With Wings as Eagles, written by Randall Wallace. Schwarzenegger has since revealed that he has been courted for more than 15 films, including sequels to The Terminator, and remakes of Predator and The Running Man. So far, he's only signed on to the drama Cry Macho and to Terminator. Filming should start in summer 2011.
