Arnold Schwarzenegger

Bodybuilder / Actor / State Governor

Once the world's leading bodybuilder, Arnold Schwarzenegger went on to become one of Hollywood's biggest stars and then the governor of California. Nicknamed "The Austrian Oak," he started pumping iron when he was a teenager and in 1965 won the Mr. Europe Junior title. He went on to win five Mr. Universe titles (both amateur and professional) and was named Mr. Olympia seven times (1970-75 and 1980). After a few small roles in the movies, he appeared in the documentary Pumping Iron (1977) and played a bodybuilder in the movie Stay Hungry (1976, with Sally Field), and his natural charisma led to more movies and recognition. He starred in the hit movie Conan The Barbarian in 1982 and was suddenly a movie star. He had another big hit in 1984, starring in James Cameron's The Terminator. During the 1980s he was a top box office draw, mostly appearing in action films, but also adding comedy to his repertoire. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) was even more successful than the first movie, and Schwarzenegger became one of the highest paid actors in show business. During the 1990s Schwarzenegger continued to make big-budget thrillers and earned a reputation for being a crack businessman and a conservative Republican. He reprised the Terminator role in 2003's Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. In August 2003, Schwarzenegger announced on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno that he would run for governor of California in a special October recall election. He won the recall on 7 October 2003, replacing Gray Davis as governor. He was re-elected to a second term in 2006.

Extra credit: Schwarzenegger's second term runs through 2011. California state law bars him from running for a third term. He is also barred by the U.S. Constitution from running for president because he was born outside the United States... He is married to television broadcaster and Kennedy family member Maria Shriver. They have four children: Katherine Eunice (b. 1989), Christina Maria Aurelia (b. 1991), Patrick Arnold (b. 1993) and Christopher Sargent Shriver (b. 1997)... Schwarzenegger became a U.S. citizen in 1983... One of his movies, The Last Action Hero (1993), is often mentioned as a famous Hollywood flop... Another bodybuilder-turned-actor: Lou Ferrigno.

Ronald Reagan is another actor who became governor of California; for other entertainer-governors, see our loop That's Governtainment!... Schwarzenegger appears with fellow actor Peter Lawford in our loop on Clan Kennedy.

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