Arnold Schwarzenegger: Getting some facts straight

DeutscherGeist

I post this here, sine he is a sports figure too. I don't like the open forum since there is so much kauder welsh there, it probably won't even be up long enough to be read.

I like the guy, glad he is our governor and can appreciate him coming here as an immigrant of humble origins and making it big despite set backs with his accent and long name.

There are some things I heard and read that contradict eachother and I want to see if anyone caught it too.

about a decade ago, Schwarzenegger was on Opra, soon after his heart surgery. He stated that he had to choose between an artificial valve and one derived from a pig. He led on that he chose the pig one to be implanted. Later, reports came out that his steroid use caused his heart valve problems and the pig replacement valve will not last long at all. I am suspect of these reports. Later, it was said that a surgeon close to Schwarzenegger admitted that a human homo graft tissue was used and not a pig valve and that it would last much longer than a few years. I don't know what to believe. Fact is that Schwarzenegger did have some problem with a heart valve that was serviced so it would prevent major problems in the future.


I have heard that Schwarzenegger and his father were not really that close. His father was not in favor of his son doing body building. In the movie "Pumping Iron" which was a documentary, Schwarzenegger was quoted in saying that he missed his father's funeral due to getting more work in for bodybuilding. Later on in an interview, Schwarzenegger denied it being true and just said that he missed the funeral to promote body building at the time--to make it seem like it was so important and a big deal. Well, OK, I don't have a problem with that--it is a movie, not a accurate biography. However, the new biograpghy of Schwarzenegger that is out right now states that he really did not go to his father's funeral. What are the facts? What is the truth?


These are just two items I caught and noticed their inconsistencies. There has to be an explanation for all of this that makes sense.

stevek

Don't know...I really don't know but it sure would be interesting to find all this out.

megatron

You should read the book "Fantastic" by Laurence Leamer. It is a great account of Arnold's life from his early days in Graz, Austria to his tenure as governor as one of the largest economies in the world. Although I won't delve into a long post about the book, I will address your points as they were addressed in the book.

Note that even though the book is an unauthorized biography, Arnold and Maria did grant the author a full interview to Laurence Leamer, which is unheard of. Plus, most of the facts in the book must be true otherwise Arnold would have surely sued by now, knowing his litigious nature. After reading the book, all I can say is that Arnold is "greatly admired from a great distance".

1. The heart valve problem was hereditary and required surgery. Steroids did not play a role. His mother had the same issue as did his father and grandfather. Actually, Arnold sued the tabloid that created the steroid story and won. Of note, it is believed that Arnold was introduced to steroids at the age of 14-15 by the then Mr. Austria, Kurt Marnul. I'm not sure on the pig vs. human tissue issue as I didn't focus on that in the book. However, I know that after the surgery, he immediately started working out on a stationary bike, and ruptured the tissue again requiring emergency surgery a second time!!! Perhaps different types of tissues were used in each surgery?

2. Arnold and his father were not close at all. Yes, the bit on "Pumping Iron" was made up by the director to create a more menacing and focused appeal to Arnold. But then again, there is no mention of him going to the funeral. Arnold's childhood really had two weights that kept him back. First was his dad who never complimented him and was an alcoholic. There is one story in which Arnold brought home an "A" paper, which was very rare for Arnold, and his dad simply said, "This is horrible penmanship. Can't you do better?" The second was his brother, who was older and favored by his father. Too bad he turned to a life of crime and died in an automobile accident, most likely on the day that the police were about to catch up with him.

Throughout his life, Arnold has rarely spoken of his father and brother and only showed true love for his mother. When his mother passed away (while visiting her husband's grave), Arnold immediately jumped on a private jet with his family and headed over to Austria.

DeutscherGeist

Megatron,

Thank you for the nice post and link. I most likely will purchase the book.

I did not know he needed an emergency procedure following his original surgery. He has been advised not to lift heavy weights anymore to protect the valve, but he can do light weights with more repetition which is almost as good anyway.

Individuals have a right to their privacy, but when information gets out and I catch inconsistencies, I am just curious which version is true. Its no big deal in the large scheme of things. Schwarzenegger has never hesitated litigation, so it seems this book by Leamer is not far from truth.

Another point I want to bring up just for food for thought. What do Christopher Reeve, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Julius Caesar, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bill Clinton have in common?

They are all of the same ilk in terms of having a self-confident personality. They are confident and assured of achieving their goals. They are very self-motivated. They know how to utlize the talents of the people around them to their maximum effectiveness (which is not to say they take advantage of others--it does not go that far). They know how to achieve their goals. They don't hesitate to ask something of someone. They are hard working and expect nothing less from others. They will show gratitude and accept compliments with grace all at the same time. They make great leaders and can win the support of the people. They value loyalty, but they can become equally vicious if one dares cross their path the wrong way. These people do not like to get walked all over, but at the same time, they want to be noble and help those who sincerely need and ask for it. They are vain in the sense that they want to achieve high goals and look good to the public. For example, Julius Caesar wanted to improve Roman society in a real way, not a perceived way. His pride in accomplishing the lowering of taxes, creating more jobs, providing more to the poor was real and not some facade number crunching. His accomplishments are naturally then reflected back from the people. JW Goethe once stated that vain people are good in the sense that that want to do their best on a project and not leave until they are satisfied. In a leadership role, this translates into making sure one accomplishes something good so the people can truely say he was a good leader. They don't like to leave things half finished. Self-confident leaders are a far cry from the narcissistic leaders such as Stalin and Hitler who care about image but are two-faced about it.

stevek

<<< What do Christopher Reeve, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Julius Caesar, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bill Clinton have in common? >>>

I would have said that they've all been pictured on a trading card, but the Goethe fellow I'm not too sure about.