Overview
Before Arnold Schwarzenegger, Steve Reeves, or Charles Atlas, there was German-born Eugen Sandow (1867-1925), a muscular vaudeville strongman who used his good looks, intelligence, and business savvy to forge a fitness empire. Sandow the Magnificent is the story of this first showman to emphasize physique display rather than lifting prowess. Sandow's is also the story of the earliest days of the fitness movement, during which he established a worldwide chain of gyms, published a popular magazine, sold exercise equipment, and pioneered the use of food supplements. David L. Chapman explains the popularity of physical culture in terms of its wider social implications, and how Sandow encouraged the fitness craze that continues today by making exercise fashionable. As the first superstar in his field, Sandow also pried open some surprising cracks in the Victorian wall of prudery. After many of his major public events he gave private ""receptions"" wearing little more than a G-string. Sandow the Magnificent also includes many of the strongman's revealing photographs, which were anxiously sought by both male and female admirers.This new edition has been revised and enlarged with an extensive afterword that includes much unpublished information, new photographs of Sandow and his contemporaries, and an updated index.
Full Product Details
Author: David L. Chapman
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Imprint: University of Illinois Press
Dimensions:
Width: 15.20cm
, Height: 2.20cm
, Length: 22.90cm
Weight: 0.426kg
ISBN: 9780252073069
ISBN 10: 0252073061
Pages: 264
Publication Date: 17 January 2006
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.
Reviews
Sandow the Magnificent displays a deft prose style and an intriguing presentation of the great man's life. . . . Serious students of iron history who do not obtain this book should consider redefining themselves. --Joe Roark, FLEX A fascinating story. . . . Arnold, eat your heart out! --Elliot J. Gorn, editor of Muhammad Ali: The People's Champ Chapman has written a first-rate biography and one that will continue to play an important role in our understanding of the body and the world of physical culture. --Jan Todd, Journal of Sport History
"""Sandow the Magnificent displays a deft prose style and an intriguing presentation of the great man's life. . . . Serious students of iron history who do not obtain this book should consider redefining themselves.""--Joe Roark, FLEX ""A fascinating story. . . . Arnold, eat your heart out!""--Elliot J. Gorn, editor of Muhammad Ali: The People's Champ ""Chapman has written a first-rate biography and one that will continue to play an important role in our understanding of the body and the world of physical culture.""--Jan Todd, Journal of Sport History"
Author Information
David L. Chapman is the author of Universal Hunks: A Pictorial History of Muscular Men around the World, 1895-1975and coauthor of American Hunks: The Muscular Male Body in Popular Culture, 1860-1970.
