The Last Drug-Free Bodybuilder (2011)
By Bob Gallucci
186 pp. (Memoir)
(Available at Lulu.com)

It’s a bit like Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956, 1978, 1993, etc.), the sci-fi classic in which alien “pod people” slowly and surreptitiously replace their victims until there are no normal humans left.  Bob Gallucci started bodybuilding as a high-school sophomore in the mid-1960s; within a few years, he had progressed rapidly to winning local and regional competitions, and even the 1969 AAU Teen Mr. America title.  But as the 1970s dawned,  Bob began noticing that other competitors—just a few at first, but then more and more—were growing faster, and getting bigger, between each contest than would seem possible.  

And Bob had to decide whether to join them.

Bench Press (1988/rev. 2003)
By Sven Lindqvist
Translated by Sarah Death
122 pp. (Memoir)

Here's the question: how much pretentious nonsense are you willing to wade through?  Because Bench Press contains some interesting philosophical discussions about bodybuilding—but they're buried in mounds of excruciatingly smug ramblings.

Bench Press is a series of 85 brief numbered passages, ranging from a few sentences to a few pages in length, inspired by author Sven Lindqvist's decision in middle age to begin working out.   As Lindqvist trains, he finds that improving his body also expands his imagination and, most significantly, reawakens his long-dead dream to visit the Sahara desert.  Bench Press bounces back and forth between bodybuilding philosophy, weight-training history, and personal imaginings to explore this transformation.

Teddy Bear (2012)
Director: Mads Matthiesen
Written by: Mads Matthiesen & Martin Zandvliet
92 min. (Drama)

Dennis (Kim Kold) is a bodybuilder in his late thirties who still lives at home with his domineering mother, Ingrid (Elsebeth Steentoft).  Despite his size, Dennis is meek and shy, and desperately lonely.  So when a relative brings home a "mail-order bride" from Thailand, Dennis is motivated to make his own pilgrimage.  And Dennis does find love, even if not quite where he expected.

Here's a video of the 2013 NPC Powerhouse Classic held on April 27, 2013, in New Haven, CT.  This 15-minute video captures the entire event (highly edited and compressed, of course), and individual footage of every competitor.  Special thanks to the promoters, the Montanari Brothers, and to Amanda Eva, who handled publicity -- I had a great time!

As usual, you can head to Vimeo or YouTube for a larger video player. 

Beyond Raising the Bar: Excerpts from a Life in Bodybuilding (2013)
By David Pulcinella
290 pp. (Memoirs)
(Available at Amazon.com)

Dear Mr. Pulcinella -

Like so many others, I've been following you since you starred in your brother's three Raising the Bar documentaries, about your efforts to graduate from being a top NPC athlete to being an IFBB professional.  And let's be honest: your brother is definitely a talented filmmaker, but what really made those films work was your honesty and charisma.  I felt like I could listen to your stories for hours.

And now that you've written and published Beyond Raising the Bar, I can.  But as much as I enjoyed your book, should you ever choose to write another, please allow me to offer some unsolicited advice:

Please, please hire an editor.

Here is the first of two videos I'm making about the 2013 OCB Spirit of America bodybuilding and physique competition that was held in Carver, MA on April 20, 2013.  It's inspired by a passage in the competitor handout that addresses "sportsmanship."  This video is more of a teaser -- the next one will explore the competition in greater depth.

Special thanks to the promoters and all of the athletes for making the day so special.  Let me know what you think!  And as always, you can go to YouTube or Vimeo for a larger player.

Here's a video I just finished putting together of the Metroland Championships held in Albany, NY on April 13, 2013, and promoted by John Weissenburger.  It was a bodybuilding, bikini, figure, and men's physique show especially (but not exclusively) geared to novice competitors, and I had a really great time recording the event.

As usual, head over to Vimeo or YouTube for a larger video player.

The Metroland Championships in Albany, NY were this past weekend (on April 13, 2013); it was a really great show and I had a wonderful time.  I shot footage of the entire event, and am currently working on a highlights video which should be up in a few days.  In the meantime, one of the bikini competitors asked me to assemble a video of her entire stage presentation, from prejudging through finals.  Here's the result:

I'm quite with pleased how it came out.  And if anyone is interested in their own competitor video from an event I attend, please feel free to contact me!  (For a larger player, check out the video on YouTube or Vimeo.)

Thomas Topham (1702–1749) and Joe Call (1781–1835) are two legendary strongmen, with the emphasis on "legendary": in the centuries between their deaths and the present day, true facts about their lives have become hard to discern from folklore.  Accordingly, a modern scholar must choose how to proceed when discussing these men. 

The Bodybuilder and I (2007)
Written and Directed: Bryan Friedman
86 min. (Documentary)

To an outsider, the world of men's bodybuilding can appear ludicrous.  Bryan Friedman certainly feels that way at the start of his documentary The Bodybuilder and I.  There's no mistaking his contempt as he watches his father, Bill, practice posing to John Williams' Superman theme (1978).  But in case we somehow miss Bryan's slack-jawed stare, his narration is equally blunt: "I think my father looks completely ridiculous."

Of course, Bryan also despises his father.