Arnold Schwarzenegger filmography and biography
Date of birth: 30 July 1947, Thal, Styria, Austria
Arnold Schwarzenegger biography
Growing up in a small, isolated village in Austria, he turned to
bodybuilding as his ticket to a better life. Prior to that he served a
mandatory one year in the Austrian military (beginning in 1965). After
conquering the world as arguably the greatest bodybuilder who ever
lived, he went to America to make his name in motion pictures. Hampered
by his impossible name and thick accent, success eluded him for many
years. It wasn't until he found the tailor-made role of Conan that he
truly came into his own as a performer. A succession of over-the-top
action films made him an international box office star. By alternating
violent action films with lighter, comedic fare, he has solidified his
position as one of the most popular - if not the most popular - movie
stars in the world. After his long, and successful movie career, he ran
in the California recall. He is now the Governor of California, yet
another celebrity to be elected to the position.
With an almost unpronounceable surname and a thick Austrian accent, who
would have ever believed that a brash, quick talking bodybuilder from a
small European village would become one of Hollywood's biggest stars,
marry into the prestigious Kennedy family, amass a fortune via shrewd
investments and one day be the Governor of California!
The amazing story of uber-star Arnold Schwarzenegger is a true "rags to
riches" story of the penniless immigrant making it in the land of
opportunity, the United States of America. Arnold was born on July
30th, 1947 in the town of Thal, Austria and, from a young age, he took
a keen interest in physical fitness and bodybuilding, going on to
compete in several minor contests in Europe. However, it was when he
emigrated to the United States in 1968 at the tender age of 21 that his
star began to rise. Up until the early 1970's, bodybuilding had been
viewed as a rather oddball sport, or even a mis-understood "freak show"
by the general public, however two entrepreneurial Canadian brothers
Ben Weider and Joe Weider set about broadening the appeal
of "pumping iron" and getting the sport respect, and what better poster
boy could they have to lead the charge, then the incredible "Austrian
Oak", Arnold Schwarzenegger. Over roughly the next decade, beginning in
1970, Schwarzenegger dominated the sport of competitive bodybuilding
winning five Mr. Universe titles and seven Mr. Olympia titles and, with
it, he made himself a major sports icon, he generated a new
international audience for bodybuilding, gym memberships worldwide
swelled by the tens of thousands and the Weider sports business empire
flourished beyond belief and reached out to all corners of the globe.
However, Schwarzenegger's horizons were bigger than just the landscape
of bodybuilding and he debuted on screen as "Arnold Strong" in the low
budget Hercules in New York, then director
Bob Rafelson cast Arnold in Stay Hungry alongside
Jeff Bridges (I) and Sally Field, for which Arnold won a
Golden Globe Award for "Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture". The
mesmerizing Pumping Iron covering the 1975 Mr Olympia
contest in South Africa has since gone on to become one of the key
sports documentaries of the 20th century, plus Arnold landed other
acting roles in the comedy The Villain opposite
Kirk Douglas (I), and he portrayed Mickey Hargitay in the
well- received TV movie The Jayne Mansfield Story (1980) (TV).
But, what Arnold really needed was a super hero / warrior style role in
a lavish production that utilized his chiseled physique, and gave him
room to show off his growing acting talents and quirky humor.
Conan the Barbarian was just that role. Inspired by the
Robert E. Howard short stories of the "Hyborean Age" and
directed by gung ho director John Milius, and with a largely
unknown cast, save Max von Sydow (I) and
James Earl Jones, "Conan" was a smash hit worldwide and an
inferior, although still enjoyable sequel titled
Conan the Destroyer quickly followed. If "Conan" was the
kick start to Arnold's movie career, then his next role was to put the
pedal to the floor and accelerate his star status into overdrive.
Director James Cameron (I) had until that time only previously
directed one earlier feature film titled
Piranha Part Two: The Spawning, - which stank of rotten
fish from start to finish - however Cameron had penned a fast paced,
science fiction themed film script that called for an actor to play an
unstoppable, ruthless predator - The Terminator. Made on
a relatively modest budget, the high voltage action / science fiction
thriller The Terminator was incredibly successful
worldwide, and began one of the most profitable film franchises in
history. The dead pan phrase "I'll be back" quickly became part of
popular culture across the globe. Schwarzenegger was in vogue with
action movie fans, and the next few years were to see Arnold reap box
office gold in roles portraying tough, no-nonsense individuals who used
their fists, guns and witty one-liners to get the job done. The
testosterone laden Commando, Raw Deal,
Predator, The Running Man and
Red Heat were all box office hits and Arnold could
seemingly could no wrong when it came to picking winning scripts. The
tongue-in-cheek comedy Twins (1988/I) with co-star
Danny DeVito was a smash and won Arnold new fans who saw a more
comedic side to the muscle- bound actor once described by Australian
author / TV host Clive James as "a condom stuffed with walnuts".
The spectacular Total Recall and "feel good"
Kindergarten Cop were both solid box office performers
for Arnold, plus he was about to return to familiar territory with
director James Cameron (I) in
Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The second time around for
the futuristic robot, the production budget had grown from the initial
film's $6.5 million to an alleged $100 million for the sequel, and it
clearly showed as the stunning sequel bristled with amazing special
effects, bone-crunching chases & stunt sequences, plus state of the art
computer-generated imagery. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
was arguably the zenith of Arnold's film career to date and he was
voted "International Star of the Decade" by the National Association of
Theatre Owners. Remarkably, his next film
Last Action Hero brought Arnold back to Earth with a hard
thud as the self-satirizing, but confusing plot line of a young boy
entering into a mythical Hollywood action film confused movie fans even
more and they stayed away in droves making the film an initial
financial disaster. Arnold turned back to good friend, director
James Cameron (I) and the chemistry was definitely still there
as the "James Bond" style spy thriller True Lies
co-starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Arnold (I) was the
surprise hit of 1994!
Following the broad audience appeal of True Lies,
Schwarzenegger decided to lean towards more family-themed entertainment
with Junior and Jingle All the Way, but he
still found time to satisfy his hard-core fan base with
Eraser, as the chilling "Mr. Freeze" in
Batman amp; Robin and battling dark forces in the
supernatural action of End of Days. The science fiction /
conspiracy tale The 6th Day played to only mediocre fan
interest, and Collateral Damage had it's theatrical
release held over for nearly a year after the tragic events of Sept
11th 2001, but it still only received a lukewarm reception. It was time
again to resurrect Arnold's most successful franchise and, in 2003,
Schwarzenegger pulled on the biker leathers for the third time for
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. Unfortunately,
directorial duties passed from James Cameron (I) to
Jonathan Mostow and the deletion of the character of "Sarah
Connor" aka Linda Hamilton (I) and a change in the actor playing
"John Connor" - Nick Stahl took over from Edward Furlong
- making the third entry in the "Terminator" series the weakest to
date.
Schwarzenegger contributed cameo roles to The Rundown,
Around the World in 80 Days and The Kid amp; I
and took political office in 2003 as the Governor of California,
effectively suspending his film career for the foreseeable future.
Schwarzenegger married TV journalist Maria Shriver in April, 1986
and the couple have four children.
Arnold Schwarzenegger trivia
- October 1997: Ranked #20 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie
Stars of All Time" list.
- Children with Maria Shriver, Katherine Eunice (born December 13,
1989), Christina Maria Aurelia (born July 23, 1991), Patrick Arnold
(born September 18, 1993) and Christopher Sargent Shriver (September
27, 1997).
- April 1997: Underwent heart surgery to correct a congenital heart valve
condition.
- Called by the Guinness Book of World Records, "the most perfectly
developed man in the history of the world."
- Noted fan of cigar smoking.
- His voice in Hercules in New York was dubbed.
- Was part-owner of Planet Hollywood and Schatzi restaurants.
- Advocate for the Republican party.
- He reprised his Terminator character for the theme park attraction
T2 3-D: Battle Across Time, a short film which uses an
enhanced 3-D process that makes the film really appear to jump out at
the audience.
- His production company is Oak Productions.
- 1983: Became a US citizen.
- His wife Maria Shriver is a niece of the late President
John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F. Kennedy and
Ted Kennedy (I).
- 1979: Graduated from University of Wisconsin-Superior with a major in
international marketing of fitness and business administration.
- 2000: Sold off his Planet Hollywood stock and is no longer a part owner
of the chain.
- The soccer stadium in Graz, Austria (his home town) is named after him.
- Was considered for the title role in the 1970s TV series
The Incredible Hulk, but was reportedly deemed not tall
enough. His former bodybuilding competitor, Lou Ferrigno,
ultimately won the part.
- After leaving Austria for the first time, he came to England to work,
earning under £30 a week.
- 1996: Received an Honorary Doctorate from his alma mater, the University
of Wisconsin-Superior, in recognition of his charitable works.
- Son-in-law of Sargent Shriver and Eunice Kennedy Shriver.
- At his bodybuilding peak his chest was 57", waist 34", biceps 22",
thighs 28½", calves 20", and his competition weight was 235 lbs (260
lbs off-season).
- September 2001: He and Warner Bros. agreed to postpone the release of
Collateral Damage indefinitely in the wake of the
September 11th terrorist attacks on America. The plot centers around a
firefighter who lost his family in a terrorist bomb attack.
- 9/7/01: Sues International Game Technology for the unauthorized use of
his voice and likeness in slot machine games. His lawyer told the press
he was seeking $20 million in damages, which is the amount he believes
he would have received had he approved the use.
- Childhood friends stated that he often said his goals in life were to
move to America, become an actor, and marry a Kennedy. He accomplished
all three.
- Underwent a genioplasty -- a procedure in which his jaw has been moved
back so that it no longer juts out.
- Was the first private citizen in the U.S. to own a Humvee (High Mobility
Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle).
- May 2002: Lobbied to promote anti-juvenile delinquency initiative on
California ballot that would commit the state to allocate $400 million
for extracurricular activities and tutoring for students, kindergarten
through ninth grade.
- June 2002: Received an honorary doctorate from Chapman University in
Orange, CA.
- Franco Columbu was best man at Arnold's wedding.
- 1/29/03: Underwent surgery for a torn rotator cuff as a result of an
injury on the set of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
Was in a sling for three to four weeks, but it was not expected to
delay the completion of the movie.
- 2003: Ranked #9 in Star TV's Top 10 Box Office Stars of the 1990s.
- The character Rainier Wolfecastle in The Simpsons is
based on him.
- Won Mr. Olympia title seven times (1970-1975, 1980).
- James Cameron (I) originally wanted him for the role of Kyle
Reese in The Terminator, but after reading the script,
Arnold asked Cameron to let him play the part of the Machine. Cameron
replied "No, no! Reese is the star! He's the big hero! And the
Terminator hardly has any lines!" but Arnold asked him to "trust me".
- 8/6/03: Announced his candidacy for the Governorship of California on
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
- Suffered a back injury (among other various assorted injuries) while
filming Conan the Barbarian when the dogs who were
chasing him jumped him from behind and he fell down the rock he was
climbing to escape them.
- In Demolition Man, Sandra Bullock's character
Lenina Huxley is telling Sylvester Stallone's character John
Spartan about the Arnold Schwarzenegger Presidential Library,
explaining that, based on the sheer popularity of Schwarzenegger's
movies, a Constitutional amendment was passed in order for
Schwarzenegger to run for President, which, according to Huxley, he
did. In 2003, ten years after this film's release, Schwarzenegger ran
for the office of Governor of California, and won the election on 7
October 2003. While Schwarzenegger is not eligible to run for the
presidency by present laws (as a naturalized citizen, not a native-born
citizen as required by the Constitution), most past presidents have
been governors of their respective home states. Some members of
Congress are currently considering an amendment to the Constitution to
allow foreign-born US citizens to be allowed to run for the Presidency,
specifically with Schwarzenegger in mind, although other members of
Congress are strongly opposed to the idea.
- Had one elder brother, Meinhard (1946-1971).
- His mother was Aurelia Jadrny (1922 - 2 August 1998) and his father was
Gustav Schwarzenegger (Graz, 1907 - 1973), married in Murzsteg, 20
October 1945. His mother's surname is Czech.
- 10/7/03: Was elected Governor of California as a Republican.
- Turned down the role of John McClane in Die Hard. The role
went to Bruce Willis instead. Ironically, Willis has a line in
the film where he says that the terrorists "have enough explosives to
orbit Arnold Schwarzenegger".
- TV Guide selected Arnold Schwarzenegger's announcement on
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to run for Governor of
California as the greatest TV moment of 2003.
- Said that filming the climatic fight at the end of
Predator was made difficult by the fact that the late
Kevin Peter Hall, who played the Predator, couldn't see through
his mask.
- Has the record for winning the most major bodybuilding events in
history, 13 (1 Mr. Junior Western Europe, 7 Mr. Olympias, and 5 Mr.
Universes).
- After he had started lifting weights as a teenager, he noticed that his
body was becoming disproportionate. His arms, shoulders and chest were
developing nicely, but his calves and lower legs weren't coming along
as he wanted. To motivate himself to work harder on his calves, he cut
off all of his pants (trousers) at the knee. Walking around like that,
people would look at (and maybe even laugh at) the big man with
'chicken' legs. It worked.
- His father, Gustav Schwarzenegger, nicknamed him "Cinderella" as a child
and his older brother, Meinhard, constantly picked on him growing up.
Both men were killed while driving under the influence.
- Along with Earl Boen, he is one of only two actors to appear in
all of the first three of the "Terminator" films
(The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day
and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines). However, neither
he nor Boen appeared in the fourth film,
Terminator Salvation.
- Only the second governor in California's history to be born in a foreign
country. John Downey, the 7th Governor of California, was born in
Ireland and served from 1860-1862.
- Has his look-alike puppet in the French show
Les guignols de linfo.
- Went AWOL from the Austrian army to enter his first bodybuilding
contest.
- Stumped for President George W. Bush the weekend before his
re-election in Ohio, as Schwarzenegger has always had a strong
relationship with Ohio.
- He was voted the 53rd Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment
Weekly.
- Has played a character who died in only four of his films:
The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day,
End of Days and
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
- Was considered for the role of the gentle giant Fezzik in the 1970s when
William Goldman's book "The Princess Bride" was first proposed
to be made into a film (The Princess Bride).
- Had his first romantic scene in a movie with actress
Sandahl Bergman, in Conan the Barbarian.
- Is good friends with fellow bodybuilder Sven-Ole Thorsen who,
ironically, portrayed "Thorgrim," one of his leading foes, in
Conan the Barbarian.
- Turned down a request to reprise his Conan character in
Kull the Conqueror (originally titled "Conan the
Conqueror"). Also, he was supposed to play Conan in
Red Sonja, though ultimately, a new character was created
who was essentially Conan in everything but name.
- Is the only person to receive Razzie nominations for Worst Actor, Worst
Supporting Actor and Worst Screen Couple (with himself cloned) in the
same year. All for the same movie, The 6th Day.
- His life strangely mirrors the life of Conan from
Conan the Barbarian. Conan was born in a small village
and grew up to be a physically powerful man, due to years of slavery.
After winning great fame as a gladiator, he is given to wine and women,
but later rejects this hedonistic lifestyle and goes on to perform
great heroic feats and eventually is crowned king. Arnold was born in a
small Austrian town and took up weightlifting as he got older. After
achieving success as a bodybuilder, he indulged in drug abuse and
womanizing, but he later rejected this and went on to become a vocal
supporter of social causes, and was eventually elected governor of
California.
- Performed many of his own stunts in his films, owing largely to the fact
that it was hard to find stunt doubles who matched his size.
Billy D. Lucas, Joel Kramer and Peter Kent (I)
eventually became his personal stunt doubles and close friends.
- His famous line "I'll be back", which originated from
The Terminator, was originally written as "I'll come
back".
- Initially refused to star in
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines because
James Cameron (I), who created the character and directed the
first two films, would not be directing the third installment. Arnold
tried to persuade Cameron to do the third film but Cameron declined
and, feeling that the Terminator character was as much Arnold's as it
was his own, Cameron advised Arnold to just do the third film and ask
for a lot of money.
- While filming the behind the scenes documentary for the special edition
DVD of Conan the Barbarian, the microphone hit him in the
head at the end of the interview, to which he immediately joked "You
see, I can't even do an interview about Conan without getting hurt".
- 2004: Addressed the Republican National Convention.
- The etymology for Arnold is "Eagle Power."
- Grew up in a house that had no phone, no fridge and no toilet.
- Was the spokesperson for Japanese DirecTV, a competitor to
Quentin Tarantino's endorsed local satellite TV operator
SkyperfecTV.
- Was considered for the title role in Flash Gordon. The
part eventually went to Sam J. Jones (I) instead, because
producer Dino De Laurentiis (I) felt Schwarzenegger's German
accent was ill-suited for this role. DeLaurentiis (in his heavy Italian
accent) told Schwarzenegger, "You have an accent! I cannot use you for
Flash Gordon! No! Flash Gordon has no accent! I cannot use you! No!"
Ironically, Jones had to temporarily get rid of his own Texas accent
for said role.
- While filming Predator he became close friends with co-
star Jesse Ventura, who was also later elected a state governor
(Minnesota).
- John Milius originally intended him to do the narration of
Conan the Barbarian but the studio didn't trust his
accent, so the narration was performed by Mako (I) instead, who
played the wizard.
- Withdrew from the city of Graz the right to use his name in association
with its soccer stadium and returned his "Ehrenring" (ring of honor)
after some politicians in the town had started a campaign against
Schwarzenegger due to his refusal to stop the execution of convicted
killer Stanley Tookie Williams (20 December 2005).
- The Green Party of Austria has resolved to strip Schwarzenegger of his
Austrian citizenship due to his support for the death penalty.
- 12/12/05: As governor, he refused to grant clemency to convicted
quadruple murderer and former gang leader
Stanley Tookie Williams, who had been on Death Row for 24 years.
- November 2005: He was soundly defeated on all four propositions of his
"special election", which cost the state of California an estimated $45
million. Schwarzenegger accepted personal responsibility for the
defeat, and appointed a Democrat as his new Chief of Staff.
- Second actor to be elected Governor of California. The first was
Ronald Reagan (I).
- December 2001: Broke six ribs in a motorcycle crash.
- February 2005: He and his 12-year-old son Patrick were injured in a
traffic accident when a car ran into Arnold's motorcycle. Patrick was
in a sidecar. Arnold received 15 stitches.
- He has been nominated for a Razzie Award as Worst Actor eight times
during his career, and in 2004 received a special award for being the
"Worst Razzie Loser of Our First 25 Years."
- His performance as The Terminator in the "Terminator" films is ranked
#40 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
- Was asked to reprise his "Dutch" character from the first
Predator film for the sequel, but he declined because he
didn't like the script. He chose to do
Terminator 2: Judgment Day instead.
- Children - Katherine Eunice (born December 13, 1989), Christina Maria
Aurelia (born July 23, 1991), Patrick Arnold (born September 18, 1993)
and Christopher Sargent Shriver (September 27, 1997).
- Was asked to appear in a sequel to his 1985 film Commando
but declined.
- He keeps the sword he used in Conan the Barbarian in the
Governor's office in California.
- Is a huge fan of professional wrestling.
- 11/7/06: Easily re-elected as Governor of California.
- He is the first member of the Kennedy family to become a state Governor.
- 12/23/06: Broke his right femur while skiing in Sun Valley, ID.
- Although German is his native language, all his movies have been dubbed
into German by Thomas Danneberg for the German-speaking market
because his strong Austrian accent doesn't fit with the type of roles
he plays.
- 1992: He joined President George Bush (I) in New Hampshire and
asked voters to "send a message to Pat Buchanan (I): Hasta la
vista, baby".
- Related to actor George Wyner, who is also a close friend.
- Early in his career he appeared as a contestant on
The Dating Game.
- Was considered for the role of Judge Dredd in Judge Dredd
in the early development stages. The part went to fellow Planet
Hollywood founder Sylvester Stallone.
- In his childhood considered John Wayne (I) his idol and role
model. As Governor of California, he issued a proclamation making 26
May 2007 "John Wayne Day" in the state.
- Producer Joel Silver (I) wanted Schwarzenegger to play "Doctor
Manhattan" in a film adaptation of Alan Moore (III)'s graphic
novel Watchmen at one point.
- Acted with another future governor, Jesse Ventura, of Minnesota,
in Predator and The Running Man.
- Had stitches in his hand from the taking-off-airplane-to-tarmac stunt he
performed for Commando.
- Late October 2007: Personally flew to Malibu, CA, to survey the damage
done by wildfires before any other politician, including the President.
- Was attached to do another film adaptation of the pulp hero Doc Savage
(after the failed 1975 film) in the late 1990s, but the project never
got off the ground.
- Father of Patrick Schwarzenegger.
- Publicly endorsed his close friend Senator John McCain (I)'s bid
to win the Republican nomination for the 2008 presidential election.
- He ended his association with Planet Hollywood early in 2000, saying the
investment had not had the level of success he had expected.
- He saved a man's life while on vacation in Hawaii in 2004 by swimming
into the sea to rescue him from drowning.
- Considered for the role of Robert Neville in I Am Legend back in 1996
with Ridley Scott as the director.
- As an environmentally conscious politician, always uses carbon credits
when flying between his governor's office in Sacramento to his house in
L.A., California.
- Turned down the role of Animal Mother in Full Metal Jacket
and opted to do The Running Man instead.
- Considered for the main role in Strange Days but the job
went to Ralph Fiennes instead.
- Was the original choice to play the title character in
RoboCop.
- Attended the funeral of Ronald Reagan (I) in 2004, whom he
considered a great hero.
- Due to the dismal failure of Conan the Destroyer,
Schwarzenegger rarely ever did sequels to his own movies. He's turned
down sequels to Commando, Predator,
Total Recall and True Lies, as well as the
third Conan film which became Kull the Conqueror. The
only exception he ever made was
Terminator 2: Judgment Day and
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
- Honored by the Congressional Award in Washington, DC on June 25, 2002
with the Horizon Award. The Horizon Award is a special recognition from
the Joint Leadership of the United States Congress and the
Congressional Award Board of Directors. The Horizon Award is presented
to individuals from the private sectors who have contributed to
expanding opportunities for all Americans through their own personal
contributions, and who have set exceptional examples for young people
through their successes in life.
- Was good friends with WWE Hall of Famer André the Giant.
- With the exception of Around the World in 80 Days, in
which he only appeared in a supporting role, has starred in three
movies with the word "Day" in the title, and all three make a biblical
reference: Terminator 2: Judgment Day,
End of Days and The 6th Day.
- Has been crucified in two movies: Conan the Barbarian, and End Of Days,
where he was tied to a cross.
- Was seriously considered for the role of Dr. Manhattan/Jon Osterman in
one of the many failed attempts at adapting Alan Moore's Watchmen into
film. Ultimately, director Zach Snyder cast Billy Crudup for the 2009
adaptation.
- The character Arnold the Pitbull featured on Tiny Toons Adventures
(1990), voiced by Rob Paulsen, was a parody of him.
- Was considered for the role of Harry Stamper in
Armageddon (1998/I).
- Was considered for the role of President James Mitchell in
Air Force One.
- Lives in Los Angeles, California and Ketchum, Idaho.
- Before he became a household name, Schwarzenegger appeared with
bodybuilding buddies Franco Columbu and Frank Zane on the
sleeve of Grand Funk Railroad's 1974 album "All the Girls in the
World Beware!!!" Band member faces were cleverly superimposed on their
muscle-bound bodies.
Arnold Schwarzenegger quotes
- I was always interested in proportion and perfection. When I was 15 I
took off my clothes and looked in the mirror. When I stared at myself
naked, I realized that to be perfectly proportioned I would need
20-inch arms to match the rest of me.
- [Interview in "Starlog" magazine in 1991, explaining his reluctance to
do sequels to most of his successful films from the '80s] There's so
little time to do all the things I want to do that I can't see any
reason to get bogged down in sequels.
- Everything I have ever done in my life has always stayed. I've just
added to it . . . but I will not change. Because when you are
successful and you change, you are an idiot.
- I know that if you leave dishes in the sink, they get sticky and hard to
wash the next day.
- I would rather be Governor of California than own Austria.
- I love the Hong Kong style of action movies, but that only looks good
for small guys. The reason why the whole style was developed over there
was because those guys were very puny guys - they're not
powerful-looking guys, they're also not powerful guys. There's no
weightlifting champion coming out of Hong Kong - maybe in the bantam
division or the lightweight division or something like that, but
normally you don't have really strong men coming out of there . . .
they had to learn a technique that small people can do that are as
effective as the big guy's strength. So that's where the martial arts
came from.
- In the beginning I was selfish. It was all about, "How do I build
Arnold? How can I win the most Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympic contests?
How can I get into the movies and get into business?" I was thinking
about myself . . . As I've grown up, got older, maybe wiser, I think
your life is judged not by how much you have taken but by how much you
give back.
- [during his campaign for California governor, about his history of
"misbehavior"] Where I did make mistakes, or maybe go overboard
sometimes . . . I regret that. This is a different Arnold.
- [on his fight scenes with the female T-X in
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines] How many times do you
get away with this - to take a woman, grab her upside down and bury her
face in a toilet bowl? The thing is you can do it, because, in the end,
I didn't do it to a woman - she's a machine. We could get away with it
without being crucified by who knows what group.
- [on his decision to run for governor of California] It was the most
difficult decision in my life - except the one in 1978 when I decided
to get a bikini wax.
- [after being pelted with an egg at a political rally] This guy owes me
bacon now . . . you can't have egg without bacon.
- [responding to criticism during a televised debate] I just realized I
have the perfect part for you in "Terminator 4."
- [victory speech after having won election as Governor of California] I
will not fail, I will not disappoint you, I will not let you down.
- The worst I can be is the same as everybody else. I hate that.
- There's a lot of people who want me to get out of acting and want me to
run for governor. I think it's mostly movie critics.
- You have to remember something: Everybody pities the weak; jealousy you
have to earn.
- I took more abuse in Predator than I did in
Conan the Barbarian. I fell down that waterfall [40 feet]
and swam in this ice-cold water for days and for weeks was covered in
mud. It was freezing in the Mexican jungle. They had these heat lamps
on all the time, but they were no good. If you stayed in front of the
lamps, the mud dried. Then, you had to take it off and put new mud on
again. It was a no-win situation. The location was tough. Never on flat
ground. Always on a hill. We stood all day long on a hill, one leg
down, one leg up. It was terrible.
- [referring to Democrats at a political rally in Ontario, California, in
2004] If they don't have the guts to come up here in front of you and
say, "I don't want to represent you, I want to represent those special
interests, the unions, the trial lawyers" . . . if they don't have the
guts, I call them girlie men.
- [at the 2004 Republican National Convention] Speaking of acting, one of
my movies was called True Lies. It's what the Democrats
should have called their convention.
- President [George Bush (I)] knows you can't reason with people
that are blinded by hate. But let me tell you something: Their hate is
no match for our decency, their hate is no match for the leadership and
the resolve of George Bush.
- [Talking about his Conan the Barbarian director]:
John Milius used to call himself the dog trainer. Guess who were
the dogs?
- [From an interview about his reaction to reading the original
The Terminator screenplay] I have read a lot of action
adventure scripts, and this definitely was one of the best. I knew that
I wanted to play the part of the Terminator as soon as I started
reading.
- [About being taken seriously] I don't care. The important thing to me is
that I'm doing work that people enjoy out there, that the movie makes
good money, that the studio makes the money back, and that I'm having a
great time at what I'm doing. I don't even consider myself serious. So
how do I expect people to take me serious? I think this whole Hollywood
thing has to be taken much looser . . . it's just entertainment.
- "There were various stepping-stones in my career. One of them was
Conan the Barbarian, because it was the first time I did
a film with that kind of budget and I had the title role. The next big
stepping-stone was The Terminator. With "The Terminator",
I think people became aware of the fact that I didn't really have to
take my shirt off or run around and expose my muscles in order to sell
tickets. After I did "The Terminator" and we had seen it be more
successful than the Conan films, people then sent me a variety of
different kinds of scripts - all in the action-adventure genre, but
they were not muscle movies or Viking movies or pirate movies or
anything like that.
- [Talking about playing the Terminator] I had to act like a cyborg, which
meant I couldn't show any kind of human fear or reaction to the fire,
explosions, or gunfire that was going off around me. That can be
difficult when you're walking through a door with its frame on fire,
trying to reload a gun, and at the same time thinking in the back of
your mind that people have accidents doing these kinds of stunts and
that it might be my turn.
- [About more sequels to The Terminator] I don't necessarily
want to leave the magic of the Terminator movies behind, and who says
we have to? According to what we know about the future, there were
hundreds of Terminators built. The story of the Terminator could go on
forever.
- [From an interview expressing concern over making
Conan the Destroyer less brutal than its predecessor,
Conan the Barbarian] I think it's a mistake. I know
Sylvester Stallone made an extra $20 million because he got a PG
rating for Rocky III, but it's a matter of how much you
want to stay within the character's reality. Can you slaughter people
and never see blood? Is it possible? You must have battles. That's part
of life, war, and the world of Conan.
- [Talking about director Richard Fleischer] The first day
Fleischer came to see me work out, he told me, "Arnold, could you put
on some more muscles?" I couldn't believe it! It turned out that
Fleischer thought [John Milius'] decision to keep Conan clothed
throughout the first film was a mistake. Fleischer believes that people
want to see my body much more often than they did the first time
around, so they will. I spend most of my time in
Conan the Destroyer fighting off people while I'm dressed
in a loincloth.
- [About the dog accident while making Conan the Barbarian]
One of them hit me too soon. It caught me off guard and I went right
over the ledge. I fell ten feet and landed on my back. I was covered
with scratches and bruises. It was probably a pretty good beginning for
this movie, though. It set the tone for the whole time we were there.
This was going to be fun . . . but dangerous.
- [Talking about director John Milius] "There never would have been
a Conan movie without him.
- [on Warren Beatty] There are some people who are close to him
that say he is just starving for attention, and that's the way he gets
attention. Other people said, "Look, he's not working and he just feels
like he should maybe get involved in politics". Instead, I just think
that maybe he is jealous that I did jump in. I find it silly, because I
respect his work.
- Well, I think because a lot of people don't know why I'm a Republican, I
came first of all from a socialistic country which is Austria and when
I came over here in 1968 with the presidential elections coming up in
November, I came over in October, I heard a lot of the press
conferences from both of the candidates, [Hubert H. Humphrey]
and [Richard Nixon], and Humphrey was talking about more
government is the solution, protectionism, and everything he said about
government involvement sounded to me more like Austrian socialism. Then
when I heard Nixon talk about it, he said open up the borders, the
consumers should be represented there ultimately and strengthen the
military and get the government off our backs. I said to myself, "What
is this guy's party affiliation?" I didn't know anything at that point.
So I asked my friend, "What is Nixon?" He's a Republican. And I said,
"I am a Republican". That's how I became a Republican."
- [On refusing to grant clemency to condemned killer
Stanley Tookie Williams] After studying the evidence, searching
the history, listening to the arguments and wrestling with the profound
consequences, I could find no justification for granting clemency. The
facts do not justify overturning the jury's verdict, or the decisions
of the courts in this case.
- [After undergoing heart surgery in 1997] We made, actually, history,
because it was the first time ever that doctors could prove that a
lifelong Republican has a heart.
- As a kid - as a kid I saw socialist - the socialist country that Austria
became after the Soviets left. Now don't misunderstand me: I love
Austria and I love the Austrian people. But I always knew that America
was the place for me. In school, when the teacher would talk about
America, I would daydream about coming here. I would daydream about
living here. I would sit there and watch for hours American movies,
transfixed by my heroes, like John Wayne (I). Everything about
America seemed so big to me, so open, so possible.
- I have no sexual standards in my head that say this is good or this is
bad. Homosexual - that only means to me that he enjoys sex with a man
and I enjoy sex with a woman. It's all legitimate to me.
- I didn't think about money. I thought about the fame, about just being
the greatest. I was dreaming about being some dictator of a country or
some savior like Jesus.
- I'm 6'2". I've heard rumors that I'm really much shorter in real life -
like 5'6" or something like that - which is ridiculous. I can assure
you this is not the case. People look up to me, and not just because I
do a lot of work in the community. I mean, most people really look up
to me.
- California will not wait for our federal government to take strong
action on global warming. We won't wait for the federal government. We
will move forward because we know it's the right thing to do. We will
lead on this issue and we will get other western states involved. I
think there's not great leadership from the federal government when it
comes to protecting the environment.
- Money doesn't make you happy. I now have $50 million but I was just as
happy when I had $48 million.
- [in a 1987 interview] I have to give the audiences what they enjoy
seeing while I try to bring in a little something new, with different
movies, different time periods and all those things. But what's
important is to entertain the people -- everything else means nothing.
- [On his late friend and role model, body builder Reg Park]: Reg was a
dear friend, an extraordinary mentor and a personal hero. Other than my
parents, there may be no single person who had more to do with me
becoming the person I am today than Reg. He was like a second father to
me. It was Reg who impressed upon me how hard I would have to work if I
wanted to achieve my dreams. I'll always remember him making me do
calf-raises with 1,000 pounds at 5 o'clock in the morning.
- [on Terminator Salvation] I think it's cool to continue on
with the franchise, in case I want to jump over again and get into the
acting after I'm through here (as Governor of California).
- There are such high standards and now there are always new standards
being set for action. You see that with Iron Man and with
The Dark Knight and that other film this summer, um,
Wanted. That was an excellent movie! There was this train
coming down from a bridge, falling, and they're fighting inside the
train car. Jesus, that is unbelievable that you can do that. To have
the imagination to write it and the talent to shoot it and make it real
on the screen. It's a whole new dimension.
- With Batman and Terminator, those big movies, there's a certain
expectation and if you don't live up to it, if the movie is not a 10,
then the business will be soft. If Terminator Salvation
is pushing it forward, it will be breaking records all the time. If
director McG has the T4 and the kind of shots that has the
audience thinking, 'Now how did he do that?' -- then it is 'Terminator'
and you can blow everyone away and every record at the box office.
- [on Terminator Salvation] I hope they do well, and I hope
it is a huge hit. I do hope it creates a spectacle on the screen. That
is what James Cameron (I) created.
- [on watching Will Ferrell movies] In those you howl for two hours
and you feel like you get a six-pack of ab muscles from all the laughs!
- [on Terminator Salvation] I wasn't sure who the Terminator
was. I don't know if there is one or if he's the star or the hero.
These are the things that determine the success and how strong the
movie will be.
- I know California is supposed to be a place where dreams come true, but
my life has gone way beyond the dream. My dream was to come to America,
become the greatest bodybuilder of all time and do what Reg Park
had done by going into Hercules movies. And if that worked out, I was
going to build a gym business and then live happily ever after. Then
all of a sudden I shot right by my dream. I stopped doing the strong
man stuff, did the Terminator movies and became the highest-paid actor
in Hollywood. I got $30 million for
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, you know.
- [on the death of Michael Jackson (I)] Michael was a pop
phenomenon who never stopped pushing the envelope of creativity. Though
there were serious questions about his personal life, Michael was
undoubtedly a great entertainer and his popularity spanned generations
and the globe.
- [On the death of Patrick Swayze] Patrick Swayze was a
talented and passionate artist who struck a memorable chord with
audiences throughout the world. He played a wide range of characters
both on stage and in movies and his celebrated performances made the
hard work of acting look effortless - which I know from experience is
not easy. As a fan and as an actor, I admired Patrick and I know that
he will be dearly missed. On behalf of all Californians, Maria and I
send our deepest condolences to Patrick's family, friends and fans.
- I am here to spend. I love to spend Hollywood's money! (June 1993).
- [On Sylvester Stallone in The Expendables] It is a
great inspiration for people to see someone at his age still at the top
of his game -- acting, writing, directing, doing his own stunts and
fight scenes -- I mean, what an amazing talent. And for him to still be
so athletic and be able to rip off his shirt and have a six-pack is
just unbelievable.
- [On the death of Tony Curtis (I)] Tony Curtis (I) was a
Hollywood icon, a great performer and artist and devoted family man. I
saw his extraordinary talent and ability to inspire generations of
Americans firsthand on the set of
Christmas in Connecticut (1992) (TV)' and will always remember
our times together.
- [On a return to movies when his term as Governor of California ends] I
have no idea. So it depends if someone comes with a great script or a
great idea...you know, would I still have the patience to sit on the
set and to do a movie for three months or six months? All of those
things, I don't know, but I did have a meeting with
James Cameron (I), we talked about some very important things.