Louis Cyr: The Canadian Hercules

Louis Cyr: The Canadian Hercules

Louis Cyr won his first strongman contest at the age of seventeen by lifting a horse -- and went on to become one of the greatest strongmen who ever lived. His other impressive feats include backlifting over two tons, bent-pressing 273 pounds (beating Sandow's record and resisting the pull of four draught horses (two strapped to each arm) in the human chain feat.

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Sig Klein

Sig Klein
Sig Klein was one of the all time greats and easily one of the most photographed of all the classical strongmen. Klein began training at 15 years old after reading Bernarr MacFadden's "Physical Culture" Magazine.

He became incredibly talented at a variety of strength disciplines - muscle control, hand balancing, artistic posing, classical strongman feats and weight lifting.

In 1927, Sig Klein moved to New York City and married Professor Attila's daughter and took over his gym, which he ran successfully for the next four decades.

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Earle E. Liederman's Books

Earle E. Liederman's Books
Earle E. Liederman was a very well-known vaudeville strongman and a highly successful mail-order strength author. Here's a look at his strength bibliography:

The Science of Wrestling and The Art of Jiu-Jitsu (1923) Muscle Building (1924) Secrets of Strength (1925) Endurance (1926) Muscular Development (1928) Here's Health (1929)

Muscle Building, circa 1924, several of Liederman's books had a very distinctive embossed cover

Liederman was also the editor of "Muscle Power" Magazine for a number of years.

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Louis Durlacher - "Professor Attila"

Louis Durlacher - "Professor Attila"
The man who originated globe barbells, the Roman Chair, the art of tearing playing cards and who discovered Eugen Sandow was Louis Durlacher, also known professionally as "Professor Attila."

Attila essentially "invented" the bent-press and became the first man to perform the lift with over 200 pounds. His student, Eugen Sandow, went on to bent-press 271 pounds.

In 1894, he came to America and established his famous Health Studio in New York City. In addition to Sandow, Attila's list of other students reads like a "Who's Who" of All-Time Strength greats: Warren Lincoln Travis, Lionel Strongfort, G.W. Rolandow, Henry Titus, Professor Anthony Barker, Bobby Pandour, Louis Cyr, Horrace Barre, Arthur Dandurand, and Adolph Nordquest.

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Eugen Sandow

Eugen Sandow
"Sandow, the Magnificent," as he was known, was the first Strength Star. He was equal part Strongman and physique star, and performed his unique act all over the world, most notably as a part of the famed Ziegfeld Follies.

As far as strength feats, Sandow could bent-press 271 pounds (later broken by George Hackenschmidt)but in his act often used a "dumbbell" composed of two huge baskets (in which a person sat) which impressed audiences even more than a similar lift in "real weight."

He also broke chains by chest expansion and even lifted a horse overhead with one hand and walked across the stage .

What went over even better than his incredible strength feats were Sandow's Muscle Control act. Audiences had never seen anything like it - Sandow looked like a Greek statue brought to life.

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Fred Rollon

Fred Rollon
There's more to building super strength than just slingin' iron...

The great German Strongman Fred Rollon, known as "The Human Anatomy Chart" developed his incredible condition primarily through training with chest expanders and rubber cables.

Rollon was undefeated at strand-pulling feats. It was reported that the strands which Rollon used in his workouts were so strong that they could resist the pull of horses.

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The Russian Lion, George Hackenschmidt

The Russian Lion, George Hackenschmidt
George Karl Julius Hackenschmidt (aka the Russian Lion) was born August 2nd, 1878 in the small town of Dorpat in Estonia.

He went on to become one of the greatest wrestlers and strongmen that the world has ever known. Between 1889 and 1908, it is estimated that Hackenschmidt won over 3000 matches over some very tough competition.

His match with American Champion Frank Gotch in 1908 is widely regarded as the greatest wrestling match of all time (Gotch eventually won after over 2 hours of grappling.)

As far as his strength prowess, Hackenschmidt established several impressive records, including a "Crucifix" hold with a pair of 90-pound dumbbells, a wrestler's bridge pullover-and-press with 311 pounds, and a bent-press of 279 pounds (besting Eugen Sandow's previous record.)

Read more about George Hackenschmidt and his training methods in his classic training book The Way to Live (1908)

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John Grunn Marx: The Luxembourg Hercules

John Grunn Marx: The Luxembourg Hercules
At an exhbition in Paris in the year 1905, John Grunn Marx, (aka The Luxembourg Hercules) broke three horseshoes in a span of 2 minutes and 15 seconds, an unbelievable feat of grip and forearm strength.

Speaking of Grip Strength, note Marx's incredible forearm-tendon development which is evident in this picture.

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