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MDRight about the time this issue hits the newsstands, Big Lou Ferrigno will be all over the big screen with a supporting role in the DreamWorks romantic comedy “I Love You, Man,” directed by John Hamburg— the same guy who brought us “Zoolander,” “Along Came Polly,” “Meet the Parents” and “Meet the Fockers”— with a cast that includes Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, Jaime Pressly and Rashida Jones.
This new film is the latest in Big Lou’s repertoire. Most of us have seen Lou in his role in “Pumping Iron” opposite Arnold and of course on TV as the “Incredible Hulk.” What some of you may not realize is that Lou also recently appeared in and did the voice of ‘The Hulk,’ in last year’s blockbuster film, “The Incredible Hulk,” which also starred an impres- sive cast: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt and Robert Downey, Jr.
Actually, after bodybuilding, Louie did quite a few TV shows and movies. He was in “Sinbad of the
Seven Seas,” and he played the title role in the 1983 film version of “Hercules.” And let’s not forget his seven seasons on the sitcom “The King of Queens” where he played himself.
But just like his rival, nemesis and good friend, Governor Arnold, no matter how high Louie’s star rises either on TV or cinematically, he will always be, first and foremost, one of us— a bodybuilder. For the last 30 years, Lou has been off-limits to all of our industry’s publications except those put out by Weider. Today that ban has been lifted and for the first time in my career I’m able to interview my old friend from Brooklyn, the ‘Incredible Hulk’ himself, Lou Ferrigno.
Getting this interview was wrought with mixed emotions. While Lou and I have always maintained a friendship over the years, we were closest when he and my dearly departed Shelley Beattie were working together as representatives for a hearing aid compa- ny. Both Lou and Shelley suffered from a similar hear- BY JOHN ROMANO, PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL DOBBINS
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ing loss and the camaraderie that bound us all became second nature. After Shelley and I parted ways and I moved to Mexico, my contact with Lou was limited to the times I’d see him at either the Olympia or the Arnold Classic.
We all know of Louie’s ironclad deal with Weider and his penchant for selling photos (I’ll straighten that out in a minute), so I never cared to take up too much of his time while he was working the room. But when you know someone for as long as I’ve known Louie, you don’t need much to maintain the relationship. Anytime we’d call each other over those years it was like we had just spoken yesterday.
Then the news of Shelly’s passing permeated the industry and Lou was one of the first to call me. We saw each other next at the Olympia and had a drink together and caught up. He was genuinely concerned about Shelley’s last days and what it was that consumed her. We talked for awhile about it. When it was time to leave, he stood up, gave me a hug and said he’d call me soon— and he did. But this time under much happi- er circumstances.
“John!” Lou boomed over the
phone. “This is Louie.” Like I couldn’t tell.
“What’s up, Louie?”
“I just did a film! It’s a big role,” he said proudly.
“That’s great Lou! What’s it called?”
“I Love You, Man.”
Knowing Louie doesn’t always hear me on the first pass, so I said, “I love you too, Louie, I’m really happy for you.”
“No, John! That’s the name of the film, “I Love You, Man.” It’s a romantic comedy, directed by the same guy who did “Meet the Fockers.””
“Oh, OK.” Now I felt stupid. But a romantic comedy role for the guy who played ‘The Hulk’? “You did a comedy, Louie?”
“Yup… I loved it. It was a great challenge.”
I love hearing Lou say the word ‘challenge.’ It so accurately describes just about every aspect of his life— and he always meets them head on. Even his hearing loss— actually, espe- ciallybecause of his hearing loss. Louie sees his loss of hearing as a huge influence in his bodybuilding and in his other life’s pursuits.
“If I hadn’t lost some of my hear- ing,” he says, “I wouldn’t be where I am now. It forced me to maximize my own potential. I had to be better than the average person to succeed.”
The root of that success found its genesis, of course, in the gym. In 1963, Lou was 12 years old— and that’s when he first picked up a weight.
“I was so excited when I first picked up a barbell,” Louie said. “I just knew this was for me. Some of the guys in the neighborhood were lifting weights. I remember seeing a kid who had a white T-shirt with a great pair of arms hanging out of it. They were probably only about 15 inches, but they looked so cool I couldn’t stop looking at them. I had never seen any- one developed like that and I just knew I wanted them too.”
“Was that your first glimpse of what bodybuilding was?” I asked. “No, not really. We didn’t really know what we were doing. But pretty soon after that Steve Reeves came out with his “Hercules” movie. That’s when I discovered what muscles were. I was attracted to the power.”
“Was the power attraction partly to make up for your hearing?”
Lou said, “Yes. It was a good thing for me to have power. I remember seeing Johnny Weissmuller doing “Tarzan.” He swam faster than anyone I had ever seen, and he swung from vine to vine… he helped people… he was a hero. That’s what I wanted to be, like a superhero. I was very intro- verted because of my hearing prob-
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lem. Lifting weights and building my body was like a plat- form to me to get to that level. I just love the feeling of picking up the weight, heavy weight. It makes me feel powerful. It feels so good.”
“So, were the superheroes the lead in to bodybuild- ing?” I asked.
“Yup, they were. I collected a lot of comic books. One day I went to the comic book store and I saw a magazine called Muscle Power with a guy named Dave Draper on the cover. I couldn’t believe what he looked like. He was much bigger and more ripped than Johnny Weissmuller. I had to have that magazine! I traded some comic books for it because I didn’t have any money. Then I took it home and studied every page and I discovered they had body- building contests! There was a picture of Steve Reeves flexing one arm and holding a trophy in the other. I cut that picture out and put it on top of this old broken mirror I used when I worked out. That’s what I wanted!”
“Wow, so Steve Reeves motivated your contest train- ing. That’s pretty cool. What was your first show?”
“When I was 19, I competed in the AAU Mr. New Jersey competition in the open class,” Lou replied. “I came in 23rd
place.” “Ouch!”
Louie laughed. “I know. I came home and told my par- ents I’d never take less than 23rdagain. My next show that
year was the AAU teenage America in Cleveland, Ohio. A guy named Mike Mentzer took 2nd, winning all body parts.
[In those days they used to have an award for ‘best chest,’ ‘best legs,’ ‘best arms,’ etc.] I took 4th.
Then I went on to win the Teenage Eastern America. Finally, in 1973, at the age of 21, I won the IFBB Mr. America and turned pro. Six weeks later I won the IFBB Mr. Universe in Geneva, Switzerland. I was the youngest to ever win the Universe [Arnold won at 22 years of age]. The next year I won Universe again. And then the IFBB Mr. International in California— a show promoted by Arnold.”
“Then you and Arnold did “Pumping Iron,”” I said. “Did you first meet Arnold in California and get added to the cast of “Pumping Iron?””
“No, I first met Arnold in 1969 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. He had won the Universe that night and then lost the Olympia to Sergio Oliva (they held both contests the same night. You could win the Universe, turn pro, and go right into the Olympia on the same night!). I got to go backstage and meet all the guys— it was like a dream come true. I was so impressed with all of them!”
“Could you even imagine then that in five short years you would be competing against Arnold in the Olympia and be the subject of a film on bodybuilding?”
“It’s unbelievable,” Louie said. “Who could have known? I did know I would compete with the best. I just knew it. The energy back then was phenomenal.”
“Okay, so “Pumping Iron” was a huge deal and we cov- ered your part in it in the feature I did on the film last month. So, we don’t have to go back into all that. But,
moving forward, did your appearance in “Pumping Iron” pave the way for your role as ‘The Hulk’ on the TV series?”
“Actually, it did,” he replied. “But it was because of Arnold that I got the part.”
“No way!”
“Yup. I never told you that story?” “Uh… no, you never did.”
“I must have.” “I swear, you didn’t.”
“I can’t believe I never told you! Well, the producers were looking for the biggest bodybuilder to play ‘The Hulk.’ Of course they approached Arnold because he was Mr. Olympia seven times and they figured he was the biggest. But they were wrong— I was the biggest. They approached Arnold, but he didn’t want to do it. And he told them that if they wanted the biggest bodybuilder to play “The Hulk” they should talk to me. Everyone thinks Arnold and I had this real-life rivalry going on, but he was always very nice to me. I bet no one imagined Arnold recommended me for
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“The Hulk!””
“I’m sure that’s news. I didn’t know. How many seasons of “Incredible Hulk” did you film?” I asked.
“We did five seasons, 86 episodes.” “Damn! I didn’t realize it was that many. Wow… that was really the start of your acting career then, not so much “Pumping Iron.””
““Pumping Iron” was an important film for all of us,” Louie began. “But it was the “Incredible Hulk” that put me right in the mainstream. Even after “Pumping Iron,” most people didn’t know anything about bodybuilding. But when they saw “The Hulk” and realized it wasn’t a costume I was wearing— it was actually my real body— people got interested in body- building shows. They wanted to look like the Hulk. It got kids motivated to work out and build their bodies. To this day when I visit comic book conven-
tions, people still crowd around me and buy the pictures. So many guys tell me it was because “The Hulk” showed them what muscles looked like and that’s what made them want to go to the gym.”
Now that we have brought up buy- ing pictures, let’s talk about this whole stigma attached to Lou about charging little kids $20 to take their picture with them.
“Lou, if a little kid comes up to you at a convention or a show and wants to take his picture with you, why do you charge them $20?”
“That’s a bad rap that came from Valentino. He obviously doesn’t under- stand what’s going on.”
“Well, here’s your chance, Lou. Let’s straighten this thing out once and for all.”
“John, you’ve known me for many, many years. You used to come and work with Shelley when we would do appearances and sell pictures— you know what goes on. We’re there to sell pictures. That’s how we make a living. That’s what I do for a living. I’m not representing any company. Lou Ferrigno works for Lou Ferrigno. Selling pictures and memorabilia is what I do. It’s a business. I can’t have people coming up to me at a conven- tion or a show where I’m selling pho- tos and take a picture with them. You know what happens, it happened all the time with Shelley until you put your foot down.”
“Yeah, I know— they take their pic- ture with you and then they don’t buy one.”
“That’s right! They don’t. If they buy one of my pictures, then they can take a picture with me. But I’m there to sell pictures. If I take a picture with every- one for free, no one will buy a picture. Since I’m in the business of selling pic- tures, that’s not very good.”
“Yeah,” I said, “but I think it was the stigma of the little kid coming up to you and you denying him the picture that created the bad image that Gregg talked about.”
“I know John, but you have to draw the line. The little kid came up because his parents sent him up. You
think he came to the show by him- self?” You guys just see me at two bodybuilding shows a year. I go to 20 conventions a year all over the world and sell photos with other celebrities and I have to tell you, everybody slams me for charging $20 for a photo. But I have news for you— I’m very reasonable. Some celebrities charge $150 for a photo and they won’t take a picture with you after you buy it! A lot of guys charge $50-$60 at a conven- tion for a photo. Adam West [the origi- nal Batman from the TV show] charges $50 for a black and white, and $60 for color. Mark Hamill [Luke Skywalker] charges $185. Val Kilmer [Batman] charges $85-$100. Do you think those guys give photos away? If I gave a free picture or took a picture for free with every kid that ever came up to me, I’d never make a living!”
“What about outside the conven- tion?” I asked. “What if a kid came up to you while you weren’t sitting at the table signing and selling photos? What if you were in a hotel lobby and a little kid asked to take his picture with you, would you do it without charging $20?”
“Of course!” Louie boomed. “I’ve taken tons of pictures for free. I’ve vis- ited kids in hospitals and schools and given away autographed photos. I’ve had my picture taken a million times for free. It’s just when I’m working and trying to sell photos that I have to draw the line.”
“What about when people accuse you of being rude to them?” I asked. “You should know all about this too from being with Shelley. My hearing is a problem and people don’t under- stand. I use the best hearing aids and I can read lips, but you know what it’s like. It’s hard to hear in a big space with lots of noise. People think I can hear and they lean in to talk into my ear, when what I need them to do is step back so I can see their mouth moving. It’s natural to lean in, not step back. This happens constantly. I can’t hear and people think I’m being rude.”
I remember that being a great source of frustration for Shelley,” I said. “You’re right, the natural tenden-
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MDcy is to lean in so people talk into your ear— but that was useless! She used to get so frustrated after 20 people would do that to her that she would just shove them in the chest and yell ‘Get back! I have to see your lips or I can’t hear you!’”
Okay, so my verdict on this whole $20 business is that photo sales are an occupation and if Lou is selling photos you need to respect that. If you made toys and sold them for $20 apiece, would you give one away to every little kid who asked you for one? If you did, you wouldn’t be in the toy business very long! The hear- ing thing is something most people just don’t understand. Lou breaks the mold of the traditional deaf guy. He’s managed his hearing loss very, very well, and to most people, he doesn’t look like he is challenged at all. I lived this frustration with someone for six years. I know how irritating it can be. If you ever get lucky enough to meet Lou Ferrigno in person, make sure you speak clearly and look at him when you talk. I guarantee you will have a very positive experience. Lou is a very cool guy.
All right, now we’ve got that cleared up! Let’s get back to body- building.
“Lou, I was always curious why you quit bodybuilding after you lost to Arnold.”
“Arnold quit!” Lou mused. “I want- ed to beat Arnold— the best in the world— and he quit on me! I was really disappointed after “Pumping Iron.” I was disappointed because Arnold retired and I wanted to beat him. So when “The Hulk” came up and I got the part, it didn’t make sense to compete anymore. There was much more money and exposure on TV. Even Joe [Weider] said I should do it.”
“When did you meet Joe?” “I met Joe in 1972 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. I was 20. I was backstage pumping up for the Mr. Universe competition being held there— they had the Mr. World and the Mr. Universe on the same night. Arnold was guest posing and Joe was there. Two weeks later, Arnold
beat Sergio in Essen, Germany. Joe came up to me and said that I could be another superstar. He said, “We have Arnold, Frank Zane, Franco and you could be the fourth super- star.” That was incredible coming from Joe Weider!
“But it wasn’t until 1976 that I did my first photo shoot for Weider. Artie Zeller shot me in the mountains. It was the same location he used to shoot all the rest of the guys. It was such an incredible experience to be included with those guys who were all regarded as the best in the world. It really meant a lot to me.”
“Did you always have a good rela- tionship with Joe? “I asked.
“Joe was like a second father to me; he was so good to me. I still talk to him every couple of days. He still goes into the office twice a week— at 88 years old! It was because of Joe and his love for bodybuilding and for us that I never left the game. Even though I was doing movies and TV I never lost touch and Joe always want- ed to keep me involved.”
What about the other famous bodybuilding Joe— Joe Gold? I bumped into you at World Gym a few times back in the day. You seemed to