Ever notice tough guys before the 1980s never had to look "ripped" to come off as tough? Being tough is all about the attitude, nothing else.
shareI feel like Bronson had a pretty impressive physique throughout the 70s but it just didn't have to be shown to convey his "toughness." But yeah, your right.
shareDid Arnold Schwarzenegger change that?
shareI think Stanzi Stokes changed it.
shareArnold and Stallone in Rambo II.
shareHitting the gym did not become the norm for “normal” people until the health-and-narcissisism craze of the 80s, in which I was in the forefront. Till then, people thought gym rats were weird, probably gay. I remember Jack LaLanne‘s TV show in the 50s. Housewives swooned and got wet over him. Househusbands all sneered, “Eh, he’s a fag.” He decidedly was not. But the OP is right: you don’t need a symmetrical body to be able to kick serious ass. Wanna talk tough guys? Charles Bronson. Robert Mitchum. I used to joke that the ultimate Republican ticket to run for the White House would be Clint Eastwood for President and Charles Bronson for Veep. Why? One: Because Clint was the most AMERICAN celebrity since John Wayne. Two: because no one would dare to assassinate Clint, because then he would have to deal with Charles. Those are 2 other old-school tough guys who were not shredded, ripped nor
Symmetrical, and nobody bitched about it.
Of course, the 80s fitness movement—fueled by Jim Fox’s massive bestseller, The Complete Book of Running—also popularized jogging. I’ve met many people who are intimidated about going to a gym, not knowing how we gym rats would receive them, not knowing how to lift, afraid of mockery, and all of these were and are valid concerns. But putting on a pair of sneakers and running around in a public park, well, that’s a lot less scary for the workout beginner. Then, as s/he progressed and her/his confidence soared, the local gym with folks bench-pressing a Buick seemed a lot less intimidating.
Someone who spends time running in the park will end up much more of an athlete than someone who spends the same time in the gym. Bodybuilding is an aesthetic pastime, not an athletic one. Exaggerated, massive musculature does not enhance athletic performance, except in lifting weights. Bodybuilding reminds me more of a male version of female obsession with makeup.
shareBronson just looked really tough and yes it was part of his attitude. I think he was originally a coal miner.
shareThat's a part of it. I think old school dudes didn't have to do a lot of lifting in the gym because they worked jobs that kept them in a natural, healthy state. For whatever reason, we have to go lift weights to stay in shape and because it's not quite natural, the results don't look natural.
shareCharles Bronson WAS ripped, or at least he was in his younger days!
https://cdn-men.aznude.com/antibandit/charlesbronson/chatosland/thumb3_Bronson-chato-s-land-70e4308f.jpg
https://cdn-men.aznude.com/antibandit/charlesbronson/chatosland/thumb3_Bronson-chato-s-land-e468a30c.jpg
He wasn't a bodybuilder, but during his years as a character actor (1950s and 1960s) he was all muscle, he wasn't a big man but he was 100% thick, corded, ripped, MANLY muscle. I think Schwarzenegger changed that, after he came along and Stallone developed a bodybuilder's physique to compete, bodybuilder physiques became obligatory for certain kinds of roles.
I stand corrected, Otter. Do you mean I DON’T know everything? Imagine!
I’d like to add that Gordon Scott, who played Tarzan in the 50s and 60s, had a superb musculature, and so did whomever it was who starred in those Hercules movies shot in Italy; so SOME roles demanded a buff actor much sooner than most other roles. Of course, the first movie Tarzan was Johnny WeissMueller, an Olympic gold medalist swimmer, the Mark Spitz of his day. He came with the package all ready to go.
I just remembered something funny about how the public regarded the Hercules movies in the 50s. MAD Magazine had a cartoon of 2 teenage girls waiting in line to buy tickets to Hercules. One is saying to her friend, “I told my mother that I’m running off to be married. She’d DIE if she knew I was going to see a Hercules movie!”
Hey, I've been wrong too! Once or twice!
But yeah, the mainstream was deeply dubious re ripped muscular men until Schwarzenegger came along, they were seen as suspiciously vain or gay before then, and the guys who played Tarzan or Hercules took a bit of abuse... largely from doughy straight men.
I don't believe any of that was ever aimed in Bronson's direction, even though he was a well-known character actor with an amazing bod. I guess that was because he always played working-class guys who were devoid of vanity, and he came across as someone who'd muscled up digging ditches, and not in a gym. Of course the real man was an actor, and probably devoted his off hours to the gym...
Sean Connery, body builder. Their physiques looked a lot more natural before steroids became the norm.
https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-348tgPD2IjM/XWZrgKdQbgI/AAAAAAADnT4/FDyDLJFCGoUxf-hfVvN72qXiY8Qz30_0gCLcBGAs/s1600/sean-connery-mr-universe.jpg
There are definitely a lot of ripped tough guys--the Rock, Jason, Momoa, Dave Bautista, etc.-- but there are still a group of actors who play tough the way Bronson did. Ryan Gosling pulls it off extremely well, as do Keanu Reeves, Chris Pratt, John Krasinski, and others.
share