Actor. Born on July 30, 1947, in Graz, Austria, educated at University of Wisconsin (business and economics). Muscle-bound star of the American screen. At 15 he rebelled against the wishes of his father, a stern police chief, and chose bodybuilding over a career as a professional soccer player. After winning the Junior Mr. Europe title, he arrived in the U.S. in 1968, billed as "The Austrian Oak", and went on to claim the Mr. World, Mr. Universe (five times), and Mr. Olympia (seven times) titles before retiring undefeated in 1980. He invested his winning purses and revenues from his mail-order company in real estate and became a millionaire while still in his 20's.
Although he began appearing in films (as Arnold Strong) in 1970, it wasn't until he played himself in George Butler's documentary Pumping Iron (1977) that Schwarzenegger first drew wide attention. His screen career took off after his fortuitous casting in the mythical epic Conan the Barbarian (1982) and its sequel Conan the Destroyer (1984), both huge box-office hits. The Terminator (1984), a science-fiction saga, catapulted him to superstardom. Curiously, Schwarzenegger's limited acting range, his deadpan expression, and thick-accented delivery of American slang phrases proved assets rather than liabilities in his rise to top popularity, providing his toughest characterizations with a touch of humorous ease. Schwarzenegger, whose Cinderella rise from humble beginnings to one of Hollywood's top money-making stars embodies the realization of the American dream, became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1983. In 1986, the staunchy Republican Schwarzenegger married glamorous TV journalist Maria Shriver, a niece of John F. Kennedy. In 1990 he was appointed by George Bush as Chairman of the President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports. In 1992 he made his debut as a feature-length movie director with a cable TV remake of 1945's Christmas in Connecticut. To date, his only box-office misstep has been The Last Action Hero (1993), which disappointed fans and critics.
