Who Hijacked Our Country

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Jack LaLanne

America’s most important health and fitness icon died today at age 96.

In 2006 Jack LaLanna said “I can't afford to die. It would wreck my image.”

He’s probably most famous for his TV fitness program from the 1950s through the ‘70s, and for some highly publicized achievements: doing 1,000 pushups in 23 minutes, and swimming across San Francisco Bay while towing a boat.

In the 1930s and ‘40s he brought weight-lifting and other strength-training routines — which were generally dismissed as some sort of weird cult activity at the time — into the mainstream. Some of his bodyweight-only exercises were the most brutal of all.

For example, no matter how much you can lift — betcha can’t do this.

Jack LaLanne was still doing Jack LaLanne pushups when he was ninety.

America needs him now more than ever.

R.I.P.


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7 Comments:

Anonymous Jolly Roger said...

He did it his way, and stayed strong for a lot longer than most people live. Truly a guy to look up to-at least to his face :)

January 23, 2011 at 8:15 PM  
Anonymous As Seen on TV Life said...

Hopefully he can get the push-up record in Heaven now. He'll be missed.

January 23, 2011 at 8:25 PM  
Anonymous S.W. Anderson said...

I remember Lalanne being on TV when I was a kid, in the 1950s.

As a fitness guru he was definitely way ahead of his time. From what I've seen of him in a couple of TV interviews and read about him, he was a nice guy, too.

Yes, R.I.P.

January 24, 2011 at 12:49 AM  
Blogger Lisa said...

does that guy have a phone number?

January 24, 2011 at 11:49 AM  
Blogger Tom Harper said...

JR: No doubt everyone was nice to him in person :)

ASOTV: Yes, he'll definitely be missed.

SW: I've heard all those things about him too. R.I.P.

Lisa: LOL.

January 24, 2011 at 2:12 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

INHALE (organ roll)
EXHALE (Organ roll)

Everybody admired him but no one wanted to be like him.

Erik

January 24, 2011 at 6:51 PM  
Blogger Tom Harper said...

Erik: It's easier to just admire him.

January 24, 2011 at 8:28 PM  

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