Louis Jude Ferrigno Sr. is an American actor and retired professional bodybuilder. As a bodybuilder, Ferrigno won an IFBB Mr. America title and two consecutive IFBB Mr. Universe titles; and appeared in the documentary film Pumping Iron. As an actor, he is best known for his title role in the CBS television series The Incredible Hulk and vocally reprising the role in subsequent animated and computer-generated incarnations. He has also appeared in European-produced fantasy-adventures such as Sinbad of the Seven Seas and Hercules, and as himself in the sitcom The King of Queens and the 2009 comedy I Love You, Man.
The Universe Championships are annual worldwide bodybuilding events organised by the National Amateur Body-Builders' Association (NABBA). Originally promoted as the Mr. Universe contest, the event was expanded to include women's classes in 1968. Notable previous winners include bodybuilder, actor, and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger, and bodybuilder and actor Steve Reeves (1926–2000).
Henri Christophe Dickerson was an American professional bodybuilder.
Mickey Hargitay, born Miklós Karoly Hargitay, was a Hungarian-American actor and the 1955 Mr. Universe.
Frank Zane is a retired American professional bodybuilder and author. He is a three-time Mr. Olympia, and his physique is considered one of the greatest in the history of bodybuilding due to his meticulous focus on symmetry and proportion. He was inducted in the IFBB Hall of Fame in 1999.
William Arnold Pearl was an American professional bodybuilder and athlete. During the 1950s and 60s, he won many titles and awards, including winning the Mr. Universe contest five times, and was named "World's Best-Built Man of the Century". He later became an expert trainer and author on bodybuilding.
Samir Bannout is a Lebanese retired former IFBB professional bodybuilder and coach.
Roy "Reg" Park was an English bodybuilder, businessman, and actor. His first title was Mr Britain in 1949. He then won the Mr Universe in 1951, 1958 and 1965. He also starred in five films, four featured as Hercules, and in one, Hercules in the Haunted World (1961), he co-starred with Christopher Lee. Besides his own career and titles, he is probably best known as an idol and mentor to Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The National Amateur Body-Builders' Association, more commonly referred to as NABBA, was founded in 1950 by the Health & Strength League to promote bodybuilding. Although the original intention was to promote physique contests in the United Kingdom, the popularity of the Mr Universe contest, and later Ms Universe contest, drew interest from competitors around the world. Today NABBA International maintains affiliations with around 60 countries.
Serge Nubret was a French professional bodybuilder, actor and self published author. He won numerous bodybuilding competitions, including 1976 NABBA Mr. Universe (1976). Nubret was nicknamed "The Black Panther."
Lee Andrew McCutcheon is a competitive bodybuilder. He is a former International Federation of BodyBuilders (IFBB) professional bodybuilder and a current National Amateur Body-Builders' Association (NABBA) professional athlete.
Bertil Fox is a British former International Federation of BodyBuilders professional bodybuilder and convicted murderer. He was pardoned for that crime by the Governor General of Saint Kitts and Nevis on 4 August 2022.
Earl Maynard is a bodybuilder and professional wrestler as well as a film actor, producer and director from Barbados.
Kamal Abdulsalam El-Gargni is a Libyan professional bodybuilder residing in England. He won the 212 Mr. Olympia in 2019.
Lisa Cross is a professional British female bodybuilder.
Leo Robert was a French Canadian bodybuilder. At one time, he was billed as "America's most muscular man". He won the 1955 Mr. Universe.
Jack Delinger was an American professional bodybuilder. He won the 1949 AAU Mr. America and the 1956 Mr. Universe.
Dennis Tinerino was an American bodybuilder, most prominent in the late 1960s and 1970s. He won the Mr. Universe title four times in 1968, 1975, 1980 and 1981 and Mr. World in 1971 in the tall man's category, and Mr. America in 1978. After becoming involved in a life of crime, running one of the biggest escort services in California, he became an international evangelist. The 1983 edition of The Gold's Gym book of bodybuilding cited him as "one of the most successful bodybuilders of the past decade or two". He is an inductee of the National Fitness Hall of Fame, IFBB Hall of Fame and National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.
Roy Callender is a Barbadian Canadian IFBB Hall of Famer retired professional bodybuilder, professional wrestler and actor.
Douglas Paul Brignole was an American bodybuilder, fitness coach, biomechanics expert, and author. He attained fame as a multiple-time winner of the AAU Mr. Universe and Mr. America titles. Known for his long competitive career, Brignole was the oldest man to win the title of Mr. Universe. Beyond his bodybuilding achievements, Brignole was well known for his research and application of biomechanics principles to resistance training and for his use of cables, dumbbells, and isolation exercises rather than the barbells and compound exercises most commonly used by other titled bodybuilders. As a recognised luminary in the fitness industry, Brignole was consulted on a variety of topics including training protocols, trainer-client relations, and entrepeneurship.
