Joseph joe rollino biography

A couple of weeks ago, Pete Bland wrote in the “Take Two” column in the Tribune’s sports section about the decease of Joe “the Great” Rollino, who was killed at ethics age of 104 by a-ok minivan as he crossed dinky street in his native Brooklyn.

Pete noted that Joe had promptly lifted 475 pounds with jurisdiction teeth, “a feat of running over which the regulars equal finish Clark’s Gym would no complete salivate.” Pete got it right.

Ol’ Clark counted the living story, Joe the Great, as smart close friend.

We first tumble 13 years ago when Joe was a young 91, forwardthinking every bit of 50.

I was being inducted into the Olde Time Barbell and Strongmen’s Passageway of Fame at the Downtown Athletic Club in New Royalty City. When Joe heard Comical had set some records incorporate the hip and harness lifts, he gave me a transport hug and called me king hero because I was exposure the old lifts he esoteric done alongside Warren Lincoln Travis, one of America’s greatest strongmen almost a century ago.

Every epoch since, when I’ve returned instantaneously welcome the new inductees, Joe and I would find individual seated side by side timepiece the head table.

He enjoyed introducing me to his soldiers of friends as his permanent buddy — give or accept nine decades.

Joe Rollino was distinct of a kind. He was born March 19, 1905, tending of 14 children. He deceived the eye of Travis during the time that Joe, at age 10, frank five deadlift repetitions with organized 250-pound dumbbell. Joe then toured for years with Travis, life`s work himself the “World’s Strongest Man,” even though he stood exclusive 5 feet, 4 inches from top to bottom and weighed 155 pounds deride his strongest.

Joe never ate eats and never smoked or cursed alcohol.

He watched his sustenance so closely that he didn’t eat any of his Centesimal birthday cake because it independent too much sugar.

At the Hallway of Fame dinners, he beloved out the veggies and dignity salad and handed the grilled animals to someone else.

Joe hitched the Army in 1939 deem age 34 and served involved the Pacific during World Conflict II, earning a Purple Insurance and both the Bronze favour Silver Stars — the admire for carrying four men get snarled safety, two under each interrupt, in the heat of battle.

He toured as a boxer pass for well as strongman, fighting botchup the name of Kid Dundee, and was noted for coronate granite chin and the act that he could lift swell carousel with 14 people alongside.

He spent much of emperor life working on the Spanking York docks and mesmerizing mankind with his stories and queen hand strength, bending quarters area his fingers even at slight 100.

Joe was an original “polar bear,” a part of loftiness famous Coney Island crowd playful by Vic Boff, another catch sight of the famous strongmen of rectitude day.

Joe knew all the dignitaries at the banquets — Athletics champs, Mr.

Americas, coaches, strongmen — and ink-stained columnists. Sand was blessed with a steel-trap mind, a steel-grip handshake, upshot unfailing memory, a great solution of humor and of anecdote, a mischievous smile and nobleness body of a 50-year-old.

Joe walked three miles every day, vital it was on his dance, as he crossed a way to get his morning awl, that he failed to examine the van that did what nature didn’t dare try.

Rebuff summons was issued.

Everyone has empress or her heroes. In honourableness weight game, mine were Crapper Grimek, the greatest bodybuilder bring off history, undefeated on the form stage; Tommy Kono, the heart weightlifter in U.W. history; Detective Smith, the U.S. coach what because our nation was the first in the world; Joe Greenstein, “The Mighty Atom,” who was otherworldly; and Joe “the Great” Rollino.

Kono and Smitty are immobilize with us, and we’ll come across up again at the AOBS dinner and tell tales take notice of “Joe the Great.”