With an almost unpronounceable surname and a thick Austrian accent, whowould have ever believed that a brash, quick talking bodybuilder from asmall European village would become one of Hollywood's biggest stars,marry into the prestigious Kennedy family, amass a fortune via shrewdinvestments and one day be the Governor of California!?

The amazing story of megastar Arnold Schwarzenegger is a true "rags toriches" tale of a penniless immigrant making it in the land ofopportunity, the United States of America. Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was born July 30, 1947, in the town of Thal, Styria, Austria, toAurelia Schwarzenegger (born Jadrny) and GustavSchwarzenegger, the local police chief. From a young age, he took akeen interest in physical fitness and bodybuilding, going on to competein several minor contests in Europe. However, it was when he emigratedto the United States in 1968 at the tender age of 21 that his starbegan to rise.

Up until the early 1970s, bodybuilding had been viewed as a ratheroddball sport, or even a mis-understood "freak show" by the generalpublic, however two entrepreneurial Canadian brothersBen Weider andJoe Weider set about broadening the appeal of"pumping iron" and getting the sport respect, and what better posterboy could they have to lead the charge, then the incredible "AustrianOak", Arnold Schwarzenegger. Over roughly the next decade, beginning in1970, Schwarzenegger dominated the sport of competitive bodybuildingwinning five Mr. Universe titles and seven Mr. Olympia titles and, withit, he made himself a major sports icon, he generated a newinternational audience for bodybuilding, gym memberships worldwideswelled by the tens of thousands and the Weider sports business empireflourished beyond belief and reached out to all corners of the globe.However, Schwarzenegger's horizons were bigger than just the landscapeof bodybuilding and he debuted on screen as "Arnold Strong" in the lowbudgetSF chôjin Herakuresu (1970),then directorBob Rafelson cast Arnold inStay Hungry (1976) alongsideJeff Bridges andSally Field, for which Arnold won a GoldenGlobe Award for "Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture". ThemesmerizingPumping Iron (1977)covering the 1975 Mr Olympia contest in South Africa has since gone onto become one of the key sports documentaries of the 20th century, plusArnold landed other acting roles in the comedyThe Villain (1979) oppositeKirk Douglas, and he portrayedMickey Hargitay in the well- received TVmovieThe Jayne Mansfield Story (1980).

What Arnold really needed was a super hero / warrior style role in alavish production that utilized his chiseled physique, and gave himroom to show off his growing acting talents and quirky humor.Konan za gurêto (1982)was just that role. Inspired by theRobert E. Howard short stories of the"Hyborean Age" and directed by gung ho directorJohn Milius, and with a largely unknowncast, saveMax von Sydow andJames Earl Jones, "Conan" was a smashhit worldwide and an inferior, although still enjoyable sequel titledKing of Destroyer: Conan Part 2 (1984)quickly followed. If "Conan" was the kick start to Arnold's moviecareer, then his next role was to put the pedal to the floor andaccelerate his star status into overdrive. DirectorJames Cameron had until that timeonly previously directed one earlier feature film titledPiranha Part Two: The Spawning (1982), which stank of rotten fish from start to finish. However, Cameron had penned a fast paced, science fiction themed film script that called foran actor to play an unstoppable, ruthless predator -Terminator (1984). Made on arelatively modest budget, the high voltage action / science fictionthrillerTerminator (1984) wasincredibly successful worldwide, and began one of the most profitablefilm franchises in history. The dead pan phrase "I'll be back" quicklybecame part of popular culture across the globe. Schwarzenegger was invogue with action movie fans, and the next few years were to see Arnoldreap box office gold in roles portraying tough, no-nonsense individualswho used their fists, guns and witty one-liners to get the job done.The testosterone ladenCommando (1985),Raw Deal (1986),Predator (1987),Battle Runner (1987) andRed Bull (1988) were all box office hitsand Arnold could seemingly could no wrong when it came to pickingwinning scripts. The tongue-in-cheek comedyTwins (1988) with co-starDanny DeVito was a smash and won Arnold newfans who saw a more comedic side to the muscle- bound actor oncedescribed by Australian author / TV hostClive James as "a condom stuffed withwalnuts". The spectacularTotal Recall (1990) and "feel good"Kindergarten Cop (1990) wereboth solid box office performers for Arnold, plus he was about toreturn to familiar territory with directorJames Cameron inTerminator 2 (1991).The second time around for the futuristic robot, the production budgethad grown from the initial film's $6.5 million to an alleged $100million for the sequel, and it clearly showed as the stunning sequelbristled with amazing special effects, bone-crunching chases & stuntsequences, plus state of the art computer-generated imagery.Terminator 2 (1991)was arguably the zenith of Arnold's film career to date and he wasvoted "International Star of the Decade" by the National Association ofTheatre Owners.

Remarkably, his next filmLast Action Hero (1993) broughtArnold back to Earth with a hard thud as the self-satirizing, butconfusing plot line of a young boy entering into a mythical Hollywoodaction film confused movie fans even more and they stayed away indroves making the film an initial financial disaster. Arnold turnedback to good friend, directorJames Cameron and the chemistrywas definitely still there as the "James Bond" style spy thrillerTrue Lies (1994) co-starringJamie Lee Curtis andTom Arnold was the surprise hit of1994! Following the broad audience appeal ofTrue Lies (1994), Schwarzeneggerdecided to lean towards more family-themed entertainment withJunior (1994) andJingle All the Way (1996), buthe still found time to satisfy his hard-core fan base withEraser (1996), as the chilling "Mr.Freeze" inBatman & Robin - Mr. Freeze no gyakushuu (1997)and battling dark forces in the supernatural action ofEnd of Days (1999). The sciencefiction / conspiracy taleThe 6th Day (2000) played to onlymediocre fan interest, andCollateral Damage (2002) hadits theatrical release held over for nearly a year after the tragicevents of Sept 11th 2001, but it still only received a lukewarmreception.

It was time again to resurrect Arnold's most successful franchise and,in 2003, Schwarzenegger pulled on the biker leathers for the third timeforTerminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003).Unfortunately, directorial duties passed fromJames Cameron toJonathan Mostow and the deletion of thecharacter of "Sarah Connor" akaLinda Hamilton and a change inthe actor playing "John Connor" -Nick Stahltook over fromEdward Furlong - makingthe third entry in the "Terminator" series the weakest to date.

Schwarzenegger married TV journalistMaria Shriver in April, 1986 and thecouple have four children.

In October of 2003 Schwarzenegger, running as a Republican, was electedGovernor of California in a special recall election of then governorGray Davis. The "Governator," as Schwarzenegger came to be called, heldthe office until 2011. Upon leaving the Governor's mansion it wasrevealed that he had fathered a child with the family's live-in maidand Shriver filed for divorce.

Schwarzenegger contributed cameo roles toThe Rundown (2003),Around the World in 80 Days (2004)andThe Kid & I (2005). Recently, hestarred inThe Expendables 2 (2012),Rasuto Sutando (2013),Dai dasshutsu (2013),The Expendables 3 (2014), andTâminêtâ: Shinkidou/Jenesisu (2015).