Joe Rollino
Joe Rollino | |
---|---|
Born | weightlifter | March 19, 1905
Height | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) |
External image | |
---|---|
Bodybuilder Joe Rollino |
Joseph Rollino (March 19, 1905 – January 11, 2010) was a decorated World War II veteran, weightlifter, and
Early life and career
Rollino was born and raised in
Rollino also became known as a strongman, moving more than a ton, bending nails with his mouth and coins with his bare hands. He often appeared on the Coney Island Festival in the 1920s and 30s, being dubbed the world's strongest man. Rollino boasted of lifting 635 pounds (288 kg) with one finger.[1] He once lifted 450 pounds (200 kg) with his teeth.[2]
After retiring from active performing, he worked as a longshoreman and once worked as a bodyguard for Greta Garbo. Rollino was a lifelong and "devout" vegetarian.[3][4] During his later years, he was known for his winter swimming activities. Rollino was part of the Iceberg Athletic Club, a now-defunct swimming club, for more than 20 years.[5]
Military service
He fought in the
Retirement
Rollino lived a life of relative obscurity, rarely giving interviews or appearing in public. In a 2008 interview, he claimed to have been "born strong". He was married briefly early in his life and then divorced. He later lived with a niece. According to friends and family, he was in very good shape and was still able to bend quarters with his teeth as of his claimed 103rd birthday.[1]
Death
On January 11, 2010, Rollino left his home and was hit by the driver of a vehicle in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn. He died at a hospital several hours later, aged 104.[1]
References
- ^ New York Times. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
- ^ Daily News. p. 12. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
- ^ Colleen Long (2010-01-11). "Joe Rollino Dead: 104-Year-Old Strongman, Dies After Being Hit By Car". Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
- ISBN 978-0-313-37556-9
- ^ a b "The Brooklyn Eagle". Retrieved 2010-01-14.
External links
- "Joe Rolino: At 103, Still Fit, Fiery" by Robert Mladinich, March 23, 2008
- Barrilleaux, Doris (January 2009), "The Great Rollino; The Most Amazing Man I Ever Met", Iron Man