Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Steve Reeves On-Screen Strength


From An Interview with Steve Reeves from The Perfect Vision Magazine July 1994

TPV: Did you have to work out a few hours a day on the set?

SR: No. That's an amazing thing. My body responds so well to exercise, and it keeps it so long, that I didn't have to. I didn't take any steroids, they didn't exist at that time. It was just easy for me to get in shape and to stay in shape. During the 15 years I was in Europe, I would work out possibly one month a year, usually the month of May. I lived in Switzerland most of the time and I would go skiing and take walks with my dog. But the food there was so great that I would gain maybe 10 pounds during the winter. So during May I'd work like son-of-a-gun. Run through the mountains there, use the weights, and get in top form that month, and that would last me through the season. During filming you're too exhausted to get a decent workout, and I really didn't need because the stress that there is in acting kept the fat off me and the muscle didn't want to go away.

TPV: Did you really hoist Primo Carne over your head in Hercules Unchained?

SR: Yes. He was a big old guy, a real great guy. He didn't always know his own strength but that's okay. There was no competition or friction between us. He was very helpful. He said, 'When you have to lift me up, the best way to do it is this way and this way to get leverage. And that'll make you look better.’ Very nice guy.

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