“Just Look At His Vascularity:” The Dangerous Theatricality of the World Bodybuilding Federation

Heffernan, Conor; Warden, Claire

doi:10.1111/jacc.13310

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 14 publications

(8 reference statements)

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“…Prior to the late 1980s and 1990s, a premium was placed on the male form of wide shoulders and well-defined upper body muscles with a small waist and well-defined legs, the Grecian Ideal (GI; Team, 2015). Starting in the 1980s, bodybuilders started to forego this Grecian Ideal for simply building as much muscle mass as possible, the so-called Mass Monsters (Heffernan, 2015); the prototypical mass monster being Dorian Yates. Yates, at the height of his career, had a BMI of 37.3 and a SWR of 1.92.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comic book bodies are supernormal stimuli: Comparison of DC, Marvel, and actual humans.

Burch¹,

Widman²

2023

Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences

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This study expanded upon Burch and Johnsen’s (2020) work on exaggerated bodies in Marvel comic book characters by also examining DC characters and actual humans. Compared to Marvel, DC men were not significantly taller but were significantly thinner and had significantly smaller shoulder to waist ratios. DC women were almost identical to Marvel women in height and weight, but DC women had smaller waist to hip ratios, making them curvier. Comic book bodies were then compared to actual humans; champion male bodybuilders, most frequently searched women on 1 of the most popular pornography websites, and a nationally representative U.S. sample. DC men had shoulder to waist ratios on par with champion bodybuilders while Marvel exceeded them. Both DC and Marvel women had lower waist to hip ratios than the Internet pornography sample. The average U.S. woman’s WHR was similar to the maximum WHR for the comic book and pornography sample, and the minimum U.S. woman’s WHR was similar to the average WHR for those samples. These findings support Burch and Johnsen (2020) and provide a better picture of how comic book depictions are hypersexualized supernormal stimuli.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comic book bodies are supernormal stimuli: Comparison of DC, Marvel, and actual humans.

Burch¹,

Widman²

2023

Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences

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“…In the WWF, Vince McMahon's ideal body type for his athletes was noticeably strong and muscular. While wrestling had previously operated on the basis that variety was best in terms of wrestlers, McMahon was a self-confessed 'body guy' (Heffernan and Warden 2022). Thus, tall and large wrestlers (be they muscular or rotund) began to take precedence in his company.…”

Section: Studying Professional Wrestling and Physical Capitalmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This drive for muscularity later hurt the WWF when a federal trial into steroid use by his athletes in 1994 made clear the pressure many felt to achieve his ideal. The trial, which attempted to prosecute McMahon for distributing anabolic steroids to his wrestlers (Heffernan and Warden 2022), hurt the WWF and Vince's short run bodybuilding federation (The World Bodybuilding Federation) as it forced McMahon to institute strict drug testing in shows. Without large muscles, it was difficult to advance to the company's upper echelons, a point noted by certain wrestlers in the trial itself (Kaelberer 2003).…”

Section: Studying Professional Wrestling and Physical Capitalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Representations of Hulk Hogan in the 1980s: Christianity, Masculinity, Xenophobia

Heffernan

2023

Arts

Self Cite

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In 1984, professional wrestler Hulk Hogan defeated the Iron Sheik to win the WWF Heavyweight Title. Thus marked the birth of ‘Hulkamania’, a near-decade-long period when Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea) crossed over into American popular culture. In the following years, Hogan battled a series of proxies for America’s enemies, from the Soviet rival in Nikolai Volkoff, Iranian sympathizer Sergeant Slaughter, and the Japanese sumo wrestler Yokozuna, among other opponents. More importantly, Hogan appeared on American talk shows, the front of magazines, had his own children’s cartoons, and marketed workout devices, toys, food, and a host of other ephemera. Existing in a liminal space between sport and entertainment, professional wrestling allows athletes/performers far more opportunities to cultivate messages and meanings through their bodies. Using film, wrestling magazines, and wrestling broadcasts, this article argues that Hogan’s body and his use of his body were paramount to his success. More than that, the use of his body embodied ideals about American masculinity. It embodied all-American strength, an ability to succeed no matter the odds, and a fierce Christian patriotism. Hogan was one of the biggest stars of the 1980s, inside and outside of sport. His body and its representation are thus worthy of study.

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“Just Look At His Vascularity:” The Dangerous Theatricality of the World Bodybuilding Federation

Cited by 2 publications

References 14 publications

Comic book bodies are supernormal stimuli: Comparison of DC, Marvel, and actual humans.

Comic book bodies are supernormal stimuli: Comparison of DC, Marvel, and actual humans.

Representations of Hulk Hogan in the 1980s: Christianity, Masculinity, Xenophobia

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