John Fair

John D. Fair's books include Muscletown USA: Bob Hoffman and the Manly Culture of York Barbell. He is a retired history professor (Auburn University, Montgomery, and Georgia College & State University) and has competed in nearly eighty weightlifting/powerlifting meets, served on the national AAU weightlifting committee, and judged many physique competitions, including the 1973 Mr. America Contest. He is currently Adjunct Professor of Kinesiology and Health Education at the University of Texas at Austin’s Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports.

His new book is Mr. America: The Tragic History of a Bodybuilding Icon.

Recently I asked the author about what he was reading. Fair's reply:

I am currently reading a lot accounts by and about Steve Reeves and the two autobiographies by Debbie Reynolds who co-starred with Reeves in the 1954 film Athena ​in preparation for my next book with David Chapman on "Muscles in the Movies."

Learn more about Mr. America: The Tragic History of a Bodybuilding Icon at the University of Texas Press website.

--Marshal Zeringue