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THE LEGEND OF LEON BROWNBy Julian Schmidt Flex Magazine - September 1988 Bodybuilding has a higher purpose for Leon: "It gives me peace of mind to be in the gym," he smiles contentedly, "it makes me feel good. "Brown has been part of richer bodybuilding history than 90% of the glistening, fake-baked trendoids out there today could ever hope to be:- He was the first bodybuilder in Sports Illustrated - July 10, 1972, the issue with Johnny Unitas on the cover. It was SI's coverage of the Mr. East Coast contest, which Brown won.
In nine months - at 5'6½” - he gained 30 pounds. Brown was omnivorous, adhering to the contemporary high-protein precept by devouring anything that might conceivably contain organic nitrogen. Eggs, milk, cheese, cows, pigs - two major food chains were endangered, and grains were disappearing fast: Leon Brown was on the loose. "I ate an entire loaf of bread with peanut butter, plus two quarts of whole milk a day in addition to my regular meals," he confesses. "And to make sure it would stay with me, I went to bed every night at 9 PM." Awed by Leon's freaky muscular response, a friend suggested he enter a contest. Reluctantly, Leon tried the Teenage Eastern America in '66. "I was scared;' he admits. He raced through five brief poses with no goal except to exit the stage as quickly as possible. Try as he might to nip a promising career in the bud, Brown was awarded second in his class as well as the best- abdominals and best-back titles. Since those days, "when we would eat tons of meat and gallons of milk and get big and smooth:" Brown has acquiesced to the modern regimen that has completely reversed the equation. "I now eat 70% carbohydrates, 25% protein and 5% fat." [Note from Henrik: this could be false since Weider magazine writers in the late 80s wrote these percentages in every article]His training principles, however, have endured from those handed down to him a generation ago. "Nobody trains nearly as heavy as bodybuilders used to years ago. Routines today are so much faster, with more isolation; strict movements, high reps, low weight and complex arrangements, and guys are in and out of the gym in 45 minutes. "But I'm a big believer in heavy weights for optimum muscle development. After my warm-up sets, I usually stay with six to eight repetitions per set, and I'll keep the number of sets per body part low as well. The migration to Gold's Venice was inevitable. "In '69," recalls Brown, "a couple of my friends had just returned from Vietnam and wanted me to go to California with them. The first thing we did when we got there was tell the taxi driver to take us to Muscle Beach. So at 2 A.m., he dropped us off down there. We had no idea where we were, but if we were at Muscle Beach, that's all that mattered. "The next day we went to the original Gold's on Pacific, and that's when I met Joe Gold. "Those were the best days, years ago," says Leon. "I stayed for two years - '69 and '70 - then returned to New York." But before he did, he won the Mr. Venice Beach, Mr. Western America and Mr. Pacific Coast. "The first time I met Arnold was on the boardwalk on Santa Monica beach. He was playing chess with Artie Zeller. My buddy said, 'Who's that guy with the big arms?' and I said, 'that's Arnold' ''Arnold heard me say his name, and he called me over, and that's how I met him. "Brown had more reasons than bodybuilding to stay in California; chronic asthma has been a nuisance all his life, hospitalizing him in '86. "The real answer would have been to move to California for the climate, although bodybuilding has helped my asthma more than anything," he insists. Nevertheless, home - New York - had the biggest pull, and it rewarded him with his wife, Danielle, a good job with the New York Housing Authority and regular training at Better Bodies Gym in Manhattan. Off-season, Brown trains four days a week, switching to three on one off pre contest. He works his chest, back and shoulders on Monday and Thursday, and his legs and arms on Tuesday and Friday.
Just today, some guy came up to me and asked what cycle I was on. I told him, 'I'm not on any cycle; this is the way I train all year. '"Bodybuilding should be good for you, physically and psychologically. But too many bodybuilders today have 'attitudes,' and too many of them are vindictive. When I first started, we were all buddies and encouraged each other. No matter who won a show, we were all still together, but today there's too much throat-cutting. "Maybe the money's at fault, maybe the drugs. Guys like Harold Poole WANTED to help newcomers, but ask someone a question today and they want money. Just for answering a question! "I saw it happen just the other day. A kid about 17 asked a bodybuilder a question about amino acids, and the bodybuilder gave him his card and said, 'If you want to know, call me and I'll set up an appointment' 'The kid came over to me and asked the same question, and I told him what he wanted to know. "Another day someone asked a bodybuilder for a spot and he said, 'I'm so-and- so. I don't give anybody a spot.' I can't believe these guys. I see nice guys come into the gym, and a year or two later they're completely different. "To any beginner, I'd give them only a few basic rules: Stay with a simple routine, eat sensibly, stay away from steroids and take your time. And most important, if you don't enjoy it, don't do it. "Even if there was no money in it, I would still train and still love the sport. Even when I'm 80 years old I'll still love it, and if I possibly can, I'll still be training. It makes me feel good all the time."
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Check out page two and the centerfold of the bodybuilding classic, Pumping Iron, and who do you see? Leon Brown.- Sit through Arnold Schwarzenegger's debut movie Stay Hungry again, but this time watch for Leon Brown.- He trained at the original Gold's on Pacific Avenue in Venice, California, as well as at the old Mid-City gym in New York, the two most famous bodybuilding Mecca's in history.- At Mid-City he trained with one of bodybuilding's most venerated originals - the immortal Harold Poole.- He has competed every year since 1966, except for 76, 77, 82 and 85, when he was injured. His competition resume has consistently kept good company:
ing is drastically in need of a solution to its drug problem. When I first started, if you even mentioned drugs in the gym, they would kick you out. If you only MENTIONED them! Today, at every gym that's all they talk about: 'What're you on?' 'How much?' 'What has worked for you?' 'I'm on this, and I'm on that.' . .