Overview
- Gaines died on Tuesday, July 21, and his death was announced publicly by Garden & Gun and confirmed in tributes from Arnold Schwarzenegger and family members.
- He wrote the 1974 book that reported on bodybuilding and helped shape the script and narration for the 1977 documentary that followed competitors for the Mr. Olympia title.
- The book and film are widely credited with introducing Schwarzenegger to a broad audience and helping move professional bodybuilding into popular culture.
- Beyond bodybuilding, Gaines wrote more than 25 books and contributed to magazines such as Harper’s, Sports Illustrated, Town & Country and Outdoor Life, and his novel Stay Hungry was adapted for film.
- He is also credited with staging an early paintball game on his New Hampshire land in June 1981 with Hayes Noel, and he is survived by his wife, Patricia Ellisor Gaines, and their three children, Latham, Greta and Shelby.