Mr. America: How Muscular Millionaire Bernarr Macfadden Transformed the Nation Through Sex, Salad, and the Ultimate Starvation Diet

If you've never heard of Bernarr MacFadden -- as I hadn't prior to stumbling upon this book -- he's the man invented tabloid culture (without him there would be no TMZ, Access Hollywood or Perez Hilton), introduced America to the concept of "physical fitness", created the first "fad diet" and drew up the blueprints for the "sexual revolution". I could go on and on about everything else McFadden managed to pack into his years on the planet... In short (I know, too late), this is one of those books that proves truth can be way more entertaining than fiction. During the week or so I spent reading it, I found myself relaying one amazing MacFadden story after another to everyone I knew because, truthfully, I couldn't believe that such a bizarre, wild, eccentric personality could have been forgotten for half a decade without at least a Ron Howard bio-pic making it to the screen. If this sounds like a rave, I guess it is. It was an unexpected read that most definitely exceeded my expectations.

What a great read. McFadden is one of those incredible over-the-top quintessential American characters, of the you-can't-make-this-up variety. A self-made man, a brilliant blowhard, a twisted genius, a media maven and a lifestyle guru before such things existed. When I finished the book, I was ready for the movie because this story was made for Hollywood (Bernarr would agree, I'm sure). Adams's wry tone strikes just the right note throughout, and be sure to read the appendix, his first-person account of following MacFadden's diet-and-exercise regimen, right down to the excessive chewing ("fletcherizing"). Hilarious.

It's my job to read books about the famous individuals buried at the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx - this one is a gem! It's filled with juicy celebrity gossip, the pursuit of the American Dream and what is so surprising is that the diet of our hero is exactly what we all know we're supposed to be doing to stay healthy. In the final section, the author lives like Macfadden and the reader learns to walk a little more, to put down your fork and to add a bit of discipline in your daily routine. A fun read that takes you back in time and celebrates the desire to live a long and healthy life...while pursuing your dreams and fighting for your causes. Perfect for today's troubled times. It's wonderful that Mark Adams brings this forgotten figure back into our lives.

As the creator of the [...] web site and an avid collector of Macfadden memorabilia, I was eager to read Mr. America, a biography of Bernarr Macfadden. Mr. America tells the rags-to-riches story of an incredibly interesting and multi-faceted individual, Bernarr Macfadden, a true self-made man and self-promoter (who even coined his own name). Macfadden was a larger-than life personality who, starting out as a poor and sickly orphan, became an icon for health and strength as well as a multi-millionaire entrepreneur. He had a monumental influence on shaping several industries, from bodybuilding to health foods and exercise to publishing. He was internationally famous during the first half of the twentieth century, but, incredibly, is virtually unknown today. Mr. America is a comprehensive and well-researched biography, but, more than that, it captures the amazement one is sure to experience when "discovering" Macfadden for the first time. It is exciting to read about such Macfadden "firsts" as promoting the first public bodybuilding contests in America, campaigning against prudery and corsets, battling with censors and the medical profession, advocating natural foods and exercise, publishing the longest-running health magazine in history (nearly 60 years), and launching a whole genre of pulp magazines (True Story, etc.) from which he created a multi-million dollar media empire. One thing that makes this biography especially enjoyable is how Mr. Adams has tied parts of Macfadden's amazing story to the people and things that the reader is familiar with (such as Jack LaLanne and Nike shoes). Although this book is meticulously researched, it does not read like a stuffy history textbook. Instead, the author tells this amazing story in a conversational style that makes his book especially fun to read.

Bernarr Macfadden is my new personal hero. Mr. America is a real revelation , one of those rare glimpses into a forgotten piece of history that shaped this nation. Or at least this nation's fascination with fitness. Yoga? Macfadden was on to it. Body Building? Macfadden helped popularize it. Dieting, daily workouts, strange and exotic body cleanses,? Macfadden pioneered the trends. He was where it all began. With such a strong character to guide his biography, Mr. Adams wouldn't need to work very hard to craft a compelling read. But he does work hard, incredibly so, and that's what makes Mr. America the gem that it is. Adams has sorted through personal documents, talked to as many sources as he could find, and synthesized what must have been a mountain of information into a simple but hugely entertaining portrait of an eccentric and well-connected publishing magnate who made Americans care about fitness. The writing is strong and clear, and Adams has a sharp wit that he does not hesitate to employ. By far, Mr. America is the most fun I've had with a biography in a very, very long time.