Pat Casey- Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.
April 22nd is the anniversary of the passing of one of the greatest strength legends of all time- Pat Casey. On April 22, 2012, my day was like any other. I worked out early with my buddy Tom Kenney and went to church. There I said my rosary and contemplated all my deceased relatives and friends. I especially thought about Pat whose anniversary was that day and who did so much to inspire me and countless others.
Little did I know that on that day I would become short of breath in the afternoon and I drove myself to the hospital. Tests were made and it was necessary that I should undergo open heart surgery and a quadruple bypass. I was driven to Tufts and would remain there for over a week. On April 24th, the night before my operation. I took communion, said a confession and was given last rights. The most amazing thing about my stay was that for the first time in my life, I was facing a truly serious circumstance where I wasn't afraid. I was fearless and I knew that I was not going to die.
I could only attribute this to two things. First, I had faith in God. I knew that he wanted me to live because my family needed me so. Secondly, for decades, I tried and tried to emulate and become like the strength legends I so admired. Pat Casey was one of those legends and my moment of fearlessness had finally arrived.
Pat Casey- Heroes get remembered but legends never die.
By Peter Vuono
Pat Casey grew up in Los Angeles and started working out in 1954 while he was going to school at Washington High. He took up bodybuilding and won the Mr. Washington High bodybuilding contest.
He entered the teenage Mr. America contest where Bill Pearl, a former Mr. Universe was a judge and heard about Casey's strength. As part of the interviewing process, Casey bench pressed 420 lbs. at age seventeen. This was a poundage that Pearl had NEVER seen. After Pat finished fifth, he decided to devote time to the lift that he was so adept in performing- the bench press. The rate of his progress was astounding!
AGE BODYWEIGHT POUNDAGE
18 230 450
19 245 470
20 237 500
22 270 540
26 300 585.
Pat vowed in 1963-1964 that he would someday bench press 600 and be the first to do so. Prior to this, on May21, 1966 in SanDiego, Pat took on his closest contemporary, Terry Todd and bench pressed a world record of 592, squatted a world record of 774 and became the first man to total 2000 with a total of 2001 and a half to defeat Todd by 120lbs.
On June 17, 1967 Pat officially bench pressed 575, 600 and 615 to become the first man to do so. His attire consisted of a loose fitting wrestling singlet, no T-shirt and a religious scapula.The same year Pat became the first man to squat 800 to prove himself not just an upper body specialist.
Later on that year, Pat lifted in the LosAngeles Powerlifting Championships which would serve to be one of his last contests. Here Pat(weighing 339) bench pressed a record of 617 and a quarter and just nearly missed being the first to total 2100 due to a 2 to1 red light decision on an 825 squat.
It is here that I'd like to mention the depth of Casey's character.Bodybuilder, photojournalist ,Gene Mozee, in an article written in the 70's in Muscle Builder insisted that Pat never used steroids. This information was substantiated in personal correspondence that this author had with Pat's beloved wife, Bonnie. Bonnie had told me that Pat was dead set against them and it bothered him that they were so much a part of the sport.
Bonnie also imparted a fact to me about Pat that certainly made me realize that his courage was equal to his strength. Before Pat had succumbed to cancer, he worked out 12 days before he died.
The subtitle that I used in this article is a line I heard in an old movie entitled Sandlot. When I heard it, I thought about all the men and women of strength who would be worthy of of this title. Pat Casey was one of the first to come to mind. Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.
