TED ARCIDI- Hollywood, Hammerlocks and Halos

By Peter Vuono


    Certainly one of the most remarkable people I've ever known is my friend, Ted Arcidi. Years ago, Ted took me and my friend Joe Zarella to lunch. When Teddy entered the restaurant, he wasn't recognized but he immediately owned the place. He has a special presence that is seen everywhere he goes when people say to themselves  that they don't recognize this force of a man but it's obvious that he's done something remarkable and bigger than life. That, my friends, is an understatement!
   Teddy was one of 7 kids born to an orthodontist. It was expected that he would follow his dad into dentistry and off Teddy went from his native Concord, Ma to Norwich University. While there, Teddy realized, serendipitously so, that he could do something better than anyone else. He would later prove that he could do it better than anyone that ever lived! Teddy liked to bench press. It's no wonder that bench pressing was fodder for a SNL skit as it's something that all young boys and would be bodybuilders gravitate toward.
   Teddy trained to a point where he did a world record of 630 in 1983 in Nashua with this author attempting to spot. Two years later, on March 3, 1985, he was invited to an invitational in Honolulu where international card holding referees would be present. The 6 foot 295 pound Arcidi bench pressed, 617, 650, 677 and 705.5 to become the first human to elevate this much weight in this manner. To this day no one has bench pressed that much at that light of a bodyweight. After this, Teddy traveled doing many a seminar. I witnessed him in Fairhaven, Ma pressing 350 lbs. over his head in a behind the neck press. I also saw him in Whitman, Ma do 10 easy reps, raw on the bench press with 500!
  From here, Teddy wrestled pro and appeared in the 2nd Wrestlemania in the Battle Royal segment in Chicago. Teddy would move on to Calgary Wrestling, the Von Erich's World Class Championship Wrestling in Texas and finally to retirement in Manchester NH.Teddy had other ideas in mind.
   He would start training again but this time, in acting. Once a week(and even now) he would fly to New York for acting lessons. After a highly successful independent film where he starred beside the charming Domenica Scorsese in"Heart of a Spider", Teddy's career took off. He received multiple high profile roles such as The Town with Ben Affleck, The Fighter with Christian Bale, The Family with Robert Dinero and a soon to be released "Born Guilty" with Rosanna Arquette. Teddy is most excited, however over a very well received independent"-Donald Cried"- which was filmed in it's entirety in Warwick RI.
   In spite of all this achievement, Teddy's friends will tell you that these are NOT why we admire him so. It's his heart! Arcidi fully realizes his good fortune and literally and often donates thousands of dollars to local churches and charities. He recently told me," If you could, you'd do it also". Perhaps that's true but so many people in his position just don't. This is why I see Teddy as a hero. He's gone from hammerlocks to Hollywood but more importantly to a hallowed state where his next world record will be a place in paradise.

"Heroes are made by the paths they choose; not by the powers they are graced with"- Brodi Ashton