Before the Avengers, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the DC Universe and more, there were series on television about comic book heroes who came to win over audiences. One of those stories was “The Incredible Hulk” (1978), fiction that had Lou Ferrigno as the protagonist and that was quite successful in Peru.
Ferrigno, bodybuilder and actor, came to said program to give life to the alternate version of Dr. David Bruce Banner (Bill Bixby), who accidentally received a radioactive dose of gamma rays. The interpreter’s story goes beyond just his mythical character.
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- Lou Ferrigno and his fight against deafness
He was born on November 21, 1951. The actor grew up with his family in Brooklyn, New York, where he showed a special ability for athletics and weightlifting.
At the age of 11, Lou Ferrigno was affected by various ear infectionswhich left him as a sequel a significant hearing loss. Since then, the interpreter used hearing aids.
“I lost 85% of my hearing due to nerve damage. My parents didn’t take me to the doctor even though they noticed that I didn’t respond to sounds, so I had to wear a hearing aid from a young age. The children made fun of me: they were very cruel. My determination was training”, shared the interpreter to Inside Edition in 2021.
In that interview, Ferrigno mentioned that the use of hearing aids did not stop his diagnosis, so he had to learn to read lips in order to communicate fluently.
In an effort to deal with the problem and the bullying, he began to channel his energy into fitness and bodybuilding, an activity inspired by his love of superheroes and modeled on Steve Reeves, a bodybuilder famous in the late 1950s for his Hercules movies.
Years before he became a star, he received the Mr. Universe award twice in a row, in 1972 and 1973. At the moment, he still holds the Guinness World Record for the youngest person to achieve this merit.
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- Ferrigno and his life after “The Incredible Hulk”
After his success as a bodybuilder, Ferrigno turned to acting and made his debut in 1977 in the film “Stay hungry”, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Originally, he was cast as a supporting character, but following Arnold’s departure from the project, he was cast in the lead role.
After several small roles in TV shows and movies, In 1978 he got the character that would take him to world fame: ‘Hulk’ on the television show “The Incredible Hulk”. Here he brought to life the alter ego of Dr. David Banner. He starred in 179 episodes that were broadcast from 1978 to 1982, and again from 1988 to 1990..
From 1996 to 2007, Lou Ferrigno hosted “The King of Fitness” as well as a radio show called “Lou Ferrigno’s Ultimate Workout.” Since 2003, the interpreter gives his voice to the Hulk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He had a cameo appearance alongside Stan Lee in the character’s film starring Eric Bana and in the 2008 film in which he starred as Edward Norton.
Ferrigno currently lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife and children and is in his 70s. In February 2021, he had surgery for his cochlear implant and his new hearing system was successfully turned on in March.
Since the beginning of 2022, fans can see the actor in the Paramount Plus series “The offer”, in which he plays Lenny Montana.
How many Mr Olympias did Lou Ferrigno win?
Lou Ferrigno holds 2 Mr. Olympia titles. During his time as a bodybuilder he was constantly compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger, his colleague who also made the leap to the movies.
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