Bodybuilding Pioneer To Tell Her Story
Date: 11-07-2007
Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamUnited States |
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RIVERVIEW - At 75, Doris Barrilleaux laughs when asked about slowing down and acting her age, saying she has too much left to do in life. At the moment, it's finishing an autobiography detailing her 30 years as the first lady of bodybuilding.
Starting out as a professional bodybuilding photographer, Barrilleaux made acquaintances with several of the sport's elite, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, and she helped others launch their careers by getting them media coverage. She became one of the country's most sought-after bodybuilding photographers and shot the covers of dozens of fitness and bodybuilding magazines.
Then she started bodybuilding herself and earned a reputation as the pioneer of women's bodybuilding nationwide. In 1982, she became the first woman to be named "Man of the Year" by the Florida Body Builders Association. The Association of Oldtime Barbell and Strongmen officially dubbed her the First Lady of Bodybuilding for decades of service to the sport.
Barrilleaux hopes to document her legacy by penning her autobiography.
"She'll be remembered as the one who started it all," said longtime friend and bodybuilder John Schleicher of Tampa.
"I've lived an exciting life," Barrilleaux said. "I'd like to keep living an exciting life."
