Venice Beach Parks & Recreation hosted a memorial on Sat. Oct. 8 for Venice’s legendary bodybuilder Bill Pettis. He was renowned for having the biggest biceps in the world, even bigger then Arnold Schwarzenegger. Venice Paparazzi stopped by to honor him.
The memorial still stands on the Venice Beach Boardwalk, on the railings of Muscle Beach Gym, 1800 Ocean Front Walk. Venice, Ca 90291. (Across from Muscle Beach Juice Bar)
View pics below! This one below is of his identical twin brother, Warren Robert “Bobby” Pettis. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Bill Pettis. You are remembered Bill! Thank you for all that you have done for the sport and art of Bodybuilding.
Following from obits.pennlive.com. William “Bill” Johnson Pettis, 69, of Los Angeles, CA, transitioned into eternal life on Sunday, September 25, 2016 in Swatara Township.
He was born in Harrisburg, son of the late Collier and Ora (Sullivan Penn) Pettis, a graduate of Central Dauphin High School, where he played football; a life member of Gold’s Gym, had a passion for weight lifting and was featured in magazines, newspapers and a movie.
In addition to his parents, Bill was preceded in death by his brother, Jerome Pettis and leaves to celebrate his life, his identical twin brother, Warren Robert “Bobby” Pettis of Beverly Hills, CA; his brothers and sister-in-law, Ronald “Oõh” and Emma Pettis of Middletown and Donald “Pluto” Pettis of Largo, MD; his sister and brother-in-law, Priscilla and Robert Reid of Middletown and host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
Venice Recreation and Parks’ Terry, Muscle Beach King’s Ike, and Venice Paparazzi’s Alex
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View 9/29/16 article on Bill Pettis by 89.3 KPCC.
A photo published in Iron Man in the early 1970s.. Photograph courtesy Weider Health & Fitness
Bodybuilder William “Bill” Pettis, a well-known fixture of Venice’s iconic Muscle Beach, was found dead in Pennsylvania, the coroner confirmed Thursday.
The Dauphin County Coroner in Harrisburg, PA said Pettis was found in a creek bed late Wednesday night. He was 69 years old.
In the ’70s Pettis was a well-known figure on Venice’s iconic Muscle Beach. He was renowned for having larger biceps than his colleague Arnold Schwarzenegger. Click here to read full article.
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Check out the following article on Bill Pettis by LAMag.com.
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“The Rise and Fall of Bill Pettis, the Man With “The Biggest Arms in the World” His biceps once trumped Arnold’s. As other Gold’s Gym icons parlayed their physiques into fame and fortune, Bill Pettis took a different route—one that landed him on the Venice Boardwalk. Read full article by LAMag.com
