12/01/2021
To all of our Facebook friends: we have just received some very sad news.
Laree Draper sent us a message this morning, (which I just opened) informing us that Dave died early this morning. It was calm and peaceful and she was with him.
While very saddened by this news, for Dave was a good friend and one of the sweetest, most gracious, most honorable and righteous individuals we have had the privilege of knowing. We are also sure that his steadfast Christian faith has taken him to a better place. We will miss him, and extend our most sincere condolences to Laree.
Bill and Judy
DAVE DRAPER ... THE BLOND BOMBER!
David Paul Draper was born in 1942, in Secaucus, New Jersey. He began
bodybuilding, at age 7, with Hercules hand grippers. By age 10, he had graduated to a Super Chest Expander, a wall mounted bungee-cord pulley and a doorway chinning bar attachment.
The Elizabeth, New Jersey,YMCA was the site of Dave's first encounter with a true hardcore barbell environment, "I discovered how they could cram 20 guys into a room large enough for ten and still stick an Olympic bar into a corner, load one end with 45-pound plates and perform killer rows."
Dave's first experience working at a health club was as the supposed weekend manager of a local Vic Tanny Gym. "Friday night they gave me a key to the place and said I started the following day at 9 a.m. I arrived early, unlocked the door, to find the gym with no equipment. The owners had skipped out during the night.”
In 1963, Dave's life changed radically when he took a part-time job with the Weider Barbell Company in Union City, New Jersey, "Joe Weider, Leroy Colbert, and I worked out together during lunch breaks," he recalled. "I remember Weider saying, 'This guy looks like the surf and sand of Muscle Beach.' The following month, I was on the cover of Mr. America magazine."
Draper relocated to Santa Monica, California, in 1964, as a member of the new Weider Publications Southern California division. Training with Zabo Koszewski, Bud Mucci, Buddy Pryor, Hugo Labra, Harold Connally, Louie Paul, and Steve Neece in the Muscle Beach basement known as "The Dungeon," Dave discovered the "real meaning of how and why to weight-train." Next, he became the first member of Joe Gold's original gym in Venice.
The years 1960 to 1970, were the summit of Dave's competitive bodybuilding career. His victories included the 1963 "Mr. New Jersey," the 1965 IFBB "Mr. America," the 1966 IFBB "Mr. Universe," and 1970 IFBB "Mr. World" titles.
In 1964 the "Blond Bomber" was cast as "David the Gladiator," to host a Los Angeles television series featuring old movies. In 1967, under contract with Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios, Inc., Draper starred with Tony Curtis, Sharon Tate and Claudia Cardinale in, Don't Make Waves. He appeared in Three on a Couch, with Jerry Lewis and made television appearances on The Beverly Hillbillies. During an episode of The Johnny Carson Show in the mid-1960s, he performed several push-ups with Carson straddling his upper back.
In 1970, Draper's life took a dramatic turn as he began to feel the pressure of stardom. He recalled: "I stepped out of bodybuilding contests, to find myself making rugged, oversized wooden furniture and loving it. To keep me company as I sawed planks and carved exotic woods, I drank some wine and smoked a little dope. The pattern of smoking, drinking, eating, training, carving, and sleeping, kept me busy. By the mid-1970s, after relocating with my first wife Penny and daughter Jamie to the Santa Cruz redwoods, I saw my family disintegrate as drugs and alcohol led me from a home on 12 acres, to a barren gardner's shed on the edge of nowhere, with no power, no running water, and no money. I still had the weights. I was still lifting and never stopped. Fortunately the booze and dope stopped, but not until 1983, when my heart stopped with them. Doctor's treated me for acute congestive heart failure, expecting my life to terminate as heartbeats failed repeatedly. Three weeks later, I resumed my torturous day-by-day journey to recovery. If I didn't do one good thing each day, I made my way to the gym and revived my soul. Following two years of one-day-at-a-time, sets and reps, iron-and-woodwork therapy, fear-and-trembling, prayer-and-God, I stood upright."
Dave's dynamic second wife Laree, has remained his most loyal and trusted confidante. In 1989, they established a World Gym in Santa Cruz, followed by a second club two years later.
Asked for a comment Dave replied, "It's not because I'm old-fashioned, stubborn, conservative, or unaware. It's because the wheel is round and I like it that way. Jesus Christ is my Lord and Laree and I are Christians, whose faith in Jesus Christ is foremost in our lives. This means I praise Him regularly, thank Him for all I have, and seek His guidance in all I do. It also means I recognize without recrimination what a weakling I am."
Veteran bodybuilder/journalist David Robson, asked; "If you would care to offer advice to an aspiring bodybuilder, what would it be?"
The Blond Bomber replied, "If you're going to smoke, use a charcoal filter. Be consistent. But wait, there's more! Train hard; don't give up; eat right; stick to the basics; don't be so doubtful; and stop worrying. It's all good if you do it with your heart, 'cuz you'll learn to separate the good from the bad. Which reminds me, persist, persevere, endure, and fight like a bulldog."
In the early 2000s, the Drapers' website, www.davedraper.com, was one of the finest and most-read bodybuilding sites on the internet. Their weekly newsletter, Iron Online, reached approximately 40,000 readers. Dave said, "Over the past 50-plus years, I've written weekly columns on health for local newspapers, numerous articles for muscle magazines and three books; "Brother Iron and Sister Steel" and "Your Body Revival" are devoted to muscle-building through weight-training and nutrition. My latest, "Iron on My Mind," appears to be a worthwhile read."
In early 2021, Dave placed a brief outline of his current physical activities. He stated; “I called the gym today and they require
wearing masks. As soon as that requirement ends. I will renew my Commercial Gym membership. I’m doing 7 mile walks now and plan to start jogging again. Trying to get back into condition after 2020, I’m doing my best after this year of mainly staying home.”
The Blond Bomber was inducted into Joe Weider Hall of Fame in 2000.
Dave draper died November 30, 2021
