This Week’s Assignment

2 Reports

1. Super Asshead wrote:

   Karl Norberg was born January 5th, 1893 to parents Idrana Maria and Johan Fredrik Norberg.
   

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   His early years were spent fishing, frolicking, and carrying large buckets of brick, uphill, in the snow, 10 miles each way for early Swedish contractors.
   

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   He moved to San Francisco sometime between 1915 and 1920 and became a fisherman.
   
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   After a long career as a fisherman, Karl was finally noticed for being more than just a fisherman…he was found to be the world’s naturally strongest man.
   

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   Next time you think you are “too old”…. just take a look at Karl Norberg, shown here bench pressing 380 pounds at 69 years of age.

   Norberg could bench press over 300 pounds well into his 80s. At the same event where this picture was taken, Karl Norberg also military pressed 230 pounds with ease.
   
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   I found this image of Karl benching 300 for one or two at 80 years of age. I wished that I had stepped back so that you could see that he was not assisted. The two rounded plates just inboard from the two and half’s are some oddball twenty’s than Jim had laying around. So this is an even 300 from my best recollection. I know , this is not Olympic lifting, but it might be of some interest to some “old timers”.

   Karl was just a fantastic human being, great personality, extremely friendly, always encouraged, supported, spotted everyone in the gym.
   

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   Much has been written about him in Iron Man, Strength & Health, and Ironsport magazines. He Bench Pressed 390 at age 79, 400 at age 80, 300 at age 85. At 80 he could still pick up a York 45 pound plate by it’s hub with three 10 pound plates added and he could hold a 45 pound bar at arms length and twist it 180 degrees and back. Pictured here he is pulling some rubber bands he had that neither Ken Patera nor Bruce Wilhelm could do.
   

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   In 1979, at the age of 86, he moved back to his home country of Sweden. It’s there he died in 1983 just short of his 90th birthday.
   
   
   

   Karl led a very full and interesting life.

   Tuesday, March 11, 2008 at 10:15 am | Permalink
2. Jonathan Greenberg wrote:

   First of all, I would like to say that I am EXTREMELY accomplished. I googled my name, and went through all 85 pages of results without getting to any family tree type information. What I learned is that I am pretty much every kind of doctor, lawyer, journalist and professor imaginable. So, if you ever have any questions, feel free to ask. Here is one of my quotes:

   “I’ve had patients with knives in their heads, screwdrivers in their heads, lawn darts, small-caliber gunshot wounds to the head, where patients have been awake and talking. The question is how important is the area that is damaged?”
   - Dr. Jonathan Greenberg

   I have done so much in my life that I barely even remember saying that. You will be pleased to know that I am also the official spokesman for the Milwaukee Brewers.

   Anyway, after tweaking my search, I learned a few interesting things about my ancestors. Here’s a few tidbits:

   1. In his resignation speech, Richard Nixon mentioned Carl Greenberg as the only reporter to have treated him fairly in the campaign. (The incident occurs at approx. 2′40″ into the speech.) Carl was mortified by the unintended implication of Nixon’s praise and offered his resignation to the Times, which rejected it.

   2. Actually found floating (not alive) in the wreakage of the Titanic…

   SAMUEL GREENBERG – 2nd Class passenger

   NO. 19. - MALE. - ESTIMATED AGE, 50. HAIR, GREY, PARTLY BALD; MOUSTACHE.

   CLOTHING - Dressing gown; grey coat; green ditto; blue trousers.

   EFFECTS - 2 watches: $11 in American money; 6s in silver and gold; keys; bill, etc., in pocket, to S. Greenberg.

   3. My father’s father Ben Greenberg came from Hopchooga, Russia (that’s phonetical of course), but that’s all I know of him. He moved to Brooklyn, New York, married Mildred Greenberg and ran a chicken market in Williamsburg

   4. Leah died in the pneumonia plague in or about 1918.

   5. Herman Greenberg came to the US from Russia in 1894. His wife, Alberta and daughter, Nettie( b. 1893 ) came in 1896. They lived in Joliet, IL, where Herman operated a junk dealership business

   6. MIA in the Korean War
   Name: 142, PAUL GREENBERG
   From: BRONX NY
   Status: MIA
   War: GREENBERG
   Service: Korean War, unit AMB CO 3RD MED, grade E3
   Service ID#: RA12318798
   Incident Date: 11/27/50
   Death Date: 12/31/53

   7. Name: Greenberg, William
   Year: 1919
   Group/Society/Organization: Leavenworth (KS) Federal Prisoners
   Located: Leavenworth Co, KS
   Source: Prison Records
   Notes: Civilian
   Jurisdiction: Northern Illinois
   Offense: Theft from Interstate Shipment

   Now, on behalf of all my ancestors and the Milwaukee Brewers I’d just like to say: Get the hell of my lawn, you *@!*$** vagrants!

   Monday, March 10, 2008 at 11:46 am | Permalink

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