Strength & Health, Page 12, June 1949

Jack Delinger Wins "Mr. America"

by Ray Van Cleef

THE audience was tense with excitement as Jack Libertore, the master of ceremonies for the physique competition, stepped forward to the "mike" to announce the winners of the "Mr. America contest. This was the moment everyone was anxiously and impatiently awaiting. The suspension was prolonged a bit by revealing the position of the first five men in reverse order. Thunderous applause greeted the announcement that Jack Delinger was selected as "Mr. America" of 1949. Had the decision been otherwise there would have been disappointments galore. It was evident from the instant this handsome hercules from Oakland, representing Yarick's Gym, stepped up on the posing pedestal that he was the popular choice of the spectators. No other athlete in the tournament rivalled the response accorded Delinger by the audience. His massive shapely muscles had the fans spellbound with admiration as he assumed his favorite poses in the competition.

Delinger's victory was a decisive one. No other "Mr. America" winner, with the exception of John Grimek in the 1941 contest, placed so far ahead of his rivals in the scoring. The applause accorded him certainly indicated that the spectators agreed wit the high rating he received from the judges. Considering the high calibre of the majority of the contestants, the conclusiveness of Delinger's success is particularly outstanding. His official score closely approached being perfect for he received a total of 73 1/2 out of a possible 75 points.

This victory fulfills a goal Jack Delinger was striving for several years to attain. In the 1946 "Mr. America" event at Los Angeles he was virtually unknown nationally. By placing high he came into sudden prominence in physique circles. Was 18 years old and a novice at the time for this was the first contest he competed in. Last year he was a close second to George Eiferman. Jack's chances in the 1948 event were somewhat marred by the distorted impressions conveyed through the deliberately slow manner in which he walked and posed on stage. He was following the well intended but misguided advice of a former "Mr. America" title holder. Needless to say, Jack did not repeat this mistake in the competition at Cleveland.

Attaining this pinnacle of success in the "Mr. America"" event was achieved through years of arduous body building and many sacrifices. Jack's perseverance bore the fruit of a well deserved victory. This blond Adonis with his herculean development exemplifies the physical type that constitutes an ideal "Mr. America" to a multitude of body builders throughout the world.

Melvin Wells placed second with a score of 63 1/2 points. The enthusiastic response that greeted this muscular marvel in the competition was only surpassed by that accorded Jack Delinger. A month earlier this new physique sensation won the "Mr. New York State" title by a comfortable margin. At Cleveland he again justified the praise that has been showered on him so liberally since he came into sudden prominence at Bob Hoffman's birthday show in York last November. His unassuming nature is particularly evident in a contest of this kind. The majority of the contestants are puffed up like a pouter pigeon when exposed to the audience. Some make themselves ludicrous with the exaggerated postures they assume endeavoring to accentuate their development. The naturalness of Well's stance and actions is by contrast especially admirable. Wells differs from the majority of physique contestants in other respects. This superman from Buffalo does not participate in the self-inflation orgies, that take place in the dressing room prior to a contest, when the frenzied "pumping up" activities dominate the atmosphere. In the "Mr. America" competition it was noticeable that wells confined his posing display to the restricted number of poses. Some of the other contestants took advantage of the situation by doing a series of poses much in excess of the specified number. Wells' good sportsmanship in this connection added to his prestige. His greatest liability is his comparatively poor calf development. But his drawback is overshadowed by the extra-ordinary features of his physique, particularly the remarkable development of his upper arms, shoulders and upper back. Wells won more individual honors than any other contestant in the tournament at Cleveland. In addition to placing second in the "Mr. America" event, he was selected as "Most Muscular Man" and won the sub-division contests for "Best Arms" and "Best Back." It was truly a field day for this popular athlete.

In the 1948 "Mr. America" competition the fourth place winner was Bill Melby. This year this handsome athlete from Salt Lake City representing LoZan's Gym improved his rating by finishing third with 62 points. Yet it was expected that Melby would prove a more serious rival for the "Mr. America" crown. The increased bulk that he acquired since the competition at Los Angeles gave his well proportioned physique a somewhat smooth appearance. Last year he displayed more muscular definition. Melby is very similar to Steve Reeves as a physical type and in looks. As a competitor in lifting contests, this physique champion from Utah has demonstrated that he is also exceptional in strength.

Much interest was centered on Harry Smith of Atlanta representing the University of Georgia. His victory over John Farbotnik in winning last year's "Junior Mr. America" Contest was an important factor in this The outcome of this event last year was regarded by many as an upset. It was expected and hoped that they both would be participants in the contest at Cleveland. This did not materialize for Farbotnik was obliged to cancel his entry for the "Mr. America" competition. Recently secured a high paying job that at this particular time would not allow for the needed time off from work. Farbotnik's victory in the "Mr. Illinois" contest on the 24th of April can be accepted as evidence of the fact that he is in tip top physical condition. It is unfortunate that circumstances denied him the opportunity to compete in this year's "Mr. America" contest.

Harry Smith certainly proved to the audience at Cleveland that he is definitely a physique champion of outstanding merit. He has a very adequate amount of all the requisites to make a worthy title holder; symmetry, impressive muscularity, good looks. The fact that he is an active lifter and was one of the three "Mr. America" participants to compete in the National Weightlifting Championships is definitely to his credit. Unfortunately Harry Smith foolishly marred his appearance at Cleveland by having his hair bleached a conspicuous blond color. This certainly was a liability. Despite this handicap he finished in fourth place with a total of 60 points.

Fifth place was won by Val Pasqua, the 1949 "Junior Mr. America." He scored a total of 58 1/2 points in rating as a prize winner. This outstanding body builder athlete from New York City has won honors in physique contests for a period of several years. His progress enabled him this year to win a number of titles. Several months ago he won the "Mr. New York City" contest and on May 1st he was victorious in the "Junior Mr. America" event at Chattanooga. He placed second to Melvin Wells in the "Mr. New York State" competition. Val is the leader of the prominent club in the Bronx named in his honor, Val's Gym.

Thanks to the effort of John Grimek and Siegmund Klein the lighting effects on the final day of the "Mr. America" competition were excellent. There were many complaints, chiefly from the contestants, concerning the poor lighting for the competition the first day when the subdivisions were conducted. It is true that the lighting was so general that there was little of the usual accentuation of muscularity. This really was a fortunate deficiency for it enabled the judges to properly evaluate the merits of the contestants under suitable lighting. This is almost impossible to accomplish where the observations are confined to abnormal lighting effects to stress muscularity. Seeing the athletes under natural general lighting as well as under spotlights is to be desired. This was fulfilled at Cleveland.

The competition in the sub-divisions on the first day of the "Mr. America" tournament was keen. Every event brought together a number of contestants possessing outstanding merit for each title. Jack Delinger started his march to victory by winning the first of these events, "Best Chest." His chest development is exceptional for the deep well formed rib box is well covered by his herculean muscular development in an impressive and symmetrical manner. This is not marred by a hypertrophy of the pectoral muscles. Melvin Wells was the top man in the sub-divisions for he won two of the titles, "Best Arms" and "Best Back." His development of these muscles is so extraordinary that it is almost unmatched. George Hackenschmidt declared after inspecting Wells' arm development that his upper arms were the most outstanding he had ever observed. First place in the "Best Legs" event was won by Bill Melby. His legs are almost flawless in that they have symmetry and impressive muscular contours from all angles. The muscles are well developed without being oversized. John Miller of the West Coast won the "Best Abdominals" award. His mid-section development is truly phenomenal. This body builder is an outstanding gymnast.

The judges are indeed deserving of praise for fulfilling their assignment so excellently. There were no unpopular or controversial verdicts in the selection of the winners of any of the events. The only possible fault to be found is in the rating of some of the also-rans, other than the place winners, in the "Mr. America" contest. But this invariably results in all physique events where there are a large number of entries. There is a natural tendency to concentrate on determining the scoring of the leaders for the title. This quite often the rating of the others fails to provide a fair indication of their merits. The situation is unfortunate but is difficult to rectify.

There is some criticism over the delays attached to the present system of determining the winners. This can be understood for there is a natural eagerness to learn the outcome of any contest promptly. There is a tendency for the time element to be magnified during any tense period. This criticism is insignificant compared with the merits of this judging system Detrich Wortmann installed some tow or three years ago. The all-important factor is to protect the interest of the competitors by employing a method designed, as in the case of Mr. Wortmann's method, to determine the proper winners. The welfare of the athletes and their efforts should under no circumstances fail to receive the best possible judging to gratify the desires of the spectators for promptness. The great majority of the fans appreciate the importance of having a judging system in operation that is designed to promote the correct verdict. The complication involved in calculating the results under the present system could be greatly simplified by employing a mechanical adding machine to speed up the process. Delays during this period at the end of the contests should be taken into consideration by those in charge of the meet. Plans should be made in advance to have suitable demonstrations take place on the stage so that the audience will be occupied until the decisions of the judges have been determined. At Cleveland the spectators were entertained during this waiting period by Bob Hoffman and Stan Stanczyk. Bob related the history of all the "Mr. AMerica" events, as well as the recent "Mr. U.S.A." and "Mr. Universe" contests, in a detailed manner that was marked with a frankness in comments. This talk was certainly entertaining and enlightening to the fans. Stan Stanczyk "wowed" the audience with his amusing impersonations of the most prominent physique champions. When it comes to pantomime caricatures of this kind, Stan is the Charlie Chaplin of the "big muscle" world.

After the decisions were released and the awards were made to the winners the show was concluded by Siegmund Klein and John Grimek. Their peerless demonstrations brought this successful championship meet to a fitting end. Sig Klein, the maestro of strongmen athletes, amazed the fans with his versatility. Opened his act with a routine of classical poses followed by a muscle control exhibition. This display convincingly revealed that he is still a superman. After this demonstration he did hand balancing feats, card tearing and weight juggling. As always, his stunts were executed with finesse. This performance marked the first time in recent years that Klein performed in his home city of Cleveland. The grand finale to the show was provided by the king of body builders, John Grimek. This superman is positively astounding when displaying his herculean physique in his supreme posing demonstration. It creates an impression that will long be vividly remembered. Always it proves the most outstanding feature of any variety strength display show at which this physique champion of champions appears.

Photo Captions

- JACK DELINGER'S herculean physique, handsome countenance and appealing personality made him a popular winner of the 1949 "Mr. AMerica" contest. Impressive poses like this in his display enabled him to win the title by a decisive margin. In the foreground at the left is CARL STELZER of New Jersey. BILL MELBY and JOHN MORLEY are sen in the background at the right. Photo by Worth Studios, Cleveland.

- Right: Though PEPPER GOMEZ rated among the also-rans in the "Mr. America" contest he mad a meritorious showing. His well developed physique is seen to advantage in this pose. Pepper represented Vic Tanny's gym. BILL MELBY and JOHN MORELY are in the background at the right observing Pepper's display in the contest. Photo by Worht Studios, Cleveland.

- MELVIN WELLS' vitory in the "Best Arms" sub-division contest came as no surprise even though some of his rivals were extraordinary in arm development. VINCE LUBOWSKI, the donor of the trophy for this event, is presenting it to this superman. Photo by Richard Kolthoff.

- The judges had the finalist in the "Best Back" event pose together before arriving at a verdict. Here we see, from left, JACK DELINGER, MELVIN WELLS, and EVERTT SINDEROFF putting forth their best efforts. The tremendous spread of Delinger is seen to full advantage in this photo for he is in the foreground. MELVIN WELLS' remarkable muscularity is very evident in this orthodox pose. The muscle control pose Sinderoff assumed displayed his impressive development effectively. Melvin Wells added to his laurels by winning this contest.

- Once again the "Mr America" competition brought together an assemblage of outstanding physical specimens. Here are the first five place winners selected from this year's group of muscular marvels. JACK DELINGER of Oakland, California, the 1949 "Mr. America," is in the center on the pedestal. VAL PASQUA, who placed fifth, is at the extreme left and next to him is MELVIN WELLS, the second place winner. At the opposite end of this quintet is HARRY SMITH, who placed fourth, and BILL MELBY, the third place winner, is next to him. Photo by Worth Studios, Cleveland.

- Beautiful LOUIS RECHER presented JACK DELINGER with the huge "Mr. America" trophy he is holding. This impressive prize was awarded by Bob Hoffman and Strength & Health magazine. Louise Recher has won many honors in beauty and athleteic contests. Her dad is Louis Recher, the leader of the Recher Athletic Club in Euclid, Ohio.

- Below: Here's the cream of the crop among the 1949 "Mr. America" contestants. JACK DELINGER, the new title holder, is in the center of this trio. MELVIN WELLS, who placed second, is at the left and BILL MELBY, the third place winner is at the right. Photo by Richard Kolthoff.

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