Robby Robinson (born May 24, 1946) is an American former professional

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuse ...

. Known early in his career as Robin Robinson, he is also known as The Black Prince and Mr Lifestyle. He won various competitions including Mr America, IFBB Mr. World, Mr Universe, Masters Olympia, and other titles of the

International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness The International Federation of BodyBuilding and Fitness (IFBB), headquartered in Las Rozas (Madrid), is an international professional sports governing body for bodybuilding and fitness that oversees many of the sport's major international even ...

(IFBB), and appeared in several films (including the landmark

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event". Docudramas typ ...

Pumping Iron ''Pumping Iron'' is a 1977 American docudrama about the world of professional bodybuilding, with a focus on the 1975 IFBB Mr. Universe and 1975 Mr. Olympia competitions. Directed by George Butler and Robert Fiore and edited by Geof Bartz and La ...

'') over a 27-year career as a professional bodybuilder, retiring from competition in 2001 at the age of 55.

Biography

Early years

Robinson was born in

Damascus, Georgia Damascus is a city in Early County, Georgia, United States. The population was 254 at the 2010 census. History An early variant name was Kestler. An act of Georgia General Assembly officially changed the name to Damascus in 1914. The present na ...

, and raised in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the populatio ...

. His mother was illiterate, and his father was a bootlegger who later abandoned his 14 children. Robinson attended

Florida A&M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a public historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida. Founded in 1887, It is the third largest historically black university in the U ...

, where he competed in both football and

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

. While training for those sports he noticed his body's great responsiveness to weight training, which motivated him to enter his first bodybuilding competition. After competing in more than 300 amateur competitions, Robinson turned professional in 1975. By that year he was married with three children.

Professional years

In his first year as a professional in 1975, he won the IFBB Mr America, Mr World and Mr Universe titles. He went on to win many IFBB contests, including the first annual ''Night of the Champions'' in 1979 as well as the first Masters Olympia in 1994. He was the Masters Olympia overall champion the first year that the event was held in 1994 and won the 50+ division at the same contest in 1997 and 2000. Robinson appeared as himself in the 1977 part-scripted, part-documentary film on bodybuilding ''

''. He also appeared in a 1989 TV documentary, in the 1997 documentary '' Stand Tall'', and (uncredited) in the 1976 film comedy ''

Stay Hungry ''Stay Hungry'' is a 1976 American comedy-drama film by director Bob Rafelson from a screenplay by Charles Gaines (adapted from his 1972 novel of the same name). The story centers on a younscionfrom Birmingham, Alabama, played by Jeff Bridges, ...

''.

Post-retirement

Robinson suffers from intermittent bouts of

sickle cell crisis Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of blood disorders typically inherited from a person's parents. The most common type is known as sickle cell anaemia. It results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin found in red ...

. These episodes tended to occur during contest preps, and became one of the reasons he decided to stop competing. After a 27-year career, Robinson retired from professional bodybuilding at the age of 55. He has remained active in various ways, including as a

personal trainer A personal trainer is an individual who creates and delivers safe and effective exercise programs for apparently healthy individuals and groups, or those with medical clearance to exercise. They motivate clients by collaborating to set goals, p ...

, lifestyle and bodybuilding coach, athlete, artist, and actor. As a published author, Robinson published his autobiography, ''The Black Prince,'' in 2013. Since his retirement in 2001, Robby has opposed steroid use in bodybuilding, saying that "it's taking away from the beauty of bodybuilding, the artistry of it."Chris Colucci
"The Black Prince: Robby Robinson Speaks"
T-Nation.com interview, 2008 In 2016, aged 70, Robinson continued to make guest posing appearances and maintains a developed physique.

Publications

* ''The Black Prince: My Life in Bodybuilding; Muscle vs Hustle'', self-published memoirs, 2013 () * ''Built'' DVD – Documentary on bodybuilding, training and health, including interviews with Robinson and workout techniques, 2006 * ''Master Class with Robby Robinson'' DVD – featuring Robinson's Master Class on bodybuilding in

Venice, California Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside (Los Angeles County), Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city unti ...

(with Natural Mr Britain Ian Duckett and biomechanic expert Dean Murray) *''The Black Prince 2: Diary of a Bodybuilder'', self-published compilation of bodybuilding techniques, 2019 *Robby Robinson Master Clas
Android App
*Robby Robinson Master Clas
iOS App

Major competition awards

Robinson's competition awards have included the following: * 2000 - Mr Olympia - Masters Over 50, 1st * 1997 - Mr Olympia - Masters Over 50, 1st * 1994 - Mr Olympia - Masters - IFBB, Winner * 1991 - Musclefest Grand Prix - IFBB, Winner * 1989 - World Pro Championships - IFBB, Winner * 1988 - Niagara Falls Pro Invitational - IFBB, Winner * 1987 - Mr Olympia - IFBB, 5th * 1981 - Mr Universe - Pro - NABBA, Winner * 1979 - Pittsburgh Pro Invitational - IFBB, Winner * 1979 - Night of Champions - IFBB, Winner * 1979 - Grand Prix New York - IFBB, Winner * 1979 - Best in the World - IFBB, Professional, 1st * 1978 - Professional World Cup - IFBB, Winner * 1978 - Night of Champions - IFBB, Winner * 1978 - Mr Olympia Heavyweight, 1st * 1977 - Mr Olympia - IFBB, Tall, 1st * 1976 - Mr Universe - IFBB, MiddleWeight, 1st * 1976 - Mr Universe - IFBB, Overall Winner * 1976 - Mr International - IFBB, Medium, 1st * 1976 - Mr International - IFBB, Overall Winner * 1975 - Mr Universe - IFBB, Medium, 1st * 1975 - Mr World - IFBB, Medium, 1st * 1975 - Mr World - IFBB, Overall Winner * 1975 - Mr America - IFBB, Medium, 1st * 1975 - Mr America - IFBB, Overall Winner

References

External links

* *
Robby Robinson interview with evolutionofbodybuilding.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Robby 1946 births African-American bodybuilders Living people Sportspeople from Tallahassee, Florida Players of American football from Florida Professional bodybuilders Florida A&M Rattlers football players American memoirists African-American non-fiction writers American non-fiction writers Florida A&M Rattlers track and field athletes 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople