Arnold Schwarzenegger is the proud owner of a bouncing M47 Patton tank, according to the Inquisitr’s Jan. 6 report. It seems the former governor took his toy out for a spin for the benefit of the press recently and demonstrated the tank’s ability to crush an old car.
The tank is not just a toy for the action star. For Schwarzenegger, the tank is powerful connection to his youth. It is the same make and model that he drove when he served in the Austrian Army as an 18 year old soldier.
Arnold claims he was fascinated with the vehicles as a boy because he “grew up after the war and saw the British troops that occupied our area. So I always wanted to be a tank driver.”
In Austria at that time, he was required to serve a minimum of one year in the military. He opted to do this immediately following his completion of trade school. His unit would leave for weeks at a time to practice maneuvers. The men would dig a trench and then drive the tank over the opening and crawl in to sleep beneath it.
Staying in shape was no problem. Instead of tools, Schwarzenegger kept his weights and training equipment in the tank’s large toolbox. This allowed the bodybuilder to stay in shape and enter his first Mr. Universe contest just months after leaving the military in 1966.
The tank has been in the actor’s possession since 1992 when he bought it and brought it to America as part of a plan for a Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas. When those plans dell through, he kept the tank, storing it at his Melody Ranch Motion Picture Studio near Los Angeles.
Be sure to check out Theresa's other columns:
Self-Sustained Living Examiner
Southern Illinois Day Trips Examiner
If you liked this article click the Subscribe button to receive email updates when a new article is published. Follow Theresa on Google+, StumbleUpon and Twitter or connect on Pinterest. Visit Amazon to find fiction by Theresa.
©TheresaLeschmann. All Rights Reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced without prior permissions from the author. Partial reposting is permitted with a link back to the original article.
Got something to say? Say it on Examiner by following this link to sign up.
Comments