Jack LaLanne: Fitness Pioneer and Television Host Dies at 96

Jack LaLanne was an American fitness and nutrition guru. Born on September 26, 1914, in San Francisco, he was a sickly youth who turned his life around through exercise.

He opened one of the first health clubs in 1936 and hosted The Jack LaLanne Show on television from 1951 to 1985, leading viewers through exercises in a jumpsuit. He invented exercise machines and promoted juicing, and performed feats such as towing boats while swimming on his birthdays.

He was inducted into the Fitness Hall of Fame and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. LaLanne died of respiratory failure resulting from pneumonia at his home in Morro Bay, California, on January 23, 2011, at age 96.

Achievements: Hollywood Walk of Fame, father of the modern fitness movement.

Birth: September 26, 1914 - San Francisco, California.

Profession: Fitness expert.

Interesting Facts: At 70 he towed 70 boats with 70 people for a mile.