LAMAMIMET

Charles Latham Gaines Jr. was born January 6, 1942, in Jacksonville, Florida. He developed an early interest in bodybuilding as a teenager and later pursued writing, earning a BA from Birmingham-Southern College and an MFA from the University of Iowa. He taught creative writing at New England College after moving to New Hampshire in 1970.

Gaines published 25 books over his career, spanning fiction and non-fiction. His most influential work was Pumping Iron: The Art and Sport of Bodybuilding (1974), co-authored with photographer George Butler. The book and its documentary adaptation brought mainstream attention to professional bodybuilding and helped launch Arnold Schwarzenegger's career. Gaines remained a lifelong friend of Schwarzenegger.

Beyond bodybuilding, Gaines was an accomplished outdoors writer covering fly fishing, upland bird hunting, and mountaineering, often with philosophical and conservation-minded perspectives. He served on the board of directors of the Atlantic Salmon Federation. In the 1980s, he co-created the sport of paintball following a discussion about urban survival skills. He died July 21, 2026, at age 84.