Joseph BARATTA

BARATTA, Joseph
Pioneer of Health and Fitness
Industry, Dies at 81

Joseph Patrick Baratta, an early health and fitness entrepreneur, who in 1951 opened one of the first ever fitness facilities in California, an exclusively female gym called Joseph's Figure Studio, died on Saturday of natural causes at 81. At the time of his death he was surrounded by family in the com- fort of his home in Rocklin, California.

Mr. Baratta was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Italian immigrants. He was one of six children born to a working class family; his father was a laborer who once worked on the construction of the American intercontinental railroad.

Mr. Baratta developed an early passion for gymnastics and wrestling at which he excelled on the varsity teams of John Adams High School in Cleveland. As a young high school student, he could be spotted doing hand stands on the roofs of local gymnasiums, and he struck fear in the minds of his many opponents on the wrestling mat. Unusually for the time, he incorporated weight training into his regimen and discovered his clear talent for weight lifting. Dedicating himself to the nascent sport of body building, Mr. Baratta won the 1954 Mr. Ohio body building title, one of many titles he won as an amateur body builder over the next 25 years, including his last title of Mr. California over 40 in 1972.

In 1950, Mr. Baratta followed his dream to Southern California. Poor and jobless, yet blessed with his physique, athletic prowess, determination and an entrepreneurial spirit, he decided to open a fitness facility. The eponymous female-only gym he opened in 1951, which contained exercise equipment built by hand by Mr. Baratta, was one of the first of its kind in California. He employed a then novel training technique called circuit training, which entailed a number of exercises performed in a circuit without rest, using a high number of repetitions yet a low level of weight. The method proved effective and with many happy customers and a thriving gym, Mr. Baratta expanded his business. Over the next 45 years he opened a number of health clubs throughout California, trading primarily under the Jack LaLannes European Health Spa brand. He was an early pioneer of an industry that has become part of the fabric of American life.

With a concentration of health clubs in Sacramento, where Mr. Baratta and his family settled in 1970, he became an important employer and contributor of growth in the region during the three decades spanning 1970 to 2000.

While building his health club business, Mr. Baratta was ever present in the sport of body building. He sponsored the well-known body building contest, Mr. California Golden Bear, held during the annual California State Fair in Sacramento during the 1970's and 1980's. Many prominent body building champions participated in this event including future California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger; the star of the television show 'The Incredible Hulk,' Lou Ferrigno; former Mr. Olympia Champion, Franco Columbu; and fitness legend Jack LaLanne. Mr. Baratta himself, still in competitive body building form in his 40's, was a guest performer at these events. Unique to body building contests, these events also featured feats of human strength, such as a man lifting a truck like a wheelbarrow and walking it for hundreds of feet.

In 1965 Mr. Baratta met the love of his life, Jill Martin, who at the time was the manager of his gym in Bakersfield. They wed in 1970. Mr. Baratta is survived by his wife, Jill; three children, Lyn, Jeffrey and Joseph; and six grandchildren.

He will be remembered for his selflessness, optimism, enormous patience, and grace.