Guide to the Leonard Schwartz Papers and Photographs, 1888-2010
Arrangement
Repository
Heinz History Center
Title
Leonard Schwartz Papers and Photographs
Creator
Schwartz, Leonard
Collection Number
MSS 739
Extent
3 linear feet linear feet(3 boxes)
Date
1888-2010
Abstract
Dr. Leonard Schwartz (1925-2010) was a psychiatrist and the inventor of Heavyhands. After discovering in his early fifties that his health was poor, he focused on health and fitness for the last thirty years of his life. The collection provides access to his research, writings, career accomplishments, as well to his personal life.
Language
The material in this collection is in English.
Author
The guide to this collection was written by Dane Flansburgh.
Leonard Schwartz was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on July 10, 1925. Raised in the Hill District, he attended Pittsburgh public schools. He met Millie Bernstein, whom he would eventually marry, as a teenager. They married in September of 1946 and were married for 56 years, until her death in 2002. They had two daughters, Joan and Debra.
Schwartz served in the Navy in World War II, working as a Seabee in the Pacific theatre. Following his war service, he attended University of Pittsburgh. After receiving his bachelor's degree in 1948, he graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 1952. A psychiatrist, he received his training as an intern at Montefiore Hospital in 1952 and subsequently as a resident at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. Finishing his training in 1956, he had a private practice and also worked at Montefiore Hospital where he became Chief of the Division of Psychiatry. He also had a faculty appointment as Assistant Clinical Professor at University of Pittsburgh. In 1968 he graduated as an analyst from the Pittsburgh Psychoanalytic Institute, qualifying him as a psychoanalyst. He served as a consultant to the Jewish Home for the Aged, as well as to the Veterans' Administration Hospital in Pittsburgh.
Dr. Schwartz's interests changed in the late 1970s after learning that his health had been compromised by lack of exercise and a smoking habit. Determined to change, he devoted the rest of his career to health and fitness. Unhappy with the typical ways of exercising, and suffering from a hamstring injury, he looked for new ways to include strength training with cardiovascular workouts. After extensive research, he developed what he called Heavyhands – a device that strapped small weights to the hands and increased strength and endurance.
In 1982, he published Heavyhands: The Ultimate Exercise" as a guide to the device. He continued to devote his time to fitness, providing funding to the Human Energy Research Laboratory at University of Pittsburgh, and becoming an Adjunct Clinical Professor in the School of Physical and Recreation Education. He also developed Pan-X, an extension of Heavyhands that involves the whole body, and established Panaerobics, Inc., a company that distributed his products, of which he was president. He used images of his muscular and toned physique for marketing his products, as evidence that the devices he had invented worked.
In addition to his fitness activities, Schwartz enjoyed writing, especially poetry. He died on May 11, 2010.
Scope and Content Notes
The Leonard Schwartz Papers and Photographs are housed in three archival boxes. The collection includes manuscripts, correspondence, legal papers, patents, financial records, photographs, magazine articles, newspaper articles, books, videotape, biographical material, and personal writings. The collection provides access into the research and devolvement of Heavyhands, which were developed by Schwartz.
The collection has been divided into three series, two of which have been further arranged into subseries. The series are divided by subject.
Arrangement
Series I. Professional, 1952-1997; Subseries 1, Writings, 1976-1997; Subseries 2, Education, 1952-1996
Series II. Personal, 1942-2010
Series III. Heavyhands, 1982-2000; Subseries 1, Legal, 1904-2002; Subseries 2, Research and Development, 1888-2002; Subseries 3, Writings, 1982-1995; Subseries 4, Marketing Material, 1982-2000
Conditions Governing Access
None
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Debra Bailey and Jodi Lindner in June 2011, Accession #2011.0150.
Preferred Citation
Leonard Schwartz Papers and Photographs, 1888-2011, MSS 739, Rauh Jewish Archives, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Dane Flansburgh in February 2012.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Separated Materials
Three yearbooks were separated from the collection and placed in the Library. These includes two volumes of the Schenley Journal (1942-43), and one volume of The Owl (1952).
