ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, May 4, 1996 TAG: 9605060057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: NEWS OBIT
SOURCE: CHRISTOPHER RICKETT STAFF WRITER
Friends say exercise guru Artie Levin made physical fitness a priority during his childhood in Atlantic City, N.J., where his father rode a bicycle on the Boardwalk until age 88.
That same drive, which propelled Levin to stardom as Roanoke's "Mr. Fitness," ended Friday when Levin died. He was 82.
Levin became a Western Virginia institution during his nearly 25-year reign on WDBJ (Channel 7) with an exercise program, on which he stressed the importance of staying healthy.
"The medical profession can't find a cure for everything," Levin said in a 1979 interview. "But a lot of things can be prevented. ... You don't want to play Russian roulette with your health."
His local popularity endeared him to everyday people, said retired Channel 7 manager John W. Harkrader.
"Artie was the friendliest man in the world," Harkrader said. "There just wasn't anything aloof about him."
Levin first came to Roanoke during World War II as a flight instructor at Woodrum Field.
The first episode of "Mr. Fitness" hit the local airwaves in 1961 on WDBJ-TV Channel 7.
According to news reports, it didn't take long for folks to catch on. Within weeks of the program's debut, he was receiving a steady stream of fan mail, much of it from homemakers who tuned into the weekday morning program.
"When it came to physical fitness, his beliefs were so very deep," Harkrader said.
His run on Channel 7 lasted until 1983, when his show was canceled. But he then was picked up by WSLS-TV Channel 10, where his exercise show ran until 1986. Channel 27 was the last to run his televised exercise show, in 1988.
During his time on Channel 7, his "Keep Fit" column also ran six days a week in The Roanoke Times. On the first day of his column, he said he would "help men, women and children to enjoy life to its most exciting potential instead of settling for mere existence."
He continued a strict exercise regimen well into his 70s, with a weekly schedule of 150 miles of bike-riding, 15 miles of running and five miles of swimming. In 1992, he won the 75-and-over age group of the Central Florida Sprint Triathlon, one of many athletic events he participated in across the country.
Levin's funeral arrangements and cause of death were not immediately available.
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: headshot of Levinby CNB