Joseph L. Greenstein Polish-American strongman Date of Birth: 02.01.1893 Country: USA

The Mighty Atom: The Biography of Joseph Greenstein

Joseph Greenstein, also known as The Mighty Atom, was a Polish-American strongman of the first half of the 20th century. He was born on January 2, 1893 in the city of Suwałki, located on the northeastern border of Poland. Despite suffering from respiratory illnesses in his childhood, Greenstein defied the odds and went on to earn his nickname through his incredible abilities.

At the age of 14, doctors predicted that Greenstein would die from tuberculosis. Around the same time, he met a Russian circus strongman named Champion Volanko, who took the young Greenstein under his wing. For a year and a half, Greenstein traveled with his mentor and the Issakoff Brothers' Circus, learning the secrets of becoming a strongman through constant training.

After his time with the circus, Greenstein returned to Poland where he married Leah Greenstein and began his career as a wrestler. Due to increasing anti-Semitic sentiments in Eastern Europe, Joseph and Leah moved to the United States, a decision that proved to be wise considering the fate of European Jews during World War II.

Greenstein initially settled in Galveston, Texas, where he worked as a longshoreman and an oil field worker. He also competed as a wrestler under the pseudonym "Kid Greenstein". In 1914, a Texan who became obsessed with Greenstein's wife shot him in the forehead from a distance of 30 feet. Remarkably, Greenstein left the hospital on the same day as the bullet not only failed to penetrate his skull but also flattened from the impact. This incident sparked Greenstein's interest in abilities associated with strength, and he gradually developed a repertoire of tricks that only a true strongman could perform.

Despite his modest stature - Greenstein stood at 162 cm tall and weighed around 63 kg - he became one of the most renowned strongmen of the past century. His feats included:

• Driving nails into a board with his bare fists
• Lying on a bed of nails with a 14-person orchestra on his chest
• Changing car tires without any tools
• Breaking three metal chains at once by flexing his chest
• Bending metal rods or horseshoes with his teeth while the other end was secured in a vise
• Biting nails in half and chewing up coins
• Pushing an airplane with his own hair. This stunt was performed at Buffalo Airport and was described in the "Buffalo Evening Times" newspaper on September 29, 1928.

Greenstein continued to demonstrate his astounding abilities until his old age, with his last performance taking place on May 11, 1977 at Madison Square Garden. He made multiple appearances on "Ripley's Believe It or Not!" and was featured in the Guinness Book of World Records in 1976.

In addition to his performances, Greenstein made a living selling coconut soap and health elixirs at fairs and farmers' markets. He traveled in an old model Ford, which housed a collection of newspaper clippings and certificates from public figures and organizations. For instance, New York City Mayor Fiorello Henry La Guardia presented Greenstein with a document thanking him for demonstrating his skills to the city's police force. During World War II, Greenstein volunteered to teach jiu-jitsu techniques to the police years before martial arts gained any significant popularity in the United States.

Even at the age of 81, Greenstein continued to captivate audiences by bending horseshoes and driving nails through metal sheets with his bare palms. He passed away on October 8, 1977 at the age of 84, not from tuberculosis as doctors once predicted, but from cancer. Ed Spielman, a writer, recounted his life in the book "The Mighty Atom". It is likely that Joseph Greenstein's story served as inspiration for the creation of Al Pratt, a crime-fighter from DC Comics who disguised himself as The Atom.