Chaim Korman

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Chaim Korman
Worlds Strongest Young Boy
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Early Life
Chaim Korman, my fathers father, was born in
1921 in Ostroleka, Poland, a small town located
62 miles northeast of Warsaw where he lived in a
shtetl (a Jewish neighborhood). He was born to
Odessa and Leibel Korman, a master builder and a
rabbi, who was a well-known figure in the town.
Leibel was an extremely tall man. Some sources
even cited him as being 7 feet tall. Chaim had
10 siblings but only brothers Abraham, Harold,
and Shulom and sister Helen survived the
holocaust.
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His New Discovery
When Chaim was seven years old and defending
himself against anti-semites in Poland, he
realized he wasnt the same as the other
children. He also found his superhuman strength
when he encountered a Polish strongman and tried
to do everything he did. Chaim succeeded. He
was far stronger than anyone else and decided, at
the young age of 8, to run away and join the
circus. This may sound strange for us, but back
thenin the 1920syoung children running away
was not too uncommon.
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His Circus Career
During his circus career, he performed in a
father-son act with the strongman. His circus
career lasted for six years and then he returned
to his home in Poland at the age of 14. His
stunts in the circus included lifting elephants
and lying on beds of nails. One of Chaims
favorite acts was noted in an old newspaper. He
went inside a three-foot trench that was then
covered with earth and then driven over numerous
times by a truck. He emerged from the interment
by sheer might. When he returned to Poland he
had jobs that included carrying luggage and
taking people to hotels.
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Coming to America
In May of 1938 Korman moved to New York City. In
the US he was better known as Johnny rather
than Chaim and took on the title of The
Worlds Strongest Young Boy. In New York, he
got into show business-- performing as a
strongman at various nightclubs across New York
and New Jersey. He also performed at the New
York Worlds Fair. His amazing abilities brought
him a lot of attention and fame in numerous radio
shows, newspaper articles, and books. One book
in which he was featured was written by Ben
Hechta famous New York journalist and
playwright. The book described various stunts
done by Johnny including lying down on two chairs
by his chin and toes and having three people jump
on him, bending iron spikes with his hands, and
bending dimes with his teeth.
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We the People
Although he was extremely strong he was not very
big. Chaim appearedor was heardon a famous New
Jersey radio show called We the People in 1941
at the age of 19. Korman was only 54 tall and
weighed a mere 128 pounds at the time. However,
at these dimensions he was able to lift the 200
lb. radio announcer Von Zell with his teeth on
the show along with biting six-inch long nails in
half and having three-inch pins stuck into him.
When asked how he managed to get so strong he
replied, Ive been strong ever since I was a
baby over in Poland. One day my father wanted to
move a house so he hooked me and my two brothers
to the house and we pulled the house through the
streets.
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We the People
Some quotes from the radio show

• Im almost certain that maybe Im the strongest
  boy in the world.

• I dont understand, I eat the same foods as you
  weak people.

• Im too strong for my own good. Sometimes I
  wish I was weak like the rest of you people

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Physical Attributes
Chaim was tested at Harvard Medical School and
Tulane Medical School where they attempted to
discover the source of his unusual strength.
They decided that he had extraordinary muscle
tone and unusual control over individual muscles.
They also noted that his blood clotted unusually
fast after being cut. The Worlds Youngest Str
ong Boy certainly did not follow todays ideas
of physical training. He had an unusual diet
that often consisted of 10 eggs for breakfast.
He also never formally worked out.
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Anvil Head
Chaim was not the only person in his family with
unusual physical traits. His younger brother
Harold was known as Anvil Head and also
performed briefly as a strongman. His specialty
was having things broken over his head.
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Post-Performing Years
When Kormans strongman acts were over he got
into the clothing business and became a tailor.
Instead of using nails by breaking them with his
teeth or sticking them in him, he used them to
sew. Sometimes, however, he would end up
breaking them accidentally. In Newark he opened
a tailor shop called Kormans cleaning store.
Tailoring had been in his blood and one of his
brothers was a tailor back in Poland.
Despite Chaim not doing anymore strongman acts h
is strength still affected his everyday life.
When one of his sons David was a little boy,
Chaim broke his ribs squeezing him too hard
while holding him.
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A Real Superman
Although his strongman days were over, his
amazing feats were not. He had been a caretaker
at his synagogue, Congregation Anshe Roumania,
which was located on the same street on which he
lived and on which his store was. In 1960 the
temple caught on fire and Korman dashed in to
save the sacred, expensive, and heavy Torah
scrolls. He was able to rescue all 17 of them.
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Retired Life
Chaim is now a parent to five Miriam, Linda,
Robert, Lenny, and David and grandchildren to
13. He now lives in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Although he does not perform anymore, his circus
acts have been passed down to my father who
juggles and is a magician and who passed those
skills on to me. We both perform at various
events.