Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger engaged in numerous infidelities over his long career, including several during his marriage to Maria Shriver. According to multiple sources, his sexual joie de vivre began far earlier than that, allegedly triggering criminal behavior as they worked together during the filming of the 1984 blockbuster thriller The Terminator.
“It was unbelievable,” said a member of the production crew, requesting anonymity. “Arnold was completely obsessed with her.”
Just being systematic
The alleged stalking began when the actress was 28 years old and working at Big Jeff’s, a Los Angeles-area coffee shop. Eyewitness accounts indicated that the actor assumed an almost ‘robotic’ demeanor in his efforts to meet the young waitress, despite never having met her and only knowing her name. In the early stages of his crime spree, Schwarzenegger assaulted a man in a phone booth, stole a 1979 Chevrolet Caprice Estate Wagon, and attacked multiple women bearing the same name as Hamilton.
Wild behavior
The production crew member contended that the actress did nothing to prompt Schwarzenegger’s behavior. “He was wild, just wild,” she said. “Walking around the streets of L.A. naked, beating up a bunch of punk kids and stealing their clothes, even wearing sunglasses at night.” She winced at the memory. “He ran over some kid’s toy in an ugly green station wagon.”
Initially unaware of Schwarzenegger’s crime spree, Hamilton received word of his obsession with her while watching a television news broadcast. Fearful that she may be a target, Hamilton ducked into a club called Tech Noir on Pico Boulevard.
From there, she called the local sheriff’s station and was instructed to stay put, with the promise that they would come get her “in a hot minute.” However, before the police could arrive, Schwarzenegger entered the bar.
The situation spins out of control
By this time, the actor had seen a picture of Hamilton and was scanning the crowd, looking intently for her. “Those eyes, those piercing, red eyes,” said female dancer #6, who was an onstage extra during the scene. “They didn’t just look at you. They looked right through you.”
At that point, it was clear Schwarzenegger’s infatuation was out of control. “I’ll never forget it,” recalled director James Cameron. “Arnold was looking around the room, Linda had dropped something and momentarily ducked out of sight, and when she lifted back up their eyes locked.” He swallowed hard, the memory still difficult for him to process. “And then, all of a sudden, Arnold pulls out a freaking gun. It was this crazy .45 longslide with laser sighting, and it was trained right on her. If Michael Biehn hadn’t intervened …” He couldn’t finish the thought.
Schwarzenegger’s criminality reaches a fever pitch
The next several days saw the former bodybuilder display a wanton disregard for public safety in his attempts to track down Hamilton. “The video evidence was irrefutable,” said former Los Angeles County District Attorney Ira Reiner. “He trashed a police station, fired numerous weapons in public, and even chased the terrified girl and her boyfriend down a highway on a motorcycle.”
He continued: “After he was denied seeing Hamilton in the police station, he warned the desk cop on duty of what would come with a phrase that still haunts me today, over thirty years later: I’ll be back.”
“And you know what?” Reiner’s brow furrowed. “He was.”
Dr. Phil’s diagnosis
Noted celebrity psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw speculated that ‘roid rage’ might have been the root cause of Schwarzenegger’s actions. “He had muscles on top of muscles. His hair had muscles,” said Dr. Phil. “We know that steroid usage is rampant in the bodybuilding world.” He held up a cautionary finger. “And that causes the subject’s testicles to shrink, which can easily trigger overcompensation and violent behavior.”
The obsession ends where redemption begins
Eventually, the actor’s fixation ended, but not before he broke into a hotel room, fired an automatic weapon at the fleeing couple, stole a tanker truck and was at the heart of an explosion that rained liquid fire down on half a city block. “He kinda went all to pieces at the end,” said the production crew member. “Let’s just leave it at that.”
Charges were never filed, despite the mountain of evidence against him. “You know how it goes with those celebrity types,” said Reiner, rolling his eyes. Sources indicated that a large financial settlement ended the incident for all parties concerned.
In a bizarre twist, Hamilton claimed that Schwarzenegger actually protected her and her son from certain death seven years later, not long after escaping from a mental institution. Reiner was unmoved: “I’d call it poetic justice if he actually had a soul. Schwarzenegger said it best himself: ‘I know now why you cry, but that is something I can never do.'”
He rose, sneering with contempt: “Living tissue, my ass.”
