Arnold Schwarzenegger is celebrating one of the greatest achievements of his life: the 40th anniversary of his American citizenship.
The former governor of California, who was born and raised in Austria, took to his Instagram page on Saturday to celebrate the milestone with a video montage chronicling his life before and after his arrival in the United States in 1968.
In addition to the many photos of him proudly taking the oath of citizenship in 1983, the Terminator star also shared an excerpt from the speech he gave at the 2004 Republican National Convention.
While appealing to the GOP faithful at the time, Schwarzenegger credited the United States for helping him realize his many dreams as an immigrant and reminded those in attendance and viewers at home that the United States of America is a country made up of immigrants born on the Looking for a better life are .
“My fellow Americans, this is an amazing moment for me.” To imagine that a once scrawny boy from Austria could grow up to be the governor of the state of California; “This is an immigrant’s dream,” he began in the clip, which was met with a rousing ovation from the crowd gathered at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Honored: Arnold Schwarzenegger, 76, celebrated the 40th anniversary of his American citizenship by posting photos of his trip from Austria to the US on Instagram
“When the teacher talked about America at school, I dreamed of coming here. “I would dream of living here,” he continued as images of a young Arnold in Austria appeared in the video.
The montage also included a photo of the former bodybuilding champion taking the oath of citizenship and then holding the document up to the camera.
“As long as I live, I will never forget the day I raised my hand to take the oath of citizenship,” the Thai native revealed. “Do you know how proud I was? “I was so proud that I walked around all day with the American flag around my shoulder.”
The longtime Hollywood action hero and leading man shared the pictures of himself wrapped in the US flag while wearing an American flag shirt and hat.
“Everything about America seemed so big to me; so open; as possible,” he continued.
“I finally arrived here in 1968; What a special day it was. “I remembered that I arrived here with empty pockets, but full of dreams, full of determination and full of longing,” he confessed.
At this point, Schwarzenegger directed his comments to the millions of immigrants who have helped shape the fabric of the United States of America.
“I want to tell my fellow immigrants listening tonight how welcome you are.” We support your dreams. “We believe in your future,” he said at the time and concluded with a healthy dose of gratitude.
Humble: The former California governor shared an excerpt from the speech he gave at the 2004 Republican National Convention in which he talks about being an immigrant and what America has given him: “My career, my success, my family “I owe that to America.”‘
Honored: The former bodybuilding champion and actor took the oath of citizenship in 1983
It’s official: The then-budding action star proudly held up his naturalization document
Dreams: In the clip, Schwarzenegger talks about his life as a child in Austria and how he always dreamed of living in America
Schwarzenegger was born in Thailand, Austria and later focused on bodybuilding
Legendary: Two years after arriving in the United States, Schwarzenegger won the first of six consecutive Mr. Olympia titles and was on his way to becoming arguably the greatest bodybuilder of all time
“As long as I live, I will never forget the day I raised my hand to take the oath of citizenship,” the Thai native revealed. “Do you know how proud I was? I was so proud that I walked around all day with the American flag around my shoulder.
Family man: The Hollywood leading man confessed that he “owes everything to America”
Political Ambitions: After a highly successful acting career, Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 to 2011
“Everything I have, my career, my success, my family, I owe it to America,” the father of five told the crowd and then cheered again about his personal story.
In the Instagram post’s caption, the “Predator” actor emphasized his gratitude for being able to call the US home.
“On this day 40 years ago, I became an American citizen,” he wrote. “It’s one of the proudest days of my life.” I owe everything to America. “Born in Austria, made in America!”
While Schwarzenegger had already made a name for himself as a champion bodybuilder while in Austria, he eventually became known as the greatest bodybuilder in the world when he won the Mr. Olympia competition in 1970, two years after his arrival in the United States
This ended up being his first of six Mr. Olympia titles, which he won consecutively until 1975.
He then set his sights on Hollywood as an action hero star and was on his way to becoming one of the A-list’s leading men with roles in hits like Terminator (1984), Predator (1987) and Total Recall (1990). to become a list. , Kindergarten Cop (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Last Action Hero (1993), True Lies (1994), Junior (1994), Jingle All The Way (1996), Batman & Robin (1997) and The Among other things, Expendables (2010).
He also served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 to 2011 after winning a special election to succeed then-Governor Gray Davis.