AN NJ DISCOVER FRIEND SETS NEW WORLD RECORD IN WASHINGTON, D.C. ; CONGRATS TO ROBERT COZMO CONSULMAGNO     by Calvin Schwartz   December 23^rd 2016

Life is filled with synchronicity and candid camera moments; when you least expect it, something of value happens and it takes some qualitative time to fully evaluate and comprehend. Nearly 18 months ago, quite innocently, I was invited to sit in at a Rumson watering hole as a bunch of Jersey City natives were taking in the Paul Marino Band. Paul’s brother, Mike Marino, Jersey’s Bad Boy of Comedy invited me to hang out. I told him I was a Newark native but it was all good. At the table was an empty seat next to Robert Cozmo Consulmagno. By the time the evening wound down, and the music stopped, I had bonded with Cozmo beyond what I first thought(impressions) and had heard some of his life’s story.

Cozmo is an incredibly ripped and iron pumped 44-year-old, a former Marine and victim of childhood abuse, that only an upcoming book can do justice to. After five years serving his country as a Marine, he was diagnosed with PTSD and Bipolar disease, meaning he was permanently disabled. His journey all these years since has been well documented.

NJ Discover, over these past 18 months, has taken Cozmo into our family. His spirit, dedication and drive continually serve as powerful lessons for our audience and for all of us at NJ Discover. We’ve video interviewed Cozmo at our studio and had him as a special guest along with 16 time Philadelphia Emmy Award winning documentarian, Glenn Holsten on our NJ Discover LIVE TV Show, the segment called “Tough Guys Who Achieve.” All those video links are included herein. Cozmo has become my brother. I care about him. I’m so proud of him.  Through all this time, Cozmo has dedicated himself to bringing awareness on a national level of bipolar disease. This is his dream and source of renewable energy.

What better way to raise awareness, than to go for a world record, with Guinness in mind, in a highly visible place like Washington, DC. Yes, Cozmo was been a world ranked Jiu Jitsu fighter, now boxes, and is a constant denizen of the gym, working his body into an art form. So his world record would be in the Ab Wheel and how many of this difficult maneuver can he do in an hour. He has worked closely with the Veterans Administration and DAV in Washington, who actually hosted the event this past Tuesday December 20^th. Here is a video link to the DAV hosting the event when Cozmo did 524 Ab Wheels in one hour!

https://www.facebook.com/DAV/videos/10157982355770387/

Cozmo on NJ Discover LIVE TV Show. “Tough Guys Who Achieve”   http://bit.ly/1N5cCwa

Cozmo Interviewed on NJ Discover in Studio   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo960SxQOSY

From DAV site:   We have the final count!! Robert Cozmo Consulmagno just did 524 standing ab rolls in 1 hour! Great job, Cozmo!!*

Setting a Guinness World Records with Robert Cozmo Consulmagno! This U.S. Marine Corps veteran and DAV life member endured years of social dysfunction, until he figured out he was struggling with PTSD and bipolar disorder. These days he’s fighting those invisible injuries through his work with DAV Chapter 37 in Somerville, N.J., and in the community of Morrisville, Pa., just across the state line.

That is the message that he wants other veterans to understand, “I want to spread a message of hope to other veterans. You can overcome obstacles, something is going to work for you, and you have to find what that something is for you.”

DAV (Disabled American Veterans) is a leading nonprofit that provides a lifetime of support for veterans of all generations and their families.

WISHING YOU ALL MERRY HAPPY HEALTHY HOLIDAYS

Calvin Schwartz, written on the night before Christmas Eve

NJ DISCOVER VIDEO SPOTLIGHT ROBERT “COZMO” CONSULMAGNO; A Passionate Advocate/Patient for Mental Health (PTSD-Bipolar), World Ranked Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Champion, US Marine Veteran, Victim of Child Abuse and Fascinating Personality. HINT: Take 7 Minutes, WATCH the video and absorb this Dynamic Persona.    bY Calvin Schwartz November 24, 2015

Life is curiously synchronistic. Writing this, I’m thinking of an old TV Show, ‘Candid Camera’, when some of the verbiage consisted of “Just when you least expect it.”  It was a August mid-summer night’s dream, warm and breezy when comedian Mike Marino called and invited me to hang out with a gang of old Jersey City guys, assembling at Barnacle Bill’s in Rumson, mostly to hear Mike’s brother, singer Paul Marino and his band perform.  The Jersey City guys were seated in the back of the restaurant in a quiet little table. I felt Damon Runyon was nearby. I sat next to this ripped, powerful looking guy wearing an intimidating ‘The Warriors’ black tee-shirt. Cozmo’s look worked; I was intimidated.  Consulmagno  was born in Jersey City.

Then that funny thing happened when I least expected it.  After talking to Cozmo for a few minutes, while the rest of table engaged in Jersey City memories, I discovered that he is a sensitive, eloquent, passionate, yet quintessentially really tough, engaging and caring guy with a lot of baggage.  As he talked to me, I sat in disbelief; he was abused as a child; his father committed suicide, his step father beat him and his mother relentlessly. To escape and find an inner peace, he enlisted in the Marines and left the Marines honorably discharged with commendations and PTSD and an active Bi-Polar condition. I also had this sixth journalistic sense that one day I’d do a video and article about Consulmagno. And here we are; Déjà vu is all around.

You all should watch this seven minute video to experience the charisma and charm of Robert “Cozmo” Consulmagno. You’ll probably come away thinking like me; there is a Hollywood movie waiting to be made. He is actually precious, dynamic and unbelievable. His story cries out to all those who’ve yet to see or know him. Yes, he has PTSD and Bipolar. Yes, he is a World Ranked Jiu Jitsu fighter.  Yes, he had a grandfather, Michael Consulmagno (aka Michael Taylor) who knocked out Max Schmeling who knocked out Joe Louis. Yes he fights Jiu Jitsu to release that energy of mental disease. Yes, his mission in life is to stay alive and live a long life and to be a spokesperson for mental health and build that legacy. Yes, you all should watch this poignant interview; the best seven minutes spent in a long time. Tara-Jean Vitale and Calvin Schwartz ask the questions behind the scenes.

Also please check out the following Robert “Cozmo” Consulmagno LINKS:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/supercrazycozmo?fref=ts

Website: http://www.supercrazycozmo.com

Watch Emmy Award winning film maker Glenn Holsten’s seven minute film:   “Jersey City native, jiu-jitsu fighter tours old neighborhood and talks mental health”  http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2015/11/jersey_city_native_tours_old_neighborhood_in_web_f.html

“Marine Vet Says Jiu Jitsu Changed His Life”

http://www.military.com/video/specialties-and-personnel/veterans/marine-vet-says-jiu-jitsu-changed-his-life/4000866956001