lots of interesting stuff in this thread!
not seeing Conan as huge? im re-reading my first Conan collection now and in almost every story he is described as towering above those surrounding him as well as being much broader. especially following descriptions in "The City of Skulls" where you can read that the guards escorting the princess are all well built soldiers who still seem small compared to both Conan and Juma.
the problem is there are very few actors who could fit that mould without just looking like body builders; at the time i thought Arnie was a superb choice, and in fact i still do: he had the bulk but also the litheness to pull the role off. The problem is much of the time with the bulk you lose the quickness of motion and pantherish movement so often associated with Conan. And of course, at the time, Arnie was still seen as foreign enough to be acceptable to the audience as a barbarian.
In todays age of actors i can imagine a Conan with a broad american accent and the usual "clan of scotsman" that are regularly pulled out of the 2nds hat to be warriors,barbarians,soldiers etc in almost every sword and sandles flick you care to mention.
as for the movies; again i enjoyed both. The first has recently enjoyed a revival in my viewing pleasures; in the UK the dvd release (original cinema release was before my time) was always edited. It was only when i recorded it off the tv one night that i saw the extra pieces like the ending where Conan carries off the princess. Those sections are now added into most UK dvd copies but originally they were not. I think they might have been US release edits; why it should be changed so significantly from the Uk to the US i dont know...but there ya go.