Andre the giant wrestler biography books
Andre the Giant
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Who Was Andre the Giant?The big show wrestler: Drawing from historical records about Andre's life as well as a wealth of anecdotes from his colleagues in the wrestling world, including Hulk Hogan, and his film co-stars Billy Crystal, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, etc , Brown has created in Andre the Giant , the first substantive biography of one of the twentieth century's most recognizable figures. I was never a huge fan of wrestling but I was a fan of Andre the giant and the princes bride. This volume also includes a glossary, to help understand "sports entertainment", and a bibliography. Andre Roussimoff.
Andre the Giant had the hormonal disorder acromegaly, which causes the release of excess growth hormone and in Andre's case, resulted in gigantism. His size helped Andre dominate the sport of wrestling in the s and '80s. He made millions, became world famous, and found crossover success in the movie The Princess Bride.
Near the end of his career, Andre faced off with Hulk Hogan in 's Wrestlemania III. Andre died at the age of 46 in his native France.
Early Life
Andre the Giant was born as André René Roussimoff on May 19, , in Coulommiers, France. He reportedly weighed 13 pounds at birth.
Though billed in wrestling as hailing from Grenoble in the French Alps, Andre actually grew up in the small town of Molien, forty miles east of Paris. He had four siblings, two older and two younger. Sometimes while walking to and from school Andre was given a ride by famous playwright Samuel Beckett, who was a neighbor.
Andre left school at 14 (the legal age at the time) and began to work.
According to his family, it was around this time that his acromegaly became noticeable. He grew to be nearly 6-foot-6 by the time he was
Acromegaly
Andre had acromegaly, a hormonal disorder in which the pituitary gland releases excess growth hormone. The disorder can cause gigantism in children, which happened to Andre when he began to grow taller around the age of Continued growth resulted in his enlarged head, hands, feet, and chest.
Andre wore a size 22 shoe, and in his hands, a regular beer can seemed to be miniaturized (as he demonstrated in a photo that appeared in a Sports Illustrated profile).
His size could make life difficult. Andre once noted, "They don't build anything for a giant." In the days of telephone dials, he needed a pencil to make a call.
He traveled days a year for wrestling, but when he flew he couldn't squeeze into the airplane lavatory and therefore had to relieve himself in a bucket.
Andre the giant wrestler biography books in order Large parts of this book are transcriptions from interviews, or play-by-plays While there's certainly a bit of warts-and-all to this, it doesn't dominate. Andre Roussimoff is known as both the lovable giant in The Princess Bride and a heroic pro-wrestling figure. There's so many other Andre books that are worth your time, but this one is so bare bones.Unless he was able to use a van that had been customized for him, driving was torturous: "Many times I have to ride for several hundred miles in the front seat of a car and my back and neck always get so stiff."
He was often the subject of unwanted attention in public, and he felt his personal relationships were affected.
"People want to be my friend because of my size. They want to take advantage of me. I don’t like that," he once said.
Being a giant meant Andre could drink heavily. There are stories of him consuming beers or 20 bottles of wine in one sitting. However, actor Cary Elwes, a Princess Bride co-star, has said, "Andre didn’t drink for the sake of drinking — Andre was in a lot of pain, God bless him.
His back was injured from carrying all that weight around, and from having other wrestlers breaking chairs over his back."
Doctors didn't diagnose Andre with acromegaly while he was growing up in France. He may have received a diagnosis in Japan in and was definitely told he had the disorder after he broke his ankle in At this point in his life treatment would not have reversed Andre's growth but it could have increased his life expectancy.
However, he opted not to get treated. In the documentary Andre the Giant, his doctor explained Andre's decision: "He decided that he did not want treatment at that time because it might interfere with his career as a wrestler."
Height and Weight
Andre's exact height remains unknown.
Throughout his wrestling career he was usually described as 7-foot-4, but the world of wrestling is prone to hyperbole.
Andre the giant wrestler biography books free Robert Giesenhagen. Teo smite. I still enjoyed reading though. Author 26 books 5, followers.His French passport gave a height in meters that converts to just under 7-foot Some believe Andre may have stood at 7 feet, or possibly up to three inches shorter than that.
Andre was often said to weigh lbs., but this may be another wrestling exaggeration. Descriptions of his weight have varied from lbs. to as much as lbs. when he died.
Wrestling Career
Andre once declared, "What God gave me, I use it to make a living," and his size helped him conquer the world of wrestling.
In he began wrestling in France under the name Jean Ferré.
Mr perfect wrestler Since the drawing doesn't really do justice to how this might have looked, remember Andre's hand on Cary Elwes' during the movie? Brian "Box" Brown. The whole book felt like the transcription of a WWE tribute video. But man, we got a fantastic match.Andre also wrestled in Japan, where he was known as Monster Roussimoff, before making his way to Quebec in
By , Andre was being billed as "Andre the Giant" and was working with Vincent McMahon Sr. in the World Wide Wrestling Federation (which later became WWE). His fame grew and Andre became known as the "Eighth Wonder of the World." Over the course of his career he wrestled across the globe, traveling to Europe, Mexico, Japan, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
In , Andre was the evil opponent who faced off with Hogan in the widely watched Wrestlemania III.
The event billed Andre as an undefeated wrestler who'd never been body-slammed (neither of which was true). A large crowd (though not the 93, touted by WWE) witnessed Hogan triumph over Andre.
After Wrestlemania III an ailing Andre had back surgery (reports that he'd been operated on before the event appear to be incorrect).
He worked with McMahon — in an increasingly limited capacity — until Though his health continued to decline, Andre kept wrestling until shortly before his death.
Andre the giant wrestler biography books Andre the Giant was no exception. Probably only about one-third of the book discusses Andre's life. Get a FREE ebook by joining our mailing list today! He was a normal guy who'd been dealt an extraordinary hand in life.His last match was in Japan on December 4,
Andre's career saw him wrestle in more than 5, matches. Following his death, he became the first person to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
'The Princess Bride'
Writer William Goldman and director Rob Reiner both thought Andre the Giant was the ideal person to portray the giant Fezzik in the movie The Princess Bride.
Though Reiner said of Andre, "We had a three-page scene for him to audition with, and I didn’t understand a word he said," the wrestler still landed the part. He went on to prove himself by delivering a lauded performance.
Yet making the movie wasn't easy for Andre. His back was bothering him during filming, so stunts were difficult.
When he was unable to catch actress Robin Wright in his arms she had to be held up with cables. Due to his size, Andre himself was lifted with cables when a scene called for him to ride a horse.
The Princess Bride wasn't Andre's first acting role.
He had appeared in a French film in , in television series such as Six Million Dollar Man in and The Fall Guy in and in the movie Micki & Maude (). After The Princess Bride Andre cameoed in the film Trading Mom (). Yet no part was as perfect a fit as Fezzik. Andre was so proud of his work that he usually traveled with a videotape of the film, and enjoyed holding screenings of the movie.
Death
Andre was 46 when he died in a Paris hotel room on January 28, (his death is often incorrectly listed as January 27).
He died from congestive heart failure, linked to his untreated acromegaly.
Andre, who'd been in France to attend his father's funeral and visit his family, had wanted to be cremated. When no crematorium in France was big enough for the task his body had to be flown back to the United States. His ashes were scattered at his ranch in North Carolina.
Daughter
Andre's daughter, Robin Christensen-Roussimoff, was born in Andre and her mother, Jean Christensen, were not married and had a tense co-parenting relationship.
This, along with Andre's demanding travel schedule for wrestling, made it difficult for him to see his daughter.
Robin would meet her father when he had matches around Seattle, and the two spoke on the phone. She has said, "Maybe had he lived longer, I might have had a closer relationship with him." Andre made Robin the main beneficiary in his will.
Documentary and Books
The documentary Andre the Giant provided an in-depth look at Andre's life.
Andre's story has appeared in books, such as the graphic tale Andre the Giant: Life and Legend and the biography The Eighth Wonder of the World: The True Story of André the Giant. Artist Shepard Fairey also kept Andre in the public eye with his "Andre the Giant has a Posse" street art campaign.
- Name: Andre the Giant
- Birth Year:
- Birth date: May 19,
- Birth City: Grenoble
- Birth Country: France
- Gender: Male
- Best Known For: Andre the Giant's outsized appearance helped him become a superstar wrestler and a movie star in 'The Princess Bride,' but the hormonal disorder that caused his gigantism also contributed to his early death.
- Industries
- Astrological Sign: Taurus
- Nacionalities
- Death Year:
- Death date: January 28,
- Death City: Paris
- Death Country: France
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- Article Title: Andre the Giant Biography
- Author: Editors
- Website Name: The website
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- Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
- Last Updated: June 7,
- Original Published Date: April 2,