30 Vintage Photos
Andre the Giant and his dog in 1983.
Wrestler Andre the Giant stood 7 feet, 4 inches tall and weighed 520 pounds — that’s a big man. His massive size was caused by an excess of growth hormone, a condition known as gigantism. It means “being a giant,” more or less. The dude was huge and he used his size to his advantage in the wrestling ring, where he towered over his rivals (who were very large men themselves). Andre the person was less fearsome than his wrestling persona. His career had made him rich and he was famously generous, always insisting on paying for dinner. He was also famously, uh, thirsty, and known to consume unbelievable quantities of beer or wine. But Andre — who had been born Andre Roussimoff in France — was perhaps most comfortable away from the crowds, on his ranch in North Carolina, among his cattle and dogs. Andre died of heart failure in a Paris hotel room in 1993, at the age of 46.
Wrestler Andre the Giant stood 7 feet, 4 inches tall and weighed 520 pounds — that’s a big man. His massive size was caused by an excess of growth hormone, a condition known as gigantism. It means “being a giant,” more or less. The dude was huge and he used his size to his advantage in the wrestling ring, where he towered over his rivals (who were very large men themselves). Andre the person was less fearsome than his wrestling persona. His career had made him rich and he was famously generous, always insisting on paying for dinner. He was also famously, uh, thirsty, and known to consume unbelievable quantities of beer or wine. But Andre — who had been born Andre Roussimoff in France — was perhaps most comfortable away from the crowds, on his ranch in North Carolina, among his cattle and dogs. Andre died of heart failure in a Paris hotel room in 1993, at the age of 46.
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