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Andre the Giant

Nickname: The 8th Wonder of the World

Height: 7' 4"

Weight: 540 lbs

From: Grenoble, France

Birthday: May 19th

Pro Debut: 1964

Aliases: Andre "The Butcher" Rousimoff, Geant Ferre, Jean Ferre, Monster Roussimoff, Giant Machine, Monster Eiffel Tower, Andre the French Giant

Feds Worked For: TSW, WWWF, NWA, AWA, WWF, WCCW, MSW, Florida, All-Japan Pro Wrestling (Japan), Canada, IWA, World Wrestling Council (Puerto Rico)

Finisher: Bodyslam

Signature Moves: Sitting on his opponent, Knife Edge Chops, Bearhug, Headbutt, Choke, Hipdrop, Elbow Drop, Tombstone Piledriver, Big Boot, Splash,

Career Highlights: -Australasian Tag Champion (w/ Ron Miller)
-Florida Tag Team Champion (w/ Dusty Rhodes)
-IWA Tag Champion (w/ Michael Nador)
-TSW United States Tag Team Champion (w/ Dusty Rhodes)
-WWF World Champion
-WWF World Tag Team Champion (w/ Haku)

Affiliates: Bobby Heenan, Frank Valois, Dusty Rhodes, Haku, Tim White, Lou Albano, K. Y. Wakamatsu, Ted DiBiase

Notable Feuds: Blackjack Mulligan, John Studd, Ken Patera, King Kong Bundy, Bobby Heenan, Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Jake Roberts, Jim Duggan, Ultimate Warrior, Demolition, The Sheik, Abdullah the Butcher, Stan Hansen, Ernie Ladd, Killer Khan, Kamala

Other Facts: -Andre's parents were both over 6' tall.
-Andre suffered from acromegaly, or "giantism", a endocrynological disorder. It causes the body to secrete excessive amounts of growth hormones and produces continual growth. It especially effects the head, hands, and feet. Andre reportedly inherited the disease from his grandfather, a Bulgarian who stood 7'8".
-When André was young, he could not fit on a normal school bus and had to be driven to school. As his parents were unable to afford a car of their own, his neighbor, famed playwright Samuel Beckett, drove him every day
-Left home at the tender age of 14, stood 6'3" and weighed over 200 pounds.
-Worked at a furniture store in Paris, France until he was 17, when he was discovered by Lord Alfred Hayes.
-A rumour of urban legend proportions persisted that he had been offered a Pro Football contract with the Washington Redskins and seriously considered it, but turned it down when he realised he could make more money wrestling. This story turned out to be false, as Andre was never connected any further with the Redskins than having been seen by the team coach, George Allen, at a promotional event. Allen briefly considered offering him a tryout, but never followed through on it.
-Became the largest box-office attraction the sport has ever known.
-Wrestled much of his early career as “Jean Ferre”, which translates as “Giant Ferre”, based on a French lumberjack folk hero. He continued to use that name for many years until he was booked by Dick the Bruiser, who felt that that name sounded too much like “Giant Fairy” and asked his real first name. He was the first to name him “Andre the Giant”.
-Sometimes billed as “The Polish Giant”.
-Was cast as "Bigfoot" for two highly rated episodes of "The Six Million Dollar Man" in 1976. He also appeared in episodes of "B.J. and the Bear", "The Greatest American Hero" & "The Fall Guy".
-Landed a co-starring role in the very successful film "The Princess Bride" as the gentle giant character Fezzik. He also had roles in "Conan the Destroyer", "Micki & Maude" and "Trading Mom".
-Was the first wrestler ever to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
-Reportedly drank 14 bottles of wine before his match with Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania III.
-Andre's victory over Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Title on "The Main Event", broadcast January 5, 1988, is the most watched television event ever, with approximately 33 million viewers.
-His last public appearance (in a wrestling setting), was at the celebration for 20 years of NWA/WCW wrestling on TBS.
-Washington Redskins head coach George Allen once offered Andre The Giant a contract to play professional football
-Andre downed 119 bottles of beer in one sitting.
-Andre was once estimated that he consumed 7,000 calories a day in alcohol alone.
-Was "suspended" from WWF and donned a mask as Giant Machine. It was obvious to everyone that it was in fact Andre but the WWF announcers (Gene Okerlund, Vince McMahon, & Gorilla Monsoon) sold it like it was a new Japanese masked wrestler to WWF.
-To buildup his match at Wrestlemania 3 the WWF made an extra large belt for Andre. The story was that the WWF had doubts that Hulk Hogan could beat Andre so a belt was made for him to wear after his title win. The belt was shown on Roddy Piper's Pit and Jake Robert's Snake Pit. The WWF still has the belt locked in a safe at WWF Headquarters.
-Is the inspiration for 2 video game characters: Final Fight's "Andore" and Street Fighter 3's "Hugo"
-Former member of The Heenan Family (WWF version)
-Voted Most Popular Wrestler by the readers of Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 1977 and 1982
-Voted Most Hated Wrestler by the readers of Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 1988
-Won the Match of Year Award as voted by the readers of Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 1981 (vs. Killer Khan) and 1988 (vs. Hulk Hogan)
-Ranked # 116 in the 1991 PWI 500
-Ranked # 491 in the 1992 PWI 500
-Passed away on January 27, 1993 due to a heart attack in a hotel room in Paris at the age of 46. He was in town attending the funeral of his father two weeks before.
-Even in death, André was memorable. Due to his immense size, no crematorium in France could accommodate his final wishes to be cremated within 48 hours of his passing. Instead, André would lie in state for nearly a week while preparations were made to include a custom casket. André's body was to be flown to North Carolina, and airlines had to reshuffle some schedules and cargo to be able to be under the weight limit with André on board. His ashes weighed 19 pounds, nearly twice what a normal-sized human's ashes do. His ashes were scattered under around his favorite garden on his North Carolina ranch.
-Andre, who never married, lived most of the year on a 200-acre ranch in Ellerbe, NC
-When The Big Show (then known as The Giant) debuted in WCW in 1996, he claimed to be the son of Andre. He later refuted that claim, choosing instead to try and be Andre's legacy.
-WWE (then WWF) released a DVD set featuring Andre the Giant entitled "Andre the Giant: Larger Than Life" His episode of the TV series "Biography" on A&E bore the same title.
-Subject of the movie "Andre: Heart of the Giant" released in 2008
-Posthumously inducted into the WWE (then WWF) Hall of Fame in 1993. He was the first ever inductee into their Hall of Fame and the only inductee in 1993.
-Posthumously inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996
-Posthumously inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in 2002
-Posthumously inducted into the International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2021