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The beginning and bizarre end to WWF icon Andre the Giant's wrestling career on what would've been his 70th birthday

Posted: May 19th 2016 By: Brian Lisi

Seventy years ago, a giant entered the world.

Born May 19, 1946, in Grenoble in southeast France, Andre Rene Roussimoff made his mark on the world of wrestling as Andre the Giant, helping to define the WWF's identity with his overpowering presence and athleticism.

Already 6-foot-3 by the time he was 12, Roussimoff's size made him perfect for working on his father's farm. Before dropping out in the eighth grade, he would get driven to school by neighbor and avant-garde playwright Samuel Beckett because he couldn't fit on the bus. Roussimoff would sit in the back of Beckett's truck and the two would talk about cricket.

In his 1981 Sports Illustrated profile of Roussimoff, Terry Todd describes how the grappling goliath left home at 14 "to seek his fortune." He would quickly go from moving furniture to playing rugby with grown men.

Thanks to a degree of happenstance, Roussimoff would become a professional wrestler when he was 17. While working out at a gym, some wrestlers took interest in him and gave him some training. Eventually, he would have his chance in the ring when one wrestler got injured and a replacement was needed. From there, his success could not be stopped.

"By his early 20s," Todd writes, "he had wrestled in Algeria, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, England, Scotland and most of non-Communist Europe."

Using the moniker Jean Ferre, Roussimoff came to North America in 1971, doing matches around Quebec. As crowds lessened, a friend was able to set up a meeting in New York City with Vince McMahon Sr.

"I simply wasn't prepared for how he looked up close," McMahon told Todd. "He was unlike anything I'd ever seen before, and I knew he could become the number one draw in wrestling."

Together, McMahon's backing and guidance helped Roussimoff achieve unparalleled success while the grappling goliath in turn brought out the crowds. In 1973, at the age of 27, Roussimoff would make his debut with the World Wide Wrestling Federation, newly christened with a name that would define his existence in the ring: Andre the Giant.

From Hulk Hogan to Jake "The Snake" Roberts and the Ultimate Warrior, Roussimoff would stand tall in the squared circle and, subsequently, the WWF ? now called WWE ? for two decades, not to mention fights around the world, including one brawl with professional boxer Chuck Wepner.

Roussimoff with Hulk Hogan, the two promoting their upcoming bout on NBC?s "The Main Event." Their feud saw the two gladiators fight in Shea Stadium in front of 36,295 people. Roussimoff with Hulk Hogan, the two promoting their upcoming bout on NBC?s "The Main Event." Their feud saw the two gladiators fight in Shea Stadium in front of 36,295 people. (RICHARD DREW/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Sadly, the pituitary disorder responsible for his immense stature and, consequently, his fame was the catalyst for his all-too-early demise. While the story goes that he disproved a doctor's prediction that he wouldn't live past 40, Roussimoff spent his remaining days in a wheelchair or on crutches when he wasn't performing in a match in Mexico or Japan.

In his final TV appearance in the United States, showing up to see his old friends at the "Clash of the Champions XX," Roussimoff can be seen standing up but only with the help of his crutches, the Giant still flashing a smile and saying he's "very happy to be back here" in his deep as the Mariana Trench voice.

WWE wrestler Enzo Amore injured live on TV during tag team match
1613 Chuck Wepner comparing his fist with Andre "The Giant" Roussimoff at a New York press conference Tuesday, May 4, 1976. Roussimoff had agreed to fight Wepner in a mixed wrestler boxer bout. It went as well as a mosquito trying to take down a refrigerator. (Marty Lederhandler/AP)

His last matches would be fought with All Japan Pro Wrestling and Mexico's Universal Wrestling Association. What is believed to be his second to last match shows the titan sluggishly moving around the ring, doing his best to sell what moves he could still pull off. At the very least, the fight possessed a good deal of nostalgia for him, his fellow fighters being the same men he first fought with in his 1974 tour of Japan, according to the video's description.

Whether through his work in the ring or his scene-stealing performance in "The Princess Bride" as Fezzik, Roussimoff led a life both bolstered and dictated by his appearance. It was a tradeoff that often left him fully aware of his isolation.

"People never seem to realize that I might get tired of being asked how tall I am or how much I weigh," he told Todd. "So many questions. That's why I go to restaurants in the middle of the afternoon or late at night. I want to be polite, and to make a nice impression, but sometimes it is hard.

"I would give much money to be able to spend one day per week as a man of regular size. I would shop, and I would go to the cinema, and drive around in a sports car and walk down Fifth Avenue and stare at the other people for a change."

While in Paris to attend his father's funeral, Roussimoff died in his sleep of congestive heart failure on Jan. 27, 1993. He was found by his chauffeur.