00:00Imagine a person who weighs like an adult reindeer.
00:05As for their height, it is almost like two adults stacked one on the other.
00:10This is exactly what Robert Pershing Wadlow looked like.
00:14This American dude was the tallest person ever recorded, standing at a whopping 8 foot
00:1811.1 inches tall and weighing 439 pounds.
00:24Growing up, Wadlow was always the tallest kid in the room.
00:28At the age of 8, he was already as tall as his dad.
00:31And at the age of 9, he was strong and big enough to carry his own father.
00:36By the time he graduated high school, he had already grown to be 8 foot 4 inches tall.
00:43As for job prospects, he intended to become a lawyer, and he even enrolled in college.
00:48But his height let him have a few side hustles.
00:51First, circus performers that made him a celebrity in no time.
00:55Second, in 1938, he kicked off a promo tour with the International Shoe Company, snagging
01:01free shoes along the way.
01:03While the wasn't about that freak show life, he saw himself as a walking ad for the company.
01:10Because of his huge stature, he needed to wear special braces on his legs to help him walk.
01:15He never used a wheelchair, but walking was definitely a big struggle for him.
01:20Sadly, an infection from a faulty brace led to his untimely demise in 1940.
01:26His coffin was so huge that it took 12 pallbearers and 8 assistants to carry it.
01:32To this day, a life-size statue of Wadlow stands tall in Alton, his hometown.
01:38Throughout his short life, and Robert only lived 22 years, he never stopped growing.
01:44Each year, he would get an extra few inches to his gigantic height.
01:48When he was 21 years old, he passed John Rogan in terms of height, and that was the guy who
01:54had been recorded as the tallest guy ever before Robert came into play.
01:59Rob's predecessor, John Bud Rogan, born in Tennessee, was known as the tallest non-mobile
02:04person ever, measuring 8 feet 9 inches.
02:09His rapid growth started at 13 years old due to gigantism, leading to joint stiffness.
02:15Despite his condition preventing physical labor, Rogan made a living selling portraits and postcards.
02:20He declined offers to join carnivals and sideshows, preferring to maintain his independence.
02:26Rogan used a goat-pulled cart as a wheelchair.
02:29He was known for his deep voice and playful demeanor.
02:33Unlike Robert Wadlow, John Rogan didn't boast a reindeer-like weight.
02:37On the contrary, he only weighed 174 pounds, which is two and a half times less than Robert.
02:46Zheng Jinlian from China rocked the world by becoming the tallest woman ever recorded in
02:50modern times.
02:52Despite her parents and siblings being of average height, she had a gene for towering greatness.
02:57But her stature was the result of a condition.
03:00The thing is, a tumor messed with her hormones and made her shoot up in height.
03:05By age 13, she had already been taller than the tallest guy of the same age.
03:11Zheng managed to graduate even with all the attention her height brought.
03:15People came from far and wide to meet her and gawk at her impressive stature.
03:20Even though doctors suggested surgery to remove the tumor causing her rapid growth, Zheng decided
03:25to keep it.
03:26She didn't want to lose her hair.
03:28She was quite the foodie too, eating tons of dumplings and rice each day to fuel her
03:33body.
03:34Sadly, health issues caught up with her, and she passed away in 1982.
03:39Her height was recorded as 8 feet 2 inches.
03:42She beat out Jane Bunford for the title of the tallest woman to ever walk the earth and
03:47even had a moment as the tallest person alive from 1981 to 1982.
03:54By the way, Jane Bunford was the tallest recognized British person known to date.
03:59At a height of 7 feet 11 inches, she definitely stood out in a crowd.
04:04Born in Birmingham in 1895, Jane was an average Jane until 11 years old.
04:10At that age, she had an accident that changed her life forever.
04:13A head injury damaged her pituitary gland, causing an excess of growth hormone to send
04:19her height skyrocketing.
04:21Due to discomfort caused by her gigantic size, she had to drop out of school.
04:27Although she had opportunities to profit from her unique stature, Jane chose to live a quiet
04:32life.
04:33In her final years, she became a recluse due to the unwanted attention her height brought.
04:38Following joint issues and a severe spinal curvature, Jane passed away at the age of 26.
04:46Hey, I have a quick question for you.
04:48Is height something that can change or not?
04:51It seems like we actually do get a little taller during the day and shrink back down at
04:56night.
04:57Let's thank gravity for this.
04:59But there was this one crazy case where a guy named Adam Rayner was super short at 21,
05:04only 3 feet and 10.5 inches, but then he suddenly started growing like crazy.
05:11By the time he was 32, he was 7 feet 1.75 inches tall.
05:16Unfortunately, all that growth happened so fast that he ended up bedridden for life and didn't
05:21become a basketball star.
05:25Socks can be a real hassle for tall people.
05:28Don Kohler, who wore size 22 shoes, once said his biggest clothing issue was finding socks
05:34that fit.
05:35Luckily, he found a company in Pennsylvania that made custom socks for him.
05:41Don was really tall, one of only 24 people in history to reach over 8 feet tall.
05:47He was known as the world's tallest man from 1969 until he passed away in 1981, having grown
05:53to 8 feet 2 inches.
05:55He had a condition called gigantism, which made him grow abnormally starting from the
05:59age of 10.
06:01Don was born in Denton, Montana, to parents who were taller than average.
06:05He had a twin sister, but she was 5 feet 9 inches.
06:09It was a record-breaking height difference of 2 foot 5 in between twins, as recognized
06:14by the Guinness World Records.
06:16Don worked as a salesman for 25 years using his height as an advantage when meeting with
06:21customers.
06:23If you, too, wear a larger shoe size, you know how frustrating trying to find the perfect
06:27pair can be.
06:29Trencha Kiever from the Netherlands definitely understood the struggle.
06:33Born in 1616, she is rumored to be the tallest woman in history, standing at 9 Amsterdam feet.
06:40Sadly, she passed away at just 17 years old.
06:44Her original shoes, which were over 14 inches in length, European size 54 or American size
06:5022 are still on display.
06:53Her parents even took her to carnivals to make money by showing her off.
06:58Trencha first gained attention when she was 9 years old.
07:01At that time, she was already 6 foot 7 inches tall.
07:05A royal group, including the Bohemian King and his family, visited her in the Hague, curious
07:10about the 9-year-old girl taller than every man in Europe.
07:15The Netherlands is home to some seriously tall folks, with the average height of its residents
07:20being 6 feet.
07:21The US may have produced some behemoths in the past, but the current titles for the tallest
07:26man and woman are held by Turkey.
07:29Meet Rumesa Gelci, Turkey's towering treasure and Guinness World Records queen.
07:35At 24, this 7 foot tall lady is not just the tallest woman alive, but also a front-end web
07:41developer, crime novel enthusiast and swimming pro.
07:46Overcoming challenges with Weaver Syndrome, she's a fighter and a voice for rare conditions.
07:52As of 2024, Sultan Khosin is the world's tallest living man.
07:58Back in 2009, he shot to fame when he was measured by the Guinness World Records.
08:02He was 8 feet 1 inches tall.
08:05Can you believe that?
08:06Only a handful of people in history have ever reached that height.
08:10This Turkish farmer didn't start sprouting up until he was 10 years old.
08:14And get this, everyone in his family is of average height except for him.
08:19He has a condition called pituitary gigantism.
08:22Being super tall definitely has its pros and cons for Sultan.
08:26He can easily help his mom with household tasks, but shopping for clothes and squeezing
08:31into a regular-sized car can be a real challenge.
08:34And playing professional basketball?
08:36Not in the cards, as he's just too tall for the courts.
08:40Sultan also holds the record for the largest hands on a living person.
08:43Man.
08:44.
08:45.
08:46.
08:46.
08:46.
08:47.
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