The Titans Among Us: 6 Fascinating Stories of Real Giants

Imagine being so tall that you can work in construction without a ladder, touch the ceiling in your house without even raising a hand, or lift a horse without a problem. That’s all real in the world of giants, and I’m not talking about some fictional characters here.

Robert Pershing Wadlow, aka “The Alton Giant,” was officially the tallest person in recorded history, with a height of 8 feet and 11 inches, about half as tall as a giraffe.. He was born in Alton, Illinois, on February 22, 1918. He wasn’t extraordinarily tall back then but started growing super fast in his first year. Once he turned 6 months, Robert weighed twice as much as others of his age. When he was 6 years old, he went to school wearing the largest youth-size suit which his father found in Chicago. His parents wanted their son to lead a normal life, so he went to a regular school, where the desk had to be modified with wooden blocks so he could be comfortable. After a couple of years, even the adult department wouldn’t have clothes large enough for Wadlow.

At 13, he became the world’s tallest Boy Scout. He was picked first for pretty much any team sport and could easily scope out any trail ahead. But that pretty much were all the perks. His uniform, sleeping bag, and the tent had to be custom-made for him, and he needed around 8,000 calories a day to keep going. In addition to being a scout, Robert loved collecting stamps, enjoyed photography, and played the Hawaiian guitar. After graduating from high school, Robert was admitted to Shurtleff College, where he chose to major in law. Sadly, he couldn’t finish his studies because of health issues and dropped out after just one year.

By that time, the Alton Giant was pretty well-known, and the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus invited him to join their national tour. Wadlow had doubts about accepting that offer because he didn’t want to be mocked. But he had to accept to earn some money to support his family. After the circus tour, he got sponsored by the International Shoe Company, which custom-made shoes sized 37.5 for him. He had officially the largest feet and hands ever. Wadlow went on another tour of the US. Thousands of people came to see him in every town he visited along with his father. In 1940, the Alton Giant was taking part in a parade in Michigan. Because of a problem with his foot, he had to go to the hospital. Sadly, he never got to return to his hometown that he loved so much and passed away at the age of 22 when his height was 8 feet and 11 inches.

So, what made Robert Wadlow so incredibly tall? Doctors couldn’t explain it until he was almost 12. Then, after many examinations, they realized the secret was in one of the glands in his brain [pituitary gland]. It was way more active than in other people and made his body produce a huge amount of human growth hormone. There was nothing they could have done to stop it back then. He lives on in many real-size models at museums across the world. There’s also a life-size statue in Alton to commemorate their most famous resident.

The current Guinness World Record holder for being the tallest living man is Sultan Kösen [suhl-tuhn kow-sn]. He is 8 feet 3 inches tall, that’s about one-and-one-third times as long as a twin-size bed. Sultan was born in Turkey in 1982, and he was of average height, just like his parents and four siblings, until he turned 10. The cause of it was the same as in the Alton Giant’s case.

Sadly, his extraordinary height didn’t let Sultan finish his studies or even join the local basketball club because they decided he would have an obvious unfair advantage. He became a farmer to support his family. His height was actually handy there as he can easily do tasks other people would need a ladder for just standing up. Then, Guinness World Records changed his life as he became famous. In 2010, scientists from the University of Virginia Medical School helped stop Sultan’s growth with their advanced methods. The tallest man alive has become a cultural ambassador for his country. He has visited 127 countries so far and often gets offers from famous brands to work with them. Hollywood producers have even invited him to star in movies. Sultan says he’s happy to be drawing the world’s attention to his home region. The only thing disappointing him is that he still can’t find his true love. That, and not being able to find clothes or shoes of his size or fitting into a regular car.

The tallest woman living, Rumeysa Gelgi [ru-mej-sa gel-gi], is also from Turkey. Her current height is 7ft 0.7in, and her popularity is even greater than that. She also officially has the longest finger, largest hands, and longest back on a living female person. The secret behind all this is a rare genetic condition that sadly makes it impossible for Rumeysa to walk on her own without aid. The girl stays super positive about life and calls her condition an “extreme physical uniqueness.” She is active on Instagram, trying to prove to people who are visually different from the crowd that they should be proud of who they are, even if they get mocked by others. Rumeysa was homeschooled and decided to pursue her childhood dream of working in the tech industry. She is now a self-taught front-end developer.

Anna Haining Bates was born in Canada in 1846. She started growing at a huge speed in her early years and was 7’6’’ tall and weighing 350 lb by the age of 22. Anna loved literature and music, took acting classes, played the piano, and was considered a highly intelligent person. She decided to take the most out of her abnormal height and presented in public. Her height once put her life at risk when she was trapped at Barnum’s museum in a fire.

The windows were too small for her to escape through them, and the stairs were burning. The employees had to break the wall around the window on the third floor and lower Anna to the ground with the help of 18 people towing a rope. Anna met her future husband, Martin Van Buren Bates, at the circus in Canada where she was working. He landed the job as her fellow giant, and the couple soon fell in love and got married. Anna was supposedly slightly taller than her husband. They bought some land and built a house adapted to their height.

Officially the world’s tallest “true giant” was Angus Macaskill, born on the Western Isles northwest of Scotland in the 19th century. No worries, other giants on the list are also legit, it’s just that Angus was the only one whose extraordinary height was natural and not caused by excessive growth hormone. His body was perfectly proportionate, and he also had the superpower of amazing strength. This strength didn’t come with extra self-confidence, though, and people who knew him mentioned that Angus was a well-mannered and soft person. He even got the nickname “Big Boy” in his hometown in Nova Scotia, Canada, where his family moved when he was little. Giant Agnus accepted the invitation to join Barnum’s traveling circus and performed alongside the shortest fully grown man of that time. Macaskill became so famous that Queen Victoria herself called him “The strongest, stoutest, and tallest man to ever enter the palace.”

Matthew McGrory was the tallest actor ever, according to the Guinness World Records. Born in Pennsylvania in 1973, McGrory got a lot of attention from his early days and decided to start a career in entertainment. He made appearances on several popular talk shows and then appeared on the big movie screen. You probably remember him for his role in “Men in Black II.” I guess it’s no surprise that all the roles he got to play were giants, ogres, or incredibly tall guys.