The chance to grow up big and strong and to live a long life—these are both things that many people want. Very few people, however, get to achieve these things to such an immense measure that they are remembered long after their death. For one reason or another, some people’s bodies are just destined to defy our expectations of human biology. This week, we’re going to be looking at some of these fascinating examples, and also discussing why it might not be as amazing as you’d think to be counted among them.

Let’s start with the man who is about as famous as you can get just by being tall, though it’s for good reason. Robert Wadlow (1918-1940) was an American man who, by the end of his life, measured 8 feet and 11 inches (or 2.72 m) tall. He was the tallest man who ever lived. Wadlow was called the “Giant of Illinois,” and you can probably guess why. Wadlow earned fame through exposure to his ridiculous height in circus attractions. Though he died at only 22, he certainly lived an interesting life. Did you know he was a Freemason?

Here are some other men of titanic proportions. John “Bud” Rogan (1867(?)-1905), also from America, was only two inches shorter than Robert Wadlow when he died at age 38. Rogan’s excessive growth caused him to lose the ability to stand or walk while he was still a teenager, and so he was known to ride atop a cart pulled by goats. If that wasn’t humorous enough, the giant Rogan was said to actually be a rather playful guy.

For some geographical variety, let’s look at Franz Winkelmeier (1860-1887), the Giant of Friedburg-Lengau. Hailing from Austria, Mr. Winkelmeier stood 8 feet and 6 inches (or 2.58 m) tall. Like many other giants, Franz got to meet royalty because of his unique celebrity status. In his final year, he was presented to Queen Victoria of Britain herself.

The title of “tallest woman” is a little more murky, as it’s difficult to pinpoint exact measurements when history is involved. The safest choice would have to be Zeng Jinlian (1964-1982) of China, who stood 8 feet and 1.75 inches (or 2.48 m) tall. Other possible contenders are Ella Ewing (1872-1913), said to be 8 feet and 4 inches (or 2.54 m), and the excessively historical Trijntje Keever (1616-1633) of the Netherlands, alleged to be even slightly taller than that.

If you’re sad that all of these ginormous people are gone, don’t let it get you down—there are plenty of huge people still around today. Turkish farmer Sultan Kösen is the tallest currently living man, standing over 8 feet and 2 inches tall (or 2.51 m). The tallest living woman is Siddiqa Parveen of West Bengal, India, who stands 7 feet and 8 inches (or 2.34 m) tall. Not quite the second coming of Robert Wadlow, but still very impressive.

Before we move on from the tallest, why don’t we give an honorable mention to the opposite end of this spectrum: the shortest. Chandra Bahadur Dangi (1939-2015) was the shortest man in our recorded history, measuring only 1 foot and 9.5 inches tall (or 0.54 m). Amazingly, this Nepali man also managed to live a worthwhile 75 years as the smallest adult man in the world. I think the motivational lesson to be taken from this is that you can do a whole lot with very little (height, that is).

So, who was the person who received the highest number of birthday cakes? Jeanne Calment (1875-1997) was a French woman who had the oldest verified lifespan of any human: 122 years and 164 days. Calment was born only ten years after the American Civil War and yet she lived long enough to, if she so wanted, boot up Super Mario 64 on her Nintendo or watch the final airing episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series. While I find the idea of a 120+ year-old woman watching late-90s television to be endlessly entertaining, I imagine she had other interests.

Jiroemon Kimura (1897-2013) was the oldest living man, reaching an impressive age of 116 years and 54 days. Now we’re getting into the territory of a man born before the Wright brothers did their whole thing who could’ve spent his days watching the newest superhero films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Oh, did I mention he fought in World War I?

But what about the present day? The oldest man today, Juan Vicente Pérez of Venezuela, is over 114 years old at the time of this writing, having been born in 1909. The oldest woman has two years over on him—Maria Branyas, born in San Francisco in 1907, is currently 116 years old. I wonder who would have the better stories to tell?

I mentioned at the start of this post how some of these achievements might not be as wonderful as they can be painted to be. A commonality you may have noticed among the world’s tallest people is that they tend to die young. The medical conditions which boost their growth rate so excessively also tend to contribute to their early demise. Let’s not forget that “Bud” Rogan couldn’t even stand for much of his life because of it. Plus, some people today below seven feet still have trouble with hitting their heads on things, so imagine how much worse it would be when you’re pushing on nine feet!

What about these longest-lived people, then? Jeanne Calment, the eldest supercentenarian of them all, was said to have often asked aloud during her final years why she was still around when all her family had died. We can’t dismiss the fact that Calment outlived both her child and grandchild. Is living so long really worth it if it just means you’ll lose everyone else before it’s your time to go? At the end of the day, everyone is sure to have their own opinion on it.

A lot of people want to stick out, and a lot of people think they wouldn’t mind living 120 years or more. The reality is that these kinds of unique phenomena can make someone’s life much less bearable. That is not to say, of course, that it wouldn’t be a life worth living. The real question is: will we live to see these records broken again in our lifetime? Stay tuned, I suppose.

— r

Further reading:

There’s no additional resources prepared this week, sorry! With that being said, please feel encouraged to go in search of other records similar to the ones we’ve discussed this week. You’ll no doubt find far more than you can commit to memory.