Andre the Giant was considered a literal giant in the wrestling history of professional. Here are a few handpicked Andre the Giant facts that you’ll love to read.
However, there was more about him than his star status or massive and impressive appearance. Discover more by reading the following forty Andre the Giant facts.
Andre The Giant Facts
Andre the Giant was born with humble beginnings.
A child of East European immigrants living in France, Andre was raised on his father’s farm in Ussy-sur-Marne. The records show that he could perform on a par with the other students in school, but he did demonstrate an aptitude for math. After graduating from school, Andre got his first job as a farmhand on his father’s farm, which was where he did the same amount of work as three other workers. In the meantime, he was enrolled in an apprenticeship with an experienced woodworker, and, upon the completion of his apprenticeship, he was offered a position in a farm machinery factory. Machinery.
Andre later confessed that no job he worked in the past gave him any happiness. There was also a claim that as a child, He was extremely interested in playing and watching cricket due to Irish writer Samuel Beckett. Andre was introduced to Beckett when he was studying at school, and Beckett often took Andre and his family members to and from school. The school.
The career of his wrestlers was a fast-growing one following his beginning of his career.
Andre relocated to Paris around 1964. Local wrestler Robert Lageat quickly recognized his potential. Lagat also gave Andre the nickname, Geant Ferre, dubbing him after popular French hero Grand Ferre in 1964, after Andre was introduced to the local wrestling scene. The following year, Andre met his business manager, Frank Valois, who took Andre’s career to the next level by hosting events in Australia, Africa, Britain, Germany, and New Zealand.
Andre later played with the Japanese in Japan in the form of Monster Roussimoff and Michael Nador. In 1971, Andre moved from the United States to Canada and gained a reputation on his own Montreal Forum. Then, his success threatened to end his career since there were no more opponents to fight, and fans became bored with him.
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Andre the Giant’s status as a superstar began when he debuted in the WWWF in 1973.
He was able to do this in a handicap game in Philadelphia amid a friendly match with his fellow Philadelphians Frank Valois and Bull Pometi. The victory earned him the respect of his fans, and his popularity grew following his subsequent match, winning against Buddy Wolfe at Madison Square Gardens in New York City. For the next fifteen years, Andre gained a reputation for never losing a fight or at least not within either the WWWF and its successor to it, the WWF.
The losses included a fight with Don Leo Jonathan in 1972 and a match against Strong Kobayashi also in 1972 as well as Jerry Lawler in 1975. Bobo Brazil was also able to beat his way to a draw in 1976, and so did Ronnie Garvin back in 1978. Andre was also involved in a boxer vs. wrestler match-up against Chuck Wepner in 1976, in a show to accompany Muhammad Ali’s fight with Antonio Inoki.
Vincent McMahon Sr. helped Andre the Giant establish his star status.
McMahon Sr. had Andre perform the role of a massive and unstoppable beast in the ring. His new name, The Giant, helped him. Andre stopped using agile moves such as dropkicks in the new character, although he could have used these moves despite his size and appearance of lack of skill. This could have been beneficial in the long run in that it lessened the strain the sport of wrestling caused upon his body. MacMahon Sr. also recognized the potential dangers to his career caused by exposure similar to what happened to Andre in Canada in the year 1970.
To this end, MacMahon Sr. had Andre frequently traveling to make appearances across the globe. This was to prevent audiences from becoming familiar with his appearance and becoming bored in one location. This also assisted in helping Andre earn money as along with the WWF fees for booking, McMahon Sr. insisted local promoters pay Andre to perform.
He was famous for his wrestler feud against Killer Khan in 1981.
The legend is that the fight began following the time Khan accidentally broke Andre’s ankle while a wrestling match that took place in May. In reality, Andre broke his ankle when he awoke the morning before the match. However, the tale that Khan injured Andre’s ankle was far more intriguing than that of a family accident, and the producers made it the focus of their advertising.
In July of the same year, the two wrestlers faced one another in July of the same year, in a contest that ended in a double disqualification. The fight continued for the subsequent months, finally ending in November, by the Mongolian stretcher fight. This meant that the fight could only be ended when one wrestler had to go to the hospital, which was the fate that came to Khan.
The most well-known wrestling fight included Hulk Hogan, however.
The wrestling historians say it is the most famous wrestler in history, but paradoxically it was only a part of the arena. In the absence of the rings and in their daily lives, Hogan and Andre were both Andre and Hogan knew and treated each other as close friends. Andre even was present at Hogan’s wedding to his former spouse, Linda, as a guest of honor. The fights between the wrestlers were good for publicity, and they continued to keep their fight in the ring until 1980.
As part of their dispute, Hogan played the role of hero in the feud, which Andre was able to counter with a more character that was a villain. The feud was briefly ended in 1982, and Andre started a new fight against Hogan and the Heenan Family. The feud resurfaced in 1987; however, it was with Wrestlemania III and then following Wrestlemania IV, which took place in 1988. On both occasions, Andre contested the WWF World Heavyweight Championship against Andre. The feud ended following Wrestlemania IV but Hogan Andre and Hogan Andre only wrestled one another in non-title matches in 1990.
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Andre the Giant also had wrestlers against The Heenan Family back in the late 1980s.
The Heenan Family was a reference to various wrestlers managed by Bobby the Brain Heenan. One of them, Big John Studd, confronted Andre over who was considered the ultimate Giant of wrestling. This led to several world-class matches and one of the most famous matches in 1984. Studd was able to beat Andre out, with the assistance of Ken Patera, before humiliating Andre by cutting off his hair. Andre was furious with Studd at Wrestlemania I of 1985, following which Studd handed over the prize of $15,000 to the fans.
The feud grew worse following Wrestlemania II when Andre took time off of absence for health reasons. This caused Studd and his partner Kong Bundy to accuse Andre of being cowardly and eventually get Andre banned in 1986 for not being present at an event. Andre returned later in that same year to be the Giant Machine beating Studd and King Kong Bundy repeatedly. The feud ended in 1987 when Andre was a part of his fellow members of the Heenan Family to contest the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in Wrestlemania III.
In a twist, he partnered with Heenan Family member Haku in 1989.
It happened in 1989, and Haku and his partner were promoted by the Colossal Connection to refer to the large bodies of both wrestlers. They soon left their mark, beating The Demolition tag team to win the WWF Tag Team Championship. They lost the championship at Wrestlemania Six in 1989, which led to a dispute between Heenan and Andre.
Heenan hit Andre to the point of causing Andre to hit him again and then knock him down. Haku then tried to take on Andre but was removed from the ring and then slammed by the crowd who stood behind Andre. After a failed attempt to regain the tag team title from Demolition, The Colossal Connection parted ways.
Andre the Giant was a rival for the remainder of his wrestling career.
It also led to a dispute with Jim Duggan after he knocked Andre out using a 2×4 wooden board back in 1988. The result was a series of bouts between them, which resulted in Andre typically beating Duggan. Duggan was also in the crosshairs of Andre’s manager Heenan who had significant influence in the WWF. Andre also was in a fight with Jake Roberts, who discovered that Andre was afraid of snakes.
Roberts openly revealed the news live on television by throwing a live snake at Andre and causing the actor to have a slight heart attack. Roberts also developed a habit of carrying a snake with him to keep Andre from falling off. This resulted in a string of matches that culminated in Wrestlemania V, which took place in 1989. Andre is losing just by the disqualification.
Additionally, he was injured in various ways while working for the WWF.
The most persistently the preexisting condition of acromegaly and gigantism combined with the physical strains of his career in wrestling. This resulted in Andre suffering from constant pain and taking medication for maintenance to reduce the pain. Also, he had to undergo an operation on the back to lessen the stress on his spine. This forced him to put on braces when he wrestled.
Wrestlemania VI witnessed Andre being able to spend the entire event in the ring due to his health problems. We’ve also discussed before the way Andre injured his ankle and also had a heart attack at certain moments during his career in wrestling. The year 1991 was the first time Andre ended up having to withdraw from the Royal Rumble event over a leg injury.
The last chapter of his career in WWF was in 1991. WWF in 1991 was violent.
Following Wrestlemania VII, several managers attempted to bribe Andre into joining them. Each failed but. Heenan suffered a broken hand, and Andre was slapping sensational Sherry. Andre secured Slick into the back of his car. Slick attempted to bribe the driver with Fuji. Fuji ended up with a slice of pie in his mouth. Jimmy Hart later tried to con Andre into a collaboration with Earthquake. However, Andre exposed his scheme publicly.
The result was that Earthquake attacked Andre from behind and caused him to suffer an injury to his knee. The team Hart was on, called the Natural Disasters, tried to take on Andre as he was on crutches in the crowd. Fortunately, two other teams of wrestlers, including The Legion of Doom and the Bushwackers, were there to defend Andre and forced The Natural Disasters to back down.
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His wrestling career was sporadic throughout the 1990s.
Particularly He kept wrestling for All Japan Pro Wrestling and Mexico’s Universal Wrestling Association. Andre was in a partnership with Giant Baba and was a part of three tours every year between 1990 and 1992. Also, he made guest appearances during World Championship Wrestling in 1991. Universal Wrestling Federation in 1991. Then, Andre gave an interview at World Championship Wrestling in 1992.
He also took part in the 20th-anniversary celebration of wrestling on TBS the same year, along with wrestler announcer Gordon Solie. Andre was the last of his appearances as a wrestler on Mexican Lucha Libre alongside Bam Bigelow. His final matches were held in Japan and Giant Baba and Rusher Kimura against Haruka Eigen, Masanobu Fuchi, and Motoshi Okuma.
Andre the Giant made his famous film debut with the part in the role of Fezzik in the movie The Princess Bride.
Those who aren’t familiar with wrestling learn the story of Andre the Giant and imagine Fezzik. In reality, Andre described playing Fezzik as his favorite character in acting, and his performance on-screen shows his enthusiasm. A gentle big Fezzik is an undercover thug working for Vizzini. However, although Fezzik does not have a problem doing things that violate rules, he is known to dislike being dirty.
The actor is also famous for his close relationship with the swordsmanship master Inigo Montoya. They went to great lengths initially to save his life and assist him in his quest for vengeance against his father. Fezzik later aids Westley in rescuing Buttercup from the villainous Prince Humperdinck in a bizarre way, even though he was part of the team that helped Vizzini kidnap Buttercup at the beginning of the plot.
He also appeared in other T.V. and film series and films.
The television shows Andre has appeared on included B.J. and The Bear, The Fall Guy, The Greatest American Hero, and Zorro. Alongside The Princess Bride, Andre also appeared in the film Conan the Destroyer specifically, as the god with horns Dagoth. The role saw Andre become close to Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played the character of Conan.
Andre was also a part of Micki & Maude and in Micki & Maude as himself and was recognized by his birth name Andre Rousimmoff. Other T.V. and film series he appeared in are Symphorien and Les Brillant. I Like to hurt people along with The Goonies “R” Good enough.
Andre The Giant also earned the unofficially known as The Most Drunkest Drinker on Earth.
He was awarded the title after drinking 41 Liters of beer in just six hours. Mike Graham later confirmed it to be true on WWE Legends of Wrestling. In actuality, he said that Andre did drink more than that and, in fact, drank the equivalent of 73 Liters. The Fabulous Moolah even said that Andre drank 127 beers at one time before falling asleep in the hotel lobby. The hotel staff was incapable of moving Andre due to his size and were forced to leave him lying on the floor until he could wake up completely on his own.
In one scene during the making of the film Princess Bride, Andre was once a drunker, and this time, he was over a person. The subsequent incident led the NYPD to send an officer to track him to avoid an incident similar to the one in. But, his friends have revealed that Andre did not drink to cure alcoholism, but rather to manage the chronic anxiety he experienced during the latter years of his existence.
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The people who knew him said he was a kind gentleman.
Particularly, he had an estate located in North Carolina, in which he resided when he wasn’t performing an event or going to an event. Andre personally looked after his animals and cattle with a degree of affection that many people do not have from an enormous man. He also was a proponent of paying his cost not only when he dined with a close friend as well as when he was the guest of honor.
Arnold Schwarzenegger even recalled a moment when he dined with Andre as well as Wilt Chamberlain. Schwarzenegger attempted to get Chamberlain to divert Andre as he went to the bank. Andre was able to see through the scam and gently transported Schwarzenegger to his vehicle before instructing him to stay there until Andre paid the bill.
Andre the Giant was only 46 years old at the time of his demise.
It happened while he was asleep, in the morning on Jan 27, 1993, at a Hotel in Paris. Andre was originally in Paris to attend his father’s funeral. Then he decided to stay there until his mother’s birthday. According to his close friends, Andre played cards with them at night on January 26 before returning to his bedroom at 1 in the morning.
When he didn’t show up at the beginning of the day, the hotel’s manager was able to visit Andre in the afternoon. They found only the body of Andre. Andre’s family had originally had planned to place him in a grave near his father’s grave, but changed their minds following the will reading. As per Andre’s wishes, the family sent his body to his home in the USA to be cremated, and then his ashes were scattered on his ranch, which he loved so much situated in North Carolina.
Later, he made a number of posthumous appearances.
In particular, wrestling-themed games usually contain Andre as an afterlife playable character. The first games to use this feature are Virtual Pro Wrestling 64, WWF No Mercy, and The Legends of Wrestling series of video games. WWE published a biography on DVD of Andre in 2005, appropriately called Andre The Giant. Publisher Lion Forge Comics later produced an illustrated novel about Andre in the year 2015, Andre the Giant: Closer to Heaven.
The graphic novel was later given an adaptation for film in the year 2016, with the help of Andre’s child Robin. Recently, HBO also produced a documentary film on Andre in the year 2018. It was appropriately named Andre The Giant.
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His legacy endures decades even after his death.
In addition to his appearances in posthumous shows, Andre has become the main character or the basis for a variety of timeless works. WWE is one example. It has included one of Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royale at every Wrestlemania event from 2014 onwards. The prize for the winner, which is known as”the Andre the Giant Memorial Trophy is even decorated with a gold statue of Andre himself.
Capcom even created a new character from the Street Fighter series of games following Andre who was named Hugo. Similar to Andre, Hugo comes from France and is even known under the name of Andore. Hugo first made an appearance on the screen in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, released in 1999, and has been featured on each Street Fighter game since.
