André the Giant Andre the Giant ( May 19 , 1946 - January 27 , 1993 ) was a professional wrestler and actor , born André René Roussimoff in Coulommiers , France . He was at least 6 ' 10 " tall , and was usually billed at over 7 ' tall . His great size was a result of excessive growth hormone , a condition known as pituitary gigantism , and led to him being dubbed " The Eighth Wonder of the World " . In the World Wrestling Federation ( WWF ) , Roussimoff is a one - time WWF Champion and a one - time WWF World Tag Team Champion . In 1993 , he was the first inductee into the WWF Hall of Fame . Early life . André René Roussimoff was born in France , of Bulgarian and Polish descent . He was the third of five children . As a child , he was referred to by his parents as Dédé and very early on displayed symptoms of his acromegaly , reaching a height of six feet and weight of 240 pounds by age 12 . Roussimoff was a good student but left school after 8th grade because he did not feel having a high school education was necessary to live and work on a farm that was not his own . As an adolescent , he worked on the farm , completed an apprenticeship in woodworking , then worked in a factory that manufactured engines for hay balers , but none of these jobs brought him any satisfaction . Professional wrestling career . Early career . At 18 years of age , Roussimoff moved to Paris and was taught the art of professional wrestling by a local promoter who knew there would be good money in André ' s future . Roussimoff trained at night and worked as a mover during the day in order to pay living expenses . Roussimoff was billed as " Géant Ferré " , taken from the name of a mythical French giant , and began his career wrestling in Paris and surrounding areas . Montreal - native promoter and wrestler , Frank Valois , met Roussimoff in 1966 and became his business manager and close adviser . For the next few years , Roussimoff began making a name for himself wrestling in England , Germany , New Zealand and Africa . Roussimoff made his Japan debut in 1970 , billed as " Monster Roussimoff " , wrestling for International Wrestling Enterprise . Wrestling there as both a singles and tag team competitor , he quickly won the company ' s tag team championship alongside Michael Nador . It was during Roussimoff ' s time in Japan when doctors first informed him that he suffered from acromegaly , a hormonal disorder , which can lead to gigantism . After his stint in Japan , Roussimoff moved to Montreal , Canada . He became an immediate success , regularly selling out the Montreal Forum . However , promoters eventually ran out of plausible opponents to fight him and , as his novelty wore off , gate receipts dwindled . In 1972 , Roussimoff wrestled numerous times for Verne Gagne ' s American Wrestling Association ( AWA ) as a special attraction until Valois reached out to Vince McMahon , Sr . , founder of the World Wide Wrestling Federation ( WWWF ) for help . McMahon suggested a couple of changes to Roussimoff ' s gimmick . He felt Roussimoff should be portrayed as a large , immovable monster . To enhance his significant size McMahon discouraged Roussimoff from performing maneuvers such as dropkick s , as he had been doing due to his natural athleticism . McMahon also began billing Roussimoff as " André the Giant " and set up a travel - intensive schedule , loaning him to wrestling territories all over the world , so he would not wear out his welcome in any one area . To receive André , promoters had to guarantee André a certain amount of money , as well as pay McMahon ' s WWWF a booking fee . World Wide Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Federation . Face run ( 1973 – 1987 ) . On 26 March 1973 , André made his WWWF debut as a fan favorite , defeating Buddy Wolfe in New York ' s Madison Square Garden . In 1982 , Vince McMahon , Sr . sold the World Wrestling Federation ( which had dropped " Wide " from its name in 1979 ) to his son , Vince McMahon , Jr . . As McMahon began to expand his newly acquired promotion to the national level , he required his wrestlers to appear exclusively for him . McMahon signed André to these terms in 1984 , although he still allowed the Giant to work in Japan for New Japan Pro Wrestling ( NJPW ) . André was one of WWF ' s most beloved " babyfaces " throughout the 1970s and early 1980s . As such , Gorilla Monsoon insisted that André was never defeated for 15 years by pinfall or submission prior to WrestleMania III . This , however , is not true . André actually had lost cleanly in matches outside of the parameters of WWF ; a pinfall loss in Mexico to Canek in 1984 and a submission loss in Japan to Antonio Inoki in June 1986 . He also went sixty - minute time limit draws with the two other major world champions of the day , Harley Race and Nick Bockwinkel . One of André ' s feuds pitted him against " the Mongolian Giant " Killer Khan . According to the storyline , Khan had snapped André ' s ankle during a match on May 2 , 1981 , in Rochester , New York by leaping off the top rope and crashing down upon it with his knee - drop . In reality , André had broken his ankle getting out of bed the morning before the match . The injury and subsequent rehabilitation was worked into the existing André / Khan storyline . After a stay at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston , André returned with payback on his mind . The two battled on July 20 , 1981 at Madison Square Garden in a match that resulted in a double disqualification . Their feud continued through the summer and fall as fans filled arenas up and down the east coast to witness their matches . On November 14 , 1981 at the Philadelphia Spectrum , the feud culminated when André decisively defeated Khan in what was billed as a " Mongolian Stretcher Match " , in which the loser must be taken to the dressing room on a stretcher . Another feud involved a man who considered himself to be " the true giant " of wrestling : Big John Studd . Throughout the early to mid - 1980s , André and Studd fought all over the world , battling to try and determine who the real giant of wrestling was . In December 1984 , Studd took the feud to a new level , when he and partner Ken Patera knocked out André during a televised tag team match and proceeded to cut off André ' s hair . After gaining revenge on Patera , André met Studd in a " Body Slam Challenge " at the first WrestleMania , held March 31 , 1985 at Madison Square Garden in New York City . André slammed Studd to win the match and collect the $ 15 , 000 prize , then proceeded to throw cash to the fans before having the bag stolen from him by Studd ' s manager , Bobby " The Brain " Heenan . The following year , at WrestleMania 2 on 7 April 1986 , André continued to display his dominance by winning a twenty - man battle royal that featured top NFL stars and wrestlers . André last eliminated Bret Hart to win the contest . Afterward , André continued his feud with Studd and King Kong Bundy . André was suspended after a no - show ( in reality , he needed time off to film " The Princess Bride " ) ; he returned under a mask as " The Giant Machine " part of a team with " Big Machine " ( Robert Windham ) and " Super Machine " ( Bill Eadie ) ( The Machines gimmick was copied from New Japan Pro Wrestling character " Super Strong Machine " , played by Japanese wrestler Junji Hirata ) . Soon afterward , Giant Machine disappeared , and André was reinstated , to the approval of Bobby Heenan . Heel run ( 1987 – 1990 ) . André was turned heel in early 1987 so that he could face Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in the main event of WrestleMania III . In January 1987 , Hogan was presented a trophy for being the WWF World Heavyweight Champion for three years . André came out to congratulate him . Shortly afterward , André was presented a slightly smaller trophy for being " the only undefeated wrestler in wrestling history . " In actuality , André had suffered a handful of countout and disqualification losses in WWF but had never been pinned or forced to submit in a WWF ring . Hogan came out to congratulate André and ended up being the focal point of the interview . A visibly annoyed André walked out in the midst of Hogan ' s speech . Then , on an edition of " Piper ' s Pit " , Hogan was confronted by Bobby Heenan . Heenan announced that his new protege was André , who then challenged Hogan to a title match at WrestleMania III , ripping the T - shirt and crucifix from Hogan . At WrestleMania III , he was billed at 520 lb ( 240 kg ) and the stress of such immense weight on his bones and joints resulted in constant pain . After recent back surgery , he was also wearing a brace underneath his wrestling singlet . Hogan won the match after body slamming André , followed by Hogan ' s running leg drop finisher . Years later , Hogan claimed that André was so heavy , he felt more like 700 lb ( 320 kg ) , and that he actually tore his latissimus dorsi muscle slamming him . Another famous story about the match is that no one knew if André would lose the match . André had agreed to lose the match some time before , mostly for health reasons , though he almost pinned Hogan ( albeit unintentionally ) in the early goings of the match . Contrary to popular belief , it was not the first time that Hogan had successfully bodyslammed André in a WWF match . A then - heel Hogan bodyslammed a then - face André early in a match in Hamburg , Pennsylvania on 13 September 1980 , though André was much lighter and more athletic at the time . This , of course , took place back in the territorial days of wrestling three years before WWF began its national expansion ( André had also previously allowed Harley Race , El Canek , and Stan Hansen to slam him . ) By the time WrestleMania III had rolled around , the WWF had gone national , giving more meaning to the André - Hogan match that took place then . The feud between André and Hogan simmered during the summer of 1987 , even as Roussimoff ' s health declined . The feud would begin heating up again when each wrestler was named the captain of rival teams at the inaugural Survivor Series event . André ' s team won the main event after André pinned Bam Bam Bigelow . In the meantime , " The Million Dollar Man " Ted DiBiase failed to persuade Hogan to sell him the WWF World Championship . After failing to defeat Hogan in a subsequent series of matches , DiBiase turned to André to win it for him . Acting as his hired gun , André won the WWF title from Hogan on 5 February 1988 in a match where it was later revealed appointed referee Dave Hebner was " detained backstage " , and a replacement who DiBiase paid to get plastic surgery to look like Dave ( in reality , his twin brother Earl Hebner ) , made a three count on Hogan while his shoulders were off the mat . After winning , André " sold " the title to DiBiase ; the transaction was declared invalid by then - WWF President Jack Tunney and the title was vacated . This was shown on WWF ' s NBC program " The Main Event " . At WrestleMania IV , André and Hulk Hogan fought to a double disqualification in a WWF title tournament match ( with the idea in the storyline saying that André was again working on DiBiase ' s behalf in giving DiBiase a clearer path in the tournament ) . Afterward , André and Hogan ' s feud died down after a steel cage match held at " WrestleFest " on 31 July 1988 in Milwaukee . He and DiBiase also wrestled Hogan and " Macho Man " Randy Savage in the main event of SummerSlam ; the DiBiase - André team lost , despite apparently having referee Jesse " the Body " Ventura on their side . 1988 - 1990 : Feuds with Jake " the Snake " Roberts , Ultimate Warrior ; forming the The Colossal Connection . In addition to appearances that built toward the Megabucks - Megapowers match at SummerSlam , Andre was also involved during the summer of 1988 in a feud with " Hacksaw " Jim Duggan . The feud began on " WWF Superstars of Wrestling " ( taped March 9 at an event in Winston - Salem , North Carolina , and aired shortly after WrestleMania IV ) when — after Andre easily dispatched jobber Brian Costello in a singles match — Duggan came to the ring and challenged Andre to a match . Andre scoffed at Duggan and pretended to turn to walk away , but suddenly he grabbed Duggan by the throat and headbutted him repeatedly , causing Duggan to bleed from the mouth ; a reeling Duggan got close enough to his 2 - by - 4 wooden plank to grab it and strike Andre on the head ( as Andre was rearing back to hit with another headbutt ) ; Andre was briefly knocked unconscious , but when he came to , he went into a fit of rage , attacking referees , ring officials , medics and a cameraman . Andre dominated the resulting series of matches throughout the spring and summer , until the feud was de - emphasized in anticipation of SumerSlam . . André ' s next major feud was against Jake " The Snake " Roberts . In this storyline , it was said André was deathly afraid of snakes , something Roberts exposed on " Saturday Night ' s Main Event " when he threw his snake , Damien , on the frightened André ; as a result , André suffered a kayfabe mild heart attack and vowed revenge . During the next few weeks , Roberts frequently walked to ringside during André ' s matches , causing him to run from the ring in fright ( since he knew what was inside the bag ) . Throughout their feud ( which culminated at WrestleMania V ) , Roberts constantly used Damien to gain a psychological edge over the much larger and stronger André . In 1989 , André and the returning Big John Studd briefly reprised their feud , this time with Studd as a face and André as the heel . Later , during the late summer and fall of 1989 , André engaged in a brief feud ( almost entirely consisting of house show s ( non - televised events ) , save for a SNME title defense ) with then - Intercontinental champion The Ultimate Warrior . The younger Warrior , WWF ' s rising star , regularly squashed the aging André in an attempt to showcase his star quality and promote him as the " next big thing " . In the fall of 1989 , André was joined with fellow Heenan Family member Haku to form a new tag team called The Colossal Connection , in part to fill a void left by the departure of Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson ( The Brain Busters , who were also members of Heenan ' s stable ) from the WWF , and also to continue to keep the aging André in the main event spotlight . The Colossal Connection immediately targeted WWF Tag Team Champions Demolition ( who had recently won the belts from the Brain Busters ) . At a television taping on December 13 , 1989 , the Colossal Connection defeated Demolition to win the titles . André and Haku successfully defended their titles , mostly against Demolition , until WrestleMania VI on April 1 , 1990 , when Demolition took advantage of a mistimed move by the champions to regain the belts . After the match , a furious Heenan blamed André for the title loss and after shouting at him slapped him in the face ; an angry André responded with a slap of his own that sent Heenan staggering from the ring . André also caught Haku ' s kick attempt , sending him reeling from the ring as well , prompting loud cheers for André for the first time in three years . André went into the match as a heel , but left as a face . Shortly before WrestleMania VI , Andre met Hogan one last time in the ring , as part of a tag team match at a non - televised house show pitting the Colossal Connection against Hogan and the Big Bossman . It was a non - title match , and Hogan and Bossman won after Hogan pinned Haku . Sporadic appearances . André continued to make appearances in the WWF throughout 1990 and 1991 . He came to the aid of The Big Bossman in his WrestleMania VII match against Mr . Perfect . His last major WWF storyline following WrestleMania VII had the major heel managers ( Bobby Heenan , Sensational Sherri , Slick , and Mr . Fuji ) trying to recruit André one - by - one , only to be turned down in various humiliating ways ( i . e . Heenan had his hand crushed , Sherri received a spanking , Slick got locked in the trunk of the car he was offering to André and Mr Fuji got a pie in his face ) . Finally , Jimmy Hart appeared live on WWF Superstars to announce that he successfully signed André to tag - team with Earthquake . However , when asked to confirm by Gene Okerlund , André denied the claims . This led to Earthquake attacking André from behind ( injuring his knee ) . Jimmy Hart would later get revenge for the humiliation by secretly signing Tugboat and forming The Natural Disasters . This led to André ' s final major WWF appearance at SummerSlam ' 91 , where he seconded The Bushwhackers in their match against the Disasters . He also made an appearance later in the year to help The British Bulldog who had just won a Battle Royal in London . His last U . S . television appearance was in a brief interview on World Championship Wrestling ' s ( WCW ) " " special that aired on TBS on 2 September 1992 . All Japan Pro Wrestling ( 1990 – 1992 ) . After WrestleMania VI , Andre spent the rest of his career in All Japan Pro Wrestling , mainly teaming up with Giant Baba . He wrestled his final match in December 1992 . Acting career . André branched out into acting in the 1970s and 1980s , making his acting debut playing a Sasquatch ( " Bigfoot " ) on the 1970s television series " The Six Million Dollar Man " . He went on to appear in other television shows , including " The Greatest American Hero " , " B . J . and the Bear " , and " The Fall Guy " . He also participated in an episode of " Zorro " . Towards the end of his career , André also starred in several movies . He had an uncredited appearance in the 1984 film — " Conan the Destroyer " , as Dagoth , the resurrected horned giant god who is killed by Conan ( Arnold Schwarzenegger ) . But he appeared most notably as Fezzik ( his favorite role ) in the 1987 film " The Princess Bride " . Both the film and Andre ' s performance have retained a devoted following . In his final film , he appeared in something of a cameo role as a circus giant in the comedy " Trading Mom " , which was not released until the year after his death . Legacy . In 1993 when the then - World Wrestling Federation created the WWF Hall of Fame , André the Giant was the first inductee ( and the only 1993 inductee ) . André was the inspiration for the 1998 film " My Giant " , written by his friend Billy Crystal , whom he had met during the filming of " The Princess Bride " . Paul Wight , better known as The Big Show , more similar in body structure to André than any other wrestler since André ' s death , was originally billed as the son of André the Giant during his stint in WCW ( when he was known as simply The Giant ) despite no biological relation . While also suffering from acromegaly , unlike André , Wight did get surgery on his pituitary gland in the early 1990s , which successfully halted the progress of his condition . The former wrestler Giant González suffered from problems similar to those that André had near the end of his life and died in September 2010 due to diabetes complications . André is cited and impersonated in the comedy film " I Love You , Man " . He is also cited in the Eminem song " Crack a Bottle " in the lyrics " Back with Andre the Giant , mister elephant tusk , picture us and you ' ll be another one to bite the dust " . Andre is also cited in the movie " The 40 Year Old Virgin " when the protagonist quotes a woman ( actually a transvestite ) he met who " had hands like Andre The Giant . " The OBEY brand icon originated from a stencil that artist Shepard Fairey had created based upon a photo of Andre the Giant that Fairey had found in a newspaper . Capcom ' s video game character Hugo ( known as " Andore " in Final Fight ) is based on him . André appears himself as a game boss along Ted DiBiase , fighting as their real - life tag team " The Mega Bucks " , in the 1989 arcade game " WWF Superstars " . On 25 January 2005 WWE released " André The Giant " , a DVD focusing on the career of André . The DVD is a reissue of the out - of - print " André The Giant " VHS made by Coliseum Video in 1985 , with commentary by Michael Cole and Tazz replacing Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura ' s commentary on his WrestleMania match with Big John Studd . The video is hosted by Lord Alfred Hayes . Later matches , including André ' s battles against Hulk Hogan while a heel , are not included on this DVD . Personal life . Roussimoff had one daughter , Robin Christensen , who was born in 1979 . The disease that granted him his immense size eventually began to take its toll on his body . By the late 1980s , André was in constant , near - crippling pain , and his heart struggled to pump blood throughout his massive body . According to William Goldman , author of " The Princess Bride " and its respective screenplay , André was having such terrible back pain during the filming of the movie that in the first shooting of a scene where Robin Wright drops about one foot and is caught by André , he fell to one knee and almost dropped her . In the A & E documentary , " Biography " , Arnold Skaaland mentions how André wished he could see a Broadway play . Arnold offered to buy tickets , but André then passed up the opportunity , citing how he was too big for the seats and that people behind him would not be able to see . This was cited as a principal reason for why André frequented taverns more than anywhere else . André was mentioned in the 1974 Guinness Book of World Records as the highest paid wrestler in history up to that time . He had earned $ 400 , 000 in one year alone during the early 1970s . He has been unofficially crowned " The Greatest Drunk on Earth " for once consuming 119 12 - ounce beers in 6 hours . On an episode of WWE ' s " Legends of Wrestling " , Mike Graham claimed that André once drank 197 16 - ounce beers in one sitting , which was confirmed by Dusty Rhodes . Such feats can be attributed to his much larger than usual size , meaning it would take higher volumes of liquor to inebriate him . In her autobiography , The Fabulous Moolah alleges that André drank 127 beers in a Reading , Pennsylvania hotel bar and later passed out in the lobby . Because the staff could not move him , they had to leave him there until he regained consciousness . André was arrested by the Linn County , Iowa sheriff in August 1989 and charged with assault after the 540 lb ( 240 kg ) wrestler allegedly roughed up a local television cameraman . Death . André died in his sleep due to congestive heart failure on the night of January 27 , 1993 , in a Paris hotel room . He was in Paris to attend the funeral of his father . André ' s body was cremated in accordance with his wishes and his ashes scattered at his ranch in Ellerbe , North Carolina .