Andre the Giant rare interview & footage as a teenager.

André René Roussimoff was born in a small farming community in Grenoble, France to Boris and Marian Rouismoff. His parents and four siblings were all of normal size, but Andre suffered from acromegaly, a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone. As the Giant grew up (very quickly, as he reached the height of 6' 3" by the age of 12) he began to often disagree with his parents. He left home at 14 and obtained a job with a furniture-moving firm and began to play rugby. At 17 he was seen training at a gym by several professional wrestlers. Impressed by his size, they taught him some basic wrestling skills and built a friendship with him. Later, when one of the wrestlers was injured, André stepped in for him. He would wrestle for nearly thirty more years. By his early 20s Andre had wrestled in Algeria, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, England, Scotland, and most of non-Communist Europe but had not found fame. In 1971 he came to North America under the name Jean Ferre and was mildly popular in Canada. Then he met a New York based booker by the name of Vincent
J. McMahon (often incorrectly referred to as
"Vince McMahon Sr") who renamed him "Andre the Giant," and billed him as 7' 4" (Andre was really closer to 7'). Soon Andre the Giant became a national sensation and was a much sought after wrestler. In addition he participated in television, movies, and commercials. With his wealth the Giant bought a ranch in Ellerbe, North Carolina where he would live during his rare time off and after he retired from wrestling in 1990.
He died while in France after attending his father's funeral. André was cremated and his ashes were spread across his ranch. He is survived by his one daughter. #wrestling #andrethegiant #celebrity #giant #big #bighuman #prowrestling #history

[JhonSmith-en]

When I was a nine-year-old little boy I shook his hand I’m 64 today and will never forget it

[MariaVelez-isbh]

He was very handsome when he was younger ♥️ rest in peace 🙏

[johnlewisbrooks]

I saw Andre at the airport in Amarillo Texas as a kid! He literally took up two seats! He looked totally miserable so I gave him a soda pop and he cheered up like a Christmas 🎄 😅

[NashH]

I had the true honor of speaking with Andre multiple times over about a five to seven year period, whenever he was in Oregon. He was always nice and really cool to me. Great memories!

[booognish]

Wow, I have never seen any pictures or videos of him as a young man.. Only makes it all the more impressive when you realize how bulging and debilitated he was by the time we got to see him. A legend with a tragic curse that he did his best to turn into a blessing..

[AAAA-lthq]

It's nice to see him speak his native language here and be so articulate. Most of us who grew up in the 80s only got to see him as his health was declining and his managers were doing his promos for him.

[Brent-quyk]

When he was young Andre was fast & athletic

[armchaircritic]

Look at those MASSIVE farm hands even as a teen.

[lordburlap]

Andre is a legend in wrestling…he brought joy to many people….easy journey.

[GTrevor]

wow he just looks like a normal healthy dude.

[keithallver]

When he was younger he was actually taller. As he got older and his body became more massive it compressed his spinal column and he was shorter by 3 inches.

[fontbonnebenoit]

Il est né dans un petit village dans mon pays, un géant au grand cœur, mais souvent malheureux car il pensait que les gens le prennait pour un monstre de foire à cause de son physique impressionnant rip André ☝️

[apolloh]

Frankly, Andre the Giant is one of the greatest wrestlers 🤼‍♂️

[dannelson]

in 1981 I was 10 and stood next to Andre in the old Portland Oregon sports arena . I came up to A little bit above his knee

[anczerewicz]

What probably happened is his father did not have acromegaly meaning a tumor causing excessive growth hormone. Andre did have that and so did Andre's grandfather. Generally what happens is after you stop growing vertically your bone plates continue to grow. For example, your face bone plates will grow which is why he was good looking as a youth at 19 but then if you looked at him in later years you could tell that everything was wider. You generally die Young with this condition. Is an example, Robert wadlow was 8 ft 11 and he had this condition and died at the age of 22 in Alton, Illinois.

[LloydBHunt]

Wow, he's so young here. I've never seen footage of him that young.

[gonufc]

309 lbs and he looks incredibly skinny there.

[luceinbattaglia]

Un mito. Grande André. Rest in peace gentle giant🙏🕊️

[Islandswamp]

He didn’t know he had acromegaly until he went to Japan. But he chose to not have the surgery to remove it.
That’s why Paul White, the Giant, the Big Show, has stopped growing and not died. He had the tumor removed

[GordiansKnotHere]

0:24 Andre' resists a Kotegaeshi and Ura to his trainer...
That's pretty amazing...