MUSEUM

Ripley’s Believe It Or Not

Peter and I spent the day at Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum at Picadilly, London.  We thought we should go as we enjoyed our visit at Ripley’s Blackpool in 2009.  Truth be told, I thought Ripley’s Blackpool was a better value.  There were more activities as well as more exciting exhibit.  So there!

I have to admit that standing against the tallest man is pretty creepy yet fun.  He was taLL.

His name was Robert Pershing Wadlow. He was born on February 22, 1918 and became the tallest person in history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. Wadlow is sometimes known as the Alton Giant or Giant of Illinois because he was born and grew up in Alton, Illinois.

Wadlow reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg) at his death on July 15, 1940, at age 22. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to hyperplasia of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.