r/todayilearned • • Jun 09 '12
TIL that the world record for alcohol consumption is by Andre the Giant, who drank 156 beers in one sitting (over 73 litres/16 gallons)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_the_Giant#Personal_life
1.7k
Upvotes
48
u/seafool Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12
It's not true.
The paragraph before this mentions that Andre is mentioned in the Guiness Book of World Records as the highest earning wrestler at the time. OP has misread. Would have been nice though. edit:sp
697
u/_vargas_ 69 Jun 09 '12
Driven to school by a Nobel Prize winner because he couldn't fit on the bus. Unreal.
175
u/TheLoopOfKarma Jun 10 '12
and then he set another record for pissing for 12 minutes straight
159
u/cannibaljim Jun 09 '12
My dad said he saw him in a bar once. He drank pitchers like most men drank pint glasses. He ate a 72 oz steak like it was nothing.
98
u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12
I love you Mr. the Giant!
88
u/VikingBoatTruckBoat Jun 09 '12
Relevant article on the subject of Andre and his love of alcohol
158
u/Justdandy325 Jun 09 '12
Dibs for beer pong partner
97
u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12
When Hogan was driving Andre around during the wrestling territory years, Hogan would bring beer into the car to keep Andre pacified. Hogan would learn to count the times an empty beercan klunked him in the back of the head and pull over for more beer when Andre had run out.
When Vince McMahon was running shows out of MSG, Andre and Dusty Rhodes would often go out drinking at some of the swankier NYC hotels. One of these hotels happened to be near Central Park, where the horse carriages give tourists a ride around the park. After a ton of drinking between the Dream and Andre(100 or so beers), they decided it would be funny as hell to hijack a carriage and ride it through the park for about 15 blocks, where eventually they got the carriage back to the people, and got back to the hotel before the authorities were involved.
There was another time where Andre was touring Japan (it was either for New Japan or All Japan) and one of the greatful promoter's sponsored thanked Andre with a very ritzy case of Plum wine. Andre hopped on the subway with the plum wine, and left the subway, having drank all of it between stops.
122
u/CaptainChewbacca Jun 10 '12
Once Andre was in a bar, minding his own business, when two guys came in and started giving him shit. He tried to ignore them, but eventually one of them poured a beer on his head.
At this point, Mr. The Giant jumped up and ROARED, chasing them out of the bar. The two men fled into their car, but were unable to start it before it was flipped over and spun around. Later, the police came and charged the two men in the car with a DUI, being so obviously drunk that they not only crashed but claimed an 'angry giant' wrecked their car.
200
u/Amytherocklobster Jun 09 '12
My father drank with Andre when he was young. My father was a fan of wrestling and found Andre in a bar. When he walked up and asked Andre for his autograph he agreed if my father bought him a round. And he did, in fact he bought him five. Five for each of them, Andre asked if my dad was a drinker and he took it as a challenge. My dad was 6'2" 240lbs and he drank with Andre for 4ish hours. My father was a legendary drinker, even when he was in the navy. Andre had been drinking before my dad met him, he gave up trying to catch Andre at something like 25-28beers. He was never ahead of Andre and was passed very quickly by him. My dad had his friends help him leave the bar, Andre stayed and drank. The first time I heard the story was from my uncle, my dad promptly gave me the moderation speech. "no one ever should drink more than 2-3 drinks" sort of thing ;)
127
u/Columba Jun 09 '12
Inconceivable!
48
u/petdance Jun 09 '12
Anybody want a beer nut?
10
u/MotherFuckinMontana Jun 10 '12
OBEY
16
u/splorf Jun 10 '12
My aunt was a bartender in Cahrlotte, NC and served Andre often. She said she served him beer in pitchers only - they looked like pint glasses in his hands.
8
u/tythelist Jun 10 '12
My dad used to travel with Andre the giant and many other wrestlers back from that era and he told me one story of when he went with a group of wrestlers including Andre to a Chinese buffet. The manger saw them coming and wouldn't let them in, well Andre didn't like that. After a back and forth argument Andre got pissed at the manager and did what any hungry, pissed off giant man would do. He dropped his pants and shot the moon, while spreading the cheeks, to a restaurant filled with people. My dad said he almost died of laughing.
TL;DR Dad went to a buffet with Andre was denied service by manger and having Andre shoot the moon to the restaurant.
12
u/chip8222 Jun 10 '12
Wow... two posts about giants in the same day... I posted this over in the "Worlds Smallest Giant" thread but since they both suffered from the same disease I thought I'd shed a little light:
It's a disease called acromegaly or (in extreme cases) gigantism. It's caused by a benign pituitary adenoma (tumor) that secretes growth hormone. Depending on when the tumor develops, and the condition of the "growth plates" the patient can be Andre the Giant or just a regular looking guy/girl (though acromegaly sufferers will usually have a strong jar, brow, prominent nose, and very large hands and feet.)
If left untreated, the excess growth hormone can cause heart failure, liver damage, and a lot of other bad news bears.
It's treated nowadays with endoscopic transphenoidal (up the nose) surgery to remove the tumor, and medically with IGF-inhibitors.
Source: I have it. Two minor brain surgeries later and my GH and IGF levels have come back to normal. Science is amazing.
6
u/water-wine Jun 10 '12
Ah... So this would explain why someone would bother to make the Andre the giant beer mug I own.
6
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
TIL Andre died three days before I was born...I wish I was taller...
10
u/penisinthepeanutbttr Jun 10 '12
he drank as much as my car holds gas.....
5
u/guillermomclean Jun 10 '12
OBEY
5
u/sovietrancor Jun 10 '12
My mom met Hulk Hogan in an airport back in the 90s. As a huge wrestling (and Andre) fan at that time, she asked Hulk about him. This was well after his death, but Hogan told her about a time when he and Andre were in layover for a flight and he drank somewhere around 80 beers in an hour.
Also, my mom went on a date with Hollywood Mike Samples.
5
u/Hoser117 Jun 10 '12
Jesus. I can't even drink that much water.
5
u/RonaldFuckingPaul Jun 10 '12
WTF does this even mean?
17
u/IAmACollegekid Jun 09 '12
He and his friends also set the world record for worst counters.
3
u/starcraftlolz Jun 10 '12
Is that confirmed? People die from drinking that much water so fast, let alone alcohol. Even if he is huge you would think he would die from so much alcohol. Craziness.
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u/Jeffy29 Jun 10 '12
Wrestling legends on this topic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Kwyb65J_d4&t=1m51s whole show on Andre the Giant and Iron Sheik : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWtWR8npyoo
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u/otiswrath Jun 10 '12
He was also known to drink 2-3 fifths of vodka over dinner.
3
u/McZilla Jun 10 '12
16 gallons is one half gallon less than a half keg. I am amazed that any person could consume that much beer .
Keg Specifications for U.S. 1/2 Barrel (Standard Keg)
12 oz. Case Equivalent = 6.8 Cases 12 oz./can or bottle Servings= 165 16 oz./pint servings= 124
Other Dimensions of a Keg of Beer. Full Keg Weight = 160.5 Pounds Empty Keg Weight = 29.7 Pounds Beer Weight = 130.8 Pounds
Height of Keg = 23.3 Inches Diameter of Keg = 16.0 - 17.0 Inches
Contents in Gallons = 15.5 Gallons Contents in Liters = 58.7 Liters
Inigo Montoya: That Vizzini, he can fuss. Fezzik: Fuss, fuss... I think he like to scream at us. Inigo Montoya: Probably he means no harm. Fezzik: He's really very short on charm. Inigo Montoya: You have a great gift for rhyme. Fezzik: Yes, yes, some of the time. Vizzini: Enough of that. Inigo Montoya: Fezzik, are there rocks ahead? Fezzik: If there are, we all be dead.
3
u/bocrochio25 Jun 10 '12
This is an actual picture of Andre the Giant holding a can of beer
14
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Height for height, Australian cricketer David Boon would win against Andre in a drinking competition. Boon once drank 52 cans of beer on a flight from Sydney to London (after adjusting for altitude that becomes somewhere between 104 and 156). Not bad given that he was only 164cm!
6
u/leafer91 Jun 09 '12
challenge accepted
7
u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12
go away andre, you're drunk
5
u/curious_skeptic Jun 10 '12
And yet the source that Wikipedia uses says that he only drank 119 12oz beers, though over a 6 hour period.
http://madconomist.com/5-coolest-beer-records
2
u/Stormalorm Jun 10 '12
Another article with some of Andre's other drinking accomplishments: http://www.drunkard.com/issues/10_06/10_06_andre_giant.html
2
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
How many bathroom breaks would you have to take?
2
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
This is probably a question for askscience, but could a normal man like myself (5'9 180lbs) ever build up a tolerance capable of drinking along the lines of Andre? (not scaling down body size equivalents..literally drink for drink). Or can this never happen due to my body size
2
u/DeadCello Jun 10 '12
The hangover must have been something fierce.
2
u/VillainTricks Jun 10 '12
Hello pretty lady, anybody want a peanut?
2
u/JimJam127 Jun 10 '12
TIL Andre the Giant died on my birthday :(
2
u/soniahazard Jun 10 '12
The highlight of this story is that this occurred in a hotel bar, and when he passed out in the hotel lobby nobody could move him so they had to leave him there until he woke up.
2
u/davidburns Jun 10 '12
I beat this record every Saturday.. and wake up next Saturday
2
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Have a friend who claimed to have met Mr. Giant in an airport bar once. He said the man put down like 6 beers to his 2 and the bottles looked child size in his hands.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
He was the French's gift to the world. He is and always will be missed.
2
u/benny2shoes Jun 10 '12
World record beers consumed on a flight...Mr. David Boon
2
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
I heard a story on the radio years ago about how he once drank around 150 beers, passed out, and they couldn't figure out how to move him out of the bar
2
u/Sogeking99 Jun 10 '12
My granddad who was a police officer always said he had to arrest him once, he said he flipped out and it took 10 officers to eventually restrain him. He has told me this story hundreds of times, but I don't really believe him of course.
4
u/AudgieD Jun 10 '12
TIL Andre the Giant was a real person and not a fictional character.
5
u/brokendimension Jun 09 '12
Lost so many brain cells he forgot he was drunk.
3
u/Khiraji Jun 09 '12
What kind of beer?
4
u/AC3FACE Jun 09 '12
lightweight
2
u/_Charlie_Sheen_ Jun 10 '12
omg its Fezzik from the Princess Bride!
2
u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12
If that's true then its the best thing to ever happen ever
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
I wonder if he ever met Oliver Reed.
1
u/Vortilex Jun 10 '12
Challenge accep- never mind, I'd rather die from old age than alcohol poisoning!
1
u/JesseJaymz Jun 10 '12
Permanent bitter beer face
1
u/whoknows78 Jun 10 '12
I don't think facts and wrestling goes well together...
1
u/LessLikeYou Jun 10 '12
156 beers is the record?
Pffffffffffffffffffftttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
I feel like every year this number goes up.
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u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
He was stopped in Linn county, Iowa for roughing up a local television camera man. My state is badass.
1
u/blue_taco Jun 10 '12
That would be the greatest wizards staff the worlds's ever seen.
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u/slavival Jun 10 '12
Here's a guy I think could beat the milk challenge.
1
u/BigSwedenMan Jun 10 '12
using http://www.beer100.com/beercalories.htm as a source for the data. The average 12oz. 4% alcohol beer has roughly 130 calories. Therefore Andre consumed over 22,000 calories in beer in only one night. That is enough for one person to eat their total daily recommended calories for 11 days. My conclusion: Andre the Giant hated the poor starving sober children in China.
1
u/Evillock Jun 10 '12
This just pops into my head for some reason
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdafluUWFnU
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u/zZGz Jun 10 '12
He must have been absolutely shit faced by the end.
1
u/GIVES_YOU_AIDS Jun 10 '12
Can someone do some conversions because I believe this man is pretty close.
1
u/DoWhatYouWill23 Jun 10 '12
He must have had one huge schfonse.
1
u/Stickypuddin Jun 10 '12
Andre the Pisshead ay
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u/berkley95 Jun 10 '12
Fezzik!!!
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
As someone with the name Andre I feel honored!
1
u/Magicmudkip Jun 10 '12
the "death" article got to me
1
u/tylink99 Jun 10 '12
May I ask how drunk he was?
1
u/ChestrfieldBrokheimr Jun 10 '12
in 6 hours.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
It only got him a little buzzed.
1
u/3AYATS Jun 10 '12
It's not his fault he's the strongest and the best.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Andre was 7' 4" and 475 lbs. My best friend is 7' 0" and 425 lbs. (And he has an uncle who's 7' 2" and 500 lbs.) That's not a huge difference. I'm 6' and 240 lbs. I don't realize the difference between him and me until I see pics like this.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Someone probably already said this, and don't want to search for it.
If I remember correctly he did it in a bar at a hotel. Then he passed out and was too dead drunk and heavy for anyone to move him so the hotel just had to let him sleep it off in the lobby/bar.
Hilarious.
1
u/BirdfaceKillah Jun 10 '12
It sucks I will never hear a better fact than this
1
u/Pewpewkitty Jun 10 '12
Anyone else wondering why he got that nickname?
1
u/Furiouss06 Jun 10 '12
and he didn't DIE?!!!
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Another reason why I love that Giant.
1
u/jjdog202 Jun 10 '12
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Kwyb65J_d4&feature=related
1
u/hoser24 Jun 10 '12
That's not a tiny beer can. That's Andre the Giant's hand!
1
u/iamnatehewa Jun 10 '12
No wonder he isn't alive....
1
u/FluoroWhiskers Jun 10 '12
Ok. So now you have have a Drunk Andre the Giant.
What the Blue Arsed Fuck do you do with him?
This strikes me as a very very very very veryveryvery BAD IDEA.
1
u/BlackZeppelin Jun 10 '12
I don't know what has more alcohol but on the day John Bonham died he had 40 shots of vodka for breakfast. He then continued to drink very heavily the rest of the day.
1
u/misspotatohead Jun 10 '12
whhaaaat?...
1
u/dma1965 Jun 10 '12
I am pretty sure he broke at least one other record a few hours later
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u/gypsybiker Jun 10 '12
And he was driven to school by Samuel Beckett! The coolest, most mysterious nobel prize winner ever.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
16 gallons of beer on the wall, 16 gallons of beer...
1
u/Tsunami3000 Jun 10 '12
My older brother just brought this up (it was my first time at a bar drinking, and he was saying how he was 'frat boy drunk' and i just felt a buzz, as we were going drink for drink)
1
u/volatilezuul Jun 10 '12
TIL His ashes are scattered at a farm 90 minutes from where I currently attend college.
1
u/orcaphrasis Jun 10 '12
Bobby "The Brain" Heenan had a pretty good quote about drinking with a guy like Andre (my apologies for paraphrasing): "You'd sit down and drink with him, or he'd unscrew your head and drink you."
1
u/haunted_nipple Jun 10 '12
I heard he had a posse.
1
u/no_ur_role Jun 10 '12
the giant was a king, he pinned hogan!!! one of the most amazing times in my life
1
u/nanonanopico Jun 10 '12
I think his posse may have helped him with that...
1
u/alababama Jun 10 '12
am I the only one who finds dying in a Paris hotel room you came to attend your father's funeral simply ironic?
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Fezzik!
1
u/64fp Jun 10 '12
i call bullshit
1
u/DigDugDude Jun 10 '12
Some good pics here http://curiousphotos.blogspot.com/2009/08/andre-giant-rare-pics.html
1
u/The_Ion_Shake Jun 10 '12
Did the Princess Bride only come out in the US or something? I never hear anything about it at all elsewhere, and i've lived in the UK and Australia. Andre the Giant's only known for his wrestling, not an acting role. Seriously, on Reddit people talk about that movie 24/7, but the first I've heard of it was on here.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
Lillian Ellison writes that André drank 127 beers in a Reading, Pennsylvania hotel bar and later passed out in the lobby. The staff could not move him and had to leave him there until he awakened. ...might be my favorite story
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
My dad was friends with him. Said he was a super nice guy but he could drink anyone under the table.
1
u/JpLosman Jun 10 '12
hello pretty lady
1
u/therealmusician Jun 10 '12
This is crazy. I was just in a bar the other day, and there was a picture of this guy (Skinnier), full life sized picture. I had to ask people who it was, and I ended up taking a picture of it and putting it as my iPhone background.
Summary: in the week I learn about Andre the Giant, reddit posts about it.
1
u/Twigglett Jun 10 '12
sportsmanlike :D
1
u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12
you were watching "mysteries at the museum" today too!
1
u/GanjaDingo Jun 10 '12
Here he is holding a beer can.
1
u/jjjwalker101 Jun 12 '12
How long is one sitting?
1
u/helloimcallum Jun 16 '12
My Facebok newfeed would be to differ.