It has been 63 years since the death of Robert Wadlow, the world's tallest man, but today the Alton, Ill. giant is as popular across the globe as he was in the 1930s.

Robert Wadlow grew to 8 feet 11.1 inches before he died. Wadlow became the Guinness Book of Records' tallest man in 1937.

"Boy Giant," a newly written book about Robert Wadlow, the world's tallest man, by author Dan Brannan, is the only biography in publication that tells his true story through his own words, the words of his brother, family and lifelong friends.

The book chronicles Wadlow's life, along with Alton memories of classmates and friends. It also tells the story of the Alton Museum of History and Art, the Wadlow Statue, and the Wadlow Chair.

Harold Wadlow Jr. shared some family secrets never released to the public about the Wadlow's fear of a graveyard robbery and the family's constant attempts to have a "normal" life despite the public curiosity in their son. Harold Jr. also discussed the family's famous two libel suits that drew national attention in their time. Harold Jr. was Robert Wadlow's baby brother and was extremely close to his big brother.

"Boy Giant" has memories of people who knew Robert Wadlow when he was at Milton Grade School, Alton Junior High and Alton High School. A chapter is also devoted to legendary Alton Telegraph photographer Bob Graul, who took about 80 percent of all Wadlow photos in the 1930s and early 1940. Many of those photos, still in mint condition, will be presented in the "Boy Giant" photo gallery, including several family portraits and photos during the massive funeral service for the giant.

Graul was glad to see a biography written about Alton's giant to preserve Robert Wadlow memories for future generations.

"I think it is a great idea to explore things about him that haven't been published before," he said. "The importance of 'Boy Giant' relies in its accuracy of telling the story. If this book had not been written all the memories would have been lost forever. The author, Dan Brannan, did a good job of preserving those memories in the book."

Alton Museum of History & Art Director Robin Karpan said the book has been selling off the shelves before its release.

"Everyone here loves the idea of the book," she said. "The book has also been selling well outside of Alton. We have had orders from all over the country and some internationally. It's definitely going to be a hit. Robert Wadlow is an international icon."

Alton historian Charlotte Stetson agreed that the 'Boy Giant' author Dan Brannan did a great job of pulling together stories of Wadlow growing up, stories from friends and his family.

"It's very timely," she said. "Many of Robert's contemporaries have died. The most important aspect of the book is the time the author spent with Robert's brother Harold Wadlow Jr. There were several things never revealed told during those interviews."

Wadlow was more than 7 feet tall by age 13. He was the tallest Boy Scout ever, standing 7 feet 4 inches. Wadlow grew to 8 feet 4 inches tall by the time he graduated from Alton High at age 18. Wadlow attended Shurtleff College in Alton, Ill., for a semester, then toured nearly all of the 50 states in America with his father, Harold Sr., until he became gravely ill in Manistee, Mich. He met famous movie stars, governors and many of the country's leaders in nearly every state.

In 1980, the Alton Museum of History & Art opened an exhibit on Robert Wadlow. Three years later, a major community effort to build a statue for Robert Wadlow began. On Oct. 20, 1985, the statue was unveiled in Upper Alton.
Some interesting Wadlow facts are:

• In 1996, Oprah Winfrey, the legendary talk show host, did a segment on town oddities that featured Robert Wadlow. Winfrey stood next to a life-size cutout of the world's tallest man, which dwarfed her and talked of how Robert was born and lived in Alton.

• The Robert Wadlow web site ( www.altonweb.com/history/wadlow ) today is one of the most visited in the world. The web site was unveiled in 1996. Since that time it has had more than 500,000 visitors. The Wadlow web site went on to be named as one of the Yahoo Picks of the Year and was voted fourth out of 52 top weekly Picks of the Year in 1998.

• On Aug. 18, 1998, Wadlow's life was center stage on "Guinness World Records: Primetime" on FOX Channel 2. In late December 1999, "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" television series did a taping for the TBS Network in Alton about Robert Wadlow.

• In May 2000, the British Broadcasting Company came to Alton to shoot footage on Wadlow. The BBC was taping for a segment on the Discovery Channel, which aired in the fall 2000.

• Wadlow lived the typical American boy's life during the 1920s and 1930s, participating in the Young Men's Christian Association, Boy Scouts of America, Order of DeMolay, Main Street Methodist Church and Franklin Masonic Lodge in Alton.

• Wadlow developed an infection in his leg and about a week later he died in Manistee, Mich., in July 1940. Nearly 40,000 attended Wadlow's visitation and funeral in Alton. Wadlow's parents buried their son's body under a vault of concrete because they feared his body would be dug up for medical research.
• The Alton Museum was founded in 1971, but didn't start a Wadlow display until 1980, after Robert Wadlow's mother, Addie, died.
Dan Brannan is the author of several books, including "Life To The Fullest: Stories of People Coping with Diabetes," a national and international seller. The diabetes book was endorsed by the National American Diabetes Association in Alexandria, Va., after its 1995 release. His other books are "Everyday Angels" and "The Courage to Live." "The Courage To Live" is a biography about Donna Gustavel, who was born deaf with cerebral palsy. She is a modern-day Helen Keller. The Gustavel book is distributed by Amazon Books on the World Wide Web.


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