John Aasen (March 5, 1890 – August 1, 1938) was an American
silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...
actor and sideshow performer who was one of the
tallest actors in history.
Early life
Aasen was born on March 5, 1890, in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
.
His mother, Kristi (Danielsen) from
Rollag
Rollag is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in the traditional and electoral district Buskerud in Viken (county), Viken Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Numedal. The admini ...
in
Numedal
Numedal () is a valley and a traditional district in Eastern Norway located within the county of Buskerud. It traditionally includes the municipalities Flesberg, Nore og Uvdal and Rollag. Administratively, it now also includes Kongsberg.
Geog ...
, was an extremely tall
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
woman of around 2.20 m (almost 7 ft 3 inches) in height (latest information from September 2008, sets her height to 188 cm, almost 6 ft 2 inches). It is not certain who his father was, but according to Aasen's sister Evelyn (who died in 1988), his father was Alfred Aasen. When Aasen was 10 years old, he and his mother moved from
Ridgeway, Iowa (where his uncle Sam/Sevre lived with his wife Cornelia) to
Sheyenne, North Dakota with his two younger siblings. Aasen was a
Freemason
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
. He rose to the degree of Master Mason at Highland Park Lodge No. 382, Los Angeles on July 14, 1924.
[Denslow, William R. 10,000 Famous Freemasons, Vol. I, A-D.]
When in Sheyenne, Aasen's mother operated a restaurant. He attended school and helped out in the family business. In 1902, Aasen's mother died. He was taken into many homes and families. When a family he was staying with started to operate a hotel in
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
, North Dakota, he moved with them there. Aasen's growth started slowly. When he was confirmed in the
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
faith in Grandfield Lutheran Church near Sheyenne, North Dakota, he was the shortest in his class. According to some sources, Aasen was around 2.74 m or 8 feet, 11½ inches (which, if true, would make him even taller than
Robert Wadlow
Robert Pershing Wadlow (February 22, 1918 July 15, 1940), also known as the Alton Giant and the Giant of Illinois, was an American man who was the tallest person in recorded history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. He was born and raise ...
, the tallest verified person in history). The ''
Top 10 of Everything'' 2010 edition states his height at 8 feet, 9.7 inches (2.68 m).
True height
According to the 1978 edition of ''
Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'' he was only 7 feet (213.4 cm). Just before his death, at age 46, he was medically measured at 7 feet 0.9 inches, however he had lost some height due to age and could not stand completely straight anymore. In June 2008,
Loma Linda University confirmed that the skeleton they had in their collection was John Aasen.
Career
Aasen worked for Midway Chemical, a company based in St. Paul, in 1917–1918. After that, he worked in various shows, including Barnum & Bailey and C.A. Wortham's World's Best Shows.
The death of giant
George Auger led to Aasen's working in the film ''
Why Worry?
''Why Worry?'' is a 1923 American silent comedy film directed by Fred Newmeyer and Sam Taylor and starring Harold Lloyd.
Plot
Harold Van Pelham (Harold Lloyd) is a young, wealthy American businessman who obsesses constantly about his hea ...
'' (1923).
Later, he acted in several other films like ''
Bengal Tiger
The Bengal tiger is a population of the ''Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies. It ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today. It is considered to belong to the world's charismatic megafauna.
The tiger is estimated to have been present in ...
'', ''
Charlie Chan at the Circus
''Charlie Chan at the Circus'' is the 11th film produced by Fox starring Warner Oland as Charlie Chan. A seemingly harmless family outing drags a vacationing Chan into a murder investigation.
The film's sets were designed by the art director Du ...
'', ''
Growing Pains
''Growing Pains'' is an American television sitcom created by Neal Marlens that aired on ABC from September 24, 1985, to April 25, 1992. The show ran for seven seasons, consisting of 166 episodes. The series followed the misadventures of the Se ...
'', ''
Should Married Men Go Home?'', ''
Legionnaires in Paris'', ''
Two Flaming Youths
''Two Flaming Youths'' is a lost 1927 American silent comedy film directed by John Waters and written by John W. Conway, Donald Davis, Percy Heath, and Herman J. Mankiewicz. The film stars W. C. Fields, Chester Conklin, Mary Brian, Jack Luden ...
'', ''
The Sting of Stings'', ''
Long Fliv the King
''Long Fliv the King'' is a 1926 American silent comedy short film starring Charley Chase and featuring Oliver Hardy and Max Davidson in supporting roles. It is a remake of the 1920 Harold Lloyd film ''His Royal Slyness'' about a young man who ...
'' and the
Tod Browning
Tod Browning (born Charles Albert Browning Jr.; July 12, 1880 – October 6, 1962) was an American film director, film actor, screenwriter, vaudeville performer, and carnival sideshow and circus entertainer. He directed a number of films of vari ...
film ''
Freaks
Freak has several meanings: a person who is physically deformed or suffers from an extraordinary disease and condition, a genetic mutation in a plant or animal, etc.
Freak, freaks or The Freak may also refer to:
Fictional characters
* Freak (Ima ...
'', in a small uncredited cameo appearance.
Death
Aasen died from
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
on August 1, 1938, at
Mendocino State Hospital
Mendocino State Hospital, formally known as Mendocino State Asylum for the Insane, was a psychiatric hospital in Talmage near Ukiah, California, was established in 1889 and in operation from July 1893 to 1972. The hospital programs included the ...
in
Mendocino, California
Mendocino (Spanish for "of Mendoza") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg at an elevation of . The population of the CDP was 932 ...
. His body was later shipped to Dr. Charles Humberd in Missouri for study and dissection. The skeleton was kept by the doctor, and eventually shipped to
Loma Linda, California
Loma Linda (Spanish for "Beautiful Hill") is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, that was incorporated in 1970. The population was 24,791 at the 2020 census, up from 23,261 at the 2010 census. The central area of the c ...
. Aasen's cremated soft parts were given a
Masonic
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...
funeral at
Forest Lawn Cemetery in
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...
.
Selected filmography
* ''
Why Worry?
''Why Worry?'' is a 1923 American silent comedy film directed by Fred Newmeyer and Sam Taylor and starring Harold Lloyd.
Plot
Harold Van Pelham (Harold Lloyd) is a young, wealthy American businessman who obsesses constantly about his hea ...
'' (1923)
* ''
Long Fliv the King
''Long Fliv the King'' is a 1926 American silent comedy short film starring Charley Chase and featuring Oliver Hardy and Max Davidson in supporting roles. It is a remake of the 1920 Harold Lloyd film ''His Royal Slyness'' about a young man who ...
'' (1926)
* ''
Legionnaires in Paris'' (1927)
* ''
Should Married Men Go Home?'' (1928)
* ''
Bengal Tiger
The Bengal tiger is a population of the ''Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies. It ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today. It is considered to belong to the world's charismatic megafauna.
The tiger is estimated to have been present in ...
'' (1936)
See also
*
List of tallest people
This is a list of the tallest people, verified by the Guinness World Records or other reliable sources.
According to the Guinness World Records, the tallest human in recorded history was Robert Wadlow of the United States (1918–1940), wh ...
References
Further reading
* Olson, Julia, ''Our Heritage, 1883–1980, Sheyenne area.'', Sheyenne Historical Society, Sheyenne, N.D., 1980
External links
*
*
Website dedicated to Johan Aasen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aasen, John
1890 births
1938 deaths
20th-century American male actors
American Freemasons
American male silent film actors
American people of Norwegian descent
Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)
Deaths from pneumonia in California
Male actors from Minnesota
People with gigantism