Matthew McGrory (May 17, 1973 – August 9, 2005) was an American actor. At , he was recognized as the tallest actor by

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 portrayed physically imposing characters throughout his career, including Tiny Firefly in the horror films '' House of 1000 Corpses'' (2003) and '' The Devil's Rejects'' (2005) and Karl the Giant in the fantasy comedy-drama '' Big Fish'' (2003). McGrory also held the Guinness World Records for biggest feet and longest toe.

Early life

McGrory was born in

West Chester, Pennsylvania West Chester is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough and the county seat of Chester County, Pennsylvania, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Located within the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area, the borough had a population of 18,461 at the ...

, the son of George and Maureen McGrory. He was over 1.5 m (5 feet) tall by the time he completed kindergarten. McGrory grew to the height of and had size 29.5 shoes."'Big Fish' Actor Matthew McGrory Dies"
Fox News. August 15, 2005. He studied pre-law at

Widener University Widener University is a private university in Chester, Pennsylvania. The university has three other campuses: two in Pennsylvania (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Harrisburg and Exton, Pennsylvania, Exton) and one in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded as Th ...

. He also studied Criminal Justice at

West Chester University West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the Middl ...

Career

McGrory's large size led to appearances on ''

The Howard Stern Show ''The Howard Stern Show'' is an American radio show hosted by Howard Stern that gained wide recognition when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from WXRK in New York City, between 1986 and 2005. The show has aired on Howard 100 a ...

''"Matthew McGrory, 32, a Film Actor Typecast as a Giant"
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' (Associated Press). August 15, 2005. beginning in December 1996 as a member of Stern's Wack Pack. He appeared on daytime talk shows hosted by Maury Povich,

Jenny Jones Jenny Jones may refer to: People *Jenny Jones (presenter) (born 1946), United States television personality and host of ''The Jenny Jones Show'' * Jenny Jones, Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (born 1949), British Green Party politician, member of the ...

and Oprah Winfrey and in music videos including Iron Maiden's " The Wicker Man" and the 1999

Marilyn Manson Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...

Coma White "Coma White" is a song by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It is the last track from the album '' Mechanical Animals''. "Coma White" is a hard rock ballad written by the band's eponymous vocalist, Twiggy Ramirez, Madonna Wayne Gacy, Zim Z ...

"Kaufman, Gil (August 11, 2005) http://www.mtv.com/news/1507413/matthew-mcgrory-big-man-in-big-fish-and-devils-rejects-dead-at-32/ "Matthew McGrory, Big Man In 'Big Fish' And 'Devil's Rejects,' Dead At 32"]. MTV News. (and '' God Is in the T.V.'' VHS cover). He can also be seen in Blondie's video for their 2003 hit " Good Boys." Due to his height and deep voice, he was in demand to play roles in movies cast as a

giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: '' gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...

– he did so in films such as '' Bubble Boy'' (2001), '' Big Fish'' (2003), '' House of 1000 Corpses'' (2003) and '' The Devil's Rejects'' (2005). Television appearances included ''

Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American family television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for Fox. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes. The series follows a dysfunctiona ...

'', '' Charmed'', and '' Carnivàle''.

Death

On August 9, 2005, while living in

Sherman Oaks, California Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...

with his girlfriend Melissa, McGrory died at age 32 of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

Rob Zombie Rob Zombie (born Robert Bartleh Cummings; January 12, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and voice actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live shows have be ...

's film '' The Devil's Rejects'' was dedicated to McGrory’s memory.'' The Devil's Rejects'' (2005). Dir. Rob Zombie. Cinelamda, Lionsgate. Dedication.

Filmography

References

External links

* *
Matthew McGrory
at Allmovie
MatthewMcGrory.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGrory, Matthew 1973 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Pennsylvania People from West Chester, Pennsylvania People with gigantism West Chester University alumni Widener University alumni