seized a second Guinness World Record: CNN.com, Nov. 14, 2007.
This mini-city required 178,000 cards: Weekly Reader, Apr. 8, 2005.
At the 2007 Texas State Fair: CNN.com, Nov. 14, 2007.
Kontrimas also earned a spot on the “Strength Feats” list: Joe Weider’s Muscle & Fitness, Dec. 2004, 92.
Josh the Wonder Dog: Washington Post, July 29, 1997.
Hungry for Breasts: U.S. Federal News Service (HT Media Ltd.), July 31, 2006.
Pub Trivia—Without the Trivia: Australian Associated Press, Oct. 19, 2006.
There is no “I” in Team: Business Wire, Sept. 28, 2006.
“This walk is something I must do: Steven M. Newman, Worldwalk (New York: William Morrow, 1989), 2–3.
“So from canned baked beans and peanut butter sandwiches: Ibid., 82.
APPENDIX 2: THE LONG WAY INTO GUINNESS: AN ODE TO DRUDGERY
“The main thing that record holders share”: Newsweek, Nov. 12, 1979.
After spending 147 days buried in a coffin: Outside, June 2004.
But the mileage was not the only challenge: Express (London), May 21, 2002.
But there is no quit in Blessitt: Outside, June 2004.
“Having outrun everyone in the history of mankind”: Daily Mail, Apr. 2, 2007.
Along the way, his diary describes: Guardian, Mar. 28, 2007.
These smoking guns have inspired many doubters: Daily Mail, Apr. 2, 2007.
Guinness stuck by him: Daily Mail, Feb. 18, 2008.
Eric Peters’s tale: Times, Sept. 21, 1983.
George Meegan, a British merchant seaman: Times, July 31, 1984.
When he finally reached the Beaufort Sea: Times, Sept. 20, 1983.
Few road warriors, even the most harried: Telegraph, Mar. 8, 2004.
Hertrich has kept the streak alive: Oregon Mail Tribune, Sept. 1, 2006.
Dale Webster, who was featured: Washington Post, Nov. 21, 2006.
“Great day, snow, and fun!!!: Oregon Mail Tribune, Sept. 1, 2006.
“I could stop and end the damn thing tomorrow: Washington Post, Nov. 21, 2006.
they were moved to include: Express (London), Nov. 9, 2006.
APPENDIX 4: A RECORD-BREAKING TIMELINE
1960: Sir Hugh Beaver retires: Times, Dec. 31, 1960, 14.
1962: Boehm licenses paperback rights to Bantam: Boehm, Fascination of Book Publishing, 17.
April 1970: The first U.S. television special: Ibid. 1973: Guinness PLC signs updated contracts with Sterling Publishing and Bantam: Ibid.
1975: the Guinness Book of World Records “has set a record as the largest selling book”: Newsweek, Sept. 15, 1975, 81.
1995: Irwin tells the Wall Street Journal: Wall Street Journal, July 30, 1999.
1995: Guinness Publishing sells two museums: Business Week, Mar. 13, 1995.
1997: “We’re called Guinness World Records now,” says Alistair Richards: Financial Times, Jan. 21, 2006, 1.
1995–98: Sales triple: Wall Street Journal, July 30, 1999.
1999: Guinness World Records: Primetime is replicated in Britain, Germany, and Scandinavia: Wall Street Journal, July 30, 1999.
1999: The official target reader switches: Wall Street Journal, July 30, 1999.
2008: Guinness World Records Ltd. is purchased by Jim Pattison Group: Reuters, Feb. 15, 2008.
Searchable Terms
Note: Entries in this index, carried over verbatim from the print edition of this title, are unlikely to correspond to the pagination of any given e-book reader. However, entries in this index, and other terms, may be easily located by using the search feature of your e-book reader.
Academy Awards, 33, 127
Accidents, 190–91
worst, 87
Air Force, U.S., 189–90
Air Pollution, British Committee on, 36
Airplanes, 191
eating, 157, 194–95, 201
pulling, 104
restraining, 203–4
youngest pilots, 201
Akabusi, Kriss, 104
Alcoholic beverages
biggest cocktail, 182
heaviest drinker, 196
pub crawls, 228–29
speed drinking, 157, 195–97
Alekseyev, Vasily, 3–4
Alexander Gibb & Company, 35
Algeria, 186
Ali, Muhammad, 8
Allen, Sandy, 77
All Things Considered (radio show), 126
Almedovar, Louisa, 141
Alpe d’Huez, 247–48
Amazon River, 21
American Broadcasting Company (ABC), 68
American Idol, 104
American Philological Association, 125
Angkor Wat (Cambodia), 21
Aniston, Jennifer, 126
Antarctica, see South Pole Apax Partners, 256
Aquaticar, 97–98, 152
Argentinean Air Force, 21
Arm hair, longest, 181–82
Armstrong, Lance, 86, 128, 152, 247, 248
Armstrong, Neil, xix, 44, 53, 65, 100, 107, 109, 132, 191
Arthur Guinness & Sons, xi, xii, 32, 65, 38, 39, 47, 52, 54, 253
Artisanal Bistro and Wine Bar (New York), 164
Ashridge Management College, 35
Ashton, Felicity, 92
Associated Newspapers, 40
Associated Press, 152, 159, 167, 176, 177
Athletics World magazine, 43
Atlantic crossings, 88–90, 191
AT&T, 105, 254
Australia, 132, 174, 175, 179, 183
big food in, 161–62
pub crawl in, 228
television series in, 106, 186
Ayers Rock (Australia), 20, 21
Backward records, 20, 176, 241
Bahrain, 186
Bailey, Emmanuel MacDonald, 41
Bajpai, Radhakant, 176
Baker, Cheryl, 104
Balancing
baseball bat, 25, 31
bricks, 131
cars, 131, 132
glasses, 24, 192
golf balls, 57, 85
milk bottle, 13–16, 20, 25–26, 30
Balloons
hats made of, 180
hot air, 20, 90, 98, 191
Banana-related materials, largest collection of, 105
Bannister, Roger, 20, 41–42, 44, 45, 83, 108, 191
Bantam Books, 254
Banzai skydiving, 209
Bao Xi Shun, 76, 77–78, 183
Barrymore, Drew, 127
BASE (Building, Antennae, Span, Earth) jumping, 189
Baseball, 98, 217
Baseball bat balancing, 24, 25, 31
Beard
longest, xx, 2, 80, 87, 71
weight-lifting with, 225–26
Beatles, 50
Beaver, Sir Hugh, 33, 35–40, 43, 84, 91, 158
career of, 35
first copy of book received by, 49
inspiration for record book of, 37–39, 44, 54, 184, 213, 219, 253
McWhirters hired by, 40, 45–47, 253
retirement of, 254
Beckett, Samuel, 184
Beds of nails, 199–201, 203, 204
Beer drinking, 195–97
Bees, “beard” of, xx, 72
Belmondo, Dave, 199
Berg, Bryan, 224–25
Berkeley (California), 227–28
Berlin, Irving, 75
Bhaji, biggest, 159, 163
Bibby, Jackie “the Texas Snakeman,” 33, 79, 91, 98, 114, 152, 194
dangerous stunts of, 191–92, 198
fame seeking by, 109, 112, 120–22, 124, 126
rebreaking of own record by, 168
Bible, 2, 254
Bicycles
eating, 86, 194, 197
most people on one, 71
races, 9, 219 (see also Tour de France)
Birmingham Post, 206
Blaine, David, 208
Blessitt, Arthur, 235, 237
Blue Riband Trophy, 89, 90, 98
Board games, marathon, 100, 249
Boats, fastest, 89, 90
Bodill, Colin, 201–2
Boehm, David, 41, 71, 53, 132, 253–54
big food records rejected by, 163
and dangerous records, 200, 204
eating records discontinued by, 197–98
television show of, 81, 223
Bonds, Barry, 217
Borobudur (Indonesia), 21
Boston Bruins hockey team, 98
Botin, El (Madrid), 218
Bowling, 100
backward, 20
Boyd, Viscount, 39–40
Boyzone, 184
Brainiac (Jennings), 34, 50, 73
Branson, Sir Richard, 79, 89–90, 97–98, 135, 152, 190–91
Breastfeeding, 227–28
Breedlove, Craig, 88–89
Brennan, Terrance, 157, 164–67
Brick-laying, fastest, 83
Bricks
balanced on head, 131
carrying, 30, 89, 99, 161, 192
lifting, 104, 223
throwing, 99
Britain, 174–75, 179, 255
big food records in, 163
commonest surname in, 223
fattest man and woman in, 80
pub crawling in, 228
speed records in, 88
tallest man in, 77
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), 20–21, 43, 47, 70, 102, 104, 111, 119, 186, 254
British Institute of Management, 35
British Mycological Society, 47
British Open, 58
British Speleological Association, 47
British Trust for Ornithology, 219
Brosnan, Pierce, 130
Brunei, 186
Buachan, Boonreung, 192
Budapest, 224
Buddhist monks, 23
Bulgaria, 25
Burial alive, 208, 233
Burritos, biggest, 163
Cable News Network (CNN), 78
website of, 86
Cakes, biggest, 159, 161
California, University of, at San
Diego, 147
Calment, Jeanne, 81
Cambodia, 186
Campbell, Donald Malcolm, 88–89
Canada, 77, 124, 175, 180–82, 185
Commonwealth Games in, 44–45
Canada Globe and Mail, 10
Candy Industry magazine, 169
Cards, houses of, 224–25
Care Australia, 162
Carville, James, 21
Cars
balanced on head, 131, 132
cramming most people into, 58, 99
disassembling and reassembling, 180–81
fastest, 88, 89, 202
pulling, 221–22
pushing, 3
Casanova (film), 77
Castle, Roy, 102–3
Castro, Fidel, xix
Chamberlin, Ronald, see Chi, Master Chambers, Chris, 229
Chang and Eng, 80
Charity, breaking records for, 92, 93, 115, 132, 181
big food, 159, 162–64, 166
Chataway, Chris, 41–42, 45
Chaucer, Geoffrey, 50
Chi, Master, 200, 204
Childs, Greg, 20–21, 70, 102, 104, 111
Chile, 174, 182
Chillal, Sridhar, 79, 80, 112–14, 124
China, 174, 183, 185, 186, 187, 206, 218–19
Great Wall of, 21
Chinmoy, Sri, 6–9, 12, 13, 16, 17, 19, 24
“Lifting Up the World with a Oneness-Heart” program of, 8
Chocolate, largest pieces, 159, 160, 168–69
Chocolate World (Hershey, Pennsylvania), 168
Christian Science Monitor, 10
City Harvest, 166
Clapping, 13, 192
Claxton, Stuart, 78–79, 99, 102, 106, 107, 111, 118, 215
Cleverton, Valerie, 92
CN Tower (Toronto), 20–22, 180–81, 219, 224
Coast Guard, U.S., 47
Cobb, Ty, xix
Coca-Cola, 160–61, 167–68, 178
Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), 27, 34, 231–32
Columbia University, 9
Comaneci, Nadia, 12, 111
Commonwealth Games, 44–45
Copperfield, David, 128
Cosby, Bill, 19
Cow, oldest, 184
Cross carrying, 235
Crowe, Russell, 128
Cruise, Tom, 126, 127, 132
Curry, biggest, 159
Daley, Jason, 79, 86, 107–8, 119
Dam, world’s largest, 75
D’Angelo, Bennet, 196
Da Vinci Code, The (movie), 127
Dartmouth College, 117–18
Darwin, Christopher, 131–32, 134, 137
“Dedication” (Castle), 103
Depp, Johnny, 127
Derby College of Technology, 93
Detroit Lions football team, 98
Devine, John, 184
Diageo PLC, xi, 255, 256
DiGiovanni, C., 153
DiPietro, John, 203
Disasters, 87
DISH Network, 229
Disney, Walt, 33–34
DJ marathons, 144, 199
Dog biscuit, biggest, 163–64
Doggonest Christmas, The (Stack), 226–27
Dogs, 226
heaviest and lightest, 204
most petted, 226–27
pogo stick jumping while holding, 23, 33
rodent-killing, 33, 86–87, 226
team, longest, 83
Dolnick, Sam, 176
Doughnuts
speed eating, 195
Downey, Robert, Jr., 128
Drake, Sir Frances, 231
Drumming, marathon, 91–93, 98, 100
Dubroff, Jessica and Lloyd, 201
Ear hair, longest, 176, 225
Eating, 157–58, 193–95, 198–99
airplanes, 157, 194–95, 201
bicycles, 86, 157, 194, 197
hamburgers, 83, 157
hot peppers, 175, 177
pies, 103, 158
potato chips, 92
trees, 24
Elephants, 20, 23, 33
EchoStar Communications Corporation, 229
Eckert, Carole, 52
Edwards, Eddie the Eagle, 103
Edwards, Jez, 104, 119–20
Eepybird Perfetti Van Melle, USA, 169
Egypt, 186
Great Pyramids of, 21, 25
Eiffel Tower, 21, 22, 181
Eminem, 129
Empire State Building, 22, 106, 120, 181
Endurance feats, 13, 29
banning of, 192, 199
see also specific feats
English Channel
amphibious car crossing of, 97–98, 152
swimming, 95, 101, 109–10, 188, 248
Epic of Gilgamesh, 125
Escalator riding, 29
Espinoza, Amarilis, 177, 207
ESPN, 68, 116, 151–52, 193
Eubanks, Steve, 136
Eurovision, 104
Evans, John, 131
Everest, Mount, 49, 96, 104, 110, 189, 240, 247, 248, 250
fastest climb of, 108
Hillary’s ascent of, 76, 86, 157, 179
images of, 80
Singaporean climbers of, 179, 180
Exercise ball, balancing on, 4, 20
FaceBook, 110
Fake tanning, 221
Fame Junkies (Halpern), 114, 121, 123, 128, 135, 188
Fascination of Book Publishing, The (Boehm), 223
Fast, Kevin, 226
Fasting, 208–9
Fattest people, 2, 3, 71–75, 79, 80, 83
twins, 71–73, 79, 80, 100, 112, 194, 211
Fazio, Tom, 66
Federation of British Industry, 35
Fellini, Federico, 77
Fiji, 42
Financial Times, 182, 209
Finger snapping, 4, 30, 188
Fingernails, longest, 2, 71, 73, 79, 80, 88, 112–13, 124, 211, 225, 234
Finland, 186
Firetrucks, pulling, 226
Fireworks, largest, 98
Fish snorting, 221
Flatley, Michael, 184
Floral wreath, most expensive, 13
Flynn, Errol, 128
Fondue, biggest, 164–67 Food
big, 158–72
dangerous, 197–98
see also Eating
Food Network, 106, 159
Ford, Harrison, xix
Forward rolls, see Somersaulting Fossett, Steve, 89, 191
Foster, Jodie, 127
Four-minute mile, breaking of, 20, 41, 42, 44–45, 83
FOX, 105–6, 255
Foxwoods Resort & Casino, xv–xvii, 134, 139–41, 144–51, 154–56
France, 186, 224
Frary, Mark, 50–51, 103–4
French Culinary Institute, 168
Frend, Patricia, 92
Frigatti, Marco, 236
Frog hopping, 84
Frost, Sir David, 105, 204, 223, 254
Fucqua, William, 202
Fuji, Mount, 16, 17, 20, 21
Furman, Ashrita, 1–31, 62, 165, 205, 219, 224, 228, 239, 244, 245, 250
all-time Guinness champion status of, 3–4, 14, 27, 29, 173, 179, 243, 254
animals in record attempts of, 22–24, 33
athletic ability of, 4, 5, 13
childhood of, 2, 5–6, 10, 98
competitors of, 13, 14, 18, 27–29, 115, 175, 176
fame of, 5, 10, 14, 19, 111, 114, 173, 174
Guinnessport and, 91, 94, 99, 107