Jake Erlich - Tallest Man In The World

Jake Erlich - Tallest Man In The World

Many of us know of Erlich as the “world’s tallest man,” as the Guinness Book of Records once deemed him. He was also an extraordinary artist. But his fame as a painter was overshadowed by his fame for being more than eight feet tall.He was born in Denver, Colorado, in 1906, the son of Jewish immigrants. He was born at a weight of less than four pounds. Jacob was small for his age, until he reached his seventh birthday. By the time he was ten, he was over six feet tall. His family lived in El Paso, Texas at this time and the locals nicknamed him "Pecos Bill" (a title he used for over twenty years.) Erlich, who lived much of his life in El Paso , was a movie star featured in several silent films, and he also was a circus performer for several years. Also, Erlich is an El Paso High graduate. But Erlich was famous mainly for being taller than everyone else. In fact, he was once named the "Tallest Man in the World," standing, by most accounts, at 8 feet, 6 inches tall. Jake Erlich died in 1952 at the age of 46 in El Paso. To the left of Jake Erlich in the middle is Hope M. Smith - who was owner of Magnolia Coke Cola Company in El Paso, Texas.

Area: Central / Downtown

Source: El Paso County Historical Society

Reference ID: Tall Man.jpeg

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History

Comments

Add a comment
Thank you for your comment

Report this entry

Choose the most important reason for this report

Your name

Your email address

Optional detail

Thank you for your report

More from the same community-collection

David S. Billingsley and Helen L. Billingsley

These children are identified as David S. Billingsley and Helen ...

Mrs. Bob Campbell

This photograph was taken at the Bushong & Feldman Studio in El ...

Wedding Couple

Written on the photograph - "Season's Greetings and a Happy New ...

Gist House

The Gist House where Maude & Zach White spent their first ...

Plaza Bandstand

This view of the Plaza looks across Oregon St. towards the ruins ...

Mrs. Sarah Gist - El Paso, Texas

Mrs. Gist, a widow, ran a boarding house at 501 Mesa from ...

Plaza and U.S. Custom House

This view looks across the Plaza and St. Louis (Mills) St. to ...

Billy Wilson and Mrs. U.S. Stewart

Mrs. Ulysses S. Stewart was married to a cashier of the First ...

International Bridge - circa 1895

This view shows two boys on horse or mule back, with a glimpse ...

Group of Women in a Religious Procession

Groups of women dressed in white gowns walking down Mesa street ...

Parade in Downtown El Paso

The image shows a wagon participating in a parade in 1930. The ...

Snow Fall In El Paso

View of the Hussmann (now Cortez) building, during Christmas Eve ...

Eva Reckhart

Eva Reckhart was the daughter of Captain Jack Crawford, "the ...

Captain Jack Crawford, the Poet Scout

A Civil War veteran, scout with General Crook, actor in Buffalo ...

San Jacinto Plaza

"Glimpse of San Jacinto Plaza, El Paso, Texas. A beautiful ...

Trost Buildings on Mills Street

The notation on the postcard says: "2314 Mills Street Looking ...

Barricade on Commercial Street, Juarez

The picture was taken at Calle de Comercio, Juarez, during the ...

Hotel Hilton 1941

This postcard features the Hotel Hilton in 1941. On the front it ...

Hotel Paso Del Norte

The postcard shows the Hotel Paso Del Norte, it probably dates ...

Pioneer Plaza

The notation on the postcard says: "Pioneer Plaza (Little Plaza) ...

Image of Downtown El Paso

Mesa looking south past San Jacinto Plaza.

Hotel Cortez

The Cortez was designed by the famous architect Henry C. Trost ...

El Paso Chamber of Commerce - El Paso, Texas

Chamber of Commerce, El Paso, Texas. Visible: A gray building ...

home.search_collection