RIP He Pingping, Shortest Man, 1988-2010

Last week, we took a closer look inside the world of gigantism — and the potentially life-threatening health problems associated with the condition. Well, life on the other end of spectrum can also be a debilitating one. The world’s shortest man, born with primordial dwarfism, died in Italy after falling ill at a television rehearsal. He was just 21. At 2 feet, 5.37 inches, He Pingping, of China, pictured above, was recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s shortest man, a distinction held since March 2008. Embedded below is a clip introducing us to Pingping, at the time, “The World’s Next Shortest Man.”