Interview with the Fifty Foot Woman

It was a warm July day near the town of Mammoth Lakes California. A group of people several holding cameras and one holding a microphone was standing in front of a huge door to a huge house. The house itself was a 70 feet high but it was only a single floor building. It looked like a normal house just blown up to giant proportions.
Surrounding the house was a large field. There were beautiful flowers there also. There was even a few large trees in the back garden including a giant redwood.
But there were still things on the house that made it seem normal. There was a normal letter box and the doorbell was at a level where a person could easily reach it. It was truly a unique house.
The house was made out of brick but the parts that were wood were painted a brown colour. The roof was tiled like any normal house. But the sheer amount of bricks, tiles and wood taken to make this house was nothing short of remarkable.
The men with the cameras pointed their cameras towards a pretty blond woman. She was the one holding a microphone. They gave her the signal that they were filming and she quickly cleared her throat.
“Hello ladies and gentlemen and welcome to another edition of Interviews With Rich and Famous,” said the Woman. “Today we’re here on the outskirts of Mammoth Lakes, California to meet our next star.” The cameras pointed up to the house. “Don’t worry folks we have not been hit by a shrink ray. This house is really, really big.” The cameras then lowered themselves back to the woman. “Today we’re here to meet Miss Katherine Madison. Some may know her better as the 50 foot woman.”
Just then the woman rang the doorbell. Almost instantly the door opened and the cameras looked up to see another woman. She was over 50 feet tall and she had long brown hair and hazel eyes. She looked like she was in her mid 20s. She wore a red top with black pants and flat black shoes. She wore a couple of rings on her fingers. She was also wearing diamond earring and a gold necklace.
The giant woman then squatted down so that she was lower for the others. She gave them all a pleasant smile. She gently shook the hand of the woman. The giant woman used only her index finger to shake hands. It was all that she needed. It would have been difficult to use her entire hand.
“Hello Katherine,” said the Woman.
“Come in Shelly,” replied Katherine.
Katherine then helped all of the people onto a large table in the kitchen. Everything inside the house had been specially made for her. The only things that were normal size was the packs of food. But the sheer quantity of them indicated that she ate a lot of food. This would be normal for her stature.
There was already a normal size chair on the table and Shelly sat on it. The camera crew stayed a little back and they began to film them. But for now they were still in the process of greeting each other.
“Katherine it’s an honour that you’ve let us into your beautiful house,” said Shelly with a smile on her face.
“It’s my pleasure,” replied Katherine.
“This house is a lot more pleasant then some of the others that we’ve been in over the years.”
“Well as my mother always told me when I was a little girl. A clean house is a happy house.”
“Now please tell us about yourself.”
“My name is Katherine Madison. I was born on April, 26th 1936. My parents were Harold and Pamela Madison. I was born in the local hospital and I went to High school at the local school here.”
“So you’ve always been Mammoth Lakes has always been your home?”
“Yep it might not be as glamorous as LA but its still home to me. In my mind there’s no better place on Earth.”
“Ok now tell us about your life before you became the world famous 50 foot woman please?”
“Well actually at my last physical I was measured and I found out I’m actually 55’7. That was about an inch taller then my last physical. But anyway before I was the 50 foot woman I was just plain normal Katherine Madison. I was actually a little short than the average woman. I graduated from Mammoth Lakes High in the mid 50s. I was happily married Henry Lane. At the time I was even called Mrs Katherine Lane. We even had a baby boy called Larry. We seemed to be a happy couple. I married Henry in 1956 and I had Larry in 57. We seemed to be just like any other American Family until the accident.”
“Henry Lane was your first husband right?”
“Yes.”
“What happened to him?”
“Well I’ll explain that a little later on.”
“That’s fine now tell us exactly what happened to you? What caused you to grow so large?”
“Well it’s a long story. It happened on March 12th 1958. Henry with Larry was visiting his mother in Las Vegas. I would have gone with them immediately but I was just finishing off a painting for a friend.”
“That’s right you’re an artist right?”
“Well I’m no Leonardo Da Vinci but yeah I’m a pretty good artist. I could never do it as a career only as a hobby.”
“Any please continue.”
“Oh yes. Anyway after I finished my painting for my friend I began to drive to New York since not many people really flew back then. I was making good headway. But I stopped about 65 miles away just to have a little rest. That’s when it happened.”
“What happened?”
“Turns out the place I chose to take a little nap turned out to be the Nevada Nuclear Test site. Unfortunately the government were doing a test and when the nuke went boom I was straight in its path. I didn’t stand a chance.”
“You were hit by the nuke?”
“Yes that’s what happened.”
“But that should have killed it.”
“It almost did but some of the army guys found me and took me to a military hospital. I was unconscious at the time so I didn’t know where I was. But I awoke to see a lot of Doctors surrounding me. They were all wearing radiation suits so I knew that something really bad had happened. It took them two days for them to give me a mirror and I was horrified with what I could see.”
“What did you see?”
“All my hair was gone? Not just the hair on top of my head, but my eyebrows were gone as well. I had no eye lashes and when I checked I also didn’t have any pubic hair. Every single hair on my body had dropped off.”
“But they grew back?”
“Yes eventually they grew back. But for a while I had to wear a wig and stuck on eyebrows. Anyway the military kept me at their little hospital for a while. But I wasn’t dying. In fact I was feeling better then I ever had done in my life. I felt like I could run a marathon or two. They told me that I should have been killed almost instantly. But they couldn’t detect any radiation in my body and I was perfectly healthy. So they had to release me.”
“They released you from a top secret government facility?” asked Shelly. “That seems unlikely somehow.”
“Well they did,” replied Katherine. “But obviously they didn’t let me leave through the front door. They drugged me first and then they took me out. When I woke up I was in Vegas. They had given me some new clothes since mine had been destroyed in the blast. I didn’t even know what day it was. But they had given some money to contact people and get a ride back home. But when I called my husband he was extremely relieved to hear from me. He thought I had left him. I told him that I was in Vegas just a little later then I intended.”
“So you were still fine?”
“Yep I was still plain Katherine Lane back then. But soon after I got back home in Mammoth Lakes I started to change.”
“In what way?”
“Well a few days after I got back home I was trying on some clothes. But they all seemed to be a little tight. Most of them I had had for a few years and they had never seemed tight. Henry even told me that I looked taller. He had only been joking but I measured myself and I found out that I had grown two inches. I panicked a little and I went to see my doctor immediately.”
“What did he say? Did he say that you were going to be the 50 foot woman?”
“Of course not. He said that it was rare but some adults were known to have grown a few inches when they were in adulthood. He told me that there was nothing to worry about. At first I didn’t worry either. An extra couple of inches didn’t seem to be too bad at first.”
“What happened?”
“I just kept piling on the inches. It wasn’t just the quantity that was worrying me but how fast it was happening as well. Within around two weeks after I first noticed that I had grown I was taller then my husband and he was a little over 6 feet tall. It was then I knew that something was definitely wrong.”
“What did you do?”
“I went back to my doctor. He couldn’t believe that I was the same woman he had seen two weeks ago. He then accepted that this wasn’t normal. No human being had grown a foot in two weeks. He took my blood sample. But while there were tests I continued to grow. Soon I had to bend down to go through doorways. Taking care of my son was becoming a strain. But one day I woke up and when I stood up my head hit the ceiling. It hurt a lot more inside then it did out.”
“What did you do for clothes?”
“Well at first I just had to keep buying new clothes. But when I grew past the largest size I had to use bed sheets. Henry told me that I looked like a Greek Goddess in the sheet. But when I continued to grow I even grew out of the bed sheets. Henry didn’t like the idea of me growing that much but we didn’t seem to have that much choice. The only person who seemed to like it was Larry. He had a lot of fun with me lifting him up higher then he had ever been.”
“But what happened when you grew too big to fit into your own home?”
“Thankfully Henry rented out an old barn house where I stayed. He wanted me to stay out of sight so that I couldn’t attract any unwanted attention. But as the weeks went by people began to ask questions about my whereabouts. But unfortunately I couldn’t stay in the barn forever. I began to feel a little claustrophobic and so I got out. Unfortunately on one of my little exercises someone saw more and reported to the authorities. At the time I was over 25 feet tall and some of my hair had grown back. I was too big to wear any wigs.”
“If you don’t mind me showing you but we were able to find one of the newspapers of when you were first discovered.” One of the camera men passed Shelly an old news paper. “As you can see on the front page it says 20 Foot Woman discovered in California. Dated August 25th 1958. Five months after you had your accident.”
“Unfortunately when I was discovered it didn’t take too long for the Government to figure out where I was. They came with almost the entire National Guard.”
“They wanted to kill me?”
“Since I hadn’t done anything to harm anyone they didn’t have any need to kill me. Instead they just tranquillized and captured me. A 20 foot woman against the entire National Guard doesn’t stand a chance. In one sense it was the worst thing that could possible happen. But at the same time it was the best.”
“What exactly do you mean Katherine?”
“Well to start with it was bad because I was separated from my family. I was taken to a place I wasn’t exactly familiar with. When I woke up after being captured I was a little more then upset with them. But they just drugged me to calm me down. Thankfully they didn’t try to give me anything that would kill me. Unfortunately I put a few of the soldiers into hospital. Thankfully I didn’t cause them any serious injuries. It took me forever to apologise to them.”
“And what was the good things about being captured?”
“I was beginning to get treated. Not only did they make sure I would physically stop growing but they also made sure that my sudden change in size would cause me any mental harm. The last thing they wanted was an insane giant woman rampaging a city. Let me ask you have you ever seen the movie the Amazing Colossal Man?”
“No,” replied Shelly.
“Well the Colossal Man in that went insane and went on a rampage in Las Vegas. They didn’t want the same to happen to me so I had to have regular sessions with a government shrink.”
“How did they go?”
“A lot better then expected. Thankfully I’m a pretty down to earth person. I did have a few things that were really troubling me. I wanted to see my family. But the bigger I grew the less likely it was that they’d let me out. This made me depressed and quite a lot of nights I would cry myself to sleep.”
“That must have been terrible for you.”
“It was but the sessions definitely helped me keep it together. Without it I might have some mental breakdown.”
“I guess that was good for everyone.”
“Yep but it benefited me most out of everyone else. I was in the Government facility for several months. Eventually I reached 50 feet tall and even they began to struggle to keep me housed. That’s when they had a breakthrough.”
“What was that?”
“They had discovered a way to stop my growth. Well technically not stopped but slowed to down. Instead of growing and growing I just grew around a foot a decade. No body really noticed that. But they injected a mixture of different chemicals in me. It was only a theory that the combination of them would stop my growth. Thankfully it did or else I would still be growing right now. By now I probably would have been taller then Mount Everest.”
“I can’t imagine that. You as tall as Everest.”
“Well I probably would have died from lack of oxygen before I got that tall. But thankfully I don’t have to worry about it.”
“Did they let you out straight away?”
“No not straight away. They couldn’t just let a 50 foot woman loose. It would cause panic amongst people. Instead I struck a deal with the Government. They would help integrate me into society if I would help them out whenever they needed me. I had no choice but to accept. The first thing they did for me was to reunite me with my husband and son. They were able to bring them to me. They had to basically kidnap them so that they couldn’t know my location.”
“What did you do when you saw them?”
“As any mother/wife would have done. Pick them both up and give them the biggest hug and kiss I could possible give them. It was one of the happiest days of my life being reunited with them. One thing that seemed ironic was that my son Larry should have looked bigger to me. But he looked a little smaller. That was because I had grown as well. Henry on the other hand was amazed to see just how tall I was. He never imagined that I would grow that large. But I didn’t care how big I grew. Just as long as I could be with my family.”
“That’s very nice. It was nice that you grew and you didn’t want to take over the world or something.”
“Just because I’m 50 feet tall doesn’t make me immortal. If I tried to do anything like that the military would be able to kill me quite easily. Besides I don’t want to rule the world. Just live in it like everyone else.”
“I’m sorry for saying that.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve had people ask me much more embarrassing questions. Like how big are your craps? Things like that.”
“That’s disgusting.”
“I know.”
“Now tell me what happened to you next?”
“Well the Government said that they would build me a house that was large enough for me. I could have had it anywhere in the country. But I wanted them to build it here in Mammoth Lakes my home.”
“That’s nice. No matter how big and famous someone becomes they can never forget their roots right?”
“Exactly. Besides everyone in Mammoth Lakes is really nice. They’ve known me since I was a little baby. Just because I had grown to ridiculous proportions they didn’t think I was some kind of monster. But we had one more worry just before they started to build the house.”
“What was that?”
“Where to build it. There was no real room close to the centre of town so they built it on the outskirts. They quickly began to build the house almost immediately after they decided a good location. But one thing I didn’t want them to do was destroy any of the natural beauty. They respected my wishes and they built my house on a wasteland. It was ideal for everyone. It took them over a year but eventually they finished making this beautiful house.”
“Where did you stay while this was all happening?”
“I stayed in a Government building. I met my family once every week. They had to come to me but it was also in secrecy. My mother couldn’t quite get over how tall I had become. She almost had a heart attack the first time she saw me. But thankfully she was able to snap out of it.”
“What did your father say?”
“Unfortunately my father died when I was a couple of years old. He was one of the navy soldiers when Pearl Harbour was attacked in 1941.”
“I’m sorry I asked.”
“It’s alright you didn’t know. Anyway eventually the day came when I could finally move into my house. When I went inside with my husband and son I actually felt normal. Everything inside made me feel normal once again. All the furniture and electrical instruments were specially made for me. There were even a couple of normal size rooms so that my husband and son could stay in. I almost burst into tears. I couldn’t believe that I had actually been given a chance to live like a normal person. Well relatively like a normal person.”
“That must of felt brilliant to you.”
“It was. But unfortunately I also attracted the media. For weeks there were locals and press standing outside my house taking pictures. I felt a little like I was a prisoner in my own home. But eventually as time went on people started to lose interest in me. I became old news which was pretty good since I was able to actually live my life. I could do all the things that a wife/mother should do. I took care of my son, took him to school and showed him that he was loved. But unfortunately the relationship between Henry and I was becoming strained. He didn’t like the idea of living in a house that made him feel like the Incredible Shrinking Man. He tried to keep it together but when things became too difficult for him he wanted to walk out. We had a few argument and then he left. He left his wedding ring on the table and he just took off. I was angry at him at first but then I began to understand why he left. If I was normal size I couldn’t really live in a house designed for someone who was 50 feet tall. But the worst was yet to come.”
“What was that?”
“He made a claim to try and get full custody of Larry. At first I didn’t think he was going to win. But his lawyer said it would be a danger having Larry in the house. They said I might accidentally step on him while being careless. They said I could accidentally kill him in several ways. I was too dangerous to have him and so he got full custody of him.”
“That must have been terrible for you.”
“I cried for a week. But I was allowed to have him every other weekend. We had fun on those days and it actually made me feel happy. But since I didn’t have to look after him that much I was bored around the house. I didn’t really have much to do. So I did what any normal mother would have done. I got myself a job.”
“Please remind me what that was. You’ve had quite a few jobs in your time.”
“Well this was my first job in the construction industry. Because of my size I was like a human crane. It got me out of the house and earned me some money on the side. Before I could actually do any building work I had to go through a lot of training that took me a while. I even had to take a college course or two. But when I got all my passes I soon got working. For most people at the time seeing a woman at a construction yard was pretty rare. But the men knew better then to question me about it. They were just amazed over my size. Most of them had seen me on TV but they said I looked smaller in real life. I just told them that the camera added an extra 20 feet.”
“What was the first job you had to do?”
“Ironically it was building anything. It was destroying them. There was an old housing estate near the centre of town and they needed to be demolished. Since they couldn’t get the equipment for the job in time they let me demolish the buildings myself. It was a lot more fun then I expected but I wouldn’t purposely demolish anyone’s house. Unless they needed to be demolished of course. I saved the town a lot of money with getting the professions and their equipment. But it was just as good. No sooner had I demolished the buildings they began to rebuild them into the houses that are there today. I had to help build a few of them.”
“So you were really a one woman wrecking ball?”
“One with a brain. Possible safer or more dangerous I haven’t decided yet.” She then chuckled a little to herself. “They were only small buildings so I was able to deal with them. Other buildings would be too difficult for me. The most I’d be able to do is cause some damage. But not enough to demolish the building.”
“I guess you can’t win them all.”
“No I can’t. But it was nice being able to interact with normal people for a change. Not just government people and my husband. They didn’t make me feel out of place. I actually felt I was like a normal worker just like everyone else. I was even able to go on a few nights out with them.”
“What kind of nights out.”
“Like going to the movies. Normally I’d be too big to go and see one. But since there’s a drive-in movies not far from here we would go there. If I could meet the guy who invented drive-in movies I’d give him the biggest hug and kiss I could possible give. That things made my life a hell of a lot easier.”
“I guess it would do.”
“The only problem I’d have was that I’d eat all popcorn. They had to book in advance so that the place had time to order enough popcorn to satisfy me. Once or twice I actually went there to watch Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman. It seemed a little ironic that a fifty foot woman was watching a movie about another Fifty foot woman. But people watch films about other people so it didn’t make much difference to me.”
“I guess so. Now I’m just wondering. When exactly did you meet your second husband?”
“James? Well I met him while I was still working in the construction industry. He was just one of the workers that I worked with. I hadn’t really paid that much attention to him. But one day on the job he was riveting some of the beams into place. But while he was doing this a bird fly into him and it knocked him off. I had to grab him before he hit the ground. He had had a lucky escape.”
“So you saved his life?”
“I guess I did. But at the least I stopped him from getting seriously injured. After that he wanted to thank me by taking me out somewhere. Normally I would have declined but when I looked at him something inside me told me to go. I couldn’t help but accept his offer.”
“Where exactly did you go?”
“Well he had to take me somewhere where it wouldn’t cost him a fortune. Unfortunately there weren’t too many places where we could go. At first we went to an all you can eat buffet. But they refused to let me eat there. They said that I would cost them too much money. A part of me was angry but another part understood why they had done it. But I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to cause any trouble. Instead we just went back to my place. I made a nice dinner and we sat there and talked. The night was a lot more pleasant then I expected. He told me that he felt like a doll in my house. I wasn’t sure whether it was a compliment or an insult. But he was just one of the nicest men I had met in a good long time.”
“What happened with you two after that?”
“Well sparks didn’t fly off straight away. We did date steadily for a while. Some of the guys at the construction site would make a few harmless. A couple who said anything that really hurt my feelings knew never to do it again.”
“What did you do to them?”
“Just tied them to the building and left them there for a few minutes. When I thought they had served their punishment I’d let them down. They learned that hurting the feelings of a fifty foot woman was something that wouldn’t go unpunished. But thankfully I had to do this on a very few occasions.”
“Did you get in trouble for any of that?”
“Once my boss gave me a disciplinary but other then that I got off easy. But one of the best things happened to me not too long after that.”
“What was that?”
“James was able to get two tickets go and see Elvis in an outdoor concert. I felt like I was a little girl again and I couldn’t help but hug him. I loved Elvis almost more then anything else.”
“That reminds me you actually met Elvis. I believe it was at that concert you went to with James.”
“Yep it was one of the greatest days of my life. After the concert I actually received word that he wanted to meet me. At first I thought it was some kind of joke. But when I actually saw him I couldn’t believe my eyes. He actually wanted to talk to me. At first I was speechless. He found it funny that I was a celebrity myself and I was star struck when I saw another celebrity. It took me about ten minutes just to be able to say something to him.”
“What did he say when he saw you?”
“He told me that I was his biggest fan literally. We both had a laugh at this but it was nice to actually see him. Parts of me still couldn’t believe that I was actually talking to the King himself. But this only lasted a few minutes since he had to leave. I didn’t mind him leaving. But if he stayed for a little longer that would have been even better. But famous people can’t stay in one place too long.”
“Does the same apply to you?”
“Not as much. I may be the biggest celebrity in the world literally, but I’m not an a-list celebrity. It’s not like I’m going to be invited to any film premiers or anything like that. I get the odd person asking for my autograph but that’s it. Right now I’m old news and I prefer to keep it like that. The only time when I really get any mention in the news is when I’m saving people.”
“That’s right whenever there’s a huge disaster in the states you’re part of the rescue crew.”
“Yeah it’s what the Government wants me to do. They use my size to move things that would of normally taken hours, maybe even days to move. One nice thing about it is that I get to travel. And in some countries that America gives aid to they sometimes send me there to help them out. But I didn’t start doing this until the late 1960’s. Before then I was just trying to live my life like any normal person.”
“I thought you still were.”
“I am but now I’ve accepted the fact that I’ll never be cured. I’ll always be the fifty foot woman. It’s not a bad thing I’ve done a lot with my size that’s benefited a lot of people. But sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I hadn’t been hit by that radiation. Right now I could be an old woman in some retirement home somewhere. Would my marriage with Henry last? These are things I wonder sometimes. I still sometimes have to see my shrink sometimes.”
“I must admit you’ve taken being a giant very well. Most people would have cracked by now. But please tell me a little bit more about James.”
“He was one of the nicest guys I had ever met. After he took me to see Elvis our relationship got better and better. After about a year of seeing each other he moved into my home. He didn’t particularly want to leave his home but since he wanted to move in with me he didn’t have much of a home. It wasn’t like I could go into his house. Unless he had it radically rebuilt.”
“When exactly did he move into your home?”
“I think it was around September 1968. He stayed in the room where Henry used to stay. But I kept Larry’s room for him. I still had him every other weekend and sometimes he would bring a friend. His friend would sometimes freak a little over the vast size of the house and myself. But thankfully Larry took to James a lot better then I had expected. I thought they would get off on the wrong foot. But they seemed to bond pretty well. They always seemed to be having fun with each other.”
“So he seemed ideal for you?”
“He was ideal. He actually made me feel like a woman again instead of just someone who stood out in the crowd. I was actually a lot more happy with James then I had been with Henry.”
“So what happened after that?”
“Well in 71 he finally popped the question to me. He made me the happiest woman on the planet. It happened when we went out to a Pierre’s downtown. We had already planned to eat there. But we had to order over a month in advance just so they could get ready for me. Unfortunately they didn’t have any tables or chairs for me so I had eat mine on my lap. But just after I had finished what I was eating a couple of violinists came to me and they started to play Can't Help Falling in Love. He then got onto his one knee and asked me to marry him. I couldn’t help but say yes. It was a night that I’ll never forget.” She then sighed for a moment.
“That’s so romantic,” said Shelly. “Wish my husband had done that with me.”
“Where did he propose to you?” replied Katherine.
“In a steakhouse in Texas.”
Both of the women giggled a little.
“Not too long after that you met President Nixon?” asked Shelly.
“Oh yes that was shortly before I married James. He came to visit Governor Regan. But at the same time he came to me. He wanted to ask me a very important question.”
“What was that?”
“He wanted to me get involved in Vietnam. The war wasn’t going too well and he said that I could tip the scales in our favour. But I had to refuse him obviously. I couldn’t fight a war.”
“Why didn’t you go to Vietnam. Your intervention could have actually won the war for this country.”
“One soldier no matter how big they are can not win a war. Besides there were a few other reasons why I didn’t want to go. One was that I was going to get married shortly, two was that I wouldn’t be able to see my son. And finally after what happened to my father at Pearl Harbour I hate anything to do with war. I had even supported a few groups that were against the war.”
“How did Nixon take it?”
“He said that I didn’t have to join if I didn’t want to. He was disappointed with my decision but I don’t regret it. Not for a single day. But I sometime wonder what would have happened if I had joined. Would I have truly won the war for the States or would I have been killed by the Vietcong?”
“I guess it is an interesting question. Now tell me about your wedding with your fiancé. I heard it was unique.”
“It was. I had it outside. I know a lot of people have an outdoor wedding but we had to do it because of my size. And since James was Jewish it was like half Catholic, Half Jewish. We were both blessed by a Priest and a Rabbi and we were able to have the marriage we had always wanted. I had even invited Henry to come. I didn’t actually expect him to come but he did. A part of me didn’t want him to be there. But another was happy that he was there. It showed that he was actually happy for me and James. It was one of the best things he could have done.”
“And where did you have your honeymoon?”
“We went to Hawaii. The Government flew me there on one of their really big helicopters. It was the first time I had really been flown anywhere and at first I had a little bit of Aviatophobia. But as we actually flew over open seas I calmed down. But I wasn’t actually crawling up the walls or anything. It was just an experience I’ll probably never forget.”
“So did you have a lot of luxuries on your flight?”
“Unfortunately it was no frills. I had some food but there was no in-flight movie at all. But since it was one of the few vehicles that could fly and get me to Hawaii I wasn’t really complaining that much.”
“Ok what happened when you got there?”
“Well the Government had built a very large tent that was tall enough for me to stand up in. But there were other things there that we needed. I had a bed, a cooking stove and they had even been able to get me a TV. It was only black and white but it was the thought that counted. But the day after we got to Hawaii I decided to do a little sunbathing. But when I actually went to the beach I attracted more attention then I thought I would. People were actually coming over to me asking for autographs and they wanted their picture with me. A couple were truly speechless when they saw me. Since no one had really done this to me for a while I was actually surprised. But I couldn’t say no to my fans.”
“How did James feel about this?”
“Well at first he was a little upset. But when people told him that he was lucky to have a woman like me he could see that they were harmless. A few men had actually asked to marry me but I respectively declined their offers.”
“What did you do for romantic nights out?”
“For that we were pretty limited. We had to book everything in advance. But whenever we were there the restaurant would have more customers then they normally did. A few of them couldn’t handle the extra business.”
“So your presence there was both good and bad?”
“I’d say so.”
“Did anything happen while you were there. Well besides all the publicity you were having?”
“Yeah one thing did happen.”
“What was that?”
“Well James and I decided to do a day of exploring the island. Believe me there were many beautiful sights. But along the way we came across Wailuku River. We were just about to sit down to rest when I heard someone screaming. I looked in the river and saw a little boy swimming for his life. The current was strong and it was going to pull him down. Without giving a second thought I got up and went to try and rescue him. I actually had to go into the river. The current caught me by surprise but I just grabbed him and took him out. His mother had been watching but powerless to help. I put him down right next to her. I’ve never seen anyone so thankful. I remember her crying her heart out and thanking me. I told her that it was nothing and I just went back to James and I didn’t think much of it. Until around twenty years later.”
“What happened then?”
“Well I was given a letter telling me that I had inherited a small fortune. I thought it was a little weird since no one I knew had died. But it turned out that it had belonged to a woman called Sarah Cullen. She was the woman who’s son I had saved. She was still thankful that I had saved her only son and so she put something in her will for me. She had been a rich business woman and what she gave me wasn’t a fraction of what she was worth. But it was certainly enough to put a huge smile on my face.”
“See people remember.”
“I know I was surprised as anyone when it happened. It’s just nice to know that people are thankful for the things I do. If they weren’t thankful I’d still probably do it. Guess I’m just that kind of person. Always trying to do the right thing. Even if everyone else doesn’t think I should do it.”
“That is nice. Tell me was there any times during the 70’s that really makes you remember?”
“Well when Elvis died in 77 I cried my eyes out. James did everything to try and make me feel better. At first it didn’t work but as time went on I got over it.”
“How long did it take?”
“A decade.” She then laughed a little. “No it didn’t take that long. It took about a month for me to get over it. To this day a part of me still can’t believe that Elvis is dead. I think he’s on some island somewhere getting away from all the fame.”
“You’re starting to sound like one of those people who believe in Government conspiracies.”
“Well I’ve listened to a few of them. But I don’t believe most of them. Well the JFK one could be true but that’s it. Aliens abducting people is one that I find unbelievable. If aliens did exist why don’t they just come down and contact us instead of abducting people.”
“I see your point now tell me have you ever gotten involved in politics at any point in your life?”
“Near the end of the Vietnam war I attended a peaceful anti-war protest. Parts of me still can’t believe I actually did it but I’m strongly against war no matter how just they say it is. In my mind it’s just a way to legalise murder. Thankfully not too long after that the Americans pulled out of Vietnam.”
“So you didn’t have to demonstrate again?”
“No I didn’t. But I have protested against a couple of other things over the years. Mostly about the nuclear warheads. I was living proof what a nuclear bomb can do to a person. But I was actually one of the lucky ones. Most of the others either died or were horrible burned.”
“I bet that you weren’t too happy when things started to heat up when Regan took over as President?”
“I didn’t vote for him. But I wasn’t too happy about him increasing our nuclear bombs. Unfortunately the Russians did the same and I was afraid that there was actually going to be a nuclear war. It almost happened in the Cuban Missile Crisis and I was afraid that it was going to actually happen this time. Thankfully the U.N stepped in again and made sure that things were toned down. It was a relief to say the least things were getting a little better. I wasn’t fully satisfied until the Cold War itself was finally over in 89. It felt like the biggest relief of my life.”
“I was only a few year old when it happened so I don’t remember much. Tell me what happened?”
“Well in Berlin the wall came down and in my house we had a celebration. It was a great day in my books.”
“That reminds me you told me that you worked for the Government at times?”
“Yes.”
“Was there any times when they actually called for your services that weren’t anything to do with war?”
“Well whenever there were any major disasters I would help the rescue efforts. In 89 when there was a huge earthquake in San Francisco I helped rescue people. Since I was a lot more reliable then any crane I was able to get lift heavy objects that was crushing people. But unfortunately there were fatalities. But I was told that it would have been worse if I hadn’t of shown up. After everything was cleared up there was a ceremony to remember the sixty three people who had unfortunately lost their lives. President George Bush senior, Governor George Deukmejian and Mayor Art Agnos all attended. Most of the people who had helped in the rescue attempts also attended including myself. We were all congratulated for our efforts. But the main reason was to remember those who had died.”
“That must have been very sad for you.”
“Well it was but I couldn’t leave San Francisco just yet. Many buildings had been damaged or destroyed so I had to help build homes for those who had lost theirs. It took me a while but I was able to do it. It made me feel happier inside. But when I got home things went worse.”
“What happened?”
“James was unwell and he looked a little odd. He soon went to the Doctor’s but they transferred him to the hospital to diagnose his condition. That’s when I received the terrible news.”
“What was that?”
“He was diagnosed with lung cancer. But it was spreading too fast for the doctors to do anything to stop it. I was extremely saddened to hear that he had barely six months to live.”
“How terrible.”
“I asked the Doctors if there was anything I could do to help him. All they could tell me to do was to make sure he was comfortable and make the last months of his life as memorable as possible. I followed this to the letter. James and I decided to a tour of Europe. We visited most of the countries including Britain, Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Holland, Denmark, Italy, and even the western parts of Germany. We couldn’t go to Eastern Europe since Soviet rule over it had just collapsed so we thought it was best to stay away from those areas for now. The trip itself took several months and we met a lot of nice people and we saw a lot of the sights. Heck I was even able to kiss the hand of the Pope. But on May 2nd 1990 James succumbed to lung cancer. It was one the saddest days of my life.”
“I feel for you my Grandma died of cancer and it was like someone had ripped out my soul. Did he smoke your James?”
“No that’s what I’ve found ironic. He didn’t smoke because he didn’t want to die from cancer. But he still did. But after he died he was given a traditional Jewish funeral. It was truly one of the saddest days of my life. He was one of the best things that had ever happened to me. And I was forced to bury him into the ground.”
“What did you do after he died?”
“At first I just stayed in the house. I don’t think I left my property for a month. The only time when I left my house was to water all the plants outside. I was a broken woman and I almost couldn’t take life anymore. I was almost stuck in my own little world but through my mail box I got a leaflet. It had been specially enlarged so that I could read it clearly.”
“What was it?”
“It was a leaflet from the townspeople. They told me that there was going to be a special wake for James. I was too upset to really have one after his funeral. It was also going to be a charity event and all the proceeds would go towards cancer research. I didn’t know that the townspeople actually cared that much about me. It was enough to put a small smile on my face.”
“That was very nice of them. I wish some of my neighbours were like that to me. Instead of leaving their dogs out barking in the night. Now tell me how long you had to wait for the wake?”
“I only had to wait for a day. They had around set everything up and all I had to do was attend. The place itself was almost like it was in two halves. One was a dedication to James where the other was a carnival ground. This was where all the charity money was being raised. I stayed in the James dedication for a while. There I met other women both young and old who had lost their husbands in several different ways. I didn’t feel so lonely. But after a while I couldn’t help but go on the carnival. I had a go at the test of strength which I won way too easily. But I could see that everyone was having fun and it made me think.”
“About what?”
“That James would have wanted me to be happy and not sad about him dying. In a sense the carnival was all I needed to get my head around. Not just that it raised a lot of money for cancer research.”
“Well that’s what really matters and hopefully soon they will find a cure for cancer. Now if I remember correctly there was once a comic book out about you. Am I right in saying that?”
“Yeah not too long after James passed away I had another letter through my letter box. It was from Marvel Comics, you know the guys who own Spider-Man and the X-Men. Anyway they said that they were interested in producing a one shot comic about me fighting King Kong. They were asking for my permission to use my name and likeliness and they were offering to pay quite a bit of money. But they were also going to send me my own copy blown up to my proportions. I didn’t see any harm so I decided to give them permission.”
“How long did you have to wait until they actually released the comic?”
“It took about five or six months. But it was finally released and they sent me my own copy. I read through it and I was actually impressed by the art and the story telling. Also because they gave me a bit of a six pack.”
“Who won?”
“Me of course. They even had a one page story about me fighting Godzilla. Unfortunately I didn’t last too long.” She then giggled a little. “I was big but not as big as Godzilla.”
“Can people still get that comic?”
“Well I’ve heard you can still get it off EBay and many other comic related websites. But the one I have is the only one that’s really big.”
“Ok now tell me what you did afterwards. I heard that you had gotten another man in your life.”
“Yeah I did. His name was Kyle Greening. I met him at the Yosemite National Park. I was too busy admiring the giant redwoods and I almost stepped on him. It was really embarrassing.”
“What happened?”
“Well I decided that I’d have a day out at Yosemite. I always loved the Giant Redwoods because they were one of the few living things in the world that truly towered above me. It made me feel normal from time to time. But I was lost in a world of my own and I really wasn’t looking where I was going. Just before I put my foot down I heard someone shout to me. When I looked down I saw that I was just about to step onto someone. I quickly put my foot to one side and I blushed a little. I thought I would have been more careful by now. I’d been the Fifty Foot Woman for a little over Thirty years and I had never done that before. I couldn’t stop apologising to him. Since I was lonely to say sorry I invited him over for dinner. I didn’t really expect him to come. But he did. A part of me didn’t really want him to come. But another part wanted the company. Since I only saw my son and his family once in a while it was nice to have someone around.”
“And this gentleman is Kyle right?”
“Yes I discovered that he was a fan. He wasn’t someone who would have stalked their idol or anything like that. He did ask for my autograph and I was more then happy to accept. I wanted to put on a dress that I’d received when I first reach 50 feet. But ironically I had grown out of it.”
“So you were still growing?”
“I told you before that I’m still growing slowly. Since receiving the dress I had gained a little over 3 feet. That might not seem much but to simplify it for you I had gained an 4 or five inches. It’s similar to a woman going from 5’4 to around 5’8 or 5’9. Anyway I had to put on another dress that was a little bigger. We had a nice meal that I prepared. I forgot to ask him what he would like to eat so I just did a little of everything. Anything he didn’t eat I did. After that we just talked and talked. I told him how I became the Fifty Foot Woman and he told me a little about himself. He was the owner of a small company. It wasn’t exactly like Wal-Mart or EBay but it did make him fairly wealthy. He told me that he had recently gone through a divorce. But thankfully he didn’t lose that much money through it.”
“Well that was lucky for him.”
“I know. We enjoyed each other’s company so much that we arranged to see each other again. Instead of going to my place I’d be going to his. We weren’t going out for any meal. We were just going to have a nice night out.”
“Tell me exactly where you went.”
“Well we just enjoyed the views of Yosemite during the day and night. We were also able to see some of the wildlife. I actually picked up a bear. He didn’t try to struggle or anything. When I looked at it all I could think about was Winnie the Pooh. Yosemite did seem like the Hundred Acre Wood.”
“So I take it you’re a Winnie the Pooh fan.”
“Since birth Shelly. I’ve always had a soft spot for Winnie the Pooh. Probably because he represents the innocence of the world. If things were like what happens in his films then the world would be a better place. But unfortunately the world is not like that so we just have to live with it.”
“That’s very true.”
“Anyway things just picked up from there. There were parts of him that really reminded me of James. I really enjoyed having him around and I was beginning to feel happy again. After going out for a couple of years I proposed to him. I know it should be the men who propose to the women. But it was the 90’s and things were rapidly changing everywhere. To my relief he actually accepted and I he made me feel as happy as when James popped the question to me. We married on July 17th 1994 and again I had an outdoor ceremony. But since we were both Catholic there wasn’t any kind of complications.”
“And not too long after that you have your daughter Rose?”
“Yeah but since the size difference between us was too great we couldn’t actually have kids of our own we had to adopt. But first the state had to see that we could be good parents and in November we were able to have our own little baby girl. Her mother had given her up to adoption. Although she wasn’t our daughter we raised her as if she was our own. I admit at first it was a little difficult for me. I was the only one who really knew how to change a diaper and since it had been nearly 40 years and 48 feet ago it was strained. Once or twice I accidentally put my finger in poop. But after a while I got the hang of it. Kyle did help me out form time to time but he really didn’t like doing diapers. That was the one thing he wouldn’t do.”
“What did he do instead?”
“Everything else that was needed. I did help him out but since he was normal size he had things a lot easier. It was easier for him to feed Rose instead of me. Patting her on her back to get her wind up would have been particularly difficult for me. But as she grew up we began to get closer. I remember her asking me why I was bigger then everyone else. I just told her that I ate my greens and drank a lot of milk when I was younger. When they’re young they’re so gullible.”
“I know I remember my uncle telling me that sheep stayed on hills because they had two legs longer then the others and I actually thought it was true. But looking back I can’t believe that I fell for it.”
“It’s similar to Santa Claus and Easter Bunny. They don’t actually exist but it’s nice that the kids do.”
“Tell me were you able to take part in any kind of parent/child activities at her school. Surely it would have been difficult for a woman of your stature.”
“It was strained. I remember when I had to attend a parent/teacher conference. I had been given an invitation and they didn’t actually expect to go. But I went nonetheless. I had to sit outside the hall and they had to get some speakers outside so that I could hear what was going on inside. Thankfully there were no issues I really needed to bring up. It would have been difficult for me to have said anything. Afterwards I remember taking Rose to have something from a nearby McDonalds. I remember trying to order her food from a drive-thru. Believe me it could have gone better.”
“What happened?”
“A car accidentally went into my foot and it caused me some pain. It made me accidentally step on an old shaft that was right by the restaurant. My foot went right into it. Turns out to be one of the old missions from when the Europeans originally settled in California. It got me a mention in the local news.”
“So I guess you were lucky.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“Did you hurt yourself?”
“Well I did break one of my toes. But other then that I didn’t really have that many serious injuries. I just couldn’t walk for a while. I was told that I could have sued McDonalds but I decided not to. I couldn’t really be that bothered about it and it wasn’t really their fault.”
“Wow someone who hasn’t sued when they had a chance. You’re truly a unique woman in that sense.”
“You can say that.”
“Now tell me there was one other time when you got your name in the papers. Well besides the 50th anniversary of your radiation exposure.”
“Yes there was but its one of the saddest things I’ve ever seen. After the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers I was one of the ones sent to try and rescue people. I’ve never seen a sight of such death and devastation. Like everyone else I did all I could to save everyone. But unfortunately for most people I was already too late. There were still many people who died. Parts of me can’t believe that something so terrible could have happened. Some people would have called me a heroine for trying to save them. But the real heroes were the firemen, the rescue workers, the cops, everyone else who was in the rescue attempt. I might have my size and strength to protect me against most dangers. But they’re just normal people who risked their lives to save others. I admire them in that sense.”
“That’s very true. But unfortunately your life took a turn for the worst. Tell me what happened?”
“Well I was just doing the laundry like I normally did. But when I went into Kyle’s pocket I found a piece of paper. I opened it and saw that it was a hand written letter. Unfortunately it was too small for me to read. But when I got my magnifying glass I discovered that it was a love letter for him. At first I thought about confronting him about it. But I wasn’t sure what I was going to say so I thought I’d leave it until I had more evidence. But over the weeks I discovered more and more clues. There were make-up stains on shirt and he was out for long periods of time. When I asked him where he had been he just told me that he was working. In the end I hired a P.I to see if he could follow Kyle. Within a few days the P.I came back to me with photos and a video of my husband with another woman. They were kissing and everything and they were like a married couple. I cried after that. I already suspected that he was seeing someone else but I didn’t expect this.”
“What did you do after that?”
“I confronted him with everything I had found. After that he admitted that he was having an affair. When I asked him why he said it was mainly about the sex. Because of my size he couldn’t properly have sex with me so he turned to her for sex. But he began to develop a relationship with her. Then I gave him and Ultimatum, Leave that Whore or I leave him. He chose her over me.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Well it was a few years ago. Again I had to go through a divorce but this time I won custody of our child. Rose by this time was in her teens and in High School. If she had left with Kyle she would have had to have gone to a different state, make new friends and start a different school. We both thought that it was best that she stayed with me. At least she could still see her friends.”
“For a teenage girl there’s nothing worse then being separated from your friends. I should know. Now tell me what you’ve done since your divorce.”
“Well I haven’t really began dating again yet and I’ve legally changed my name back to my maiden name. I’ve also started to write my autobiography. I haven’t done that much of it yet but I’m really getting along.”
“And how’s your daughter?”
“Ironically she’s 14 years old and already 6 feet tall. She’s joined the school basketball team. She’s told me that they’re going for a state championship. All I can do is wish her the best.”
“So things all that bad for you?”
“Nah things are pretty good. I’ve also been asked to make a cameo role in Eureka. And I’m 72 years old and I don’t have a single grey hair or wrinkle. And nothing towards plastic surgery.”
“That’s great Katherine. On behalf of the studio I’d like to thank you for having the time for this little interview.”
“It’s been my pleasure.”
“Now if you don’t mind can you get us down from your table? It’s a little too high for us.”
“Sure.”
Katherine then picked up Shelly and the camera crew one by one and she put them onto the ground outside of her front door. She squatted down and shook their hands and gave them a smile.
“Thanks again,” said Shelly.
“No thank you,” replied Katherine.
They then left Katherine and she just went back into her house. She just sat back down on her sofa and began to read an oversize book.

The End.