This Day in History: , 'The Guinness Book of Records' Debuts .
August 27, 1955.
The inaugural edition
was published in Great Britain.
Meant as a free publication for
pub goers to settle friendly disputes,
the book of human and animal records
quickly became a best-seller.
The book was the brain-
child of Sir Hugh Beaver, the
managing director of Dublin's
famous Guinness Brewery.
The book was the brain-
child of Sir Hugh Beaver, the
managing director of Dublin's
famous Guinness Brewery.
Beaver was struck with the idea
during a failed hunting trip in
Ireland, in which the party sought to
settle which bird was the fastest game fowl.
Beaver turned to brothers Ross
and Norris McWhirter to produce
the first book. The two continued to
compile the book for two decades.
An American edition
followed in 1956. Today, the
book complies thousands of
official Guinness world records