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Sandy Allen spent her life overcoming the physical and social barriers that came with being the world's tallest woman.
Born with a tumor on her pituitary gland, she reached 7 feet, 7 1/4 inches. But on Wednesday, she lost her fight against illness at age 53.
Allen died just before 3 a.m. at Heritage House Convalescent Center, where she spent the last few years of her life. She will be buried in a custom-made casket that will occupy four burial plots.
Her remarkable height brought her ridicule, financial and health struggles, and unwanted stares, but Allen used her condition to teach others the importance of acceptance.
"She always accepted her position in life as God put her here for some reason," said John Kleiman, Allen's longtime friend and former agent. "She was going to do what she could to live that."
Allen was born a normal-sized baby in Chicago, but the tumor caused an excessive release of growth hormones, said Rita Rose, another close friend who authored a book on Allen's high school years.
Her mother left her for her grandmother to raise, and Allen never knew her father, Rose said. She grew up in Shelbyville, and by age 10, she stood more than 6 feet tall.
By the time she started at Shelbyville High School, Allen's height surpassed 7 feet. Her classmates rejected her.
"We all had our circles that we ran in," said Jane Shelton, one of Allen's two childhood friends. "She just didn't fit in the circles."
Allen graduated and eventually accepted a state job, where her desk had to be lifted on cement blocks so her legs could fit underneath.
In 1975, Guinness World Records named her the world's tallest woman. The distinction changed her life.
The once-shy woman became accustomed to interacting with the public and making speaking appearances. She learned to make jokes about herself to get others to open up to her. She even donned T-shirts with messages such as "I'm with shorty" to appear more approachable.
Her height also made her a celebrity. She appeared in Federico Fellini's "Casanova" and on talk shows including "Oprah" and "The Howard Stern Show."

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