The largest afro measures 18.5 cm (7.3 in) high, 19.6 cm (7.7 in) wide and 132.1 cm (4 ft 4 in) in circumference and was achieved by Aevin Dugas, in New Orleans, USA on 4 October 2010. Proud of her record-breaking afro, Aevin Dugas says her hair is inspiring legions of women to ditch chemical straighteners and "go natural". The 37-year-old, whose hair entered the Guinness Book of Records at 4ft 4ins around, says everyone from toddlers to grandmothers are following in her footsteps.
Aevin said: "At one time I strived to get hair that was bone straight and now all I want is it big and poofy". She believes her voluminous hair may have grown even bigger, but she cannot reveal its size until Guinness take an official measurement. "When my hair is stretched out to its complete length and pressed, it goes down to my butt. But I don't wear it like that because it looks weird."
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.