Peter Mayhew (born 19 May 1944) is an English-American actor, best known for portraying Chewbacca in the Star Wars film series. He played the character in all of his live action appearances from the 1977 original to 2015\'s The Force Awakens before his retirement from the role.\n', '

Mayhew was born on 19 May 1944 in Barnes, Surrey, where he was also raised. His height is not a product of gigantism, "I don\'t have the big head", but of a connective tissue disorder called Marfan syndrome. His peak height was 7 feet 3 inches (2.21 m).\n', '

Mayhew got his first acting job in 1976 when the producers of Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger discovered him from a photograph in a newspaper article about men with large feet, and cast him in the role of the minotaur.\n', '

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