When The World's Oldest Man Died On Sunday, He Was Still Younger Than 65 Women
There are 65 women older than Alexander Imich, according to the Gerontology Research Group, which keeps track of supercentenarians – people over the age of 110.
By Sadho Ram — 10 Jun 2014, 06:11 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
On 8 June 2014, 111-year-old Alexander Imich, a Polish-born psychic researcher who was certified the oldest man on earth, died at a senior residence in Manhattan
Imich attained the title of world’s oldest man in April, and attributed his long life to a healthy diet and abstinence from alcohol, according to NBC 4 New York.
time.com
But the late doctor, a Holocaust survivor and parapsychologist, was actually the world’s 66th oldest person
Misao Okawa, left, poses with her 2-month-old great-grandson Hibiki Okawa, right, along with the Guinness World Records certificate at a nursing home in Osaka, Japan on Feb. 27, 2013
Image via abcnews.comThere are 65 women older than Imich, according to the Gerontology Research Group, which keeps track of supercentenarians – people over the age of 110. As of last weekend, there were 76 supercentenarians worldwide, including Imich, who had been declared the world’s oldest man in May. Of those 76, only three were men. The remaining 73 supercentenarians were all women.
go.comThe world’s oldest woman, Japanese Misao Okawa, is 116. She was born in 1898.
go.comLike many centenarians, Imich’s early life spanned various conflicts. Born in Poland on 4 Feb. 1903, he fled with his wife in 1939 after Nazi Germany invaded the country. They settled in the U.S. in the 1950s.
Doctor Alexander Imich, holocaust survivor and parapsychologist, chatted about his long life with Ralph Gardner in 2011
Image via wsj.netHis niece told the Associated Press that Dr. Imich’s health began declining in the past several weeks. The chemist and parapsychologist’s life was not only long — it was eventful and colorful. Born in a Polish town that was then part of Russia, Dr. Imich and his wife fled the Nazis in 1939, eventually moving to the United States.
The Wall Street Journal’s Ralph Gardner interviewed Dr. Imich in his West End Avenue home in 2011, back when he was just 108 years old. Mr. Gardner described him as a whip-smart fellow whose years hadn’t made a dent in his memory or recollection.
nytimes.com
Occasionally Dr. Imich would lapse into silence—only for a few seconds—and I’d wonder whether it was a sign of senility, or at least flagging stamina. But that wasn’t it, because his next recollection, or retrieval of a name or date from the distant past, was just as confident, his voice just as robust, as anything that he’d said previously.
In an interview with The New York Times on April 30, Mr. Imich made light of his longevity record, saying, "Not like it’s the Nobel Prize"
“I never thought I’d be that old,” he said.
nytimes.com
He attributed his long life to the fact that he and his wife, Wela, a painter and therapist who died in 1986, never had children. (In addition to Ms. Bogen, he is survived by an 84-year-old nephew, Jan Imich, in London.) He also exercised, ate sparingly and never drank alcohol.
He said “the aeroplane” was the greatest invention he witnessed in his lifetime; he was born 10 months before the flight of the Wright Brothers.
nytimes.com
His achievements included a Phd in Zoology and an anthology, entitled Incredible Tales of the Paranormal, which he edited at the age of 92.
Meanwhile, after the death of Imich, Japan's Sakari Momoi, also 111 years old, is now believed to be the world's oldest man
Sakari Momoi (L), a resident of Saitama prefecture, writes a message to communicate with Saitama Mayor Hayato Shimizu (R) in Tokyo.
Image via wsj.netA 111-year-old Japanese man is likely to be certified as the oldest living man in the world after Alexander Imich, the previous record holder, died Sunday in New York.
bernama.com.my
Sakari Momoi, who is one day younger than Imich, comes from Minamisoma in Fukushima Prefecture. He is now a resident of Saitama City, near Tokyo. If he is recognized by Guinnes World Records as the world’s oldest man, Japan will be home to the world’s oldest man and woman.
japantimes.co.jp
Momoi was for many years a teacher of agricultural chemistry. After serving as the first principal of Fukushima prefectural Hanawa High School, now Hanawa Technical High School, he moved to what is now Saitama City about 60 years ago. He also served as principal of Saitama prefectural Yono High School.
In September, he told reporters at a health care institution in Tokyo that he would like to live long. According to Saitama City, he is still being taken care of at the institution and looked well when a city employee visited him recently.
japantimes.co.jp