<P> After the founding of The Guinness Book of Records at 107 Fleet Street, the first 198 - page edition was bound on 27 August 1955 and went to the top of the British best seller lists by Christmas . The following year, it launched in the US, and sold 70,000 copies . Since then, Guinness World Records has become a household name and the global leader in world records . The book has gone on to become a record breaker in its own right; with sales of more than 100 million copies in 100 different countries and 37 languages, Guinness World Records is the world's best selling copyright book ever . </P> <P> Because the book became a surprise hit, many further editions were printed, eventually settling into a pattern of one revision a year, published in September / October, in time for Christmas . The McWhirters continued to compile it for many years . Both brothers had an encyclopedic memory; on the TV series Record Breakers, based upon the book, they would take questions posed by children in the audience on various world records and were able to give the correct answer . Ross McWhirter was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in 1975 . Following Ross' assassination, the feature in the show where questions about records posed by children were answered was called Norris on the Spot . </P> <P> Guinness Superlatives (later Guinness World Records) Limited was formed in 1954 to publish the first book . Sterling Publishing owned the rights to the Guinness book in the US for decades . The group was owned by Guinness PLC and subsequently Diageo until 2001, when it was purchased by Gullane Entertainment . Gullane was itself purchased by HIT Entertainment in 2002 . In 2006, Apax Partners purchased HiT and subsequently sold Guinness World Records in early 2008 to the Jim Pattison Group, the parent company of Ripley Entertainment, which is licensed to operate Guinness World Records' Attractions . With offices in New York City and Tokyo, Guinness World Records' global headquarters remain in London, while its museum attractions are based at Ripley headquarters in Orlando, Florida, US . </P> <P> Recent editions have focused on record feats by person competitors . Competitions range from obvious ones such as Olympic weightlifting to the longest egg tossing distances, or for longest time spent playing Grand Theft Auto IV or the number of hot dogs that can be consumed in ten minutes, although eating and alcohol consumption entries are no longer accepted, possibly for fear of litigation . Besides records about competitions, it contains such facts as the heaviest tumour, the most poisonous plant, the shortest river (Roe River), the two longest - running dramas (General Hospital and Guiding Light) in the US, and the world's most successful salesman (Joe Girard), among others . Many records also relate to the youngest person who achieved something, such as the youngest person to visit all nations of the world, being Maurizio Giuliano . </P>

Who writes the guinness book of world records