Pop in a Princess Bride making-of featurette, or catch a convention appearance and you'll hear many a verbal valentine to Andre, his friendliness and generosity (and his alcohol tolerance and heroic flatulence, can't forget). At the same time, there are multiple
stories from the wrestling world (and fan interactions, such as they were) of him being a miserable sod. Now, human beings are a mass of contradictions, and its completely plausible that he could be both at various points (and if you were in the kind of pain
he was constantly in, you'd probably be a bit surly, too). That said, what do you think is the more likely cause of the diverging stories: a) he was consistently his best self outside of wrestling, or b) his co-stars are keeping their encounters with Andre's
sour moods under wraps because they know the “gentle giant” stories play better to the crowds?
I think a little of both, but of course human beings are rarely only one thing all of the time. Andre was a complex guy like everyone else, and as much as he could be a wonderful person, he could also be a colossal shithead if he didn't like you.