Fascinating tale of 500LB circus performer Celesta Geyer - who was dubbed the 'world's most beautiful fat lady' - bewitching spectators with her size AND stunning looks... before near-fatal heart attack saw her shed 440LBS to become a diet guru

A new book has given a fascinating insight into the life of the 550lb circus performer dubbed 'World's Most Beautiful Fat Lady' - who shed a staggering 440lbs and rebranded herself as a diet guru after suffering a near-fatal heart attack.

Therese Oneill's Unbecoming A Lady, which was released earlier this week, shares a glimpse into the whirlwind trajectory of Celesta Geyer who quit school aged 16 after being mercilessly tormented by her peers over her weight.

She bounced from job to job - including factory worker and beautician - before she eventually decided to embrace her size and tour with the circus.

The performer, from Cincinnati, Ohio, assumed the stage name Dolly Dimple and made a fortune by cashing in on her claim of being World's Most Beautiful Fat Lady.

Celesta Geyer, who was dubbed 'World's Most Beautiful Fat Lady,' shed a staggering 440lbs and rebranded herself as a diet guru after suffering a near-fatal heart attack

She had such a passion for life that she soon set out on new ventures and tried her hand at becoming a psychic before ultimately deciding to turn her life around.

By age 50, Celesta, who stood at just 4ft11, weighed a staggering 555 pounds but began to see first hand the devastation that being so overweight could cause - losing her sister-in-law and mentor in quick succession due to weight-related health issues.

As a result, she shed a whopping 440lbs in just over a year and landed herself in the Guinness World Book of Records in the process.

Celesta was ultimately able to keep the weight off and she became a diet guru - as well as a talk-show celebrity - before she died in 1982 at the age of 81. 

Celesta left school after being tormented by her peers and set out to find a steady job - but was even considered too fat to work on a switchboard   

Celesta had developed an unhealthy relationship with food from a young age after going to her father's popular German pub nearly every day where she was 'rewarded with food for her cuteness.' 

She started school aged six but soon found that being plus sized in a classroom was not easy after getting ostracized both physically and emotionally.

Celesta, who was overweight even then, was forced to endure humiliating special measures to accommodate her size - including having to sit at the front of every classroom with an extended desk.

It meant that she was constantly in everyone's sights, being tormented and 'tortured all day' by both students and teachers alike.

By age 16, the youngster had had enough and decided to drop out of school in a bid to find a steady job instead.

Celesta developed an unhealthy relationship with food from a young age after going to her father's popular pub nearly every day where she was 'rewarded with food for her cuteness'

She secured a low-level role in a factory, which was a common vocation for young girls of that era, packing products such as soaps and chocolate.

Celesta had tried to pick up work on a telephone switchboard but was turned away after being told that at 255lbs she would not be able to fit on the stools.

But, despite the scathing feedback, she was undeterred and set out on her own venture in Miami.

It was there that she became a beautician and makeup model - with a great deal of success.

'Her face was very large, but very pretty, and the cosmetic sellers thought her dimensions highlighted how their products could flatter,' the book reads.

It was during this time that she learned to let her hair down and tapped into her wild side - hanging out with prostitutes and 'bad boys', attending costume balls and joyriding.

Celesta later met and fell in love with a man called Frank and, although she had initially been 'suspicious' about 'why he was marrying a 300-pound pariah,' the pair were happily wed until his death in 1967.

During the Great Depression, and with the couple's finances dwindling, they visited a near-empty carnival - and the day trip would change their lives forever.

The plus-sized performer made a fortune as a circus 'Fat Lady' after ballooning to 500lbs

Celesta had struggled in the outside world since: 'Every time she left her house, she had to be prepared for an assault of sniggers, stares, and screamed insults.

'It wasn't worth it. She stayed put and grew larger.'

But it was her trip to the circus with Frank that would completely overhaul her outlook.

An employee in front of the existing 'Fat Lady' tent called out to her as she walked past and Celesta wrote: 'My courage dropped and my heart sank... but I took hold of myself and when we were within a few feet of him I boomed out, "Do you want to see a real 338-pound fat lady? I'll bet I'm a lot fatter than the one you have."'

The couple headed inside and were introduced to Jolly Pearl Stanley, who weighed 700 pounds, and she ultimately became Celesta's mentor.

Jolly Pearl said that if people were already laughing at her, Celesta might as well get paid for it - and that is exactly what she did.

Celesta had struggled in the outside world since: 'Every time she left her house, she had to be prepared for an assault of sniggers, stares, and screamed insults'

She adopted the stage name of Dolly Dimples and was branded as The World's Most Beautiful Fat Lady

Celesta adopted the stage name of Dolly Dimple and was branded as The World's Most Beautiful Fat Lady.

She danced and sang on stage in an array of eye-catching satin costumes - with her performances offering a gateway to a much more lavish lifestyle.

The couple's finances had been wavering amid the Great Depression but her newfound fame at the center of the carnival community saw them touring Hawaii and driving round in private Pullman cars.

By the time Celesta, who stood at just 4ft11, was in her 40s she weighed around 500 pounds - and she sought yet a new venture.

She and Frank bought a gas station in Florida before Celesta set out working as a psychic - under the guide of Madame Celeste.

'Celesta didn't believe she was psychic. But she had honed a useful skill that is often found in people who live lives wary of harm from others. Empathy. The ability to read humans,' the book revealed.

She was flooded with clients seeking answers for a whole host of problems - from help picking winning lotto numbers to healing sick children.

Celesta's personal life was marred with tragedy as her 'fat friends kept dying' - which gave her the push she needed to shed the pounds 

'Celesta had figured out how to thrive as a fat lady. But that didn't change the fact that her fat friends kept dying. Even when trying not to be fat,' the book stated.

The entrepreneur had started taking diet pills along with her sister-in-law which were described as 'mail-order military-grade methamphetamine.' 

Both women lost weight but her sister-in-law, who was relatively svelte at the time of her death, ultimately suffered two burst heart valves as a result.

Celesta stopped taking them and narrowly survived the kidney failure that she had  initially dismissed as water retention.

Celesta alter set out on a mission to completely overhaul her body shape and recoup her health - losing a whopping 440 pounds in a little over a year

She avoided the pills that she had previously dabbled with and instead restricted her diet to just 800 calories a day

Elsewhere, mentor Jolly Pearl, who could not move without help, suffered a fatal heart attack during one of her performances.

And the circumstances surrounding her burial were 'demeaning.'

Jolly Pearl was buried in a 'rough wooden box' - since no traditional coffin could comfortably accommodate her size - and she was driven to her grave on the back of a flat-bottomed truck.

The trauma had already sent Celesta into a spin but at aged 50, weighing a staggering 555 pounds, she also suffered a heart attack.

In light of her impressive overhaul, Celesta took on yet another professional guise - this time as a diet guru and talk-show celebrity

She survived but doctors told her 'she could diet, or she could die. Those were her choices.'

Celesta immediately set out on a mission to completely overhaul her body shape and recoup her health.

She lost a whopping 440 pounds in a little over a year - even earning a spot in the Guinness World Book of Records for the feat. 

She avoided the pills that she had previously dabbled with and instead restricted her diet to just 800 calories a day.

'It was horrible. She hurt, she felt starved, and she was depressed.

'But she did it. And the depression lessened, the cravings were checked, and she did not gain the weight back. Ever,' the book stated.

In light of her impressive overhaul, Celesta took on yet another professional guise - this time as a diet guru and talk-show celebrity where she pitched her tried-and-tested calorie-restrictive diet.

She died aged 81 - weighing 121 pounds.