World;s oldest living man dies in Italy days before 112th birthday

USPA News - Arturo Licata, born at a time when King Victor Emmanuel III ruled Italy and more than a decade before the outbreak of World War I, died at his residence in southern Italy on Thursday. The world`s oldest living man would have turned 112 years old next week.

Licata, 111, died in the southern Italian city of Enna on Thursday afternoon, according to Guinness World Records Editor-in-Chief Craig Glenday. "It`s sad to hear of the passing of Signor Licata - a man born before the Wright brothers` first powered flight, and one of only four men older than 111," he said. Licata was born into a family of four brothers and two sisters on May 2, 1902, in the town of Castrogiovanni, which has since expanded to become the city of Enna. He began working in mines when he was just nine years old before joining the military in 1921 at the age of 19, according to Guinness World Records, which verified his age. In 1929, while still in the military, Licata married Rosa Jannello, with whom he had seven children in the following years. Licata finished his military service in 1939 and was hired as a security guard at a mine before pursuing a successful career in business. Rosa died in 1980 when Licata was 78 years old. Licata was officially recognized as the world`s oldest living man in February of this year after 112-year-old Salustiano Sanchez-Blazquez died in the U.S. state of New York in September 2013. "The record of oldest living man is one of the most significant superlatives that we monitor, and it`s been an honor to have recognized Snr Licata`s remarkable life," Glenday said. Licata, who is survived by seven children, eight grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, will be buried in Enna on Saturday. The new record-holder as the world`s oldest living man is believed to be 111-year-old Polish-born American Alexander Imich, who now lives in Manhattan, according to the Gerontology Research Group (GRG). Guinness World Records is expected to formally confirm Imich as the oldest living man in the coming months. Jiroemon Kimura, who died in Japan in June 2013 at the age of 116 years and 54 days, was the world`s oldest verified male in recorded history, according to Guinness World Records. Besides the male title, 115-year-old Misao Okawa of Japan is currently recognized as the world`s oldest living woman, and therefore also the world`s oldest living person. The oldest undisputed person to have ever lived in the world was Jeanne Calment who died in France in 1997 at the age of 122 years and 164 days. Other people have claimed to be older than Calment, but those claims have never been verified with official documentation and other supporting evidence.