Terri Runnels

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Terri Runnels
Born (1966-10-05) October 5, 1966 (age 58)
Live Oak, Florida
Professional wrestling career
Ring name(s)Alexandra York
Marlena
Terri Runnels
Terri
Billed height5 ft 2 in (157 cm) actually 4 ft 11 in
Billed weight105 lb (48 kg)
Trained byTerry Taylor
Nancy Benoit
Ole Anderson
Debut1989
RetiredMarch 2005

Terri Lynne Boatright Runnels (born October 5, 1966) is a former WCW and WWE professional wrestling valet, and TV host. She is best known for her eight-year career with World Wrestling Entertainment, and as the former wife of Dustin Runnels.

Career

1980s-mid 1990s

Runnels was originally a make-up artist for CNN, and worked in the same studios in which episodes of WCW were taped. When WCW was purchased by Ted Turner in 1988, booker Ole Anderson invited her to become part of the roster. Terri debuted in 1990 as Miss Alexandra York, (a name Terri created at lunch one day with Tony Schiavone) an accountant who led the WCW faction known as the York Foundation. The York Foundation was a consortium of wrestlers with finance themed gimmicks, including Terrance Taylor, Richard Morton, Thomas Rich, and Michael Wallstreet. Terri carried a laptop (actually a Tandy 100 computer, which at that time had been obsolete for about six years) to ringside with which she purportedly calculated the means (and time) necessary for her clients to win matches.

World Wrestling Federation

1996-1999

Terri debuted in the World Wrestling Federation at the 1996 Royal Rumble as Marlena. Terri came up with the name and also had to petition Vince to allow her to smoke the cigars she wanted to bring to the ring. Terri loved smoking cigars in her private time and thought that would be perfect for the androgynous character that she thought of to compliment her husband's character "Goldust". Terri thought of the Marlena character one day while she was in her tanning bed. The motivation for the Marlena character was the Bob Mackie Barbie doll which looked like a Sun Goddess. The cigar-smoking manager and wife of her real-life husband Dustin Runnels, then packaged as the eccentric, cross-dressing, bisexual wrestler Goldust. Terri managed Goldust until November 3 1997, when he revealed his new valet, Luna Vachon. Terri disappeared from TV, re-emerging in 1998 as the manager and on-screen girlfriend of Val Venis. Venis ended their relationship when Terri announced that she was pregnant with his baby.

In November 1998, the jilted Terri formed the stable "Pretty Mean Sisters" (P.M.S.) with Jacqueline and Ryan Shamrock, both of whom also had reason to resent men. In a subsequent angle, D'Lo Brown accidentally knocked Terri from the ring apron to the floor during a match, and she claimed to have suffered a miscarriage. This was later found to be untrue, as was the entire pregnancy, but in the meantime Terri used the incident to exert control over D'Lo, who became a virtual servant to P.M.S. The stable eventually grew to encompass Meat, a male wrestler who the ladies constantly abused. P.M.S. gradually drifted apart, and the stable finally split in August 1999.

She competed in a slightly modified Classic Survivor Series 8-Diva Tag Team Match with there only being one fall instead of elimination at the 1999 Survivor Series pay-per-view. She teamed up with former P.M.S. stablemate Jacqueline, Luna, and the WWF Women's Champion Ivory in a loss to The Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, Tori, and Debra. Though she didn't get tagged in or even stand on the ring apron like the other participants, she got her top ripped off by Debra at the conclusion of the match.

In late 1999, Terri arranged the "Terri Invitational Tournament" between Edge and Christian and The Hardy Boyz (then known as The New Brood), with the winner receiving her managerial services and the sum of $100,000. The Hardy Boyz won the Tournament, which culminated in a Ladder match at No Mercy (with the prize money suspended above the ring in a bag), and Terri spent the next few months as their manager until she was injured when Bubba Ray Dudley powerbombed her through a table on January 24 2000. Terri returned on February 27 and cost the Hardy Boyz a match, complaining that they had not visited her while hospitalized. She then became the manager of Edge and Christian, but cost them numerous matches, including a bout for the WWF Tag Team Championships. After she cost Christian a match on an episode of SmackDown!, Edge and Christian dispensed with her services. After Terri mocked the departing tag team with her signature "she-devil" taunt, Edge noticing the gesture on the TitanTron, turned around and speared her.

2000-2003

Terri then began a feud with The Kat because she was jealous of the latter's TV exposure. At WrestleMania 2000, Terri (accompanied by The Fabulous Moolah) defeated The Kat (with Mae Young) in a Catfight.[1] Val Venis was the Special Guest Referee, but was distracted when Mae kissed him in response to Val making out with both Terri and The Kat.[1] This allowed Moolah to pull The Kat out of the ring, and when Val saw her out of the ring, he declaired Terri the winner.[1] Post-match, The Kat attacked Terri by stripping her black pants off to expose her thong.[1]

The next week on RAW, Terri invited The Kat to a beauty salon. However, Terri spiked The Kat's drink and dyed and cut her hair while she was unconscious. The feud would continue to an Arm Wrestling Match at Insurrextion 2000.[2] Carter was victorious, but after the match, Terri pulled The Kat's top off, exposing her breasts. Instead of being disgusted or embarrassed, Carter allowed the crowd to see her breasts.[3] In June 2000, Terri formed an alliance with Dean Malenko, and on June 6 on RAW, Malenko faced Jerry Lawler (representing The Kat) in a "Over the Top, Off with the Top" Match. Though Malenko lost, Terri was covered up by Steven Richards before she could strip topless. The feud resurfaced in a 'Thong Stink Face' match at SummerSlam 2000, where The Kat won the match by delivering a stinkface to Terri.[4]

In mid-2000, Terri became the onscreen girlfriend and manager of Perry Saturn and joined The Radicalz. The partnership lasted until Saturn, concussed by a double powerbomb delivered by The Acolytes, opted to continue seeing "Moppy" (a mop he believed was alive) when Terri told him to get rid of the mop or she would leave him. Terri then became the manager of wrestler Raven and joined The Alliance in order to enact revenge upon Saturn, a goal she achieved when Raven stole the mop and fed it into a woodchipper.

In late-2001, Terri replaced Trish Stratus as the host of the WWE recap program "Excess" after Stratus became a full-time wrestler. She briefly feuded with Stratus, resulting in a wet T-shirt contest between the two on RAW, which was interrupted by Jazz.[5] Runnels held the role until the program was canceled and she then became a backstage interviewer. She wrestled the occasional match and has brief feuds with Molly Holly and Stacy Keibler. Terri defeated Keibler in the first ever Lingerie Pillow Fight. On May 27 2002 she briefly held the perpetually contested Hardcore Title when she pinned a dazed Steven Richards, though he immediately pinned her to regain the title.[6] She also began an onscreen romance with Kane which was abandoned when Kane turned heel in June 2003. Terri declined to train as a full-time wrestler, preferring to act as a manager if possible.

Post-WWE

On April 3 2004, Terri was granted a release from her WWE contract and parted on good terms. She has since made a number of appearances on the independent circuit. On June 5, she acted as guest ring announcer for Harley Race's World League Wrestling promotion, and prevented Johnny Gold from interfering in the main event. She resumed a managerial role on July 10, leading Brian Costello to a victory over The Barbarian at IAW: Clash at the Cove 6. On January 18 2005 she managed the Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton and Dennis Condrey) in a Steel cage match, which they lost to the Fantastics (Tommy Rogers and Bobby Fulton) in the Southern Championship Wrestling promotion.[7] In May 2006, Terri stated in a news article that she had started a program called "Soccertots", a franchised program that uses fun activities to develop physical and mental skills.

In July 2007, in the wake of the Chris Benoit steroid/murder controvery, Terri gave an interview claiming that drug abuse is rife in wrestling citing Soma (Carisoprodol) in particular.[8] Terri stated that "...the boys eat soma like candy" and that she feared "...if the wrestlers' addictions and mental health issues continue to be ignored, I'm afraid that I'll have more friends turning up dead -- all because no one cares." "Terri also said in an interview on FOX News that Vince McMahon is not a babysitter who tells men and women when to eat,sleep and take a nap, he does not run a day care!" "Vince McMahon employs adults not children, those adults must be responsible for their own actions!" Terri says she has seen some negative things in the wrestling business but also experienced some wonderful memories...very much like what most individuals experience in their everyday lives.[9]

Personal life

Before entering the world of wrestling, Terri ran the make-up department at CNN and dated her accountant Derek Kuipers. From there, she dated Brian Pillman in 1990 while they were both in WCW. She was born Terri Lynne Boatright, but took the name of first husband Dustin Runnels after their marriage in 1993. They have a daughter, Dakota, who was born on February 14 1994.[10] The couple divorced in Oct.,1999 but maintain an amicable relationship for the sake of Dakota.[11] She was briefly married again in April 2002 to Life Coach David Essel in a beach wedding where WWF legend Big Boss Man gave her away, but she divorced her new husband soon after. She turned down offers to pose for Playboy in the 1990s, citing the potential effects on her daughter.

Terri appeared on the show The Weakest Link in 2002. During the taping when asked by host Anne Robinson, she admitted to having fake breasts by responding, "These are as fake as my hair." Runnels also tried to repeatedly vote off Kane, citing his wrestling attire smelled bad. She said she had a "blast" doing the Weakest Link with her friends.

Wrestling facts

  • Wrestlers managed
  • Managers
  • Entrance Music
    • Runnels originally used Goldust's entrance theme whilst she was his manager
    • When Terri Runnels joined the "Pretty Mean Sisters" faction, she began using the PMS theme. That later became the entrance music of both Jackie and Terri even after PMS split. Terri used it until 2001 when she started managing Perry Saturn
    • When Runnels began managing Perry Saturn, she began using his production entrance theme, along with the entrance music of the Radicalz.
    • She also used a theme Electron which was previously used by Amy "Lita" Dumas.

Championships and accomplishments

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d "Kat vs. Terri at WrestleMania 2000". Retrieved 2007-05-09.
  2. ^ Jerry Lawler. It's Good to Be the King...Sometimes (339)
  3. ^ Jerry Lawler. It's Good to Be the King...Sometimes (339)
  4. ^ "SummerSlam 2000 results". Retrieved 2007-05-09.
  5. ^ Michael McAvennie (2003). "WWE The Yearbook: 2003 Edition". Pocket Books. pp. 18–20.
  6. ^ Michael McAvennie (2003). "WWE The Yearbook: 2003 Edition". Pocket Books. p. 156.
  7. ^ "Terri Interview". 2tbn.com. March 2005. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  8. ^ "WWE In Soma Coma?". TMZ.com. July 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  9. ^ "WWE In Soma Coma?". TMZ.com. July 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  10. ^ [Stated in the June 2000 issue of WOW Magazine]
  11. ^ [Stated in the June 2000 issue of WOW Magazine]

References


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