Saturday, January 20, 2001

Chyna tells all in autobiography

By Alex Marvez

Before she became known as the “Ninth Wonder of the World,” Joanie “Chyna” Laurer wondered what she would do with her life.

In her upcoming autobiography If They Only Knew (Regan Books, $26), Laurer details how she considered working as a flight attendant and as a member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation until embarking on the career that made her the World Wrestling Federation’s top female performer.

“I think one thing that stands out about the book is its candor,” Laurer said of her 325-page work. “It has stuff about the character Chyna, but it’s more about the behind-the-scenes road to becoming Chyna and how I survived in a man’s world. I’ve had an up-and-down life, which people are extremely surprised to know.”

Laurer does get extremely personal in the book, including the discussion of her horrible relationship with her parents. Laurer also addresses her days working for a 900-number sex telephone service and other adult material, like when one of her breast implants ruptured during a match.

“I didn’t want to write the book with any inhibitions,” said Laurer, who admits If They Only Knew isn’t aimed for younger readers. “I felt the strong language helps get my point across a little more because that’s how I felt many times.

“I asked Mick Foley to read the book while I was writing it. Some of the things in there were very disturbing to him, which I like because it makes me feel he has emotion when he read it. ... To send a message, you have to have great candor about everything.”

If They Only Knew will help bolster Laurer’s status as a wrestling star who also is a mainstream entertainment figure. Laurer’s recent nude pictorial in Playboy sold a reported 1 million copies, which is 200,000 more then when ex-WWF star Rena “Sable” Mero graced the magazine’s cover in 1998. Laurer also has appeared in “3rd Rock From the Sun” and is hoping for the lead role if a third installment of the “Terminator” movies is filmed.

Laurer, though, is at a crossroads in her wrestling career.

Although pitted against male performers for some time, that concept may have run its course as the WWF is hesitant to match Laurer against its top stars for fear of hurting their in-ring credibility. But Laurer also is much larger than every WWF female performer.

“One reason why I started wrestling men was because I felt that physically I was to men what most of the women are to me,” said Laurer, who will wrestle Ivory for the WWF women’s title at Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view show. “That puts me in a funny spot. With a lot of the men, I’m learning on a constant basis and I feel much more electric. With the women, I feel that although we have very many talented women, I do not find that as interesting.

“We’ll maybe try dabbling with the women a little bit to see how it goes. The good thing is the storylines are more involved now and the matches aren’t 20 minutes. Plus, the women are willing to work, which is a nice change.”

NOTES — World Championship Wrestling was sold last week to Fusient Entertainment, which puts Eric Bischoff back in charge of the promotion. Although the news hasn’t been pushed on WCW telecasts, expect major changes when the sale is finalized within the next six weeks. ... Extreme Championship Wrestling is on the verge of folding because of financial problems. Expect much of ECW’s top talent to surface soon in WCW and the WWF. ... Sid Vicious will be out of action for six to eight months after suffering serious leg and back injuries in the main event of last Sunday’s SIN pay-per-view show.

Q&A

Q: Did Kurt Angle really win a gold medal? — Peggy Arrowood, Cherryville, N.C.

A: Angle won a gold medal in freestyle wrestling in the 220-pound weight division at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Angle declined a WWF contract offer afterward but signed with the promotion in 1998.

More wrestling news can be found at www.wrestlingobserver.com. Questions can be sent to Marvez c/o the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 200 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 33301, or e-mailed to amarvez@sun-sentinel.com. Please include your full name and city of residence. Because of volume, no phone calls will be accepted and letters will not receive a written reply.