Dina DeStefano (1963 – March 14, 2006) was an American retired professional wrestling manager, better known as Marie or Marie Lograsso. She is best known for her run in World Championship Wrestling as the sister of Big Vito.
| Marie | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Dina DeStefano |
| Born | 1963 New Jersey[1] |
| Died | March 14, 2006 (aged 42–43)[2] |
| Cause of death | Drug overdose |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Marie[3] |
| Billed height | 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) |
| Trained by | WCW Power Plant |
| Debut | 2000[4] |
| Retired | 2001 |
Professional wrestling career
editWorld Championship Wrestling (2000–2001)
editAfter completing training at the WCW Power Plant, Marie made her debut on the September 25, 2000 episode of WCW Nitro, as the little sister of Big Vito who watched him at ringside.[5] She usually appeared at ringside for various matches, where the camera would pan to her at different times. It would later be revealed that Marie was dating Reno, who at the time, was a member of The Natural Born Thrillers faction.
As this was revealed, Reno then began feuding solely with Vito, which was intensified when it was revealed that Reno was, in storyline, dating Vito's sister, Marie. It was also revealed that Reno and Vito were, in storyline, brothers. Both men subsequently became allies on the December 4 edition of Nitro when Vito saved Reno from being attacked by KroniK.
With Marie working as their valet, both of the brothers formed a tag team soon after, but the team came to an end quickly at Starrcade when Reno turned on Vito during their match with KroniK. He then revealed that he was the one who paid off KroniK to attack him in the previous weeks. Their feud culminated at Sin, which saw Reno pin Vito. As WCW went out of business and was sold to WWE in 2001, Marie's wrestling career came to an end.
During her run in WCW, many people speculated that she was portrayed by independent wrestler/valet Noel Harlow (Vito's real life wife), but this was false. She confirmed it was false in a Twitter post, and both Reno and Vito didn't know who she was.[6] Harlow's wrestling career didn't start until 2002.
Personal life
editStefano was the mother of three children. She had aspirations of being a model and an actress. She died on March 14, 2006, aged 43 from a drug overdose.[7]
References
edit- ^ "Marie Lograsso".
- ^ "Dina DeStefano Obituary (2006) - The Record/Herald News". www.legacy.com. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
- ^ "Marie Career Data".
- ^ "Marie Career Data".
- ^ (720pHD): WCW Nitro 09/25/00 - Marie Debuts/Big Vito vs. Johnny "The Bull" Hugger, retrieved April 21, 2021
- ^ @magictspiller (August 13, 2018). "Register" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Marie Career Data".