Chyna net worth: Chyna was an American wrestler, actress, bodybuilder and adult film actress who had a net worth of $500 thousand at the time of her death. Chyna was instrumental in developing professional women’s wrestling before also appearing in a number of celebrity reality shows. Unfortunately, Chyna died on April 20, 2016 at the age of 45.
Early Life: Chyna was born on December 27, 1969 in Rochester, New York and given the name Joan Marie Laurer. She had two older siblings, Kathy and Sonny, and her parents divorced when she was four years old. She had a tumultuous childhood, as her father struggled with alcoholism and her mother got remarried a number of times, resulting in the family moving frequently. When she was in middle school, she started purging after meals and also began experimenting with drugs. At the age of sixteen, she left home after her mother tried to enroll her in a drug rehabilitation center.
Chyna did complete high school and moved to Spain to complete the final year. She then enrolled at the University of Tampa where she studied Spanish Literature. She was fluent in Spanish, French, and German and also was a member of the ROTC. She had planned to join the FBI or DEA but then decided to join the Peace Corps after college and moved to Guatemala for her assignment. Following her return to the United States, she held a number of jobs, working as a cocktail waitress, a singer, and a belly dancer. She also was working out frequently during this time and started competing in fitness competitions in the mid 1990s.
Wrestling Career: In 1995, Chyna began training at Wledek “Killer” Kowalski’s professional wrestling school in Massachusetts. She started competing in small matches, some of which were viewed by performers from the World Wrestling Foundation (WWF). The WWF decided to bring Chyna in as a bodyguard but then decided to hire her as a solo performer in 1997.
Chyna made her WWF debut in February of 1997 and was soon after given the moniker “Chyna, ” ironic because fine china is supposed to be delicate and easily broken, while Chyna’s character was anything but. In 1999, she became the thirtieth entrant in the Royal Rumble, becoming the first woman ever to enter the eponymous match. Later that year, she also became the first woman to qualify for the King of the Ring Tournament. The following two years were successful for Chyna and the WWF, though she chose to leave in 2001.
In 2002, she joined New Japan Pro-Wrestling, which she participated in for around a year. She took a hiatus from wrestling in the 2000s while she pursued other opportunities but then joined Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in 2011. She wrestled in her final match in May of 2011.
Television, Film, and Media Appearances: Chyna’s wrestling career lead to other opportunities in film and media. She posed nude for Playboy magazine in 2000 and also filmed an adult documentary for the company. In 2001, she released an autobiography an also appeared a number of times as a guest on “The Howard Stern Show.”
Throughout the 2000s, she made a number of appearances on television shows and in films, including “Fear Factor,” “3rd Rock from the Sun,” “Robot Wars: Grand Champions,” and “Hollywood Squares.” In early 2005, she became a housemate on “the Surreal Life” and then on “The Surreal Life: Fame Games” in 2007. She also appeared in “Just Another Romantic Wrestling Comedy” and “Illegal Aliens.”
Chyna’s brain was donated to science in order to study the effects of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Her memorial service was held in Los Angeles in June and was attended by a number of her former wrestling colleagues and other celebrities. Chyna was cremated and her ashes scattered into the Pacific Ocean.
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