Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004. In the same year, she placed fifth in the Raw Diva Search, but was later hired by WWE as a backstage interviewer. Kanellis began competing in the ring as a wrestler in 2005. She also posed for the April 2008 cover of Playboy magazine, which was incorporated into a storyline on Raw. She released her debut album Sevin Sins on April 13, 2010 on iTunes.
Early life
Kanellis was born in Ottawa, Illinois.[5] She has two younger siblings; a brother named Bill and a sister Janny.[2][6][7] Kanellis grew up with an interest in playing sports, particularly volleyball, basketball, and softball and graduated from Ottawa Township High School in 2000, before spending some time as a student at Northern Illinois University.[8] Before her career in wrestling began, Kanellis regularly competed in beauty pageants.[6]
Diva Search and debut (2004–2005)
Maria in the ring in 2006
She competed in the Raw Diva Search in 2004,[6] deciding to enter the contest after seeing an advertisement while watching Raw.[9] Even though she only placed fifth in the contest, she was hired by the company.[5] She stood out in the contest by giving fellow contestant Carmella DeCesare the finger after being eliminated from the contest.[5] Maria began making appearances at the Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) training facility under head trainer Paul Heyman.[5] She contributed booking ideas, and her work at OVW earned her a spot on the Raw brand roster.[5] Maria was brought on to Raw as a ditzy backstage interviewer and the host of WWE KissCam in November 2004.[10] Maria was given the dumb blonde gimmick despite having brown hair. She quickly earned a reputation as the oblivious backstage reporter—Maria seemed to ask the wrong questions, irritating and amusing WWE Superstars and Divas.[5][6]
In 2005, Maria began to get very physical—in and out of the ring. She was defeated in her first official match on the January 10, 2005 episode of Raw by Christy Hemme in a Lingerie Pillow Fight.[5][6] She also competed in a Fulfill Your Fantasy Diva Battle Royal at Taboo Tuesday for the WWE Women's Championship but was the first to be eliminated by Trish Stratus and Mickie James.[11] In another physical moment, Stratus slapped Maria so hard that one of her fillings legitimately fell out.[5] On November 14, Maria competed in a non-title Diva Battle Royal at the Eddie Guerrero tribute Raw show. Maria stood by herself for most of the match, only getting involved when she saw the opportunity to eliminate a competitor, a strategy that proved effective as she eliminated both Jillian Hall and Victoria. She was one of the last three women left in the match but was eliminated by both Melina and Trish Stratus.[12]
On the November 28 episode of Raw, Maria interviewed then-Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff and asked him whether or not he thought he was going to be fired. He then booked her in a match with Kurt Angle out of spite, and Maria was laid out with the Angle Slam.[13] As a result, one week later, Maria testified in the trial against Bischoff, who was being fired because of his controversial actions as General Manager.[14] As Mick Foley questioned her, she answered, 'Last week Bischoff abused his power in a way that was both malicious and capricious, and it's this rash of discourse that ultimately led to a locker room of disdain and mutiny, and it should be grounds for his immediate dismissal.'[15]
Maria Kanellis
Billed height
5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2]
Billed weight
130 lb (59 kg)[3]
Born
February 25, 1982 (age 30)[3]
Ottawa, Illinois[4][5]
Resides
Los Angeles, California
Billed from
Chicago, Illinois[1
Trained by
Ohio Valley Wrestling[5]
Dave Finlay
Florida Championship Wrestling
Debut
November 1, 2004[3]
Jan 4, 2013 - Explore Areion Guy's board 'Maria Kanellis (:', followed by 584 people on Pinterest. See more ideas about maria, wwe divas, wwe maria. Maria Kanellis, Actress: WWF SmackDown! Maria Kanellis is an actress, singer, TV hostess/personality, former WWE Diva and aspiring fashion designer. She is currently appearing on 'The Celebrity Apprentice' on NBC. She is releasing her first music album, a 4 song EP, on April 13th, 2010. She is most well-known as a former professional wrestler and personality within World Wrestling.
These sexy Maria Kanellis bikini photos will make you wonder how someone so beautiful could exist. Yes, she is a very sexy model and Maria Kanellis’s bra and breast size prove that she can carry off any dress in style. So, we have also gathered a few Maria Kanellis bikini and swimsuit featuring Maria Kanellis’s face and body pictures as well. Last year, Maria Kanellis was one of several female wrestling figures who became a victim of nude photo leaks. The absent WWE star and one-time Playboy cover girl is now speaking out on the situation. The two arrived at WWE Money in the Bank 2017 to the strains of a face-melting power ballad, promising to educate WWE in the power of love. Maria & Mike soon made a move to Raw, where a pregnant Maria scored her first title in WWE by pinning Mike to become 24/7 Champion.
As a sidenote to this Busted Coverage Wrestling Week celebration, our editors have discovered that WWE Diva Maria Kanellis has a little sister, Janny, who happens to be a University of Illinois dance team member. We’ve done our research and learned that Janny is out to prove that she’s more than Maria’s little sister. Of course we want to help her with that dream so the least we could do is show you guys 78 photos of her greatest work.
Most embarrassing dance moment: My sophomore year on Illinettes, we did a performance at a high school football game. We were rehearsing halftime on the field and it was pouring rain. The field was really muddy and we were supposed to do a turn into a kick. After the turn I lost my footing and fell flat in the mud. I had mud all over me and I was already soaking wet from the rain. We were dancing in front of the band so everyone saw me wipe out!! Thank goodness it was just rehearsal…
What you’re looking forward to this year: I think that this year I am just looking foreword to bonding with the team and doing everything I can to make the most out of my last year on Illinettes.
While Maria’s career is starting to tank, it makes total sense for Janny to now become the breadwinner in this family. We see big things in her future. Maybe some rap video dancing. A Prince backup dancer. Or, worst-case scenario, WWE Diva. And don’t forget the ultimate prize, a Playboy shoot like her big sister.
(The big news here is that we now have a reason to watch Illinois football and basketball games. Without the hot sister, Zooker doesn’t even get a peek on a Saturday afternoon.)
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Wwe Maria Kanellis Bikini
[@MariaLKanellis] [Janny Kanellis – Facebook]