VANNA WHITE Biography - Other artists & entretainers

 
 

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VANNA WHITE

Name: Vanna White                                                                           
Birth name: Vanna Marie Rosich                                                               
Born: 18 February 1957 North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S.                             
                                                                                             
Vanna White (born February 18, 1957) is an American television personality, best             
known as the hostess and puzzle board operator on the long-running game show                 
Wheel of Fortune.                                                                           
                                                                                             
White was born Vanna Marie Rosich in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the                 
daughter of Joan Marie and Miguel Angel Rosich. Her family is of Croatian                   
background. White took the name of her stepfather, Herbert                                   
Stackley White, Jr., a former real estate agent in North Myrtle Beach. One of               
White's ancestors, whose last name was Barnes, was one of the first mayors of               
the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. She is the niece of actor                                   
Christopher George.                                                                         
                                                                                             
White's first car, (purchased by her father, for her) was a metallic blue 1972 "Marathon     
Edition" (Volkswagen Beetle). Vanna's father tried to get her to consider other             
makes of cars, but Vanna held firm on her decision. Vanna so desired the car due             
to the corporate initials of (Volkswagen AG) being the same as hers, "V.W.". A               
picture of Vanna's Bug was featured on a Summer 2007 episode of Wheel Of Fortune,           
in which she revisited her hometown.                                                         
                                                                                             
The handprints of White in front of Hollywood Hills Amphitheater at Walt Disney             
World's Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.                                               
                                                                                             
White's first national television appearance came on the June 20, 1980 episode               
of The Price Is Right, where she was one of the first four contestants to "come             
on down." She did not make it onstage, but the clip of her running to                       
Contestants' Row would be rebroadcast as part of The Price Is Right 25th                     
Anniversary Special in 1996 and was also shown on Game Show Moments Gone Bananas.           
Two years later she auditioned for the letter-turning job on Wheel of Fortune               
that Susan Stafford had vacated. Merv Griffin chose her over two other finalists,           
and her first episode as Pat Sajak's regular assistant aired December 13, 1982.             
She remained with the daytime version of Wheel until its cancellation in 1991.               
                                                                                             
White's popularity soared after the nighttime version of Wheel debuted in                   
September 1983. Within a year, Wheel was the highest-rated syndicated program,               
in large part because of "Vannamania". Her 1987 autobiography, Vanna Speaks!,               
was a best-seller. Also in 1987, she was featured in a Playboy pictorial,                   
containing photos of White wearing see-through lingerie that were taken before               
Wheel.                                                                                       
                                                                                             
White was the subject of "Weird Al" Yankovic's 1988 song, "Stuck in a Closet                 
With Vanna White". In 1989, she was in the NBC TV-movie Goddess of Love, in                 
which she played Venus. The film was universally panned, and TV Guide said White's           
acting was "wheely" bad.                                                                     
                                                                                             
She has also made cameo appearances on television shows such as Married... with             
Children, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, and Full House, movies such as                 
Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult, and served as a guest timekeeper at                       
WrestleMania IV. In 1992, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized White as             
"television's most frequent clapper". On April 20, 2006, White received a star               
on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.                                                               
                                                                                             
White dated Playgirl centerfold/Chippendales dancer turned actor John Gibson in             
the 1980s, and they eventually became engaged. The relationship came to a tragic             
end in 1986 when Gibson was killed in a plane crash. She divorced her husband of             
11 years, George Santo Pietro, in November 2002, and maintained custody of their             
two young children, Nicholas and Giovanna. From 2004 to 2006, White was engaged             
to businessman Michael Kaye, the senior partner at a large LBO fund in southern             
California.