Joanie “Chyna” Lauter had a uniquely successful career as a wrestler, after which she fell into addiction and the porn industry – and died tragically young.
She played a major role in a legendary group that WWE still draws from today.
She was an important helper in the big breakthrough of the man who now runs the world’s largest wrestling league – and is also the woman at his side in real life.
She herself had a career that no woman in wrestling had ever had before, fighting on equal terms with the male stars. 25 years ago today, she became the only holder to date of a traditional title that is otherwise actually reserved for men.
Joanie Laurer aka Chyna could look back on a unique legacy as a show fighter – which is now sadly remembered, however, after Laurer’s untimely death following a deep personal fall.
“Chyna” Joanie Laurer: Even before WWE, she had a colorful life
The muscular Laurer (weighing 82 kilograms at 1.78 meters tall) came to WWE in 1997, after an eventful life even then.
Laurer, born on December 27, 1969 in Rochester, New York, grew up as a child of divorce in difficult circumstances. One of her three stepfathers was an alcoholic, and her relationship with her mother was also strained for a long time. During her youth and young adulthood, she also had traumatic experiences with bulimia, sexual harassment by a teacher, and rape at a party during her college years.
At university, Laurer studied Spanish literature and also spoke fluent German and French. She served in the Peace Corps in Guatemala and dreamed of a career with the FBI – along the way, she worked as a strip club waitress, singer, flight attendant, pager saleswoman and belly dancer, among other things.
Her passion for fitness and strength training then led her instead, via a few detours, to wrestling and the WWF (as it was then known).
Chyna was a comrade-in-arms and friend of Triple H
Laurer attended the same wrestling school as the current WWE chairman “Triple H” Paul Levesque, who was still at the beginning of his active career at the time. The two came into contact, Chyna was introduced by WWE as the bodyguard of the then Hunter Hearst Helmsley – behind the scenes, the two became a couple.
As the female enforcer for Triple H and the DX with his eternal companion Shawn Michaels, Chyna hit the ground running at WWE – and developed into a star of the Attitude Era, the WWE boom of the late 1990s.
Sending the tall bodybuilder into the ring against men was one of many provocative ideas at the time that was unexpectedly successful. Chyna shared the ring with almost all the stars of the era – Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock, The Undertaker, Chris Jericho, “Mankind” Mick Foley, Kurt Angle and many others – and WWE even went so far as to have Chyna become the first woman to win the traditional Intercontinental Title on October 17, 1999 against Jeff Jarrett.
She was also the first female participant in the Royal Rumble match and was also remembered for her story romance with Eddie Guerrero, who also died far too young. It was only towards the end of her WWE career that she was used as a classic female wrestler in matches against Ivory, Trish Stratus and Lita. Outside the ring, Laurer attracted attention by posing twice for Playboy.
WWE departure 2001: She wanted more money than usual for women
In 2001, a long-mysterious break between Chyna and WWE occurred. The official explanation was that Chyna wanted to pursue a new career in showbiz. However, there were also many rumors that the end of her relationship with Triple H played a role – who then got together with Stephanie McMahon, daughter of longtime boss Vince McMahon.
In the meantime, another significant factor has been confirmed: Laurer wanted to be on an equal footing with the male stars not only in the ring but also financially. She demanded an annual salary of one million dollars, which – as the then talent manager Jim Ross later openly admitted – was perceived as ludicrous by the league’s leadership at the time.
It was only a few years ago that seven-figure salaries also became the norm for female stars like Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.
B-list shows, drugs, porn: Laurer fell hard after WWE departure
After her WWE departure, Laurer could still be seen in the wrestling ring at NJPW in Japan and TNA in America, but these were short and unsuccessful episodes. She made more headlines as a TV personality and through her private life, where she presented an increasingly sad picture.
Laurer appeared in B-list shows like “The Surreal Life” and in a sex tape with her then-boyfriend “X-Pac” Sean Waltman – with the former WWE and DX colleague, who has also been through a lot in his life, she had a conflict-riddled relationship. Laurer increasingly fought with mental health issues, alcohol and drugs, and did so in public.
2008 she also appeared in front of the TV camera in the MTV/VH1 program “Celebrity Rehab”, which was also broadcast in this country – but ultimately without admitting the extent of her addiction and getting help. In the years that followed, she sank even lower and made several pornographic films.
On April 20, 2016, Laurer was found dead in her California home. The cause of death was an overdose of various medications in combination with alcohol: Laurer took sleeping pills, painkillers, and anti-anxiety medication.
WWE paid tribute to Chyna three years after her death
WWE does not honor the memory of Chyna as intensely as that of other deceased legends. Her fall into the porn industry probably played just as much a role in this as the accusations of domestic violence that she made against ex-boyfriend Levesque in the last years of her life – which he dismissed as completely fabricated.
To the dismay of many of her former fans, Chyna was no longer able to experience her logical induction into the Hall of Fame. She was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame as part of the DX in 2019, where she was then also honestly honored as an indispensable “magic ingredient” in the success story.
Nevertheless, the strained relationship continued to resonate when ex-boyfriend Levesque repeatedly spoke of the “real” Chyna, who would surely have loved this moment – and thus made it quite clear that he no longer felt that she was herself during her last, unstable years.
Joanie “Chyna” Laurer was only 46 years old.