Wendi Richter is another one of those wrestlers who helped pioneer women into the modern-day realm of wrestling. Standing at a strapping 5'8 and weighing in at 140lbs, Wendi, wrestling under her government name, was a dominant force during her prime wrestling years in the 1970s and '80s. She wrestled in a plethora of different pro-wrestling leagues, but her major contributions could be considered her time in the WWF where the women's roster was becoming the most prominent at that time.
Prior to making her way to the WWF as a fixture in the organization in 1983, Richter wrestled for Canada's Stampede Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Unfortunately, in 1985, Richter was blindsided by a plan formulated by Vince McMahon and The Fabulous Moolah that stripped her of her title after losing to a mystery fighter called The Spider, who happened to be The Fabulous Moolah. Richter cut ties with the WWF and wrestled independently from 1987 to 2005. In 2010, Richter was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, but still has her issues with the corporation.
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.