Maria Menounos facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Maria Menounos
Menounos in 2014
Born	(1978-06-08) June 8, 1978 (age 47) Medford, Massachusetts, U.S.
Citizenship	U.S. (by birthplace) Greece (from parents)
Alma mater	Emerson College
Occupation	TV host podcaster
Years active	1996–present
Spouse(s)	Keven Undergaro ​ (m. 2017)​
Children	1

Maria Menounos (pronounced mə-NOO-nohss; born June 8, 1978) is a famous American television host. She has hosted popular shows like Extra and E! News. Maria also worked as a TV reporter for Today and Access Hollywood. In 2006, she even co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in Athens, Greece.

Maria is also the co-creator and CEO of AfterBuzz TV, an online network for podcast series. Since 2013, she has been an ambassador for WWE, and she has even competed in some wrestling matches. She also hosted her own podcast called Conversations with Maria Menounos and co-hosted the Miss Universe 2023 pageant.

Early Life and Education

Maria Menounos was born in Medford, Massachusetts, a town near Boston. Her parents, Costas and Litsa Menounos, came from Greece and worked hard as janitors. Maria has a younger brother named Peter. She attended the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church and went to Medford High School.

Beauty Pageant Success

In 1995, Maria started competing in beauty pageants. The next year, she won the title of Miss Massachusetts Teen USA. She then competed in the Miss Teen USA contest, where she finished in the top 15. Later, she was the first runner-up for the title of Miss Massachusetts USA in 2000.

College Years

Maria studied at Emerson College in Boston. While there, she was part of a student organization called Emerson Independent Video. She graduated from Emerson in 2000.

Career Highlights

Starting in TV and Film

During her last year at Emerson College, Maria worked as a reporter for Channel One News. She traveled to places like El Salvador to report on earthquakes and even interviewed President George W. Bush.

In 2002, Entertainment Tonight hired Maria as a correspondent. She reported on movies, music, and fashion. She left in 2005 to try acting, but soon joined Access Hollywood as a reporter. She also co-hosted some episodes of the Today show. In 2003, she appeared on the show Punk'd, where celebrities are pranked.

Menounos signing autographs in 2005

Maria also started acting. In 2004, she appeared in the TV series One on One. In 2005, she was in the superhero movie Fantastic Four as a nurse. Her voice and appearance were also used for a character in the 2005 video game James Bond 007: From Russia with Love. She became a spokesperson for Pantene hair products.

Maria co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 in Athens. She also directed a film called Longtime Listener, which was shown at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2006.

Producing and Hosting More Shows

When she was 17, Maria produced an independent film called In the Land of Merry Misfits. Even though the film's negative was stolen and it wasn't finished then, her work helped her get reporting jobs. She later funded the film's recovery, and it premiered in 2007.

Menounos in February 2009

Maria also runs AfterBuzzTV, an online entertainment network she started. She had recurring roles on TV shows like Without a Trace and One Tree Hill. She also appeared in an episode of Scrubs in 2006 and in Jessica Simpson's music video "A Public Affair". In 2007, she starred in the movie Kickin' It Old Skool.

From 2007 to 2008, she hosted the reality game show Clash of the Choirs and Hollywood Green on Planet Green. In 2008, she had a role in the movie Tropic Thunder. She also became the first journalist to interview the entire Obama family together.

Menounos at The Heart Truth Fashion Show 2008

From 2009 to 2012, Maria hosted reunion specials for MTV's The Real World and The Challenge. In 2011, she joined Warner Bros.'s Extra as a co-host and won a Daytime Emmy Award for her work there.

In 2012, Maria was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars with professional dancer Derek Hough. They finished fourth in the competition. In 2013, she started her interview series Conversations with Maria Menounos.

In 2014, Maria's reality TV series Chasing Maria Menounos premiered on the Oxygen Network. After three years at Extra, she moved to E! Entertainment in 2014 to host and produce shows, becoming the co-anchor of E! News in 2015. She stepped down in 2017 due to a health issue.

Maria continues to host a daily radio show on SiriusXM called Conversations with Maria and a pre-movie show called Noovie. In 2020, she partnered with GSTV to air short videos called "Better Together with Maria Menounos," offering health and wellness tips at gas pumps. She also hosted reunion shows for The Challenge: All Stars in 2021 and The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies in 2021.

Professional Wrestling Appearances

Maria Menounos is a big fan of WWE and has made several appearances with the company.

WWE (2009-2019) Her first appearance was on October 12, 2009, when she guest-hosted WWE Raw. She made her wrestling debut that night in a six-diva tag team match, and her team won! A memorable moment was when she slapped the much larger wrestler, Beth Phoenix.

On December 11, 2011, at WWE Tribute to the Troops, Maria returned and teamed up with other wrestlers to defeat a team that included Beth Phoenix. Maria even pinned Phoenix to win the match for her team.

Menounos (front) celebrating her victory at WrestleMania XXVIII along with tag-team partner Kelly Kelly in April 2012

Maria continued her rivalry with Beth Phoenix. This led to a tag team match at WrestleMania XXVIII in April 2012. Even though Maria had two cracked ribs from Dancing with the Stars practice, she and her partner, Kelly Kelly, defeated Phoenix and Eve Torres. Maria once again pinned Phoenix for the win!

On April 6, 2013, Maria had the honor of inducting Bob Backlund into the WWE Hall of Fame at Madison Square Garden. She also competed in another tag team match at SummerSlam Axxess in 2013, where her team won.

In 2014, Maria appeared at the SummerSlam event and took part in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge after being nominated by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon. She hosted the WWE Hall of Fame red carpet pre-show for six years in a row (2014-2019) and was a backstage interviewer at several WrestleManias. In 2018, she was the special guest ring announcer for the first-ever women's Royal Rumble match.

Helping Others: Charity Work

Maria Menounos has been involved in charity work since she was 13 years old. She founded a charity called "Take Action Hollywood!" after visiting South Africa and seeing the effects of the AIDS crisis.

She also created the Cosmo Girl Cup, a national competition that gives an award to groups of teens who do the most to create positive social change in their communities. In 2010, Maria spoke at the Earth Day Network's Climate Rally in Washington, DC. In 2012, she helped the Red Cross raise awareness for blood donation.

Books by Maria Menounos

Maria has written several books to help people live better lives:

• The Everygirl's Guide to Life (2001)
• The Everygirl's Guide to Diet and Fitness (2014)
• The Everygirl's Guide to Cooking (2016)
• Better Together (2021)

Personal Life and Family

In April 2017, Maria had surgery to remove a non-cancerous brain tumor. In January 2023, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had surgery. The cancer was found early through a special MRI screening.

Maria married Keven Undergaro in Times Square during the New Year's Eve celebrations in 2017. They had another wedding in 2018 in her father's village in Greece. On February 7, 2023, Maria and Keven announced they were having a baby with the help of a surrogate. Maria also announced in May 2023 that she has dual citizenship, meaning she is a citizen of both the United States and Greece.

Awards and Recognition

Maria has received several awards and recognitions:

• In 2005, she was named "Cyber Vixen of the Year" by Spike TV.
• In 2010, she was the Madden NFL Pro-AM MVP.
• In 2014, the show Extra, which she co-hosted, won a Daytime Emmy award for Outstanding Entertainment News Program.

Film and TV Appearances

Movies

Television Shows

Video Games

See also

In Spanish: Maria Menounos para niños