Lisa Moretti honored in WWE Hall of Fame

By Heather Spaulding • March 1, 2018 3:30 pm

World Wrestling Entertainment announced that islander Lisa Moretti, known as Ivory in the ring, has made it into the class of 2018 Hall of Fame.

“It wasn’t until after I told my family, and seeing how excited they were, that I realized what a big deal it was,” Moretti said.

The induction will take place April 6 in the New Orleans’ Smoothie King Center, and she will be bringing her family along for the ride.

Moretti was one of the original GLOW (Glamorous Ladies of Wrestling) when it first aired in 1985. She was dragged to a GLOW audition by a friend, Nadine Kadimiri, who later became her wrestling tag team partner. Moretti said she loved wrestling immediately.

“If I had it my way, I would have spent way more time in the ring than I was able to,” Moretti said, adding that women wrestlers today have more opportunities due to the creation of tournaments like SMACKDOWN.

“All of us worked our butts off,” she said, explaining that none of the women knew how to wrestle, and needed to be quickly trained because of filming deadlines. Besides spending hours in the ring, the women also carefully watched episodes of men’s wrestling, analyzing and breaking down their moves.

The first two seasons were filmed, and for months hotel rooms became their home. The dozen or so women learned how to create a cozy living space out of nearly any condition, learning to cook Tollhouse cookies one by one in a frying pan over a propane stove.

To this day the cast keeps in touch, and went on a cruise together last year, Moretti said.

GLOW became immensely popular. Currently, there is a Netflix show about the wrestlers, and Moretti approves, noting that it portrays the 1980s and the wrestling scene well.

“Bravo to the women who saw potential in telling that story,” she said.

Throughout working for WWE, Moretti said she loved that the job challenged her physically and mentally, engaging her on all levels.

Being the enthusiastic person she is, with the ability to talk things up, Moretti took on marketing for WWE. While she loved the travel, she found herself missing the ring and wishing for a place of refuge. That was when the San Juan Islands, over a decade ago, became her home.

“I used to love it when the high school students would spot me and shout, ‘Hi, Ivory!” she laughed.

Most islanders now recognize her for her dog grooming business, modeling in the county fair’s annual “Fashion Trashion” show and from her performance as Velma Kelly in the San Juan Community Theatre’s “Chicago” production last May.

Of being inducted into the hall of fame, Moretti said, “I am honored to be a part of that awesome talent, and to have experienced some of the pinnacle moments of the evolution of women’s wrestling.”

For more info, visit www.wwe.com/shows/wwe-hall-of-fame/wwe-hall-of-fame-2018#full-detail-40038239.