Exclusive: Vivian of the Rosati Sisters!

Joseph Bruen: Tell us what it was like growing up as a kid with 2 sisters and your first memories of becoming a wrestling fan.

Vivian Rosati: I actually was about 21 years old when I was bit by the wrestling bug. It all started with a Sports Illustrated magazine that had Hulk Hogan on the cover. I read all 22 pages and was curious to see what all the fuss was about. After watching a morning show on WOR Channel 9 in New York. After that, I was hooked. My late sister Christine was a fan on and off when she was younger and Diane was not into it at all. I was the one who had them get into it more to the point where it was almost a religion with us. We had to catch all shows when they aired.

Joseph Bruen: Who were some of your favorite wrestlers growing up as a child and why?

Vivian Rosati: My all time favorite was and is Hulk Hogan, but I liked Bret Hart,Tito Santana, Junk Yard Dog, George Steele, The Killer Bees, The Rockers. Everyone had something that appealed to me personally. The Rockers were young and good looking guys, the Bees had great teamwork, JYD was humorous as was Steele, Santana was proud and a great in ring technician as was Hart and Hogan was the all American hero. He made being a proud American cool.

Joseph Bruen: You can be seen on film attending dozens among dozens of WWF shows back in the 80s and 90s. How did that come about where you became a regular as far as attending shows goes?

Vivian Rosati: By chance, we ladies became friends with Vince McMahon. He took a liking to us with our honest reactions to the matches as well as our catchy signs we would hold up. After knowing us for a year, he granted us lifetime tickets to any show anywhere. We used to be able to get free tickets to the pay per views, but that has changed since that is where the talent makes their money more by getting a percentage of the gate. That's okay with us. There's plenty of house shows we can go to that more than makes up for that.

Joseph Bruen:What are your memories of Madison Square Garden? MSG is as special as it gets when it comes to pro wrestling, why is that and what are your personal experiences there that stand out?

Vivian Rosati: For a while there, MSG was like a second home for us. It has always been called The Mecca of Professional Wrestling and with good reason. Many epic matches have taken place there for many years. We have witnessed many great battles during the mid to late eighties. Too many to mention here. Sometimes, the boys would look for us in the crowd and purposely do stuff outside the ring in front of where we were sitting.

Joseph Bruen: What is your personal favorite era in pro wrestling?

Vivian Rosati: Definitely the eighties through the early nineties. The Attitude Era was a total turn off for us because it wasn't family entertainment and very crude to the point of it being borderline porn. Not to our liking!

Joseph Bruen: Obviously you were a die hard WWF fan, do you still watch the product today and if so any favorites that stick out?

Vivian Rosati: We watch on and off. We do like Roman Reigns, Cesaro, Dean Ambrose, The Usos, John Cena, the Luchadors.

Joseph Bruen: You appeared on several WWF programs back in the 80s, how did that come about to the point where you were apart of the show?

Vivian Rosati: We visited Vince at his office in Stamford, CT one day and asked if we could take a still shot on the set of Prime Time Wrestling when it wasn't in use. He told us he'd do one better and put us on the show. That's the birth of the Bobby Heenan Fan Club! The rest is history.

Joseph Bruen: How was your experience being a character on the short lived WWF Bobby Heenan show? > It actually was a lot of fun! I miss doing that. The guests were unique to say the least, but very nice. It was interesting to see the behind the scenes work to putting together a show.

Joseph Bruen: Was it just WWF for you or did you also watch NWA / WCW?

Vivian Rosati: We tried to watch NWA/WCW, but it lacked polish. It didn't have that certain appeal that the WWF had. Personally, I don't think NWA/WCW knew how to promote and work their talent right, which was a shame because they did have good talent. Admittedly, that did change when Eric Bischoff took over. WCW did become a legitimate threat to WWF's ratings.

Joseph Bruen: How was it working with John DiGiacomo known in the WWF as Jameson Winger?

Vivian Rosati: John was very nice and had a great sense of humor! Very talented! He was very convincing as Jameson Winger. We enjoyed working with him. Vince offered him that job after seeing him perform in a production put on by the Westchester Broadway Theater in Elmsford, NY.

Joseph Bruen: What was everyday life like for you and your sisters during that time period and do you still keep in contact with your family?

Vivian Rosati: We had jobs outside of wrestling. I worked for a supermarket, Christine was working for a maid service and Diane was a special education teacher. Diane and I are all that's left of my immediate family and we both live together in the family home. Sometimes we were recognized for our involvement with WWF and when we were, we did get asked to sign autographs. That was kind of odd for us in the beginning, but we got used to it after a while.

Joseph Bruen: Do you have the WWE Network? It`s a great opportunity to relive some of your memories that you were apart of.

Vivian Rosati:We had it, but we don't right now. If something interests us, we'll get it and watch the show.

Joseph Bruen: Did you have any type of relationship at all with the McMahon family over the years?

Vivian Rosati: We were friends. We haven't been in touch for a long while now, but if we have a chance to see them again, I'm sure it'll be a happy reunion.

Joseph Bruen: The Rosati sisters became a classic 80s character outside of the ring that many fans remember to this day. You became super fans and what`s it like actually thinking about that? It was a great time period in wrestling.

Vivian Rosati: We took it all in stride. We never let our success go to our heads. I find it laughable now all the stuff we did. Those were the good old days and I do miss them.

Joseph Bruen: Since the glory days of pro wrestling, where have the Rosati sisters gone and how has life been?

Vivian Rosati: We still live in New York. My sister Christine passed away on June 27, 1996. I work for a supermarket company that is based out of Boston, MA and Diane retired from teaching two years ago. Life has been a little rough financially speaking, but we're making do.

Joseph Bruen: Just recently you have had some health issues. How are you doing now? We here at All Axxess Entertainment wish you the best in health moving forward.

Vivian Rosati: Three years ago, I was diagnosed with non Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I was holding my own until this past June when I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Breast Cancer. I have a carcinoma located between my left breast and left armpit. I am currently going for chemotherapy every 3 weeks with a Neulasta shot the following day. I have started to experience hair loss. I am out on disability from work now. There will be surgery to remove the lump later on and possibly radiation to kill off whatever isn't removed surgically. Diane has sciatica and is currently going to a pain management doctor. Thank you for the well wishes. I fully intend to beat this disease and be stronger than before!