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Maria Menounos is co-hosting Fox’s 2019 New Year’s Eve celebration alongside Steve Harvey and Rob Gronkowski. This will be Menounos’ third year on the Fox New Year’s Eve show. In 2017, Menounos got married on live tv during the festivities.
While watching the show, you might realize that there’s something quite unique about Menounos’ laugh. She openly discusses the ‘bizarre’ laugh when asked about it, and she has quite the story for how it got to be that way.
So, why is her laugh so funny? Here’s what we know.
She Traces her Laugh Back to Greece
While the exact source of Menounos’ laugh is unclear, she traces it back to a family trip. When she was only ten years old, Menounos’ family went on a trip to Greece.
“I hung out with goats all the time,” she said when explaining her laugh. “I was literally just playing with the goats in the backyard and I swear I got it from there. I also watched Flipper religiously, so mix Flipper and the goat and you’ll get my laugh.”
Her laugh has sparked viral videos, like that of her visit to Conan O’Brien where she asks him to punch her in the stomach to work out her abdomen. After this bit, Menounos makes a joke, which she laughs at herself. O’Brien laughs a bit before saying that she pulled him out of a trance.
“I was feeling something for Maria,” she jokes. “And then I heard her laugh.”
O’Brien responds that he loves her laugh as the video ends.
People Advised Her to Lose the Laugh
Maria’s husband, Keven Undergaro, says that before moving to Hollywood, people would advise her to lose the laugh. He said that the laugh was unique to her, though.
Undergaro said he told her she should keep the laugh. The couple has been together since 1998. They’ve endured health scares and regular relationship problems on top of other issues, like Menounos’ father initially not approving of Undergaro. Together, they’ve created a podcast network called AfterBuzz TV.
During a 2004 interview with Howard Stern, Menounos told the radio host that she’s tried hard to get rid of the laugh. She has since appeared on the Howard Stern show numerous times, including the time when she and Undergaro got engaged.
“It’s bizarre,” she said about the laugh. “I’ve tried my hardest to get rid of it.”
In 2011 during an interview with Justin Bieber, the teen told her he liked her laugh before seemingly mocking it. In 2018, Menounos recreated the moment alongside Pooh Bear in an advertisement for Christopher Robin.
“Hahahhaha I’m honored they both love my crazy laugh,” Menounos later tweeted about the ad, referring to Justin Bieber and Winnie the Pooh.
She has since appeared in films and TV, including hosting Live from E! from 2013-2017, starring in a reality TV series titled Chasing Maria Menounos and anchoring E! News from 2015 to 2017. She has hosted the WWE Hall of Fame red carpet pre-show every year since 2014, and also appeared during the event as a guest backstage interviewer.
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