Toughie Brasuhn, Roller Derby Star
Marjorie Brasuhn Monte (1923? to 1971)
About Marjorie Brasuhn aka Midge “Toughie” Brasuhn:
It all started with two gals back in the 1930s, Barbee explains. The beautiful, fashionable Gerry Murray — “the Betty Grable pinup of roller derby” — who was pitted against Midge “Toughie” Brasuhn — “a 4-foot-11 spitfire plumber’s daughter.” The young women were just teenagers at the time, and crowds loved to cheer for Gerry and boo for Toughie.
At one game, a female fan became so incensed by an aggressive move by Toughie that she ran up to the track — and threw her baby at the skater. Thankfully, Toughie had lightning-quick athlete reflexes and caught the child.
“For me, that’s derby in a nutshell,” Barbee says. “I want those kinds of fans” … but minus the baby throwing.1
Marjorie Brasuhn participated in roller derby in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s; she was known as Midge “Toughie” Brasuhn. She came from a German family in St. Paul Minnesota. Her father was a plumber; her mother a cleaning lady. Marjorie’s 4’11”, 135 pound physique earned her the nickname Midge. According to her husband she was very aggressive in the rink and would knock the other girls’ heads off if they didn’t respect her. “She knew how to make a point.” Midge was known for her rivalry with Gerry Murray which helped establish the game/industry by giving people something to look forward to.2
1Quote from These Roller Skating Women Get ‘Down And Derby’, Jennifer Barbee and Alex Cohen, August 31, 2010 viewed on NPR.org April 1, 2011
2Mini-bio drawn from Derby Memoirs
Toughie Brasuhn photo from Major League Roller Derby
Featured photo from Derby Memoirs
