Toughie Brasuhn

Marjorie Clair Louise Theresa Brasuhn Monte (January 27, 1923 – 9 August 1971), known as Midge "Toughie" Brasuhn,[3] was a roller derby skater.

Born in St Louis, Missouri, to a German-American family, Brasuhn acquired the nickname "Midge" as a child by virtue of her height - only 4'11".[4] She joined the roller derby in 1941, in Minneapolis,[5] and soon married Ken Monte, a fellow skater.[4]

Brasuhn rose to fame in the late 1940s with a billboard campaign showing her with green dye on her face asking the question "Who Is Toughie?"[4] She regularly competed against Gerry Murray,[5] sometimes on a one-to-one basis,[6] and in 1949 took a leading role in the film Roller Derby Girl.[7] In 1950, she was voted one of the ten leading sportswomen by the Sportswriters of America,[5] and she became the captain of the Brooklyn Red Devils.[6] She was known for her aggressive play, and would sometimes knee her opponents in the jaw.[8]

Brasuhn retired from competition in 1962,[4] and was subsequently inducted into the Roller Derby Hall of Fame.[9] In the mid-1960s, she briefly skated with the rival Roller Games,[5] before moving with her son to Honolulu,[4] where she died unexpectedly in 1971.[5]