TNA Knockout Daffney, better known as the “Scream Queen”, is both hard core and (as Taz would put it) “Zombie Hot”! She has many years in the wrestling business working for WCW, WWE, and the TNA brands in some of the most barbaric women’s matches ever televised.
Real Name : Shannon Claire Spruill
Alias(es) : Daffney, The Governor, Lucy Furr, Shark Girl, & Dracletta
Date Of Birth : July 17, 1975 Height : 5’6 Weight : Approx. 130lbs
Pro Debut : November 1999
Wrestling Organization : Total Nonstop Action (TNA)
Trainer(s) : Crowbar, Dwayne Harris, Hurricane Helms, Malia Hosaka, Dusty Rhodes, Selena Majors, Leilani Kai, Johnny Slaughter, & Madusa
Finisher(s) : The Lobotomy, Daff Knees, & The Frankenscreamer
Daffney in World Championship Wrestling – WCW
Spruill was hired by the WCW promotion in November of 1999 during a contest in which the organization was looking to acquire new talent. She used the name “Daffney”, playing the deranged girlfriend of David Flair while also managing Crowbar. She was soon known for her strange appearances, constantly changing hair colors, and hi-pitched shrill screaming at ringside for no apparent reason. She made her first television appearance on December 6th, during an edition of WCW Nitro, sitting on a bed chanting Flair’s name.
Her first “championship title” came on May 15th, 2000 when she and Crowbar beat Chris Candido and Sunny (Tammy Lynn Sytch) for the Cruiser-weight Championship in a mixed tag match. She and Crowbar won and were both declared champion. The following week, the two collided to determine one Cruiser-weight Champion. Crowbar owned her during the match, but Candido interfered by delivering a piledriver to Crowbar and as she tried to revive him, she fell over him inadvertently pinning him. This made her the second woman ever to hold the Cruiser-weight belt, and her reign continued until June 7th, 2000. On that night, in a Triple Threat match, The Disco Inferno was pinned by Lieutenant Loco after Daffney was taken out of the match by Stacey Keibler (Miss Hancock).
Spruill and Keiber began a rivalry over the affections of David Flair that finally ended with herl beating Keibler a Wedding Gown match. She continued managing Crowbar and participated in a brief altercation with Shane Douglas’ valet, Torrie Wilson. Though she has gained a loyal fan base, she was released by WCW on February 2nd, 2001 because of budget cutbacks. One month later, the whole promotion was dissolved.
Independent Circuits
Undaunted, Spruill began an eight month training course at the Turnbuckle Championship Wrestling Camp (owned by Dusty Rhodes). She made several appearances in TNA as Shannon and Shark Girl, Xtreme Pro Wrestling as Lucy managing Vic Grimes, Ring Of Honor as Lucy valeting for the Second City Saints, Ohio Valley Wrestling managing Aaron Stevens, and in 2004, Shannon “officially” retired due to a knee injury.
After reconsidering her retirement, Spruill returned to the independent circuits sometime in February, 2006. She joined Women’s Extreme Wrestling (WEW) on April 6th using the name Lucy Furr, she faced El Mexico winning the Nation Wrestling Assocation’s Junior Heavyweight Championship on June 2nd, 2006, she made appearances on the Georgia wrestling circuit as a manager and referee, and in April of 2007 Shannon joined the SHIMMER promotion as a manager for MsChif. The two of them were known as the “Scream Queens”. Approximately one year later, in April of 2008, while managing Shark Boy, she laced up her boots and performed as “Shark Girl”.
Daffney as “Governor Sarah Palin”?
Shannon finally emerged on television once again on June 5th, 2008 episode of iMPACT! to take part in the $25,000 Awesome Kong challenge. She was beaten mercilessly by Kong, slammed into the steel barricades, and Implant Busted. In December, she was hired by Roxxi Laveaux and Taylor Wilde into impersonate Gov. Sarah Palin inviting the Beautiful People (Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, and Cute Kip) to Washington if they performed a series of crappy jobs so they could relate to the “common person”. This whole story-line was completely whack as it wasn’t believable by the farthest stretch of the imagination. Eventually, in January, the joke was dropped when the Beautiful People “found out” she wasn’t Palin and were splattered in mud as “The Governor”, Laveaux, and Wilde laughed from the stage. The following week, Love and Sky got revenge on Shannon, beating her viciously until Kip intervened. Two weeks later, Wilde, Laveaux, and “The Gov” beat The Beautiful People with Madison Rayne at Destination X 2009.
Daffney TNA “Scream Queen”
The feud with The Beautiful People crossed a line on March 19th. Love, Sky, and Rayne cornered Shannon and beat her senseless. After the beating, they took scissors and chopped off locks of her hair. Her old persona appeared again and Spruill was now Daffney TNA Scream Queen. At Lockdown, she competed against Knockouts ODB, Sojournor Bolt, and Madison Rayne in a Queen Of The Cage match but was not victorious. Maddened by all that had happened to her, she assaulted Taylor Wilde and accused her of standing by while her hair was cut. She started appearing in cuts with Dr. Stevie Richards as her psychiatrist and patient Abyss. Richards encouraged her violent behavior which led to the first ever Knockout’s Monster’s Ball. Wilde dominated the match pinning Spruill after a throwing her into a trash can and the ring ropes simultaneously.
She defeated Wilde in a rematch that featured her finishing move “The Lobotomy” and then aligned herself with Raven. Spruill attacked, TNA interviewer, Lauren backstage provoking reaction from Wilde. Still aligning themselves with Richards, her and Raven faced Taylor Wilde and Abyss at Slammiversary 2009 in an inter-gender Monster’s Ball match. During the match, Wilde decimated her by driving her through a table and later ending the match by body slamming her into a pile of thumbtacks for the pin-fall. The following week on iMPACT!, she faced Wilde again, losing the first Knockouts “Match of ten thousand tacks”. Her hard core antics did not stop there. She began a short lived tag team with Alissa Flash competing for the newly created TNA Knockout Tag Team Championships, but the team was defeated in the first round of the tournament. On September 17th, Daffney lost a no disqualification match against Hamada, but not before Hamada performed a moonsault off the top turnbuckle driving her through a table.
Daffney is an interesting character to say the least, she’s that crazed-person that we all feel deep down inside when we’re so frustrated with everything that we could just fall off the narrow edge of sanity. People can relate to that, in a weird sort of way. Shannon pulls this gimmick off like a pro and her in-ring skills are decent. She has earned the right to be called “hard core” due to the poundings she’s taken over the years, all for us fans.. Thanks Daffney!