Vanna White's Daughter Has Had A Stunning Transformation
While pretty much everyone is familiar with Vanna White, the longtime co-host of the beloved game show "Wheel of Fortune," not as many people are up to date with her personal life or those of her kids — the youngest of whom is her daughter, Giovanna "Gigi" Santo Pietro. White has completely transformed over the years while hosting the show. She started the gig in 1982, replacing former co-host Susan Stafford. At the time, White hadn't yet started dating the man who would become her first husband and the father of her children, George Santo Pietro. The former couple first got together in the late 1980s, and they tied the knot in 1990.
They kept their relationship quite private, and according to the Los Angeles Times' reporting at the end of 1990, White and George went incognito as they bought their marriage license in Aspen, Colorado. It wasn't long after this that the couple started trying to have kids. But in 1992, after announcing the exciting news that White was pregnant through a puzzle on "Wheel of Fortune," she had a miscarriage.
Thankfully, White got pregnant with her son, Nicholas "Nikko" Santo Pietro, soon after. He was born in June 1994. Then, in July 1997, the "Wheel of Fortune" host's daughter, Gigi, was born. As Gigi grew up, she blossomed into a creative and unique woman who takes after her mother in some ways, and is completely different in others. Here's a look at her transformation over the years.
Vanna's daughter Gigi is her second and youngest child
Before finally welcoming her two children, Vanna White went through a terrible hardship with her miscarriage. Talking about the tough loss in a 2019 interview with People, White said, "Obviously I lost the baby, which was devastating after announcing it. The good news is I was able to get pregnant again and had two beautiful, healthy children." She concluded, "But losing a child — there's nothing good about that."
White is known for her elegance and composure on "Wheel of Fortune," a persona she's had since she first joined the show decades ago. But once she had her children, although fans probably didn't notice while watching her on TV, her life was forever altered. White opened up about becoming a mother in a 2007 interview with Family Circle (via People), saying, "Your whole life changes after you have children. You never sleep soundly. You always have one eye open. You're constantly worrying about their safety."
She declared that it was all worth it, going on to say, "But I wouldn't change a thing. Giovanna and Nicholas have brought so much love and joy into my life — more than I could have ever imagined." In 2002, White and her first husband, George Santo Pietro, got divorced, but the two continued to amicably coparent Nikko and Gigi, who was 4 years old at the time. Considering where both kids ended up, we'd say the exes did it successfully.
Vanna was a hands-on mom as Gigi grew up and got interested in art
Like with her relationship with her ex-husband, George Santo Pietro, Vanna White kept her home life with her kids relatively private. But here and there, she gave fans updates about how Nikko Santo Pietro and Gigi Santo Pietro were growing up. The "Wheel of Fortune" letter-turner reportedly participated in Gigi's schooling as often as she could. She told Family Circle (via People) about it in 2007, when Gigi was around 10 years old, calling herself the "class mother."
She shared a strong interest in meeting other families from Gigi's school and talked about multiple events she put together. White said, "I'm planning a potluck dinner for parents so they can get to know one another. Next week we're assembling calendars for the kids to decorate for Grandparents' Day." She also mentioned bake sales and carpooling. Parents were likely thrown for a loop when they dropped their kids off at school and found the "Wheel of Fortune" co-host there.
White wanted to be present for as much as she could, adding, "Kids grow up so fast, and I don't want to miss a thing! Plus, I enjoy it." It also seems that she succeeded in providing Gigi with a pretty normal life growing up. As White's only daughter got older, she developed an interest in the arts. Gigi ended up attending New York University for college, where she studied photography.
Gigi is a successful tattoo artist and gave her mother her first ink
Although she completed a degree at New York University in photography, now all grown up, Gigi Santo Pietro made a major shift in her career after graduation. Instead of photography, she took up tattooing, and according to Vanna White, she's very good at it, too. In 2023, White put a spotlight on her daughter's new job and shared her plans to finally get inked.
The "Wheel of Fortune" star told People that she wanted to get matching "little heart" tattoos with Gigi, with her daughter doing both of the tattoos herself. White said, "I feel like I need to do that because it's her and it would be her on me." While White initially questioned her daughter's decision to become a tattoo artist, Gigi told her, "Mom, my art is on someone's body for the rest of their lives." White seems super supportive. She told the publication, "You have to be so good and confident. You can't mess up. So she absolutely loves it. ... I'm so, so proud of her."
Gigi works at Lincoln Tattoo Company in Venice, California. In early 2025, White finally went through with her plan to get her first tattoo, taking fans along with her through a video on Instagram. She captioned the post, "I finally got my first tattoo, given to me by my talented daughter @gigisantopietro!! I will think of her everytime I look at it." White ended up getting a pink heart tattoo, just as she planned. While she couldn't hide her nerves in the clip, she said as she was getting tattooed, "I'm so happy. ... It's perfect." Gigi continues to tattoo new and returning clients as her business grows.