1974–1975: Beauty contests and night shows In 1974, at the age of 13, Russo won her first important beauty contest, "Miss Liguria". The previous year, Russo also won the title of "Miss Emilia" held in
Pavullo nel Frignano, but it was a qualification that had no value for the national contest. As the winner of "Miss Liguria", Russo qualified for the "
Miss Italia" competition, but she was disqualified because she was too young. During this time, she continued to work as a showgirl in nightclubs, and in 1978, she hosted, with
Ettore Andenna, the TV show
La bustarella, which aired on
Antenna 3 Lombardia. In the same year, she appeared in
Portobello with
Enzo Tortora aired in
Rai 2. Later, Russo appeared in many others films and debuted in the theater supporting
Walter Chiari in ''Hai mai provato con l'acqua calda?
. and Girls Will Be Girls. During the filming of Girls Will Be Girls'', she met
Gianfranco D'Angelo, who helped Russo to enter the world of television. In this year, Russo also shot
Le porno killers, her first role as a
protagonist. In the film, Russo played a
bisexual killer. In the movie, she was credited as Carmen Bizet. The show was a surprise success, averaging a 41%
share. == Filmography ==