‘Twister’ inspired Joey Marino to life of meteorology, storm chasing

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) – Meteorologist Joey Marino was quick to see director Lee Isaac Chung’s “Twisters.”

He and the rest of the First Warn Weather Team caught a 10:15 a.m. showing Friday at AMC Showplace 16 in Rockford.

Marino said while he praises the 2024 release, it was the 1996 blockbuster “Twister” that helped solidify his decision to become a weatherman.

“I saw it a couple times as a kid,” Marino said. “I also watched The Weather Channel a lot.”

Joey Marino was only 3 when “Twister” came out. He knew he wanted to become a meteorologist when he was 7. When he saw Twister at 10, he added storm chasing to the equation, and there was no turning back.

“It was kind of one of the first movies that I saw on television in the kitchen,” he said. “After that I started to do research on the world of meteorology and the world of storm chasing.”

Marino says although “Twister” and “Twisters” are two different films, they both make him think of his childhood and the joy he receives reporting the weather and chasing storms.

“So, I think both movies did a great job catching the essence of storm chasing,” he said. “I did like how this particular movie went more into showing what tornados actually look like and what thunderstorms actually do.”

Marino started to see what tornados and storms actually do up close as soon as he became a license driver.

“Every time there would be a storm-chase opportunity, I would drive into the mountains of Pennsylvania trying to get on to storms,” he said.

Inspired by “Twister” and fully immersed in The Weather Channel, Marino graduated from Millersville University in 2017 with a degree in meteorology.

“I just grew my passion for meteorology,” he said. “There was a tornado on my birthday in 2009, and I thought that was the big sign that I should go to school for it.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.