Cheryl Tiegs Biography (1947-)

Model, clothing designer. Born September 27, 1947, on an isolated farm in western Minnesota. The daughter of Theodore and Phyllis Tiegs, she moved with her family to the sunny Los Angeles suburb of Alhambra in 1952. Tiegs attended the local public high school, where she was a pep rally leader and played violin in the orchestra.

On the advice…

Ty Pennington Biography (1965-)

Television show host, designer, model, writer. Born on October 19, 1965, in Atlanta, Georgia. Known for his enthusiasm, creativity, and good looks, Ty Pennington is a popular television personality and designer. He was raised by his mother, a child psychologist. At an early age, Pennington showed a knack for taking things apart and building new wondrous creations. He even…

Chloe Sevigny Biography (1974-)

Actress. Born November 18, 1974, in Darien, Connecticut. While attending high school in the affluent suburb of Darien, Sevigny began spending a good deal of time in New York City’s Greenwich Village, including Washington Square Park, a hangout for many rebellious teenagers and creative types. She moved to New York City permanently when she was 18, and worked as…

Christy Turlington Biography (1969-)

Model. Born January 2, 1969 in Walnut Creek, California. Turlington’s father is European-American and her mother is from El Salvador. She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, attended UCLA and graduated from New York University with a degree in philosophy and literature.

Turlington’s modeling career began serendipitously when a photographer asked to take her photo while she was…

Lucy Gordon Biography (1980-2009)

Actress, model. Born Lucy Gordon on May 22, 1980 in Oxford, England. As a child, Gordon spent much of her summer holidays in France, and was bilingual.

Gordon originally made a name for herself as a runway and magazine model. She made the crossover into film in 2001, when she appeared in the documentary Perfume. The film examined a week…

Kimora Lee Simmons Biography (1975-)

Model, fashion icon. Born Kimora Lee Perkins on May 4, 1975, in St. Louis, Missouri. Simmons was born to an African-American father, Vernon Whitlock, Jr., and Japanese mother Joanne Perkins. At the age of 11, Kimora Lee’s mother enrolled her in a modeling class. Two years later, Kimora was awarded an exclusive modeling contract from Chanel. Newly 14, the…

Niki Taylor Biography (1975-)

Model. Born Nicole Renee Taylor on March 5, 1975, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. A supermodel while still in high school, Niki Taylor became the youngest model ever to earn a cosmetics contract, beginning a hugely successful career. Taylor grew up quickly, marrying and divorcing by age 22 and becoming the mother of twins at age 20. Though her career…

Suzanne Somers Biography (1946-)

Model, actress, businesswoman, writer. Born Suzanne Marie Mahoney on October 16, 1946, in San Bruno, California. The daughter of an abusive alcoholic father, Somers briefly attended Lone Mountain College in San Francisco before dropping out after becoming pregnant. After marrying and divorcing her child’s father, she sought out modeling and acting work in San Francisco.

For years, Somers…

Iman Biography (1955-)

Model, business executive. Born Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid on July 25, 1955, in Mogadishu, Somalia. Iman is sometimes described as her native land’s most famous export.

One of the most sought-after fashion models of the 1970s and 1980s, Iman became a successful business executive in the 1990s with her own line of cosmetics. Married to rock star David Bowie since 1992,…

Heather Mills Biography (1968-)

Public figure, model, philanthropist. Heather Mills was born on January 12, 1968 in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. When she was just nine, Mills’ mother left her and her siblings in the care of her abusive father. After her father went to prison, Mills ended up in London, living with her mother. As a teenager, Mills ran away from home and…

Frances Bean Cobain Biography (1992-)

Celebrity, model. Born on August 18, 1992, in Los Angeles, California. Daughter of the late singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain from Nirvana and singer and actress Courtney Love, Frances Bean Cobain has spent much of her young life in the spotlight because of her parents.

Cobain was making headlines soon after she was born. Since both of her parents had…