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Paulina Porizkova

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Paulina Porizkova
Porizkova in 2014
Born
Pavlína Pořízková

(1965-04-09) 9 April 1965 (age 59)
Prostějov, Czechoslovakia
Occupations
  • Model
  • actress
  • author
SpouseRic Ocasek (1989–present)
Modeling information
Height5 ft 10.5 in (1.79 m)[1]
Agency
  • The Model CoOp (New York)
  • Premium Models (Paris)
  • IMG Models (Milan)
  • Models 1 (London)
  • Traffic Models (Barcelona)
  • Place Models (Hamburg) [2]

Paulina Porizkova (born Pavlína Pořízková; Czech pronunciation: [ˈpavliːna ˈpor̝iːskovaː]; 9 April 1965) is a Czech-born Swedish model, actress, author and feminist, who holds dual U.S. and Swedish citizenship. At 18 years old, in 1984, she became the first woman from Central Europe to be on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.[3] She was the second woman (after Christie Brinkley) to be featured on the swimsuit issue's front cover consecutive times (1984 and 1985). She joined judging in America's Next Top Model in Cycles 10–12. In June 2017 The New York Times published in its pages her op-ed piece "America Made Me a Feminist".

Early life

Born in Prostějov, Czechoslovakia, Porizkova was a toddler when her parents fled Czechoslovakia to Lund, Sweden, to escape the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion. She was left in the care of her grandmother.[4] Czechoslovak authorities would not allow her parents to reclaim her, and the ensuing battle was widely publicized in the Swedish press, making Porizkova a cause célèbre.[4]

After a failed rescue attempt, in which her pregnant mother returned to Czechoslovakia and was shortly detained by the national police and then placed under house arrest,[4] international political pressure led by Olof Palme caused the communist government to allow the Pořízek family to be reunited after seven years. Porizkova acquired Swedish citizenship.[5] The reunion was soon ended when Porizkova's father left the family, and her parents filed for divorce, and her father refused to pay child support for Paulina and her younger brother.[4] Porizkova and her father have been estranged since her youth.[4] Her mother, a midwife, remarried at least two additional times and as of 2010 was reported to be serving in the Peace Corps in Uganda.[4]

Career

Modeling

External images
image icon Porizkova's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover from 13 February 1984
image icon Porizkova's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover from 11 February 1985

An aspiring make-up artist friend took pictures of Porizkova and sent them to the Elite modeling agency in 1980, hoping they would notice her own make-up artist skills. [6]

She quickly rose to become a top model in Paris during the early 1980s, and her fame spread to the United States when she posed in swimwear for Sports Illustrated. She appeared on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 1984 and again in 1985 (her first appearance as a model in the magazine was in 1983). She appeared on the cover and inside New York Magazine in July, 1985.[7]

She has been featured in advertising campaigns for Chanel, Versace, Hermes, Christian Dior, Oscar De La Renta, Mikimoto, Perry Ellis, Laura Biagiotti, Anne Klein, Ellen Tracy, Barneys New York, Ann Taylor and Revlon. In 1988, Porizkova won what was then the highest-paying modeling contract: a $6,000,000 contract with Estée Lauder, replacing Willow Bay. The black-and-white television and print advertising campaign won praise from critics. The Estée Lauder makeover transformed Porizkova's public image from a swimsuit model to that of European sophisticate and she remained the company's face until 1995. She soon landed another multimillion-dollar contract, with Escada. She was presented on the November 1999 Millennium cover of American Vogue as one of the "Modern Muses".[8]

Television work

Porizkova was part of the panel of judges on America's Next Top Model (ANTM), starting on Cycle 10 replacing the fashion icon, Twiggy.[9] Porizkova continued to conduct regular weekly evaluations of ANTM participants on the show until she announced during a 12 May 2009 appearance on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson that she had been fired from the show. Although Porizkova maintained she was told by producers that she had an "ego problem", especially when she "consistently complained" about Tyra Banks' reported lateness to the set. ANTM executive producer Ken Mok and Banks released a statement claiming Porizkova's firing was due to "the current state of the economy", forcing ANTM to "make major budget cuts ... unfortunately, Paulina was a casualty of these cuts." When questioned by ABC news journalist Cynthia McFadden about the firing of Porizkova as well as former ANTM colleague, Janice Dickinson, both of whom had complained Banks was "difficult", Banks refused to address the issue.[10]

Porizkova was a participant on Dancing with the Stars,[11] in Spring 2007 but was voted off on the first results show which aired on 27 March 2007.[12] In 2009 and 2010, she played Clarissa on about five episodes of the CBS Daytime soap opera As the World Turns.[13] Porizkova appeared in the fourth episode of Celebrity Ghost Stories' second season.[14]

Acting

Porizkova's film debut was in the 1983 modeling mockumentary, Portfolio. She appeared in the 1987 film Anna, receiving good reviews from her patrons at Vogue magazine. In 1989 she co-starred with Tom Selleck in the film Her Alibi.[13] However, she was nominated for a Golden Raspberry for worst actress for her appearance in the film.[15]

Porizkova appeared in Emir Kusturica's 1993 film Arizona Dream, with Johnny Depp and Jerry Lewis, in a minor role as Lewis's young Polish fiancée. She had main female role in the 1998 Thursday. Porizkova wrote and directed the 2001 film, Roommates.[13] In 2004, she starred in the romantic comedy Knots. She appeared in an episode of the Starz comedy series Head Case which aired on 24 April 2009. She appeared in a 6th-season episode of Desperate Housewives, "Chromolume No. 7", alongside model Heidi Klum. She appeared on the ABC Family drama-comedy series Jane by Design in an episode which aired on 6 March 2012, and made a guest appearance on The Mysteries of Laura in February 2015.[13]

Writing

Porizkova co-authored a children's book, The Adventures of Ralphie the Roach (ISBN 978-0385424028) with British model Joanne Russell and illustrated by stepson Adam Ocasek, that was published in September 1992. She published her first novel, A Model Summer (ISBN 978-1401303266; Modellsommar in Swedish), in 2007, which is about a 15-year-old Swedish girl (Jirina) chosen by a modeling agent to spend a summer working in Paris in 1980. Porizkova is a blogger for Modelinia and The Huffington Post.[16] Her Op-Ed "America Made Me A Feminist" appeared in the New York Times Sunday edition on June 10, 2017.

Personal life

On 23 August 1989, Porizkova married Ric Ocasek, lead singer for the rock band The Cars. They had first met in 1984 during the filming of The Cars' music video "Drive.” At that time, Paulina was 19 years old and Ric was married to his former wife, Suzanne. The couple has two sons, Jonathan Raven Ocasek (b. ~1993) and Oliver Orion Ocasek (b. ~1998).[17][18]

Porizkova is the subject of the song "Friends of P" by The Rentals on their 1995 album, Return of the Rentals, written by lead singer Matt Sharp.[19] She was the subject of "Paulina" on No Doubt's eponymous first album and "Dear Paulina", written and performed by Luna for the film Thursday, in which she appeared.[13]

Select Filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
1987 Anna Krystyna
1989 Her Alibi Nina Lonescu
1993 Arizona Dream Millie
1996 Female Perversions Langley Flynn
1996 Wedding Bell Blues Tanya Touchev
2000 The Intern Herself Cameo
2004 Knots Lily Kildear
2012 About Face: The Supermodels, Then and Now Herself Documentary
2017 Kevyn Aucoin Beauty & The Beast In Me Herself Documentary
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2008–2010 America's Next Top Model Judge Judge for cycles 10–12
2009–2010 As the World Turns Clarissa
2010 Desperate Housewives Herself
2015 The Mysteries of Laura Charlotte Bernice
2016–Present Nightcap Ana

See also

References

  1. ^ "Profile of fashion model Paulina Pořízková". Fashion Model Directory. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  2. ^ https://models.com/models/paulina-porizkova
  3. ^ "Paulina Porizkova: Husband Is No George Clooney". The Huffington Post. 25 October 2011.
  4. ^ a b c d e f One on One – Paulina Porizkova. YouTube (22 minute video interview). Al Jazeera English. 2010.
  5. ^ Matsson, Katarina. "Hon ger en sann bild av modellvärlden". Metro International. Retrieved 5 March 2015.[permanent dead link]
  6. ^ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-5129429/Paulina-Porizkova-posts-image-launched-career.html
  7. ^ https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/34/4f/20/344f20ad3549e00e4eedcdda41838e51.jpg
  8. ^ Lee, Helen (11 April 2007). "Vogue's 'World's Next Top Models' cover". SassyBella.com. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
  9. ^ "Twiggy Replaced on 'America's Next Top Model' — Paulina Porizkova will be sitting next to Miss J". Zap2it.com. 26 November 2007. Archived from the original on 29 November 2007. Retrieved 2 March 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ Silverman, Stephen M. (18 May 2009). "Why Tyra Banks Fired Paulina Porizkova". People. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  11. ^ "Meet the New Cast of 'Dancing With the Stars". ABC.com. 20 February 2007. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  12. ^ McDonald, Ray (28 March 2007). "Former Supermodel Pavlína Pořízková Eliminated From 'Dancing With The Stars'". VOA News. Voice of America. Archived from the original on 17 November 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ a b c d e Paulina Porizkova at IMDb
  14. ^ "Celebrity Ghost Stories: Paulina Porizkova – Web Exclusive". Biography.com. Archived from the original on 14 August 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ Golden Raspberry Nominees 1989 Archived 4 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine, razzies.com, from Golden Raspberry website (archive); accessed 5 March 2015.
  16. ^ "Paulina Porizkova is a Blogger". New York. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  17. ^ Peppers, Margot (8 July 2013). "'Doing the siren': Former supermodel Paulina Porizkova, 48, tweets photo of her sensational body on Miami Beach vacation". Daily Mail. London.
  18. ^ DailyMail.com Reporter (9 June 2015). "Double vision! Paulina Porizkova and rocker husband Ric bring their lookalike sons to Ali Wentworth's book party". Daily Mail. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  19. ^ Luerssen, John D. Rivers' Edge: The Weezer Story. ECW Press, 2004, p. 163; ISBN 1-55022-619-3

External links

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