Doutzen Kroes ☂

Doutzen Kroes (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌdɔu̯tsən ˈkrus]; born 23 January 1985) is a Dutch model and currently one of the Victoria's Secret Angels. She started to work for the brand in 2004, became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2008 and is currently considered one of the world's top earning supermodels.

 

Early life

Kroes was born in the town of Eastermar (Dutch: Oostermeer), in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. As a young girl, Kroes aspired to be a professional speed skater.
Modeling career

Kroes has been featured on the covers of Time, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Seventeen, Elle, Marie Claire, Glamour, W, Avantgarde, Dazed & Confused, and Numéro. She also appears regularly in the Victoria's Secret catalog and walked the runway of the company's fashion show in 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009. Kroes's campaigns include Gucci, Tommy Hilfiger, Versace, Valentino, Blumarine and Calvin Klein for both their 'White' label and their fragrance 'Eternity'. In 2005, Kroes was selected as "Model of The Year" on Vogue.com by readers.[4] She was presented on the May 2007 cover of American Vogue as one of the “World’s Next Top Models” next to Chanel Iman among others. Along with several of these models, she appeared in the 2008 Pirelli Calendar.

In 2006, a Frisian documentary about a week in Kroes' life as a model was released. It documented Kroes at Milan Fashion Week and her thinking about the modeling industry. Director was J.J.M. Jansen.
In July 2007, earning at an estimated total of $1.5 million in the previous twelve months, Forbes named Kroes fourteenth in the list of the World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels.In April 2008, she was in fifth position, with an estimated income of $6 million. In May 2009 and May 2010 Forbes named Kroes fifth again in the list of the World's 15 Top- Earning Supermodels.

Kroes is in the official Frisian provincial campaign for the Frisian language, her mother tongue.
Doutzen Kroes received the Lifetime Achievement Award, part of the Dutch Model Awards, in Amsterdam on 12 May 2009. The jury praised her achievements at her age.

At the end of August 2008, Victoria's Secret confirmed to People magazine that Kroes was to be the newest Victoria's Secret Angel. Her first campaign as the brand's newest Angel is "Supermodel Obsession". In September 2009, she signed to be the new face for Swiss cashmere label Repeat for two years.
There is a wax figure of Kroes in the Amsterdam branch of Madame Tussaud's wax museum.
As of November 2009, she writes a monthly column about her life for the Dutch edition of 'Marie Claire.'She has stopped writing as of July 2010.

Currently, she is signed by DNA Model Management.
In February 2010, Kroes returned to the catwalk during fashion week for Prada with fellow Angels Alessandra Ambrosio and Miranda Kerr. Prada was praised by former editor-in-chief of Glamour, Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire magazines, Bonnie Fuller in her blog for using a curvy model such as Kroes for the fashion show.

Personal life

Kroes has been romantically linked to hip-hop DJ Greg Andrews (DJ Ruckus), appearing with him in the May 2009 issue of American Vogue in an article entitled "Meet the Boyfriends", on supermodels and their romantic partners. However, on 20 August 2009, Kroes admitted that their relationship had ended and that she was single.
After her break-up with Andrews, she started dating Dutch DJ Sunnery James. The two were first spotted together at the Veronica Sunset Grooves Festival in Hoek van Holland. On 14 July 2010 they announced on the Dutch television program RTL Boulevard that they were expecting their first child together in January 2011. On 7 November 2010, she and James married in Amsterdam in The Netherlands. On 21 January 2011, Kroes gave birth to a son, Phyllon Joy Gorré.

 Born    Doutzen Kroes
 23 January 1985 (age 26)
Eastermar, Netherlands
Height    5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Hair color    Blonde
Eye color    Blue
Measurements    (US) 35-24.5-36.5; (EU) 89-62-93

Dress size    (US) 6; (EU) 36
Agency    DNA Model Management
Viva Models
Women Management
Spouse    Sunnery James (2010–present)

Yaya DaCosta ☂

Yaya DaCosta (born Camara DaCosta Johnson; November 15, 1982) is an American actress and fashion model. She was the runner-up in Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model.

Early life

DaCosta was born on November 15, 1982 in Harlem, New York. She comes from a multiethnic background and in addition to English can speak Portuguese, French, Spanish, and conversational Japanese. She is of Brazilian, West African, Native American/Cherokee and Irish heritage. She majored in African Studies and International Relations at Brown University.

Career

After finishing second on Cycle 3 of America's Next Top Model, DaCosta went on to have a successful career. DaCosta only appeared once in the bottom two during the competition. She has appeared in advertisements for Garnier Fructis, Lincoln Townhouse, Oil of Olay, Radioshack, Seda, Sephora and Dr. Scholl's.

DaCosta began acting in 2005 after having a guest role on an episode of the television show Eve. She then starred opposite Rob Brown, Antonio Banderas and Alfre Woodard in the 2006 dance film Take the Lead. Dacosta had supporting roles in the independent films Honeydripper (2007) and The Messenger (2009).

She appeared on All My Children in 2008 as Cassandra Foster, the daughter of Angie Hubbard. According to an interview with All My Children's new head writer, Charles Pratt, Jr., DaCosta exited the role some time in August 2008, less than four months after joining the show, to join the cast of "The First Breeze of Summer" on Broadway. "The First Breeze of Summer" was presented from 2008–2009 by the historic Negro Ensemble Company.

In 2009 she portrayed Nico Slater, the daughter of Wilhelmina Slater on the 4th season of the ABC series, Ugly Betty.

DaCosta had a supporting role in the film The Kids Are All Right, which starred Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson and was nominated for Best Picture at the 83rd Academy Awards. The film premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, where distribution rights were purchased. Also that year, she had a supporting role in the film Tron: Legacy. Due to featuring in those highly promoted movies, she has appeared in American Vogue, L'Officiel and on the cover of W.

Filmography 

2006 Take the Lead LaRhette
2007 Honeydripper China Doll
2008 Racing for Time Vanessa
2009 The Messenger Monica Washington
2010 The Kids Are All Right Tanya
2010 Tron: Legacy Siren
2011 In Time Greta
2012 (in production) Whole Lotta Sole Sophie

Television
2005 Eve Ms.Jenkins 1 episode
2008 All My Children Cassandra Foster 44 episodes
2009 Ugly Betty Nico Slater 7 episodes
2009 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Audrina 1 episode
2010 Mercy Brooke Sullivan 1 episode
2010 Army Wives Amber 1 episode
2011 Body of Proof Holly Bennett 1 episode

Music videos
2006 Pullin' Me Back Chingy
2007 Roc Boys Jay-Z
2011 Good Man Raphael Saadiq

Born Camara DaCosta Johnson
November 15, 1982 (age 28)
Harlem, New York, U.S.
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Hair color Black
Eye color Brown
Measurements 32-23-35 (US)
Dress size 2 (US)
Agency Ford Models
The Gersh Agency
Models 1 Agency

Gia Carangi ☂

Gia Marie Carangi (January 29, 1960 – November 18, 1986) was an American fashion model during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Carangi was considered by some to be the first supermodel, although that title has also been given to others, including Janice Dickinson,Dorian Leigh, and Jean Shrimpton. Cindy Crawford, who also appeared on the covers of fashion publications during her time, was later referred to as "Baby Gia" due to her resemblance to Carangi.
Carangi was featured on the cover of fashion magazines, including Vogue, April 1, 1979; Vogue Paris, April 1979; American Vogue, August 1980; Vogue Paris, August 1980; Italian Vogue, January 1981; and several issues of Cosmopolitan between 1979 and 1982.
After she became addicted to heroin, Carangi's modeling career rapidly declined. She later became infected with HIV and died at the age of 26. Her death was not widely publicized and few people in the fashion industry knew of it. Carangi is thought to be one of the first famous women to die of AIDS. Gia, a biographical film starring Angelina Jolie, debuted on HBO in 1998.

Early life

Carangi was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the third and youngest child of Joseph Carangi, a restaurant owner, and Kathleen Adams, a homemaker. She had two older brothers. Her father is Italian, and her mother is of Irish and Welsh ancestry. Joseph and Kathleen had an unstable marriage due to Joseph's domestic abuse of Kathleen, which resulted in Kathleen abandoning her family when Carangi was eleven years old. Those who knew her blamed her "fractured childhood" for the instability and drug-dependence that stilted her adult life. She was described as "needy and manipulative" by relatives who recalled her as spoiled and shy as a child and a "Mommy’s girl" who did not receive the motherly attention that she desired.

In her adolescent years, Carangi found the attention she sought; the attention came from other teenage girls. When she was thirteen, Carangi would send girls flowers and they would develop crushes on her, no matter their sexual orientation. While in high school, Carangi bonded with "the Bowie kids"—a group of obsessive David Bowie fans like herself. They emulated Bowie's "defiantly weird, high-glam" style. Carangi was drawn to Bowie not only due to his fashion preferences but also due to his ambiguous gender play and outspoken bisexuality. A friend of Carangi described her "tomboy persona" and relaxed openness about her sexuality as reminiscent of the character Cay in the 1985 film Desert Hearts. Carangi and her "bi-try Bowie-mad" friends hung out in Philadelphia’s gay clubs and bars. She was beginning to settle into a lesbian identity, but did not want to take up "the accepted lesbian style".
 
Career

Success

Carangi was known in modeling circles just by her first name. After being featured in Philadelphia newspaper ads, Carangi moved to New York City at the age of 17, where she quickly rose to prominence. She was a favorite model of various fashion photographers, including Francesco Scavullo, Arthur Elgort, Richard Avedon, Denis Piel, Marco Glaviano, and Chris von Wangenheim.

Well-integrated within the fashion world, Carangi had the selection of several photographers, most notably Scavullo. By the end of 1978, Carangi was already a well-established model. In a 20/20 interview, she said her rise was "awfully fast": "I started working with well-known people in the industry, very quickly. I didn't build into a model. I just sort of became one."

Carangi was a regular at Studio 54 and the Mudd Club. She usually used cocaine in clubs, but later began to develop a heroin addiction.

In October 1978, Carangi did her first major shoot with top fashion photographer Chris von Wangenheim. Wangenheim had her pose nude behind a chain-link fence with makeup assistant Sandy Linter. Carangi immediately became infatuated with Linter and started to pursue her, though the relationship never became stable.

Troubles

On March 1, 1980, Carangi's agent, Wilhelmina Cooper, died of lung cancer. Devastated, Carangi started abusing drugs. Scavullo recalled a fashion shoot in the Caribbean when "She was crying, she couldn't find her drugs. I literally had to lay her down on her bed until she fell asleep." By 1980, Carangi began having violent temper tantrums, walking out of photo shoots, and even falling asleep in front of the camera. The November 1980 issue of Vogue stated that Carangi's track marks from shooting heroin were visible even after airbrushing. The photographer disputes this claim. For three weeks, she was signed with Eileen Ford, who soon dropped her.

Carangi's attempt to quit drugs was abandoned when she learned that her good friend and fashion photographer Chris von Wangenheim died in a car accident. According to the Stephen Fried book Thing of Beauty, she locked herself in a bathroom for hours, shooting heroin. In fall 1981, Carangi looked significantly different than she used to. Despite this, she was still determined to make a comeback in the fashion industry. She contacted Monique Pillard (who was largely responsible for Janice Dickinson's career), who was hesitant to sign her. In rehab, she told staff that she had done sexual favors for drug money and had been raped by a dealer.Once heavily pursuing modeling again, she received the harsh treatment she had been able to avoid last time. Nobody would book her. Desperate, Carangi turned to Scavullo. She landed a Cosmopolitan cover, a gift from Scavullo. Shot in the winter of 1982, it would be her last cover.

Death

Carangi was diagnosed with AIDS, which was a newly recognized disease at the time. As her condition worsened, she was transferred to Philadelphia's Hahnemann University Hospital. Her mother stayed with her day and night, allowing virtually no visitors.
On November 18, 1986, aged 26, Carangi died of AIDS-related complications. Her closed-casket funeral (recommended by the funeral director due to the ravages of AIDS) was held on November 21 at a small funeral home in Philadelphia. Nobody from the fashion world attended. However, weeks later, Francesco Scavullo, Carangi's friend and confidant, sent a mass card when he heard the news.

Legacy

A biography of Carangi by Stephen Fried called Thing of Beauty (a title omitting the second half of John Keats' famous quote "A thing of beauty is a joy forever") was published in 1993. A biographical film, Gia, debuted on HBO in 1998. Angelina Jolie starred in the title role, garnering a Golden Globe award for the role.

In 1996, actress-screenwriter Zoë Tamerlis, herself a heroin addict who died of drug-related causes in 1999, was commissioned to write a screenplay based upon Carangi's life. This version of Gia was not produced, but after Tamerlis' death, footage of Carangi, Tamerlis, photographers, Carangi's family, and Sandy Linter discussing her life was incorporated into a 2003 documentary entitled The Self-Destruction of Gia.

Carangi's sexual orientation has been disputed during and after her life; LGBT outlets label her lesbian, and other times as bisexual due to her occasional sexual relationships with men. In the film Gia, Jolie portrayed her as being sexually intimate with women. Since Carangi's death, she has been considered a lesbian supermodel and icon and is said to have epitomized "lesbian chic" more than a decade before the term was coined.

Designers and cosmetic firms represented
 
Christian Dior
Cutex
Diane von Fürstenberg
Giorgio Armani
Levi Strauss & Co.
Maybelline
Perry Ellis
Versace
Vidal Sassoon
Yves Saint Laurent

Born Gia Marie Carangi
January 29, 1960
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died November 18, 1986 (aged 26)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height 5'7" (170 cm)
Hair color Brown
Eye color Brown
Measurements (US) 34-24-35
(EU) 86.5-61-89
Dress size (US) 6
(EU) 36

 

Adriana Lima ☂

Adriana Lima  
 

Adriana Francesca Lima (born June 12, 1981, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil) is a Brazilian model, best known as a Victoria's Secret Angel since 2000, and as a spokesmodel for Maybelline cosmetics from 2003 to 2009. At the age of 15, Lima finished first in Ford's "Supermodel of Brazil" competition, and took second place the following year in the Ford "Supermodel of the World" competition before signing with Elite Model Management in New York City. Since 2005, Lima has ranked in the top five of Forbes' lists of the 20 highest-earning models in the world, and in 2006 ranked No.99 on the Forbes Celebrity 100. She is married to Serbian basketball player Marko Jarić (Serbian: Марко Јарић). 

Career
Modeling

Lima never thought about being a model, although she had won many beauty pageants in elementary school. However, she had a friend at school who wanted to enter a modeling contest and did not want to enter alone, so Lima entered with her. Both sent in pictures, and the contest sponsor soon asked Lima to come out for the competition. Soon after, at the age of 15, she entered and finished in first place in Ford's "Supermodel of Brazil" model search. She subsequently entered the 1996 Ford "Supermodel of the World" contest and finished in second place. Three years later, Lima moved to New York City and signed with Elite Model Management. After acquiring representation, Lima's modeling portfolio quickly began to expand, and she appeared in numerous international editions of Vogue and Marie Claire. As a runway model, she has walked the catwalks for designers such as Vera Wang, Giorgio Armani and Valentino, among others. Lima became a GUESS? girl in 2000, appearing in that year's fall ad campaign. She also appeared in the book A Second Decade of Guess? Images.

Lima continued to build upon her portfolio, doing more print work for Maybelline, for whom she worked as a spokesmodel from 2003 until 2009, the same year she appeared in the company's first calendar, a limited edition run also featuring Kemp Muhl, Jessica White, Julia Stegner, and Anna Wang. Lima has also worked for notable fashion brands bebe, Armani, Versace, BCBG and Louis Vuitton. She also appeared on the covers and in the editorials of other fashion magazines such as Harper's Bazaar, ELLE, GQ, Arena, Vogue, V, Esquire and French Revue des Modes. Her April 2006 GQ cover was the highest-selling issue that magazine for the year. She also appeared in the 2005 Pirelli Calendar[3] and became the face of Italy's cell phone carrier, Telecom Italia Mobile, a move that earned her the nickname, "the Catherine Zeta-Jones of Italy."

In February 2008, Lima was featured on the cover of Esquire, re-creating the classic 1966 Angie Dickinson cover on Esquire's 75th anniversary along with fellow Victoria's Secret Angels Alessandra Ambrosio, Karolina Kurkova, Izabel Goulart and Selita Ebanks. She appeared only in shoes, diamonds and gloves for the November 2007 issue of Vanity Fair celebrating 20 years of supermodels with her fellow Angels.In February 2008, she was chosen to be the face of Mexico's Liverpool department store chain and launched the partnership with a press conference, runway show, and summer campaign. Lima returned to the high fashion runway in 2009, walking for Givenchy. That same year, after visiting Turkey, Lima signed a contract with Doritos to appear in print campaigns and commercials which began airing in Turkey that April. She was also one of the faces of Givenchy for the Fall/Winter 2009 season, alongside Mariacarla Boscono and Iris Strubegger. Lima is one of the two faces of Blumarine's Fall/Winter 2011 season.
In 2011, Lima signed a deal as a spokeswoman for Megacity by Votsu, a Brazilian social gaming company, to appear in their commercials. She also became the face of Brazilian luxury brand, Forum for there F/W season. Adriana Lima has worked with the most established photographers in fashion such as Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matidin, Vincent Peters, Mario Sorrenti, Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott and David Sims.

In 2006, Lima ranked as the fifth highest paid supermodel. In 2007 and 2008, she ranked as the world's fourth highest paid supermodel by Forbes Magazine.
 

Victoria's Secret

Adriana Lima with the 2010 Fantasy Bra.

Lima is probably best known for her work with Victoria's Secret. Her first fashion show for the company came in 1999, and since being contracted as an Angel in 2000, she has appeared on subsequent shows ever since, opening the show in 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2010.Lima has appeared on several television ads for the brand, including the praised and criticized "Angel in Venice" commercial of 2003 with Bob Dylan and her solo Victoria's Secret's Super Bowl XLII ad, the single most-seen ad of the game, watched by 103.7 million viewers. 2008 continued for Lima with hosting the What Is Sexy? program for the E! Entertainment Network and a July tour for the BioFit Uplift Bra launch. She was also featured in November's Miracle Bra relaunch.Topping the year off, Lima wore the "Fantasy Bra" for the 2008 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. The bra, created by American jewelry designer Martin Katz, was set with 3,575 black diamonds, 117 certified 1 carat (200 mg) white round diamonds, 34 rubies, and two black diamond drops totaling 100 carats (20 g). Valued at over $5 million, the bra carried more than 1,500 carats (300 g).

In 2009, Lima launched the company's new makeup line, "Christian Siriano for VS Makeup." Lima skipped the 2009 show due to her pregnancy but she was back for the 2010 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, in which she wore the "Fantasy Bra" again, this time created by Damiani called "The Bombshell Fantasy Bra" valued at $2million.
Acting

Lima's first acting role was the wife, alongside Mickey Rourke and Forest Whitaker, in The Follow (2001), a short film in BMW's series The Hire, starring Clive Owen and directed by Wong Kar-wai. She also appeared with her fellow Angels in a guest spot playing herself in the series How I Met Your Mother in November 2007.

In 2008, Lima appeared on the American television series Ugly Betty, where she played herself and made friends with the series' title character, Betty.
Reception

Lima was listed in the 2005 Forbes' edition of The World's Best-Paid Celebrities Under 25. Also, she ranked No.99th in the 2006 Forbes' edition of The Celebrity 100 (Forbes' Highest Paid and Powerful Celebrities in the World). Lima was chosen to be a part of People magazine's 100 most beautiful people in the world list, sharing that space with the Angels, with whom she also received a star on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame" prior to the 2007 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. That same year, she ranked 7th on FHMs "100 Sexiest Women 2007" listand was awarded as the "Hottest Girl on the Planet" at the first Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards, although the category was not mentioned in the actual broadcast. Lima was also voted on Maxim's "Hot 100" 2007 at the No.53 spot. She was voted No.1 as the Most Desirable Woman in 2005 by visitors of the men's lifestyle website, Askmen.com (she placed 4th in 2006 and 2007, 10th in 2008, and 19th in 2009). Since November 2008, Models.com has featured her at number one on the list of the "Sexiest Models." As of July 2011, she is also ranked No. 4 in the website's "Money Girls" list. In 2010, she was voted eighth in "FHM's Sexiest Women In The World". Previously to this, FHM ranked her at No. 6 in 2009, No. 21 in 2008 and No. 4 in 2007. In an interview about beauty, celebrity photographer and Victoria's Secret main photographer, Russell James says Adriana is one of the most beautiful women he's ever worked with in the course of his career.
“ Adriana Lima. I've seen her go from a young girl who's very unaware of how absolutely beautiful she was to this absolutely beautiful woman. But her heart is also so amazing. Any charity that asks her to work, she'll do it. And she's just so damn beautiful. You just look at her and you're 'Oh, jeez ...' It's ridiculous! “

 Personal life

Lima is a devout Catholic who attends church every Sunday. In April 2006, she told GQ that she was a virgin. "Sex is for after marriage," she explained. "They have to respect that this is my choice. If there's no respect, that means they don't want me." Characterizing her religious roots, she is known for taking a Bible backstage to read.
She has been romantically linked to musician/singer Lenny Kravitz Prince Wenzeslaus of Liechtenstein and Argentine photographer Estevan Calcagno. In November 2007, it was confirmed that Lima was dating Serbian basketball player Marko Jarić (Марко Јарић). Originally, the couple planned on a large wedding in Salvador, set to place in June 2009. Eventually, they eloped in a private civil ceremony in Jackson Hole, Wyoming on St. Valentine's Day in February 2009,with plans for two separate weddings in their respective hometowns at the end of 2009. In May 2009, it was reported that Lima applied for Serbian citizenship.Shortly thereafter, she announced that she was pregnant and expecting her first child around Thanksgiving. The couple's daughter, Valentina Lima Jarić (Валентина Лима Јарић), was born on November 15, 2009. Valentina was born at 34 weeks gestation, weighing just 4.4 lb (2.0 kg), due to Lima's suffering from preeclampsia.

Charity

Lima does charitable work helping with an orphanage, "Caminhos da Luz" (Ways of Light), located in her hometown. She helps with construction to expand the orphanage, and buys clothes for poor children in Salvador, Bahia. She appeared on Var mısın? Yok musun?, the Turkish version of Deal or No Deal, where her prize money went to a hospital in Istanbul for children fighting leukemia.

http://adrianalima.com
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Hair color Brown
Eye color Blue
Measurements 86-61-89 (34-24-35)
Dress size 4 (US)
Agency Marilyn Agency
Spouse Marko Jaric (2009–present)