Anna Nicole Smith
Her highly publicized marriage to oil business executive and billionaire J. Howard Marshall, who was 63 years her senior, resulted in tumultuous speculation that she married the octogenarian merely for his money, which she denied. Following his death, she began a lengthy and ongoing legal battle over a share of his estate. Her case, Marshall v. Marshall, reached the U.S. Supreme Court in February 2006 on a technical question of federal jurisdiction.
She was born Vickie Lynn Hogan in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Donald Eugene Hogan (born July 12, 1947) and Virgie Mae Tabers (born July 12, 1951). Her half-sisters are Donna Hogan and Amy Hogan.
When she was very young, Smith's family moved to Mexia, a small town 79 miles (127 km) south of Dallas. Her father then left the family; he and Virgie were divorced November 4, 1969. Smith was raised by her mother and maternal aunt, Elaine. Virgie, who was married previously to Mr. Tacker, was subsequently married to Mr. Hart and to Mr. Arthur. She worked as a law enforcement officer for 28 years.
While growing up, Vickie told others she wanted to be the next Marilyn Monroe. While working as a waitress at Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken in Mexia, she met Billy Wayne Smith, who was the cook at the restaurant. They were married April 4, 1985. She was then age 17 and he was 16. The next year, she gave birth to their son, Daniel Wayne Smith (January 22, 1986-September 10, 2006). She and Billy separated in 1987 and she moved back to Houston with one-year-old Daniel. They were officially divorced February 3, 1993, in Houston.
Initially, she found employment at Wal-Mart and later as a waitress at Red Lobster, but could not make enough money to support herself and Daniel. She then became an exotic dancer.
Smith's career took off after she was chosen by Hugh Hefner to appear on the cover of the March 1992 issue of Playboy wearing a low-cut evening gown.
She was subsequently called "the next Marilyn Monroe" in press reports, a comparison she encouraged by wearing a hairstyle reminiscent of Monroe's, as well as her trademark white dress.
Becoming one of Playboy's most popular models, Smith began a trend for a more voluptuous look. She next posed nude for the May 1992 centerfold (under the name Vickie Smith).
Smith was chosen to be the 1993 Playmate of the Year. By the time of her PMOY pictorial, she finally settled on the name Anna Nicole Smith.
She secured a contract to replace supermodel Claudia Schiffer in the Guess? jeans ad campaign in a series of sultry black and white photographs. Guess? capitalized on Smith's strong resemblance to sex symbol Jayne Mansfield and even put her in Jayne-inspired photo sessions.
Smith once did a nude Playboy layout in Mansfield's famous Beverly Hills mansion, the "Pink Palace."
A photograph of the voluptuous model was used by New York magazine on the cover of its August 22, 1994 issue titled White Trash Nation. In the photo, she appears squatting in a short skirt and cowboy boots as she eats chips.
In October 1994, her lawyer initiated a $5,000,000 lawsuit against the magazine claiming unauthorized use of her photo and that the article had damaged her reputation. Her lawyer said that Smith was told she was being photographed to embody the "All-American-woman look" and that they wanted glamour shots. He further stated that the picture used was taken for fun during a break. The editor of New York said that the photo was one of dozens taken for the cover and that he guessed they just found the picture that was chosen unflattering.
Though her film appearances in The Hudsucker Proxy and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult were highly publicized in 1994, little was done to further Smith's acting career. Her first starring role was as Colette Dubois, a retired spy seeking revenge for the murder of her husband, in the action/thriller To the Limit (1995).
Smith next starred in the action/thriller Skyscraper (1997), which she also produced, as a helicopter pilot, Carrie Wisk, who lands on a high rise building and, upon learning it has been taken over by terrorists, becomes engaged in a deadly fight to save hostages.
Both films, and Smith's performances in them, were usually critically panned. During the course of the litigation over her late husband's estate, her career stalled. Her legal battle, her increasing weight, and her reportedly bizarre behavior made her regular fodder for late night television comedians.
In 2002, she debuted in her own reality TV series on the E! cable network, The Anna Nicole Show. The series focused on her personal and private life in the manner of other "reality" shows, such as the ratings hit The Osbournes.
The debut of the The Anna Nicole Show was the highest rated series on the network, but critics blasted it and ratings dropped with each successive week. However, it achieved a cult status as many fans found humor in Smith's absurd antics. The show was canceled in February 2004 due to "creative differences," but has retained some life in reruns and on DVD releases.
Smith's next appearance on the big screen was as herself in Wasabi Tuna (2003), which is about a group of friends who kidnap her dog, Sugar-Pie, on Halloween. She appeared as herself again in Be Cool (2005), a crime/comedy about the film and music industries that stars John Travolta and Uma Thurman.
In 2006, she starred as Lucy in Illegal Aliens, which she also produced, a sci-fi/comedy about beautiful space aliens saving the earth from evil.
On February 8, 2007, Smith was found unresponsive in a room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. She was rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood at 2:10 p.m EST (19:10 UTC) while paramedics performed CPR. She was later pronounced Dead upon arrival. Her passing was a little less than five months after her son had died. She was 39 years old. Smith's boyfriend, Howard K. Stern, was with her when she passed away. Howard Stern tells Entertainment Tonight that her temperature was running high last night, February 7. Howard K. Stern tells Entertainment Tonight that her temperature was running high the night before, February 7.
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Old Lyme?s Anna Smith prepares for trip to India with Engineers ...
Old Lyme's Anna Smith prepares for trip to India with Engineers ?TheDay, CT -7 hours agoShe came back for the Lyme-Old Lyme Techno Ticks Robot Rally earlier this year, to send the team off to regional and then national competition. ...
Old Lyme's Anna Smith prepares for trip to India with Engineers ...
Anna Smith, a 1999 graduate of Lyme-Old Lyme High School , plans to be around water in August. But it will be in a village in India , in the mountains about 30 miles south of New Delhi . If all goes as planned, cool water will be ...
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LAMBERTVILLE - Anna M. Smith, 95, of Lambertville, died Thursday, April 17 at Lake Park in Sylvania, Ohio. Born Sept.
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ENOREE - Anna Smith Rollo, 74, wife of Ernie Rollo, of 2620 Blackstock Road, Enoree, died Thursday, April 10, 2008 at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center.
