Anna Nicole Smith

Anna Nicole Smith (born Vickie Lynn Hogan; November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007) was an American model, actress, and television personality.

Smith was born Vickie Lynn Hogan on November 28, 1967, in Houston, Texas, the only daughter of Virgie Arthur (née Tabers), (1951–2018) and Donald Hogan (1947–2009).

Smith attended Mexia High School, but teachers at the school said transcripts showed that she had transferred there from a Houston school, attended at least one semester of ninth grade in Mexia, but did not complete a whole term of tenth grade.

She had five half-siblings on her father's side.

Smith was primarily raised by her mother and her family in Mexia.

Smith secured a contract to replace supermodel Claudia Schiffer in a Guess jeans ad campaign featuring a series of sultry black-and-white photographs.

During the Guess campaign, she took on the stage name "Anna Nicole".

Guess photographers noticed Smith bore a striking resemblance to bombshell Jayne Mansfield and showcased her in several Mansfield-inspired photo sessions.

Smith dropped out of high school in 1984, married in 1985, and divorced in 1993.

While working at Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken in Mexia, Smith met Billy Wayne Smith, a cook at the restaurant, and the couple married on April 4, 1985, when he was sixteen and she was seventeen.

She gave birth to their son, Daniel Wayne Smith, on January 22, 1986.

Smith and her husband then separated the following year.

While performing at a Houston strip club in October 1991, Smith met 86-year-old petroleum tycoon J. Howard Marshall.

Smith started her career as a Playboy magazine centerfold in May 1992 and won the title of 1993 Playmate of the Year.

She later modeled for fashion companies, including Guess, H&M, and Heatherette.

In 1993, she modeled for the Swedish clothing company H&M, which led to her picture being displayed on large billboards in Sweden and Norway.

Smith was featured on the cover of Marie Claire, shot by Peter Lindbergh in October 1993, and in GQ magazine earlier that year.

They divorced in 1993.

In 1994, her highly publicized second marriage to 89-year-old billionaire J. Howard Marshall resulted in speculation that she married him for his money, which she denied.

A photograph of Smith was used by New York magazine on the cover of its August 22, 1994, issue titled White Trash Nation. In the photo, she appears sitting in a short skirt with cowboy boots as she eats chips.

In October 1994, Smith initiated a $5 million lawsuit against the magazine, claiming that she did not authorize the use of her photo, and that the article damaged her reputation.

The lawsuit was reported to have been settled.

On June 27, 1994, Smith and Marshall were married in Houston, resulting in speculation that she married him for his money.

Following Marshall's death in 1995, Smith began a lengthy legal battle over a share of his estate.

Her cases reached the Supreme Court of the United States: Marshall v. Marshall on a question of federal jurisdiction and Stern v. Marshall on a question of bankruptcy court authority.

Marshall died on August 4, 1995, in Houston, at the age of 90.

Even though Smith was not in Marshall's will, she claimed that in return for marriage, Marshall verbally promised her half of his estate, which primarily consisted of a 16% interest in Koch Industries, then worth $1.6 billion.

Smith's stepson E. Pierce Marshall disputed the claim.

Smith temporarily joined forces with J. Howard's other son, J. Howard Marshall III, who was disowned after attempting to take control of Koch Industries.

Howard III also claimed that his father had verbally promised him a portion of the estate; like Smith, Howard III was also left out of his father's will.

In 1996, Smith filed for bankruptcy in California as a result of an $850,000 default judgment against her for the sexual harassment of a nanny who cared for her son.

Since any money potentially due to her from the Marshall estate was part of her potential assets, the bankruptcy court involved itself in the matter.

In September 2000, a Los Angeles bankruptcy judge awarded Smith $449,754,134.00, the amount that Marshall's interest in Koch Industries appreciated during their marriage.

In October 2003, she became a spokeswoman for TrimSpa, which allegedly helped her lose a reported 69 lb. TrimSpa diet product company and Smith were sued in a class-action lawsuit alleging their marketing of a weight loss pill was false or misleading.

In November 2004, Smith appeared at the American Music Awards to introduce Kanye West and attracted attention because of her slurred speech and behavior.

During her live appearance, she threw her arms up and asked, "Like my body?"

Smith murmured other comments and alluded to TrimSpa.

The incident became comic material for presenters throughout the rest of the program.

In March 2005, at the first MTV Australia Video Music Awards in Sydney's Luna Park, Smith spoofed Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction by pulling down her dress to reveal both breasts, each covered with the MTV logo.

Smith died in February 2007 in Hollywood, Florida, of a combined drug intoxication.