 Vickie
Lynn Marshall (November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007), better known as Anna
Nicole Smith, was an American model, actress and celebrity who first gained
popularity as Playboy magazine's 1993 Playmate of the Year.
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.
Early Life
She was born Vickie Lynn Hogan on November 28, 1967 in Houston, Texas. She was
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.
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.
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.
Playboy and Modeling Career
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.
Marriage to Marshall
While performing at Gigi's, a Houston strip club, in October 1991, Smith met
elderly oil billionaire J. Howard Marshall and they began a relationship. During
their two-year relationship, he reportedly lavished gifts on her and asked her
to marry him several times.
She divorced her former husband Billy on February 3, 1993, in Houston. On June
27, 1994, Smith, age 26, and Marshall, age 89, were married in Houston. This
resulted in a great deal of gossip about her marrying him for his money. Though
she reportedly never lived with him, Smith maintained she loved her husband and
that age did not matter to her.
Thirteen months after his marriage to Smith, Marshall died on August 4, 1995, in
Houston.
Birth of Daughter
Smith announced on June 1, 2006, in a video clip posted on her official website
that she was pregnant. "Let me stop all the rumors," she said, while floating on
an inflatable raft in a swimming pool. "Yes, I am pregnant. I'm happy, I'm very,
very happy about it. Everything's goin' really, really good and I'll be checking
in and out periodically on the web, and I'll let you see me as I'm growing."
Though her announcement did not provide any details, in an interview with Larry
King on CNN's Larry King Live, Smith's longtime personal attorney Howard K.
Stern said that he had loved her for quite some time and they were confident he
fathered the baby because of the timing of the pregnancy. However, her
ex-boyfriend, entertainment photojournalist Larry Birkhead, steadfastly
maintained his contention that he is the baby's father and filed a lawsuit to
challenge paternity.
Smith's daughter, Dannielynn Hope Marshall Stern, was born September 7, 2006, at
Doctors Hospital in Nassau, Bahamas. The Bahamian birth certificate records the
father as Howard K. Stern.
A judge in the United States ordered that DNA tests be performed to determine
who is the biological father of Dannielynn. Following Anna's death, Debra Opri,
the lawyer of Larry Birkhead, asked for a DNA sample to be taken from the
corpse. An action that outraged Smith's lawyer, Ron Rale, who called it "the
lowest form of behavior I've ever heard of".
Death of Son
Smith's 20-year-old son, Daniel Smith, died on September 10, 2006 in his
mother's hospital room while visiting her and his newborn sister. After the
coroner labeled the death "reserved," Smith hired forensic pathologist Cyril
Wecht to perform a second autopsy.
Dr. Wecht announced on Larry King Live that the procedure he performed on
September 17, showed that Daniel died from a lethal combination of Zoloft,
Lexapro and methadone. Although he explained that methadone is used in the
treatment of heroin and morphine addiction, he said he has no information to
make any conclusion about the reason he was using the drug.
On September 18, Getty Images sold the last photos taken of Daniel alive at his
mother's bedside to In Touch Weekly and Entertainment Tonight for at least
$650,000. As of November 19, Wecht had still not been paid for his services, but
stated that he was in contact with Smith's attorneys and was confident the
matter would soon be resolved.
His death certificate was issued on September 21, so that he could be buried.
While Smith remained in the Bahamas with Dannielynn and Stern, Daniel's family
in the United States, including his father, Billy Smith, gathered with friends
on October 7, in Mexia, Texas, for a memorial service.
Daniel was buried at Lake View Cemetery on Nassau Island, Bahamas, on October
19, almost six weeks after his death. It was reported that Smith intended to
live on the island, with no plans to return to the U.S.
Death
Anna Nicole Smith dies on February 8, 2007, Smith was found unresponsive in a
room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. At 1:38
p.m. (18:38 UTC) Seminole Police Chief Charlie Tiger said a nurse in Smith's
sixth floor room called the hotel front desk, who in turn called security, who
in turn called 911, and at 1:45 p.m. a bodyguard administered CPR before she was
rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital at 2:10 p.m and pronounced dead upon
arrival at 2:49 p.m. Smith's husband, Howard K. Stern, was with her when she
died and has reported to Entertainment Tonight that her temperature was running
high the night before. An autopsy is expected to be performed to determine an
official cause of death.
As reported by Reuters, on Wednesday (February 7), a Los Angeles judge had set a
February 21 deadline for Smith to complete a DNA paternity test of her
five-month-old daughter, as part of a lawsuit by ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead,
who claims to be the father from a two-year relationship with Smith.
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