Heidi Klum

Heidi Klum Samuel

Klum at The Heart Truth Fashion Show, 2008
Born Heidi Klum
June 1, 1973 (1973-06-01) (age 37)
Bergisch Gladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany
Height 5 ft 9.5 in (1.77 m)[1]
Measurements 34-24-34 (US)[1]
Spouse Ric Pipino (1997–2002)
Seal (2005–present)
Website
http://www.heidiklum.com

Heidi Samuel[2] (born June 1, 1973),[3] better known by her birth name Heidi Klum,[4] is a German American[5] model, actress, television host, business woman, fashion designer, television producer, artist, and occasional singer. She is married to English singer Seal.

Contents

Early life and discovery

Heidi was raised in Bergisch Gladbach, a city outside Cologne, by her parents Günther, a cosmetics-company executive, and Erna, a hairdresser. Both parents are from Germany and Heidi is full German. A friend persuaded her to enroll in a national modeling contest called "Model 92".[6] Out of 25,000 contestants, Klum was voted the winner on April 29, 1992 and offered a modeling contract worth US$300,000 by Thomas Zeumer, CEO of Metropolitan Models New York.[7] As the winner, she appeared on the Gottschalk Late Night Show, a top German television show with host Thomas Gottschalk. She accepted the contract a few months later after graduating from school and decided not to try for an apprentice position at a fashion design school.[8]

Acting and modeling

Klum has been on the cover of fashion magazines, including Vogue, ELLE and Marie Claire. She became known after appearing on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and for her work with Victoria's Secret as an "Angel".[9] Klum has hosted the 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2009 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

In addition to working with well known photographers on her Sports Illustrated shoots, she was the object and subject of Joanne Gair body painting works in several editions from 1999 to 2006. She wrote the foreword to Gair's book of body paint work. She was a spokesmodel for McDonald's, Braun, Dannon, H & M, and Liz Claiborne, among others. She is currently a celebrity spokesmodel for Jordache[10] and Volkswagen. In addition to modeling, she has appeared in several TV shows, including Spin City, Sex and the City, Yes, Dear, and How I Met Your Mother. She had a role as an ill-tempered hair model in the movie Blow Dry, played a giantess in the movie Ella Enchanted and was cast as Ursula Andress in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers. She had cameo appearances in The Devil Wears Prada and Perfect Stranger.

In July 2007, having earned $8 million in the previous 12 months, Klum was named by Forbes as third on the list of the World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels.[11] In 2008, Forbes estimated her income at $14 million, putting Klum in second place. For 2009, Forbes estimated her income at $16 million.[12] Klum is signed to IMG Models in New York City.

Project Runway

Project Runway season three finalist Laura Bennett interviews Klum and Seal at the 59th Emmy Awards.

In December 2004, she became the host, judge and executive producer of the reality show Project Runway on the U.S. cable television channel Bravo, (airing on Lifetime television beginning in 2009) in which fashion designers compete for the opportunity to show their line at New York Fashion Week and receive money to launch their own fashion line. She received an Emmy Award nomination for the show for each of the first four seasons.[13][14] In 2008, Klum and Project Runway received a Peabody Award, the first time a reality show won the award.[15] Klum was nominated for an Emmy in 2008 for "outstanding host of a reality or reality-competition show" for Project Runway, the first year that category was recognized by the Emmys.[14]

Designing and perfume

Klum designed clothing lines (one for men), featured in the German mail-order catalog "Otto". She designed shoes for Birkenstock, jewellery for Mouawad, a clothing line for Jordache, and swimsuits – featured in the 2002 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She was one of the designers of the Victoria's Secret lingerie line "The Body", named after the nickname she received following her first Victoria's Secret Fashion Show appearance.[16] Her Mouawad jewelry collection debuted on the cable shopping network QVC on September 14, 2006, and 14 of the 16 styles sold out after 36 minutes.[17] A second line of her jewelry collection debuted on QVC on April 14, 2007, with similar success.Klum's clothing line for Jordache launched on April 30, 2008.[18]

Klum has two fragrances, called "Heidi Klum" and "Me". She designed makeup for Victoria's Secret as part of their "Very Sexy Makeup Collection", titled "The Heidi Klum Collection". The first run debuted in Fall 2007. A second run was released in Fall 2008.[19]

Klum was involved in the development of a namesake rose, the Heidi Klum rose,[20][21] which is available in Germany.

For the 2008 US Open, Klum designed a screen print t-shirt which was sold at the US Open shop. It featured child-like butterfly pictures. Proceeds will go to a non-profit organization maintaining the park which is home to the US Open.

Germany's Next Topmodel

Klum has been the host, judge and co-producer of Germany's Next Topmodel the German version of the internationally successful reality television show, since 2006. Season winners are Lena Gercke, Barbara Meier, Jennifer Hof, Sara Nuru and Alisar Ailabouni. All five seasons aired on the German TV station ProSieben.

Other

Klum is an artist and had several of her paintings appear in various art magazines in the U.S. On September 27, 2002 she dedicated a sculpture she painted called "Dog with Butterflies" to commemorate the role of rescue dogs in the aftermath of September 11.[22]

In 2004, Klum co-authored Heidi Klum's Body of Knowledge with Elle magazine editor Alexandra Postman. The book gives Klum's biography as well as her advice on becoming successful. Prior to that, Klum had been an occasional guest columnist for the German television network RTL's website. She wrote an essay for the German newspaper Die Zeit.[23]

Klum's other projects have included music and video games. She is featured in the 2004 James Bond video game Everything or Nothing, where she plays the villain Dr. Katya Nadanova.[24] She has appeared in several music videos, including Jamiroquai's video "Love Foolosophy" from their album A Funk Odyssey, and Kelis's "Young, Fresh n' New", off her second 2001 album Wanderland.

In early 2009, Klum ventured into web-based videos, starring in "SPIKED HEEL: Supermodels Battle the Forces of Evil". The web-series starred model Coco Rocha and was directed by fashion documentarian Doug Keeve. In the story, Klum aka 'The Kluminator,'[25] and her stylish sidekick Coco “The Sassy Superhero” Rocha battle the evil Dr. Faux Pas who is plotting to destroy Fashion Week. The heroines employ everything from blow-dryer guns to fist fights, in order to thwart Dr. Faux Pas' dastardly plans. The Kluminator and Girl Wonder avoid a chain of fashion disasters to neutralize a death ray that threatens to vaporize the community of fashionistas gathered in Bryant Park.[26]

In November 2006, Klum released her debut single "Wonderland", written for a series of television advertisements for the German retailer "Douglas". Proceeds were given to a children's charity in her hometown of Bergisch Gladbach. She contributed to her husband Seal's 2007 album System, singing the duet "Wedding Day", a song that Seal wrote for their wedding.[27]

In 2008, Klum was a featured guest on an American Volkswagen commercial, where she was interviewed by a black Beetle. When she commented that German engineering is so sexy, she caused the Beetle to blush and turn red. She has been a part of several commercials for Volkswagen and McDonald's on German television.

In November 2008, Klum appeared in two versions of a Guitar Hero World Tour commercial, where she did a take on a Tom Cruise scene in Risky Business. In both versions, she lip-synced to Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" while dancing around the living room with the wireless guitar controller; the director's cut, however, had her strip to her underwear halfway through the commercial and was broadcast only after prime time.

Klum is a "Real Celebrity" on the website Stardoll. On Stardoll Klum has a line of virtual jewelry, and a virtual clothing line called Jordache. Users can go to Klum's suite and interact with her by doing interviews, sending pending requests or dressing Klum's doll.

In what some pundits saw as a heavy-handed approach by Klum's lawyers, an unemployed Chemnitz butcher, who used Klum's picture in advertising for a local dance on a flyer and a web page, contested her subsequent takedown notice in court and lost, forcing him to pay court costs of 2300€. A German actress has pledged to pay on his behalf.[28][29]

Heidi also became Barbie's official ambassador for the doll's 50th anniversary in 2009, even having made a Barbie doll out of herself.[30]

On April 1, 2009, Klum appeared on the CBS television special, I Get That a Lot, as a girl working at a pizza shop.

In 2009, Klum appeared in advertising for Dannon's Light & Fit brand.

Klum and husband Seal announced in June 2010 that whey will be making a reality series on Lifetime entitled Love's Divine (after Seal's song of the same name.)[31]

Personal life

Klum married stylist Ric Pipino in 1997; the couple divorced in 2002.[32] Following the divorce, she dated Flavio Briatore. In the autumn of 2003, Klum announced she was pregnant by Briatore. The same day she made this announcement, Briatore was photographed kissing Fiona Swarovski, a jewelry heiress.[33] Klum and Briatore split shortly thereafter.

Klum gave birth to her first child, Helene (Leni) Klum (now Samuel) on May 4, 2004 in New York City.[34] According to Klum, Briatore, Leni's biological father, is not involved in the child's life; she has stated emphatically that "Seal is Leni's father."[35]

In early 2004, while still pregnant, Klum began a relationship with musician Seal.[36] Klum and Seal married on May 10, 2005, on a beach in Mexico. They have three biological children together: sons Henry Gunther Adeola Dashtu Samuel (born September 15, 2005)[37] and Johan Riley Fyodor Taiwo Samuel (born November 22, 2006),[38] and daughter Lou Sulola Samuel (born October 9, 2009).[39] In December 2009, Seal officially adopted Leni, and her last name was changed to Samuel.[40]

Klum and Seal renew their vows to one another each year on their anniversary.[41] Klum states:

"It's our time – a lovely family time. It's about remembering this moment of love we gave to each other and reinforcing it. It's so special to us, something we love and something our children have gotten accustomed to. It's like, 'Hey, Mom and Dad love each other and they get married every year!' "

On hearing her family referred to as a "patchwork family" in a German newspaper, Klum said, "I was, like, Hmm, is this an insult or is this positive? I talked to Seal about it, and we’re, like, it’s actually kind of great—we’re all different shades and we came together and we all love each other. They may call it black and white, but I’m not white, I’m a shade of brown and so is our daughter, Leni. She’s the lightest, then it’s me, then it’s our son, and then it’s Seal. So I think, Hey, it’s actually kind of nice to have a 'patchwork family.'"[42]

In 2008, Klum became a naturalized American citizen officially taking the oath to become an American citizen in order to cast her vote for then presidential candidate Barack Obama.[5]

On November 21, 2009, she officially adopted the surname of her husband, Seal, and is now legally known as Heidi Samuel. However, she has not yet officially announced whether she will use that name professionally or will continue using "Klum" as her stage name.[2] As of January 2010, her official web site, heidiklum.com, still uses "Klum" as her professional name.

Filmography

Year Film Role
1998 54 VIP Patron
2001 Blow Dry Jasmine
2003 Blue Collar Comedy Tour Victoria's Secret Sales Girl
2004 Ella Enchanted Brumhilda
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers Ursula Andress
2006 The Devil Wears Prada Herself
2007 Perfect Stranger Victoria's Secret Party Host

Heidi Klum appeared in episodes of TV shows like Malcolm in the Middle (as a toothless hockey player) and Cursed. She has also guest-starred as herself in I Get That a Lot, Spin City, Sex and the City, CSI: Miami, How I Met Your Mother, Yes, Dear, Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives. Further, the character of Katya Nadanova in the video game James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing is modeled after her and features her voice.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 [1]
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Heidi Klum Officially Takes Seal's Last Name". People magazine. 2009-11-20. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20321791,00.html. Retrieved 2009-11-22. "A rep for Klum did not comment when asked if [she] intends to be known professionally as Heidi Samuel from now on." 
  3. ↑ "Heidi Klum". heidiklum.com. http://www.heidiklum.com/en/Formerly.aspx. Retrieved 2007-08-28. "1. June 1973: My birthday in Bergisch Gladbach, Germany. Bundesepublik Deutschland" 
  4. ↑ As of January 2010, her official site http://www.heidiklum.com still uses "Klum" as her professional name
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Heidi Klum Becomes a Citizen". The Daily Mail. 2008-11-05. http://celebrity-babies.com/2009/03/09/heidi-klum-becomes-a-citizen-for-her-children/. Retrieved 2008-11-05. 
  6. ↑ "Heidi Klum". heidiklum.com. http://www.heidiklum.com/en/Formerly.aspx. Retrieved 2007-09-25. "Winter" 
  7. ↑ "Heidi Klum". heidiklum.com. http://www.heidiklum.com/en/April_92.aspx. Retrieved 2007-09-25. "More about "Model 92": More than 25,000 girls had sent their measurements, details and photos to the model contest. 45 of us were selected and presented on the show Gottschalk (RTL) by Germany's most famous TV host, Thomas Gottschalk. The audience chose me as the 'winner of the week' on April 15, 1992. One week later, I became the 'winner of the month.' The final competition took place on April 29. At that final stage, the judging panel was composed of fashion experts and celebrities, and their votes let me win the contest! My reward was a modeling contract, running over three years and guaranteeing a minimum sum of $300,000 dollars." 
  8. ↑ "Heidi Klum". heidiklum.com. http://www.heidiklum.com/en/Formerly.aspx. Retrieved 2007-09-25. "Summer 1992 I stopped studying to be a fashion designer and instead, decide to pursue a career as a model" 
  9. ↑ "Amerikas Superstar "50 Cent" bei Saadi Gaddafi". http://www.michaelgraeter.de/Amerikas_Superstar_50_Cent_bei_Saadi_Gaddafi_640.html. Retrieved 2008-01-17. 
  10. ↑ "Heidi Klum is the new face of Jordache". Yahoo! News. 2007-05-19. http://in.news.yahoo.com/070519/139/6fzul.html. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  11. ↑ Kiri Blakely (2007-07-16). "The World's Top-Earning Models". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/media/2007/07/19/models-media-bundchen-biz-media-cz_kb_0716topmodels.html. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  12. ↑ Kiri Blakely (2008-04-30). "The World's Top-Earning Models". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/media/2008/04/30/models-bundchen-klum-biz-media-cz_kb_0430topmodels.html. Retrieved 2008-05-02. 
  13. ↑ "Heidi Klum Celebrates Emmy Nom". US Weekly. 2007-07-19. http://www.usmagazine.com/heidi_klum_1. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Stelter, Brian (2008-07-17). "Emmy Nominations: They Give Awards to Reality Shows? (Just Kidding, ‘The Amazing Race’ Is Outstanding)". The New York Times. http://tvdecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/emmy-nominations-they-give-awards-to-reality-shows/. Retrieved 2010-05-04. 
  15. ↑ "Report, Rock, Runway Get Peabody'd". Yahoo! News. 2008-04-02. http://news.yahoo.com/s/eonline/20080402/en_tv_eo/68f33aa3_e8f74be0_9cc3_4cc929da3dcb. Retrieved 2008-04-04. 
  16. ↑ Klum, Heidi; Postman, Alexandra (2004). Heidi Klum's Body of Knowledge. Crown Publishers. ISBN 1-40000-5028-6. 
  17. ↑ "Luck Was a Lady Last Night: The Heidi Klum Jewelry Collection a Run-way Hit on QVC". backchannelmedia.com. 2006-09-18. http://www.backchannelmedia.com/newsletter/articles/4442/Luck-Was-a-Lady-Last-Night-The-Heidi-Klum-Jewelry-Collection-a-Run-way-Hit-on-QVC. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  18. ↑ "Heidi Klum Launches Her Jordache Line". The Daily Stab. 2008-05-01. http://www.dailystab.com/heidi-klum-launches-her-jordache-line. Retrieved 2008-05-02. 
  19. ↑ "Heidi Klum Wants To Make You Sexy". http://style.hollyscoop.com/heidi-klum/heidi-klum-wants-to-make-you-sexy_976.aspx. Retrieved 2008-10-30. 
  20. ↑ "Heidi Klum Rose". http://www.heidi-klum-rose.de/. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  21. ↑ Plant: Heidi Klum Rose
  22. ↑ "Heidi Klum and her dog Shila". celebritydogwatcher.com. 2007-03-30. http://celebritydogwatcher.com/?p=1749. 
  23. ↑ "Ich habe einen Traum". Die Zeit. http://www.zeit.de/2004/49/Traum_2fKlum_49. Retrieved 2007-10-03. 
  24. ↑ IGN Staff (2004-03-12). "Interview with Heidi Klum". IGN. http://cube.ign.com/articles/498/498688p1.html. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  25. ↑ http://www.heidiklum.com/en/News.aspx
  26. ↑ "Playboy Birthday: Aubrey O'day Swings Back To Boys And Bares Her Naked Body". Fox News. 2009-02-18. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,493565,00.html. 
  27. ↑ HEIDI KLUM - KLUM: 'I FELT INTIMIDATED SINGING WITH SEAL'
  28. ↑ Supermodel Heidi Klum sues unemployed butcher after he used her image on flyer for local dance
  29. ↑ Original Focus Online article on the butcher copyright lawsuit (in German)
  30. ↑ BarbieCollector.com | News |Featured Doll | Barbie as Heidi Klum Strikes a Pose
  31. ↑ "Heidi Klum and Seal to show Love's Divine with New Reality Series". TVGuide.com. http://www.tvguide.com/News/Klum-Seal-Lifetime-1019252.aspx. 
  32. ↑ Celeb Watch: Jeffrey Tambor's on course
  33. ↑ Guy Adams (2007-05-20). "Heidi Klum: A supermodel with a sense of humour". London: The Independent. http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article2549876.ece. Retrieved 2007-12-04. 
  34. ↑ Klum, Dixie Chick Welcome 3 Baby Girls
  35. ↑ William Keck (2007-12-03). "Celeb Watch: Heidi Klum relishes her model family life". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/celebwatch/2007-12-09-heidi-klum_N.htm. Retrieved 2007-12-04. 
  36. ↑ Heidi Klum: Seal and I Have Not Married
  37. ↑ "Klum Names Son After Her Dad and Seal". People magazine. 2005-09-14. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1103758,00.html?cid=redirect-articles/. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  38. ↑ Stephen M. Silverman (2006-11-23). "Heidi Klum and Seal Have a Boy". People magazine. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,26334,1542119,00.html. Retrieved 2007-08-25. 
  39. ↑ "Heidi Klum and Seal welcome daughter Lou Sulola Samuel". celebrity-babies.com. http://celebrity-babies.com/2009/10/12/heidi-klum-and-seal-welcome-daughter-lou/. Retrieved 2009-10-12. 
  40. ↑ http://celebrity-babies.com/2009/12/14/seal-opens-up-about-decision-to-adopt-leni/
  41. ↑ Heidi Klum and Seal Renew Their Wedding Vows
  42. ↑ "Heidi Klum Life.com". http://www.life.com/Life/article/0,26385,1224195,00.html. 

External links