Anna Nicole Smith was definitely one of the most controversial and talked about celebrities of the 90s.
She rose to fame after posing for Playboy magazine, even earning the title Playmate of the Year in 1993. After that, she modeled for fashion brands such as Guess, H&M, Heatherette, and Lane Bryant.
Unfortunately, as we’ve seen so many times, her fame and fortune ultimately became her downfall. But her memory lives on through her only daughter, Dannielynn.Anna Nicole’s road to fame
Anna originally dropped out of high school as a teen and found love in 16-year-old Billy Smith, himself a fellow drop-out. They soon married and became parents to a baby boy, Daniel, who was born when Anna was just 18.
Unfortunately, the marriage with Billy didn’t last very long, and Anna Nicole became a single mother, earning a salary as a dancer in a bar. But it was this job that would skyrocket her to stardom, after she eventually caught the attention of Playboy Magazine.
Anna Nicole became one of the biggest names in the modeling industry after several shoots for the men’s magazine. She was signed by William Morris, one of the most renowned talent agencies in the United States. Modeling jobs poured in thereafter, and Anna Nicole appeared in advertising campaigns all over the world.
Her high-profile relationship with petroleum tycoon J. Howard Marshall was the beginning of her downfall. The 63-year-old age difference between Anna and her elderly husband raised many eyebrows – a lot of people believed that Anna was only interested in Marshall because of his fortune.
The couple married in 1994, but just six months after the ceremony, Marshall became ill. He died in 1995 at the age of 90. The loss took a heavy toll on Anna.
”After my husband passed, it was really, really hard on me,” Smith told 20/20 in 2000.
”He knew me when I was nobody and that’s what people don’t understand, and I don’t wanna be called a gold digger because I’m not. I could’ve married him a week after we met, or two weeks after we met. I could’ve married him years before, and I didn’t. I didn’t. I went out and I made something of myself.”
In the following years, Anna spent a lot of her time in the courtroom. She fought with Marshall’s family over her husband’s will. The case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2006.
Welcoming Dannielynn
Most devastatingly, Anna Nicole died of an overdose in 2007, not long after her son Daniel had also succumbed to one. Her baby daughter, Dannielynn, was only a few months old at the time.
that she had both given birth to her daughter Dannielynn, and lost her son Daniel to an overdose. Dannielynn was born in New Providence, the Bahamas and Anna announced her pregnancy in a video on her website.
Dannielynn has been raised by her dad, Larry Birkhead, ever since, and they lead a relatively quiet life. To celebrate his daughter’s 17th birthday recently, Larry shared an Instagram reel featuring Dannielynn over the years, including a couple of pictures of her as an infant with Anna Nicole.
“Happy 17th Birthday Dannielynn! I am so proud of you in each and every way. Wishing you the best day ever! You are funny, crazy smart, pretty and just about everything I could ever imagine,” he wrote in his caption.
“Your Mom would be so proud of you, I sure am. Happy Birthday!” he added.
Even though Dannielynn was only a few months old when Anna Nicole died, Larry says that the similarities don’t end at their faces. “She can spend my money like her mom. And she loves to do that,” he told the Daily Mail earlier this year.
Larry also told People that Dannielynn is “generous like her mom,” adding, “And at the same time, she’s a picky eater like her mom. Oh, my gosh!”
He’s even posted some rate selfies of him and Dannielynn together, and fans can’t help but comment on how much the young teen looks like her mom – especially one of his more recent ones, where fans couldn’t believe the striking resemblance.
Dannielynn certainly looks like her famous mother, and I really think Anna Nicole would be so proud of her daughter today. I’m glad she has a loving father who is raising her to be a lovely young woman.
If you liked reading this, you may be interested in learning more about Anna Nicole here.