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Hailing from a humble family background, Anna Nicole Smith, originally named Vickie Lynn Hogan, started out as an employee at a fried chicken joint and later, as a dancer at a strip club in Houston, Texas. She became a teenage mother and only achieved fame after meeting J. Howard Marshall, an oil magnate who then helped her financially in launching her modelling career.
Smith modelled for Guess, H&M, and made it to the cover of Playboy in 1992 and the following years, was named 'Playmate of the Year.' The model then went on to lead a tragically happening life, involving a few lawsuits, the birth of her daughter, and the loss of her son Daniel from an accidental drug overdose in 2006. A year later, she mysteriously died at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.
Netflix recently dropped a documentary titled Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me, chronicling the tragic and over-the-top life and death of the former Playboy Playmate. The official synopsis of the documentary, which premiered earlier today, reads as:
"From director Ursula Macfarlane and producer Alexandra Lacey comes an unflinching and humanizing examination of the life, death and secrets of Vickie Lynn Hogan - better known as model and actress Anna Nicole Smith."
It adds:
"From her first appearance in Playboy in 1992, Anna Nicole’s dizzying ascent was the very essence of the American dream, brought to a tragic halt with her untimely passing in 2007."
It further states:
"With access to never-before-seen footage, home movies and interviews with key figures who have not spoken out until now, this film reveals new insights into the story of the quintessential blonde bombshell hardly anyone really knew."
Anna Nicole Smith's humble life in Texas from restaurant jobs to becoming a teen mother and a stripper at a club
Anna Nicole Smith, born Vickie Lynn Hogan in 1967 in Houston, had humble beginnings in Texas. She worked in several low-paying jobs before eventually rising to fame, including stints in Walmart, Red Lobster, and a fried chicken restaurant called Jim's Krispy Fried Chicken, where at the age of 17, she met her first husband Billy Smith, 16. The two had a son, Daniel, but later separated.
Smith then started working as a dancer at a local strip club before meeting J. Howard Marshall, an oil tycoon. The latter instantly fell in love with her and supported her financially in launching a modelling career. In 1992, the model featured on cover of Playboy magazine. The next year, she was named Playmate of the Year, modeled for Guess and H&M, and acted in Naked Gun 33 & A Third.
When her career was at its peak in 1994, 26-year-old Smith married J. Howard Marshall, who was 89 years old at the time and died only 13 months after their marriage. Since the latter failed to name her in his will, the model got embroiled in a protracted legal battle with his family, especially his son E. Pierce Marshall, for her share of her dead husband's multimillion-dollar-estate.
Anna Nicole Smith continued a fashionable yet troubled life and remained in the public eye, making guest appearances on awards shows and endorsing a diet product before diving headfirst into reality TV with E! Television Network's The Anna Nicole Show, which offered insight into her daily life, but was considered controversial as she seemed intoxicated during filming, often slurring her words.
Anna Nicole Smith's tragical few years involving the death of her son shortly after she birthed her daughter
Anna Nicole Smith then started dating a photographer named Larry Birkhead and lived with her son Daniel and assistant/attorney/publicist/manager Howard K. Stern when Birkhead moved into the home with them. Soon after, she became pregnant with her second child and ended her relationship with Birkhead before moving to the Bahamas with Stern where she gave birth to a daughter in September 2006.
Sadly, it was then that she lost her son from an accidental drug overdose in a hospital room two days after she gave birth to her daughter Dannielynn Stern. This was followed by another legal battle after her ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead claimed that Dannielynn was his daughter, although the late icon insisted Stern was the father. DNA confirmed that Birkhead was indeed the father of her daughter.
Tragedy followed Anna Nicole Smith in early 2007 when she fell gravely ill while travelling to Hollywood, Florida. It started with a backside ache, seemingly from the injections for vitamin B12 and human growth hormone which she got before leaving. By the time Smith reached Florida, she had a high fever apparently from the pus-filled infection on her buttocks caused by the "longevity drug" injections.
Within a few days, while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, she suffered from severe health issues, including stomach flu and pungent sweating, but refused to go to the hospital likely because she feared making another "big headline." She chose to self-medicate with at least nine different prescription drugs and died as a result of "combined drug intoxication," as per The US Sun.
Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me is now available to watch on Netflix.
