Amanda Lepore
Amanda Lepore appearing in an August 2008 photoshoot for Playboy magazine.
Born	Cedar Grove, New Jersey
Ethnicity	Italian American, German American
Occupation	Nightlife Icon, Model, Recording Artist, Entertainer
Years active	1990- present
Height	5 ft 2 in (1.57 m)
Hair color	Platinum Blonde
Eye color	Brown
Measurements	39-23-37

Amanda Lepore is an American model, nightlife and fashion icon, performance artist, recording artist and transgender public figure. She has appeared in advertising for numerous companies, including M.A.C. Cosmetics, Mego Jeans, The Blonds, Swatch, CAMP Cosmetics, and Heatherette, which has used her likeness on clothing as well as hiring her as a model. Lepore is also noted as a regular subject in photographer David LaChapelle's work, serving as his muse, as well as many other photographers including Marco Ovando and Terry Richardson. She participated in his Artists and Prostitutes 1985-2005 exhibit in New York, where she "lived" in a voyeuristic life-sized set.^[1][2] Amanda Lepore has also released several singles, many written by and/or recorded with Cazwell. In 2011 she released her full-length debut album "I...Amanda Lepore" on Peace Bisquit.

Early life[link]

Amanda Lepore

Lepore was born Armand^[3], growing up in the Essex County community of Cedar Grove, New Jersey.^[4][5] Lepore told a reporter "from day one she knew she was a girl," and in her early teens she began making costumes for a transgender go-go dancer in exchange for hormones.^[3] Already isolated from her peers, her parents soon withdrew her from public school and hired a private tutor, then took her to a psychologist who helped her obtain a hormone prescription to properly transition.^[6] At the age of 17, and through a legal loophole, Lepore both married the son of a wealthy business owner and was granted sex reassignment surgery.^[6] After several years as a suburban housewife and seeking new independence, Lepore relocated to New York City in 1989. In the early 1990s, as she established her career as a nightlife figure, Lepore spent her days working in a nail salon, as a dominatrix^[6], and later as a cosmetics salesgirl for Patricia Field. After meeting David LaChapelle one evening while hosting at Bowery Bar, she began collaborating with him and ultimately achieved international acclaim as his muse.^[6]

Modeling and acting[link]

Lepore has appeared in fashion magazines, including French Playboy, Ponytail, DAMn and TUSH. She is on the cover of Lords of Acid's 1999 album Expand Your Head and on Thighpaulsandra' 2006 album The Lepore Extrusion.

Lepore had a cameo in the 1998 documentary Party Monster: The Shockumentary and the 2003 film Party Monster. She can also be seen briefly in the 2001 fashion spoof comedy Zoolander and was featured in Another Gay Sequel in 2008 and the 2004 documentary Dig!. Lepore has also had cameos in music videos for artists including Elton John, Thalía, The Dandy Warhols, Girl in a Coma,^[7] Grace Jones, Keanan Duffty, TIGA for his cover of "Sunglasses at Night," and the video for "Days" by the alt rock band The Drums.^[8] Lepore appears in many of Cazwell's music videos, including "Watch my Mouth"^[9] and "All Over Your Face".^[10]

She was Chief of Parade at the 2010 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.^[3]

Music[link]

Her first single, "Deeper," is a 2003 trance dance song written by Wigstock drag queen Lady Bunny.^[11]

In 2005 Lepore released her first album, Introducing... Amanda Lepore, which contains "Champagne" and "My Hair Looks Fierce". In 2007 she released two remix albums, Fierce Pussy and My Pussy E.P. Lepore also sings the main title for Another Gay Movie, "I Know What Boys Like". She also performs "Cotton Candy", from the soundtrack of Another Gay Sequel.^[12]

Lepore was a part of True Colors Tour 2007, a 15-city North American benefit tour sponsored by the Logo channel, hosted by comedian Margaret Cho and headlined by Cyndi Lauper.^[13] The tour benefited the Human Rights Campaign, PFLAG and the Matthew Shepard Foundation, and it included Erasure, Debbie Harry, The Gossip, Rufus Wainwright, The Dresden Dolls, The MisShapes, Rosie O'Donnell, Indigo Girls, The Cliks and other special guests. In 2009, Lepore performed at the Majestic Theatre during Metro Pride Fest in Detroit with The Divas of the Majestic: A Divine Lites Productions and Founder, Electra Lites.^[14] In June of 2011 she debuted her album "I...Amanda Lepore" at the Highline Ballroom with Cazwell, Kat Deluna, Neon Hitch, Ana Matronic, Jonté^{[disambiguation needed ]} and many others.

Her debut full-length album I...Amanda Lepore was released in 2011 on Peace Bisquit.^[15]

Merchandise[link]

In October 1999 Swatch released "Time Tranny", a watch designed by LaChapelle with Lepore on the face displaying a printed crack on the glass and marble stripes as the background. A second version displays no cracked glass and a blue and yellow striped background.^[16] In April 2006, Integrity Toys launched an Amanda Lepore doll produced by Jason Wu as a benefit for AIDS charities.^[17] Lepore has a line of cosmetics in partnership with CAMP Cosmetics called "Collection Lepore", as well as a signature perfume.^[18]

Discography[link]

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

Music videos

2011 - Turn Me Over

2010 - Get Into It Cazwell feat Amanda Lepore

2011 - Doin It My Way

References[link]

External links[link]

• Amanda Lepore at the Internet Movie Database
• Amanda Lepore's Official Myspace
• Amanda Lepore Interview

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2012)

David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle
Born	(1963-03-11) March 11, 1963 (age 49) Fairfield, Connecticut United States
Occupation	advertising fine art photography

David LaChapelle (born March 11, 1963 in Fairfield, Connecticut) is an artist and photographer known for combining a hyper-realistic aesthetic with social messages.

Early life[link]

LaChapelle’s photography career began in the 1980s when he began showing his artwork in New York City galleries. His work caught the eye of Andy Warhol, who offered him his first job as a photographer at Interview Magazine. His photographs of celebrities in Interview garnered positive attention, and before long he was shooting for a variety of top editorial publications and creating some of the most memorable advertising campaigns of his generation.

Career[link]

LaChapelle’s striking images have graced the covers and pages of Italian Vogue, French Vogue, Vanity Fair, GQ, Rolling Stone and i-D, and he has photographed personalities as diverse as Tupac Shakur, Madonna, Shakira, Amanda Lepore, Eminem, Philip Johnson, Lance Armstrong, Pamela Anderson, Lil’ Kim, Uma Thurman, Elizabeth Taylor, David Beckham, Paris Hilton, Jeff Koons, Leonardo DiCaprio, Hillary Clinton, Muhammad Ali, and Britney Spears, to name a few.

After establishing himself as a fixture in contemporary photography, LaChapelle decided to branch out and direct music videos, live theatrical events, and documentary films. His directing credits include music videos for artists such as Christina Aguilera, Moby, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, The Vines, No Doubt and Florence and the Machine. His stage work includes Elton John’s The Red Piano and the Caesar’s Palace spectacular he designed and directed in 2004. His burgeoning interest in film led him to make the short documentary Krumped, an award-winner at Sundance from which he developed RIZE, the feature film acquired for worldwide distribution by Lion’s Gate Films. The film was released in the US and internationally in the Summer of 2005 to huge critical acclaim, and was chosen to open the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City.

Return to Fine Art[link]

In 2006, LaChapelle decided to minimize his participation in commercial photography, and return to his roots by focusing on fine art photography. Since then, he has been the subject of exhibitions in both commercial galleries and leading public institutions around the world. He has had record breaking solo museum exhibitions at the Barbican Museum, London (2002), Palazzo Reale, Milan (2007), Museo del Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso, Mexico City (2009), the Musee de La Monnaie, Paris (2009), the Museum of Contemporary Art in Taipei, Taiwan and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Israel. In 2011, he has had a major exhibition of new work at The Lever House, New York and retrospectives at the Museo Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico (through March 2012), the Hangaram Design Museum in Seoul (through February 2012) and Galerie Rudolfinum, Prague (through February 2012).

The galleries he has exhibited in include Tony Shafrazi and Paul Kasmin galleries in New York, Robilant + Voena in London, Alain Noirhomme Gallery in Brussels, Galerie Thomas, Munich and de Sarthe, Hong Kong. In 2012, LaChapelle is breaking new ground in his own career by showing an exhibition titled Earth Laughs in Flowers at four different international galleries simultaneously: Reformierte Dorfkirche in St. Moritz, branches of Robilant + Voena in London and Milan, and Fred Torres Collaborations in New York.

David LaChapelle continues to be inspired by everything from art history and street culture, to the Hawaiian jungle in which he lives, projecting an image of twenty-first century pop culture through his work that is both loving and critical. He is possibly the only photographic artist working today who has transitioned from the world of fashion and celebrity photography to fine art photography.

Exhibitions[link]

Upcoming Exhibitions

2012

   Stockholm Sweden | Fotografiska Museet | November 2012- March 2013
   Frankfurt, Germany | Museum für Moderne Kunst Frankfurt | "Making History" | April 19 -July 8

Solo Museum + Public Exhibitions

2012

   New York | American Friends of the Tel Aviv Museum | "Artist of the Year"

2011

   Prague | Galerie Rudolfinum | "Thus Spoke LaChapelle"|December 7, 2011 – February 26, 2012
   Seoul, Korea | Hangaram Design Museum - Seoul Art Center | “David LaChapelle” | November 22- February 26, 2012
   Puerto Rico | Museo de Arte Contemporaño de Puerto Rico| "David LaChapelle" | October 23– March 25, 2012
   Bratislava, Slovak Republic | Bratislava City Gallery | "David LaChapelle"| September 27 - October 31
   New York | Lever House | "From Darkness to Light" |June 2 - September 2
   Shanghai | Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art |April 16 - May 7
   Hanover, Germany | Kestner-Gesellschaft | "David LaChapelle: Earth Laughs in Flowers" | February 25 - May 8

2010

   Tel Aviv, Israel | The Tel Aviv Museum of Art | “Post Modern Pop Photography” | July 23 - November 20
   Toronto | Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art | Mocca Courtyard "The Rape of Africa" | May 1 – 31
   Taipei | MOCA Taipei | "David LaChapelle" | April 9 - May 31

2009

   Guadalajara, Mexico | Museo De Las Artes | "Delirium of Reason" | September 4 - November 15
   Paris | Musee de la Monnaie de Paris | "Retrospective" |February 6 - May 31
   Mexico City | Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso | "Delirium of Reason" | February 4 - June 28

2008

   New York | Phillips de Pury | "David LaChapelle" | October 18
   Florence | Forte Belvedere | "David LaChapelle" | July 15 - October 19
   Kraków, Poland | National Museum | "David LaChapelle" | May 29 - October 30
   Stockholm, Sweden | Fotografiska Museet | "David LaChapelle" | April 10 - May 11
   San Paulo, Brazil | MUBE Museum | "Heaven to Hell / Bellezas y Desastres" | January 23 - February 5

2007

   Milan | Palazzo Reale | "David LaChapelle" | September 24- January 6, 2008
   Buenos Aires, Argentina | MALBA Museum | "Heaven to Hell / Bellezas y Desastres" | March 30 - May 21

2006

   Naples, Italy | Capodimonte Museum | "VIP: Very Important Portraits" | March 24 - June 31
   Berlin, Germany | Helmut Newton Foundation | "Men & War"| November 31, 2006 - January 23, 2007

2005

   Palermo, Italy | KALS'ART | "David LaChapelle" |July 1- September 15

2003

   New York | Rockefeller Center (Montblanc International) | "All American" | October 30- January 30, 2004

2002

   London | Barbican Museum | "David LaChapelle" |October 10 - December 23
   Vienna | Kunsthaus Wien | "LACHAPELLE" | June 6 - September 22

2000

   San Paulo | Museo de Arte Brazileira | "Femmes Plus Que Femmes" | May 4 - June 4

1999

   Paris | Galleries LaFayette | "20th Festival de la Mode" |October 5- January 5, 2000
   Rome | Palazzo delle Esposizioni | "Hotel LaChapelle" |March 19- May 24
   New York | School of Visual Arts | "The Beautiful & Bizarre" |March 2- June 2

1998

   Lisbon, Portugal | Palacio Pombal | "David LaChapelle" |September 17 - December 11
   Aries, France | Les Recontres D'Arles | "LaChapelle Land" |July 5- August 16

1989

   Santa Fe, New Mexico | Santa Fe Center for Photography | "David LaChapelle" | February 18- May 18
   New York | Mars | "Life Never Dies" (Slide Exhibition) |February 11- May 11

1986

   New York | Palladium | "Taking Pictures is Fun" |September 11- December 11

Solo Gallery Exhibitions

2012

   New York | Fred Torres Collaborations | “Earth Laughs in Flowers” | February 23 – March 24
   Milan | Robilant + Voena | “Earth Laughs in Flowers” |February 16 – March 24
   London | Robilant + Voena | “Earth Laughs in Flowers” |February 14 – March 24
   St. Moritz | Reformiere Dorfkirche | “Earth Laughs in Flowers” | February 11 - February 26
   Geneva | Patricia Low Contemporary | March 15- April 29

2011

   Los Angeles | Prism Gallery | "David LaChapelle: Negative Currency and Recollections in America"| September 27 – November 5
   Knokke, Belgium | Serge Maruani & Alain Noirhomme Gallery | "David LaChapelle: Earth Laughs in Flowers"| August 5- September 12
   Salzburg, Austria | Museum Der Moderne Salzburg | “Role Models and Role Playing” | July 23 - October 30
   Hong Kong | De Sarthe Fine Art | “The Raft” | May 25 – July 2
   New York | Michelman Fine Art | “David LaChapelle Early Work” |May 2 – June 15

2010

   Tenerife, Spain | Galería Leyendecker | "David LaChapelle"| December 17- February 26, 2011
   Istanbul, Turkey | Paul Kasmin Gallery | "David LaChapelle: Documents of Desire & Disasters" | December 9- January 29, 2011
   New York | Paul Kasmin Gallery | "American Jesus" |July 7 – September 18
   London | Robilant + Voena | "The Rape of Africa" |April 26 - May 25
   Brussels, Belgium | Alain Noirhomme Gallery | "Eden" |April 20 - May 20

2009

   Miami | Wolfgang Roth + Partners | "Cars And Money" | December 2- March 12, 2010
   Dublin, Ireland | Sebastien Guinness Gallery | "American Jesus" | September 18 - October 31
   Los Angeles | David DeSanctis Gallery | "The Rape of Africa"| September 12 - October 31
   Amsterdam | Galerie Alex Daniels | "The Rape of Africa" |June 6 - July 31

2008

   Miami | Wolfgang Roth + Partners | "Jesus is My Homeboy" | December 2, 2008 - January 10, 2009
   London | Robilant + Voena | "Jesus is My Homeboy" |October 31 - November 7
   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "Auguries of Innocence"| September 12 - October 24
   St. Moritz | St. Moritz Art Masters | "Jesus is my Homeboy" | August 29 - September 5
   Maastricht, The Netherlands | TEFAF (Rafael Jablonka) | "Jesus is My Homeboy" | March 4 - March 14

2007

   Tenerife, Spain | Galería Leyendecker | "Awakened"|November 9 - December 9
   London | Frieze (Rafael Jablonka) | "Awakened" |October 11- October 14
   Monaco | La Galerie Delphine Pastor | "David LaChapelle" |May 11 - July 29
   Dallas | Goss Gallery | "Awakened" | March 20 - April 11
   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "Awakened" |February 24 - April 28

2006

   Berlin, Germany | Jablonka Galerie | "Heaven to Hell"| November 30, 2006 - February 17, 2007
   Paris | La Galerie Du XX ( w/ Maruani Noirhomme) | "David LaChapelle" | October 26 - November 18

2005

   New York| Staley Wise Gallery | " David LaChapelle Pictures for Italian Vogue"| December 9, 2005-January 28, 2006
   Dallas | Goss Gallery | "Grand Opening : David LaChapelle"|May 20-August 12
   Amsterdam | Galerie Alex Daniels | "David LaChapelle" |May 7 - June 16
   Knokke, Belgium | Maruani Noirhomme Gallery | "David LaChapelle" |March 26 - May 15
   New York | Deitch Projects | "Artists Prostitutes"|March 12 - April 16

2004

   Freyung, Vienna | Palais Kinsky - Rudolf Budja Galerie | "Portraits of Musicians" |November 4 - December 1

2003

   Moscow | Moscow Photo Festival (James Gallery) |"David LaChapelle"| April 9 - May 12

2002

   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "All American"|July 16 - September 21

2001

   Milan | Galleria Carla Sozzani | "David LaChapelle"|September 27 - November 23 
   Berlin, Germany | Camerawork Gallery | "Fish Stick"|September 7 - November 23
   Bologna, Italy | Photology (Villa Impero) | "David LaChapelle"|March 4 - July 28
   Aspen | Baldwin Gallery | "David LaChapelle"|December 29, 2000 - February 29, 2001

2000

   Los Angeles | Fahey Klein Gallery | "David LaChapelle" |May 25 - June 8

1999

   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "David LaChapelle"|June 4 - September 15

1997

   Tokyo | Parco Gallery | "LaChapelle Land" |March 30 - April 15
   Milan | Photology | "LaChapelle Land" | March 6 - August 30

1996

   New York | Staley Wise Gallery | "LaChapelle Land"|November 8 - November 30

1995

   New York | Trabia MacAfee | "Javier Cibachromes"|April 11 - May 12

1991

   New York | Tomoko Ligouri Gallery | "Facility of Movement"| November 9 - December 21

1989

   New York | Trabia MacAfee Gallery | "Mirrors of God + the Intervention of St. Lucy" | May 25 - June 18
   New York | Trabia MacAfee Gallery | "Somewhere Better"|January 7 - January 28

1988

   New York | 56 Bleecker Gallery | "Your Needs Met" |May 25 - June 25

1984

   New York | 303 Gallery (Lisa Spellman/ Colin Deland) | "Angels, Saints, & Martyrs" | October 11 - November 8
   New York | 303 Gallery (Lisa Spellman/ Colin Deland) | "Good News for Modern Man" | March 29 - April 30

Group Museum + Public Exhibitions

2011

   Florida | Norton Museum of Art | "Cocktail Culture"|December 15– March 11, 2012
   Turin, Italy | Venaria Reale | “Leonardo. Il Genio, il Mito” |November 18- January 29, 2012
   Montreal (Quebec) | The Montreal Museum Of Fine Art | "The Fashion World Of Jean Paul Gaultier : From the Street to the Stars”|
   June 13 – October 2
   Los Angeles | Annenberg Space For Photography | “Beauty Culture” | May 28 - November 27
   New London, CT | Lyman Allyn Museum | "Face Off: Contemporary Portraits by Contemporary Artists" (Curated by Barbara Zabel) |
   April 9-September 18
   Israel | Herzliya Museum Of Contemporary Art| “Body Gestures |February 12- May 28

2010

   Toronto | Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art | " Pervasive Influence :The Mechanical Bride" | May 1 - June 6
   New Britain | Central Connecticut State University|"David LAChapelle"| March 18 - April 22
   Barcelona | CCB | “Atopia, Arte Y Ciudad en el Siglo XXI" |February 25 - May 24
   Busan, Korea | Gana Art Busan | “Real Interface” |July 30 - September 22

2009

   New York | Brooklyn Museum | "Who Shot Rock & Roll"|October 20, 2009 - January 31, 2010
   Milan | Galleria d'Arte Moderna | "Rape of Africa" |November 11- December 6
   London | Frieze Art Fair | October 15- October 22
   New York | Brooklyn Museum | "Who Shot Rock & Roll" |October 20- January 31, 2010 | Traveling Show

2008

   Los Angeles | LACMA | "Vanity Fair Portraits"|October 26- March 1, 2009
   London | National Portrait Gallery | "Vanity Fair Portraits"|February 14 - May 18

2006

   Berlin, Germany | Helmut Newton Foundation | "Men, War, & Peace"| December 2- May 30, 2007

2000

   Bologna, Italy | Villa Impero| "Il Secolo Della Fotoarte"|January 30 - April 29

1989

   New York | The Lesbian + Gay Center | "The Center Show"|June 1 - December 1

1988

   New York | Grand Central Station | "Grand Windows" | December 13

Group Gallery Exhibitions

2012

   St. Moritz | Patricia Low Contemporary | Group Show |February 10 - March 31

2011

   Los Angeles | NYE+BROWN | "The Lords and the New Creatures"| September 10 - October 31
   Rochester | Oakland University Art Gallery | “Boarders and Frontiers: Globalization, Temporality & Appropriation in the           
   Contemporary Image”| March 5 - April 10

2010

   Munich, Germany | Galerie Thomas | "Popular : Brands Symbols Icons 1960-2010" | November 26- February 19, 2011
   London | Frieze Art Fair | October 14- October 17
   Tel Aviv | Tavi Art Gallery | "Restart" | October 7 - November 4
   New York | Sotheby's Gallery | "Divine Comedy" (Curated by Lisa Dennison) | September 29 - October 19
   Busan, Korea | Gana Art |"Real Interface" | July 30- August 22
   New York | Armand Bartos Fine Art | "Knock Knock: That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" | February 24 – April 24
   Los Angeles | Photo LA Presented by LACMA | "David LaChapelle"|January 14–17

2009

   Geneva, Switzerland | Patricia Low Contemporary | "Pop My Cherry"| September 17 - November 11
   New York | Paul Kasmin Gallery | "Naked!"| July 9 - September 19

2008

   Berlin, Germany | Jablonka Galerie | "REVERB" |November 14, 2008 - January 31, 2009
   New York | Jose Martos Gallery | "Love Love Love" |November 6 - December 6

2006

   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "The Other Side #2" November 11- February 3, 2007

2005

   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "Magritte, Williams, LaChapelle" | January 15- April 2

1989

   New York | Tony Shafrazi Gallery | "Don't Bungle The Jungle" |June 3 - June 30

Public Collections[link]

2012

   Israel | Tel Aviv Museum of Art

2011

   London | National Portrait Gallery

2009

   Stuttgart | Daimler Art Collection

2009

   Paris | La Monnaie de Paris

2007

   Paris | LVMH Foundation

2006

   Munich | Brandhorst Foundation

2005

   Belgium | Serge Delsemme Foundation

Motion pictures[link]

• Krumped (2004)
• Rize (2005)

Selected books[link]

• LaChapelle Land (New York: Simon & Schuster, in association with Callaway, 1996) - ISBN 0-684-83302-6
• Hotel LaChapelle (Boston: Little, Brown, 1999) - ISBN 0-8212-2636-3
• David LaChapelle, second edition (Milan: Photology, 2004) - ISBN 88-88359-14-1
• LaChapelle Land, deluxe edition (New York: Channel Photographics, in association with Callaway, 2005) - ISBN 0-9766708-0-1
• LaChapelle, Artists and Prostitutes (Köln: Taschen, 2006) - ISBN 3-8228-1617-5
• LaChapelle, Heaven to Hell (Köln: Taschen, 2006) - ISBN 3-8228-2572-7
• David LaChapelle (Firenze: Giunti, 2007) - ISBN 978-88-09-05702-9
• David LaChapelle: al Forte Belvedere (Firenze: Giunti, 2008) - ISBN 978-88-09-06232-0
• David LaChapelle (Hamburg: Stern Gruner + Jahr AG & Co., 2008) - ISBN 978-3-570-19772-1
• David LaChapelle: the Rape of Africa (Amsterdam: Reflex, 2009) - ISBN 978-90-71848-07-0

Awards[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2012)

• Featured Speaker, National Geographic Magazine Photography Seminar 2012
• "OUT in Art Award" By Glaad Award
• "Best New Photographer of the Year" by both French Photo and American Photo magazines.
• "ICP Infinity Award" for Applied Photography
• "Photographer of the Year Award" at the VH-1 Fashion Awards.
• "Art Directors Club Award" for Best Book Design for LaChapelle Land.
• Best "Cutting Edge Essay" and "Style Photography" at Life magazine's Alfred Eisenstadt Awards for Magazine Photography (the Eisies).
• Honored in the "Cover of the Year" Category at the Eisies.
• Won "Best Video" for Moby's "Natural Blues" at the MTV Europe Music Awards.
• 12th Annual MVPA Awards - Adult Contemporary Video of the Year - Elton John "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore".
• 13th Annual MVPA Awards - Winner "Director of the Year" - "Best Rock Video of the Year" for No Doubt "It's My Life".
• Special Juried Prize Mountainfilm in Telluride.
• Special Juried Recognition in Sundance Film Festival.
• Winner of "Best Documentary" in Aspen Film Festival.
• Presented with GLAAD's Vito Russo Award for Outstanding Contributions Toward Eliminating Homophobia.

Videography[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2011)

1994

• Penny Ford – "I'll Be There"

1997

• The Dandy Warhols – "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth"^[1]

• Space Monkeys – "Sugar Cane"

2000

• Kelis – "Good Stuff"
• Felix Brothers - The Rockafeller Skank
• Moby – "Natural Blues"
• Enrique Iglesias – "Sad Eyes"

2001

• Elton John – "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore"
• Mariah Carey feat. Da Brat and Ludacris – "Loverboy"

2002

• Elton John – "Original Sin"
• The Vines – "Outtathaway!"
• Christina Aguilera feat. Redman – "Dirrty"
• Avril Lavigne – "I'm with You"

2003

• Jennifer Lopez – "I'm Glad"
• Whitney Houston – "Try It on My Own"
• Christina Aguilera feat. Lil' Kim – "Can't Hold Us Down"
• Macy Gray – "She Ain't Right for You"
• Christina Aguilera – "The Voice Within"
• Blink-182 – "Feeling This"
• Nick Carter - "I Got You"
• No Doubt – "It's My Life"

2004

• The Three Bad Girls – "Like you"
• Britney Spears – "Everytime"
• Joss Stone – "Super Duper Love"
• Norah Jones – "Those Sweet Words"
• Elton John – "Answer in the Sky"
• Elton John – "All That I'm Allowed"
• Gwen Stefani feat. Eve – "Rich Girl"

2005

• Robbie Williams – Advertising Space

2006

• Elton John – "Someone Saved My Life Tonight"

2007

• Amy Winehouse – "Tears Dry on Their Own"
• Jennifer Lopez – "Do It Well"

2012

• Florence + the Machine - "Spectrum"

Footnotes and References[link]

General

• Hilka Sinning (2006). Eye Candy: The Crazy World of David LaChapelle. Medea Film.
• David LaChapelle Claims Pop-Art Throne - CBS News Sunday Morning, March 4, 2007
• interview David on Charlie Rose

Citations

External links[link]

• Official website
• David LaChapelle at the Internet Movie Database

Betty Blowtorch was an all-female American hard rock band from Southern California.

Biography[link]

The band was formed in 1998 by three members of Butt Trumpet.^[1] After releasing the 2001 album, Are You Man Enough?, the group toured with Nashville Pussy.^[2] During the tour, drummer Judy Molish and guitarist Sharon Needles left the group; Jennifer Finch from L7 joined in their stead. In December 2001, lead singer and bassist Bianca Halstead (Butthole) was killed in a car crash in New Orleans, which marked the end of the group.^[2] A collection of rarities and live performances was released as Last Call in 2003.

They are the focus of Antonia Scarpa's documentary film, Betty Blowtorch And Her Amazing True Life Adventures.

Halstead is buried at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Blare N. Bitch and Sharon Needles are currently both members of the Los Angeles based band, Psychostar.

Members[link]

• Bianca Butthole (Bianca Halstead) - bass, vocals
• Sharon Needles - rhythm guitar, vocals
• Blare N. Bitch - lead guitar
• Judy Molish - drums

Discography[link]

• Get Off (Foil Records, 1999)
  • 01 - "Betty Blowtorch Anthem"
  • 02 - "Fish Taco"
  • 03 - "I Wanna Be Your Sucker"
  • 04 - "Shut Up & Fuck"
  • 05 - "Party Til Ya Puke"
  • 06 - "Get Off"

• Are You Man Enough? (Foodchain Records, 2001)
  • 01 - "Hell On Wheels"
  • 02 - "Love/Hate"
  • 03 - "Size Queen" (featuring Vanilla Ice)
  • 04 - "I Wanna Be Your Sucker"
  • 05- "I'm Ugly and I Don't Know Why"
  • 06 - "Shut Up and Fuck"
  • 07 - "No Integrity"
  • 08 - "Frankie"
  • 09 - "I Wish You'd Die"
  • 10 - "Big Hair, Broken Heart"
  • 11 - "Part-Time Hooker"
  • 12 - "Rock My World"
  • 13 - "Dresses"
  • 14 - "Strung Out"
  • 15 - "Rock 'N Roll 69"

• Last Call (Foodchain, 2003)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

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Tyra Lynn Banks
Banks at the 2012 Time 100 gala
Born	Tyra Lynn Banks (1973-12-04) December 4, 1973 (age 38) Inglewood, California, U.S.
Occupation	Model Actress Author Singer
Years active	1991–present
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1][2]
Website
typeF.com

Tyra Lynn Banks (born December 4, 1973). is an American model, media personality, actress, occasional singer, author and businesswoman.^[3][4][5] She first became famous as a model, appearing twice on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and working for Victoria's Secret as one of their original Angels. Banks is the creator and host of the UPN/The CW reality television show America's Next Top Model, co-creator of True Beauty, and host of her own talk show, The Tyra Banks Show.

Early life[link]

Tyra Banks was born in Inglewood, California. She is the daughter of Caroline (née London; now London-Johnson), a medical photographer,^[6] and Donald Banks, a computer consultant.^[3][7] She has a brother, Devin, who is five years older. In 1980, when Banks was 6 years old, her parents divorced. Banks attended John Burroughs Middle School and graduated in 1991 from Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles. Tyra Banks is one of four African Americans and seven women to have repeatedly ranked among the world's most influential people by Time magazine.

Career[link]

Modeling[link]

When Banks was 15 years old, she started modeling while attending school in Los Angeles. She was rejected by four modeling agencies before she was signed by Elite Model Management at age 16. When she got the opportunity to model in Europe, she put college on hold and moved to Milan. In her first runway season, she was booked a record 25 shows at the 1991 Paris fashion week. She would later grace the covers of ELLE and Vogue Spain. She walked the runways for Chanel, Isaac Mizrahi, Anna Sui, Sonia Rykiel, Todd Oldham, Christian Lacroix, Christian Dior, Karl Lagerfeld, Calvin Klein, Badgley Mischka, Marina Spadafora, Michael Kors, Perry Ellis, Gemma Kahng, Valentino, Tracy Reese, Nicole Miller and Fendi as well as appearing in ad campaigns for Dolce & Gabbana, Yves Saint Laurent, Ralph Lauren and others.^[8] In the mid-1990's, Banks returned to America to do more commercial modeling.

Banks was the first African American woman on the covers of GQ and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.^[9] In 1997, she received the VH1 award for, "Supermodel of the Year."^{[citation needed]} That same year, she became the first-ever African American chosen for the cover of the Victoria's Secret catalog.^[10] She is one of the original Victoria's Secret Angels.

In 2010, Banks re-signed with her former modeling agency IMG Models.^[11] Banks is now a contributor of the Vogue Italia website.

Move into television and film[link]

Banks at Cannes Film Festival in 2000.

Banks's television career began on the fourth season of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, in which she played lead character Will Smith's old friend Jackie Ames. She made seven appearances in the series.^{[citation needed]} Other TV credits include Felicity, All That, MADtv, Nick Cannon's Wild 'n Out (in which she was featured as a special guest host and team captain) and The Price Is Right (guest-starring as a "Barker's Beauty").^{[citation needed]} She also appeared as a guest in the animated talk show Space Ghost Coast to Coast in an episode entitled "Chinatown."

Tyra Banks started her own production company, Bankable Productions (previously named, "Ty Ty Baby Productions"; she did not rename it till the second cycle of America's Next Top Model), which produced The Tyra Banks Show, America's Next Top Model and the 2008 movie The Clique.

Banks is the hostess, judge and executive producer of The CW Television Network show America's Next Top Model. In addition, she hosted The Tyra Banks Show, a daytime talk show aimed at younger women, which premiered on September 12, 2005, and ran until May 28, 2010.

In 2008, Banks won the Daytime Emmy Award for her work and production on The Tyra Banks Show.^{[citation needed]}, and won for the second time in a row for outstanding, informative talkshow. In 2010, Oprah Winfrey congratulated Tyra Banks for a good job done on her talk-show for inspiring and mentoring young women.

In late-January 2008, Banks got the go-ahead from The CW Television Network to start work on a new reality television series based on fashion magazines called Modelitha. The show premiered on October 22, 2008.^{[citation needed]}

Banks's first big screen role came in 1994, when she co-starred in the drama Higher Learning.^[12] She then co-starred with Lindsay Lohan in the Disney film Life-Size, playing a doll named Eve who comes to life and has to learn how to live in the real world. Other notable roles include Love Stinks (1999), Love & Basketball (2000), Coyote Ugly (2000) and Halloween: Resurrection (2002). She and Miley Cyrus poke fun at the excesses of the Hollywood lifestyle with a battle over a pair of shoes in Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009).

Banks appeared in the fourth episode of the third season of Gossip Girl^[13] playing Ursula Nyquist, a larger-than-life actress who works with Serena.

Music[link]

Banks has appeared in several music videos, including Michael Jackson's "Black or White", Tina Turner's "Love Thing", Mobb Deep's "Trife Life", George Michael's "Too Funky" (with supermodels Linda Evangelista, Estelle Lefebure, Emma Sjoberg and Nadja Auermann ) and Lionel Richie's "Don't Wanna Lose You". In 2004, she recorded her first single, "Shake Ya Body," which had a music video featuring the final six contestants on America's Next Top Model, Cycle 2. The video was world-premiered on UPN, but the single turned out to be a failure.^[14]

Banks released a single with NBA player Kobe Bryant, entitled "K.O.B.E.," which was performed on NBA TV.^{[citation needed]} She also has a single on the soundtrack to Disney Channel's Original Movie Life-Size called "Be A Star."^{[citation needed]}

Books[link]

Banks in Santa Monica on September 14, 2011

Banks announced in May 2010 that she would be writing a novel, titled Modelland,^[15] loosely based on her own modelling experience.^[16] Published September 2011,^{[dated info]} it is the first of a planned three-part series.^[17] On an interview with Good Morning America, Banks stated that Modelland is the story of four girls who are accepted into an "exclusive" modelling school in the world of Modelland.^[18] Her first novel, Modelland, hit the New York Times best seller list in October 2011.

In 1998, Banks authored a book entitled Tyra's Beauty, Inside and Out.^[19]

Website[link]

In March 2011, Banks launched her fashion and beauty website called "typeF.com", which she co-created with Demand Media.^[20]

Other[link]

In 2011, Banks enrolled in the nine-week-long Owner/President Manager Program (OPM) at Harvard Business School's open-enrollment extension school.^[21] Banks passed the Executive Education Training Program in February 2012.^[22]

Philanthropy[link]

In 1999, Tyra Banks established the TZONE program, which aimed at leadership and life skills development.^[23][24] Banks acts as the patron for TZONE. She has also established the Tyra Banks Scholarship, a fund aimed at providing African-American girls the opportunity to attend her alma mater, Immaculate Heart High School. In 2005, TZONE transformed from a camp into a public charity, the Tyra Banks TZONE Foundation.^[23]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tyra Banks

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Tyra Banks

• Tyra Banks at the Internet Movie Database
• Tyra Banks at the Fashion Model Directory
• Tyra Banks at AllRovi
• banks Tyra Banks at People.com
• The Tyra Banks Show website
• The New York Times Profile/Interview