Heidi Klum was born in Bergische Gladbach, a small town in Germany, on June 1, 1973. Heidi's mother was a hairdresser and her father worked for a cosmetics company, so the fact that she was to become a model, later in life, isn't really surprising.
When she was 18, Klum entered a local beauty contest. She managed to win, avoiding elimination as one of 25,000 girls in the contest. After gaining the title of "Model '92", an activity she did simply because a friend encouraged her, she inked a deal with a modelling agency. The rest is history as she became one of the most wanted models around.
The point that many attribute to Klum's global success was her first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Getting on the cover was a huge coup for the German model, but the issue also had one of the highest sell-through rates, too.
After moving to New York city, she was chosen to model for Victoria's Secret. This pretty much guarantees you future success as a model. And it did.
She has appeared in such publications as Vogue, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Sports Illustrated (four times!) and even on TV shows like Spin City and Sex and the City. She is also a regular on live talk shows such as The Late Show with David Letterman and the Jay Leno show. Is there anything Heidi can't do?
In 1997, she married Australian celebrity hairstylist, Ric Pipino and the two spend their time living in America and Germany - but what about Australia, Ric!?
Heidi Klum is one of those people who, once you cast your gaze across her finely formed visage, you won't easily forget. But despite being one of the world's sexiest babes, she still manages to affect people with her bubbly personality.
Rather than sneering at everyone and throwing chairs at photographers, she chats with her fans, jokes around with the media and loves to laugh. According to many, part of her sexiness is attributable to her jovial attitude - and we tend to agree!
She is 5'10" tall and, rather than adopting the ultra-skinny look, Klum manages to impress with voluptuous curves and that rather imposing figure. She is all natural with amazing legs, an ice-melting smile and delightfully happy hips. What more can we say - there's nothing quite like German engineering.
From a recent Victoria's Secret shoot comes one of our favourite Klum kwotes: "You should spend your money on some nice lingerie. Big wool cotton pants, that just doesn't work. You have to feel sexy."
Heidi will continue to shine in the fashion industry and though she's not as young as say Adriana Lima, she still has a lot of steam left in her. Keep an eye for this one, she's not going anywhere! Oh, and don't forget, if you happen to meet her at the supermarket, her surname is pronounced 'kloom'. I'll never make that mistake again...
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