Linda Evangelista by Terry Richardson
There are models that define a designer, a trend or maybe a decade in fashion, but there are the select few who define an entire generation. The supermodels of the ’80s and ’90s continue to be a touchstone to designers today, and their charisma, beauty and personalities are still a huge part of the fashion world today. One of our favorites, Linda Evangelista, celebrated her 49th birthday over the weekend, showing the entire world age really is just a number. Still stunning and still in high demand (she’s still the face of L’Oreal Paris and appeared recently in a Prada campaign), she’s showing us all that she’s still got it.
Linda Evangelista in George Michael’s “Freedom ’90”
Linda Evangelista, along with her coterie of model best friends, defined an era of fashion where embellishment and fun reigned supreme. They pranced down the runways hand-in-hand and played muse to the biggest names in fashion at the time: including Versace, Ungaro, Pucci and Gucci. Evangelista was on the cover of just about every magazine and was the inspiration behind many a short haircut after she debuted her cropped ‘do. She even starred alongside the other supers in George Michael’s “Freedom ’90” music video, which proved that she and the other models were destined to be multimedia superstars.
Today, Evangelista continues to model and work with AIDS charities around the globe. She’s still stunning and still causing a stir, especially when she demanded over $46,000 a month for child support from billionaire Frenchman François-Henri Pinault (husband of Salma Hayek). The two settled the child support battle out of court, but the $46,000 was on track to be the largest support order in the history of the family court according to reports.
What most will remember about Lind Evangelista, however, might be her infamous line to Vogue, “We don’t wake up for less than $10,000 a day,” back in 1990. To celebrate the life of an iconic muse, we’ve chosen some of our favorite over-the-top pieces. From glam gowns to gotta-see-it-to-believe-it gator-clad glam, these picks are sure to get anyone — model muse or not — out of bed in a flash.
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Images courtesy Terry World, MTV, Net-a-Porter, Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus
