Karolina Kurkova

Karolína Kurková, also Karolina Kurkova (born February 28, 1984) is a Czech model, best known as a former Victoria's Secret Angel, and actress. Mario Testino praised the "proportions of her body and her face, as well as her energy level", which he said "ma[de] her a model who could fit almost into any moment". Vogue editor Anna Wintour called her the "next supermodel". Kurková is among the world's top-earning models, having earned an estimated $5 million in the year 2007. She placed 6th in the Forbes annual list of the highest-earning models. Early life Karolína Kurková was born in Děčín, Czechoslovakia, to Josef Kurka, a Czech basketball player, and a Slovak mother. While Kurková was young, she was made fun of for her height. But after a friend sent photos of Kurková to an agency in Prague, at age 15, she landed a runway appearance, as well as gigs for commercial and print advertising. She later traveled to Milan to gain more experience and signed a modeling contract with Miuccia Prada. In September 1999, Kurková appeared in the American edition of fashion and lifestyle magazine Vogue, and, after moving to New York City at the age of 17, graced the cover of the February 2001 edition. Career Modeling Following her Vogue cover, Kurková became recognized at haute couture fashion shows. Additionally, the lingerie brand Victoria's Secret chose her to be a part of 2000's fashion show webcast, though she was only 16 at the time. Prominent fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent signed Kurková to contracts, while print campaigns for Tommy Hilfiger, Valentino, Louis Vuitton, John Galliano, Chanel, Christian Dior, Hugo Boss, Versace, H&M, and others helped expose her even more. In the 2002 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, she wore the "Star of Victoria" Fantasy Bra, worth almost $10 million.  Acting Kurková made her film debut alongside Frankie Muniz, Harvey Keitel, and Amber Valletta in Howard Himelstein's 2007 coming-of-age dramedy, My Sexiest Year. She played Courtney A. Kreiger / Cover Girl in the live action 2009 G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra film. She was a guest judge on the fifteenth season of America's Next Top Model and fourth season of Germany's Next Top Model. She appeared on the 2008 Academy of Country Music Awards along with Dwight Yoakam in presenting the "Top Female Vocalist" award to Carrie Underwood. In September 2010, Karolína guest-starred on NBC's Chuck season 4 episode, "Chuck Versus the Suitcase". She played Sofia Stepanova, an enemy spy posing as a supermodel. Kurková appeared as herself in an episode of Person of Interest, in a subplot where the character of Detective Fusco (Kevin Chapman) protects Kurková from Armenian gangsters. The subplot, which is interspersed throughout the episode, takes up less than two minutes of screen time and is played for comic relief. Awards Kurkova was named one of the world's "50 Most Beautiful People" by People Magazine in 2004, and remains the youngest model ever to win "Model of the Year" at the VH1/Vogue Fashion Awards. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007. Kurkova was listed by Forbes as one of the top-earning supermodels in the world. In 2012 she was honored as "Style Icon" at the Vienna Awards for Fashion and Lifestyle. Personal life She lives in New York City's TriBeCa district and enjoys courtside basketball games at Madison Square Garden. In July 2009, she announced she was expecting her first child with her fiancé, Archie Drury. Kurková revealed that Drury had proposed to her while on holiday in Cape Town, South Africa, and they were married before the October 29, 2009 birth of their son, Tobin Jack Drury, weighing six pounds three ounces.