Supermodels – Now I've Heard Everything

The Remarkable Journey of Supermodel Alek Wek

July 24, 2024July 20, 2024Bill Thompson

Back in 1995 in London, a teenager was out shopping one day when a stranger tapped her on the shoulder. That stranger was a modeling scout, and before long, that teenager was signed as a professional model.

And it wasn’t long after that that Alek Wek was seen on covers of major international magazines. She was MTV’s Model of the Year in 1997.

But what makes her story even more incredible and extraordinary is that she had only been in London for four years, after her family fled a life of poverty in their homeland, civil war-torn Sudan.

Alek told her story in a 2007 autobiography called simply Alek. I met her on her book tour that year.

So here now, from 2007, Alek Wek.

Alek Wek is 47 now. She lives in New York.

Iman

March 26, 2021March 21, 2021Bill Thompson

Born in Somalia, and raised in East Africa, Iman first caught the attention of the fashion world soon after she turned 20. And very soon, she became a supermodel, as photographers and designers recognized her extraordinary beauty and grace.

She is frequently seen with other beautiful people, from Hollywood and elsewhere around the world. She was married to David Bowie.

I met Iman in 2005, when she published a book of beauty advice for women of color.

so here now, from 2005, Iman.

Iman will be 66 this summer — and still one of he world’s most beautiful women.

Tyra Banks

July 1, 2020June 29, 2020Bill Thompson

She’s a supermodel, a role model, and a popular actor.

Tyra Banks was already, at 24, an international celebrity when I met her in 1998. She had written her first book, called “Tyra’s Beauty Inside & Out.”

So here now, from 1998, Tyra Banks:

Tyra Banks is 46 now, and still a role model, still a popular TV and movie actor.