A revealing, no-holds-barred portrait of the legendary Eileen Ford--the
entrepreneur who transformed the business of modeling and helped invent
the celebrity supermodel.
Working with her husband, Jerry, Eileen Ford created the twentieth
century's largest and most successful modeling agency, representing some
of the fashion world's most famous names--Suzy Parker, Carmen
Dell'Orefice, Lauren Hutton, Rene Russo, Christie Brinkley, Jerry Hall,
Christy Turlington, and Naomi Campbell. Her relentless ambition turned
the business of modeling into one of the most glamorous and desired
professions, helping to convert her stable of beautiful faces into
millionaire superstars.
Model Woman chronicles the Ford Modeling Agency's meteoric rise to the
top of the fashion and beauty business, and paints a vibrant portrait of
the uncompromising woman at its helm in all her glittering, tyrannical
brilliance. Outspoken and controversial, Ford was never afraid to offend
in defense of her stringent standards. When she chose, she could deliver
hauteur in the grand tradition of fashion's battle-axes, from Coco
Chanel to Diana Vreeland--just ask John Casablancas or Janice Dickinson.
But she was also a shrewd businesswoman with a keen eye for talent and a
passion for serving her clients.
Drawing on more than four years of intensive interviews with Ford and
her intimates, associates, and rivals, as well as exclusive access to
agency documents and memorabilia, Robert Lacey weaves an unforgettable
tale of a determined entrepreneur and the empire she built--a story of
beauty, ambition, business, and popular culture as powerful and complex
as the woman at its center.
