Marisa Miller

Marisa Miller

Blonde woman smiling while sitting in a public lounge

Miller signing autographs at The Mirage in Las Vegas, April 24, 2009
Born Marisa Lee Bertetta
(1978-08-06) August 6, 1978
Santa Cruz, California, United States
Spouse(s) Jim Miller (2000–2002)
Griffin Guess (2006–present)
Website marisamiller.com

Modeling information

Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Hair color Blonde
Eye color Hazel
Manager Cartel Management

Marisa Lee Miller (née Bertetta; born August 6, 1978)[1][2] is an American model and actress best known for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and her work for Victoria's Secret. After a stint shooting with photographer Mario Testino for fashion magazines such as Vogue,[3] Miller began working for both companies in 2002. In 2007, she became a Victoria's Secret Angel, and graced the cover of the 2008 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue to record-setting numbers.[4] Her accomplishments have led to her being dubbed the "return of the great American supermodel."[5]

She is known for contracts with companies such as Harley-Davidson, for whom she is the first spokesperson in the history of the company, and the NFL, for whom she became a spokesperson in 2010.[6] Miller is considered a sex symbol;[6] she ranked No. 1 on Maxim magazine's 2008 "Hot 100" list[5] and in FHM's global 2010 "Sexiest Women in the World" poll.[7] Aside from modeling, she was an ambassador for both the American Cancer Society[8] and the USO.[9] Miller made her film debut in R.I.P.D. (2013).

Early life

Miller was born as Marisa Lee Bertetta in Santa Cruz, California, to Krista (née Useldinger) and Marc Bertetta.[10] Miller attended high school at Aptos High[11] and Monte Vista Christian School.[10] She considered herself a tomboy growing up, with mostly male friends and little awareness of anything girly.[12] Out of shyness, she often wore large t-shirts to hide her body and would get fully dressed just to go to the trash-can while at the beach.[13]

Miller was first "discovered" at age sixteen walking through a San Francisco café by two Italian modeling agents.[10] After talking to her mother, she was on a plane to Italy with her mother a few months later, despite her "shy and conservative" personality.[3] Miller gained attention in 1997 when she appeared in the first issue of Perfect 10 magazine. Although she came in third behind Ashley Degenford and Monica Hansen in Perfect 10 magazine's first annual model search,[2] she was repeatedly showcased in following issues, including the covers of the Winter 1998 and August/September 1999 editions, as well as a reprint for the Fall 2004 edition cover.[14][15]

Career

External images
Miller's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover from February 15, 2008
Miller, a blond woman, wearing a bikini, the top a striped design with a variety of different brown patterns
Miller backstage at the Fashion for Relief show, a charity event in aid of victims of Hurricane Katrina

Miller moved from a start as an amateur magazine model to high profile mainstream work after an acquaintance showed a picture of her to famed fashion photographer Mario Testino in 2001. Testino asked to meet Miller, who was running a surf school at the time, and was invited to Manhattan Beach, California, where she would be surfing.[3] Noticing her, Testino snapped pictures of her and approached her with a job offer of editorials for both the American and Italian editions of Vogue. Within six months,[3] Miller was working for Victoria's Secret and the coveted Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, in which she appeared in every issue from 2002 to 2008. In particular, she famously posed wearing only an iPod in the 2007 issue.[16] She has appeared in a diverse range of magazines, many of them international editions, such as GQ, Maxim, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, and Vanity Fair.[17] She has featured in advertisements for Marc Jacobs, Nordstrom, Victoria's Secret, J.Crew, Guess?, Tommy Hilfiger, Bath & Body Works, and True Religion jeans.[17]

It was not until 2007 that she filmed her first television commercial for Victoria's Secret, appearing alongside Heidi Klum for the It bra.[18] On December 4, 2007, Miller made her debut in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show,[1] and opened a segment in the following year's edition. Other runway work include 2007's Fashion for Relief show, benefiting victims of Hurricane Katrina,[1] as well as MTV's Fashionably Loud, Imitation of Christ, Inca, and Amir Slama's Rosa Cha, for which she was one of the most anticipated models.[19] On the February 12, 2008 episode of the Late Show with David Letterman, it was revealed via a three-story billboard in New York City that Miller would grace the cover of that year's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. The tandem online launch of the issue drew record page views to the SI website: 228 million, a 41% increase over 2007.[4] In September 2008, Sports Illustrated released a "Best of Marisa Miller" swimsuit calendar for the 2009 year.[1]

Victoria's Secret put her to work in 2008, with a five-city tour to promote the 2008 Swim collection's release in stores; the April–May tour included stops in New York City, Miami, Chicago (where she threw the opening pitch at a Chicago Cubs baseball game), Boston, and Minneapolis. The relaunch of Victoria Secret's sports line, VSX, soon followed, along with her first official campaign as an Angel:[20] promoting the company's fragrance Very Sexy Dare. For the 2009 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, Miller was chosen to wear the year's "Fantasy Bra," a harlequin design featuring 2,300 white, champagne, and cognac diamonds, and a 16-carat heart-shaped brown-yellow diamond pendant for a $3-million value and 150 total carats.[21][22] In response to claims that Miller had parted with Victoria's Secret in January 2010, the Chief Marketing Officer for Limited Brands responded, saying the claims were "unfounded and untrue" while adding "we adore Marisa and we will continue to work with her in the future."[23] In late 2010, Miller confirmed she had moved on from Angel status.[9]

Beyond modeling

In a July 2010 interview with Forbes, Miller stated that because the fashion industry had changed, with celebrities supplanting models on magazine covers and in campaigns, supermodels have to become brands to be successful.[6] For that reason, she shifted focus to consumer products reflective of her personality. In July 2008, Miller took her first step beyond modeling when her shoe line with skateboarder/surfer-oriented company Vans launched.[5] Miller starred in a 2008 viral video on YouTube with All Star baseball player Ryan Braun for Remington's ShortCut hair clippers[24]

In 2008, Miller became the first spokesperson in motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson's one-hundred-year history.[6] She first partnered with Harley to launch the VRSCF V-Rod Muscle motorcycle and rejoined the company in November 2009 to act as the face of their first "Military Appreciation Month" campaign, featuring Miller as a classic pin-up in military-themed advertisements and online content.[25] 2010 found her again working for the company, this time for their "Start Something" campaign, encouraging dreamers to become new riders.[26] Miller represented the rum brand Captain Morgan as the company's "Official First Mate" in advertising, social responsibility communication, and event appearances, starting in 2010.[27]

In October 2010, the NFL announced Miller had been hired as a spokesperson for the 2010-2011 season, with duties including hosting the NFL International Series game between the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos in London. The announcement drew accusations toward the league of sending a "mixed message" in hiring a well-known lingerie and swimsuit model on the heels of controversies over reporter Ines Sainz's treatment at the New York Jets' facilities and the messages and photos Brett Favre allegedly sent Jenn Sterger.[28] New York Times columnist William C. Rhoden noted that "Miller reveals a lot of flesh in the N.F.L. advertisements featuring her. This is Miller’s business, but it shouldn’t be the N.F.L.’s."[29] In 2010, she designed and released a paddle board line with Surftech aimed at female riders[30] and in 2012 she appeared in a beach-theme commercial for Buick.[31]

Television

Miller's first work in television was as a judge on the Bravo reality series Manhunt: The Search for America's Most Gorgeous Male Model in 2004,[32] the same year she appeared in Puddle of Mudd's "Spin You Around" music video. 2007 brought appearances in the pilot episode and finale of the VH1 reality show The Shot and cameos in HBO's Entourage and the CBS comedy How I Met Your Mother,[33] the latter with her fellow Victoria's Secret Angels. In 2009, she had a guest judge role on an episode of America's Next Top Model and a minor role in an episode of Gary Unmarried; in 2010, she co-hosted an episode of GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley.[34] She has appeared in commercials for the NFL Network[35] and the California Travel and Tourism Commission's "Visit California" campaign. Miller's 2008 commercial for Activision's Guitar Hero: World Tour was deemed too sexy to air.[36][37]

Film

Miller's first film role was in R.I.P.D. (2013), with Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges.[38]

Media recognition

The swell in publicity resulting from her 2008 work served to land Miller in the number one spot on Maxim magazine's "Hot 100" rankings for 2008, beating out list regulars such as Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel, and Eva Longoria. This marked the first time anyone has debuted on the list in the number one position.[5] In her subsequent cover story for the July issue, Maxim proclaimed her as the "return of the great American supermodel." Of such acclaim, Miller admits, "I get a kick out of it, but it would be stupid to let it go to my head. It’s modeling—I didn’t find the cure for cancer."[39] Miller continued to be highly rated and appeared on the list in 2009 in 18th place, and in 2010 in 10th place.[40]

She also finished first place in The Best Damn Sports Show Period "Smokin' Sixteen" competition in 2008,[41] repeating her 2007 win over competitors such as Gisele Bündchen and Adriana Lima. Miller ranked second in AskMen.com's "Top 99" for 2010, after ranking third in 2009, ninth in 2008, twelfth in 2007, and fourteenth in 2006.[42][43][44][45][46] She added to her popular accolades with the "Hot N' Fresh" award at the second annual Spike Guys' Choice Awards.[47]

In 2010, Miller came in third in FHM magazine's UK edition of the 16th annual "Sexiest Women in the World" poll, placing behind actress Megan Fox and winner, British singer Cheryl Cole.[48][49] Miller topped the poll in the US edition of FHM and was declared the global winner of the poll, receiving the most combined votes from FHM's 24 international editions.[7]

Personal life

She married Jim Miller,[1][50] a Los Angeles surfing contest promoter and lifeguard from California, in 2000. The couple separated in 2002;[51][52] they divorced soon after. After the divorce, Marisa continued using the surname Miller. She married music producer Griffin Guess on April 15, 2006.[1] Miller gave birth to the couple's son, Gavin Lee Guess, on December 14, 2012.[53] She gave birth to the couple's second son, Grayson Lee Bazyl Guess, on May 29, 2015.[54]

From an early age she loved surfing,[10] and her aunt was on the pro tour.[16] In 2004, she placed second in the celebrity division of the Kelly Slater Surf Invitational[1] and says of the sport, "I feel my absolute best—physically, mentally and spiritually—when I'm surfing every day."[12] She also won the most valuable player award at the 4th annual Celebrity Beach Bowl.[55] She was a standout volleyball player in high school[1] and has taken up boxing.[8][52] After signing with Harley-Davidson, Miller received her motorcycle license[56] and rides a Harley Nightster. She has said that she would like to be a sportscaster.[57] Miller comes from a family of nurses. Her mother returned to college to become a pediatrics nurse and her sisters are also nurses. She has expressed an interest in following the same career path if she stops modeling.[58][59]

As of 2009, Miller is an ambassador for the American Cancer Society.[8][60] Proceeds from her online store are donated to the charity. She also supports the Young Survival Coalition, which raises awareness of breast cancer in women under 40,[5] as well as environmental organization the Surfrider Foundation, which aims to preserve the world's oceans and beaches.[60] In October 2009, Miller hosted the Monte Foundation music festival, an annual fundraiser for schools in the Aptos area, where she and Guess own a home.[16] She is also an ambassador for the USO; she visits military bases and receives frequent fan mail from American troops worldwide.[9]

In 2015, she participated in a PETA Campaign against SeaWorld, posing naked while pregnant with her second child.[61]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Marisa Miller Pictures, Photo Galleries, Bio & Rating". AskMen.com. News Corporation. Retrieved 2010-04-14.
  2. 1 2 "Marisa Miller on TV.com". Retrieved 2010-04-13. Unlike most models who begin their careers with nude photo shoots, Marisa was able to make the jump to mainstream modeling
  3. 1 2 3 4 Lauren Murphy. "Miller, Genuine", Los Angeles Confidential, October 2008.
  4. 1 2 "SI Digital Launch of Swimsuit 2008 Experiences Unprecedented Traffic and Engagement Levels". Business Wire. 2008-02-22.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Thompson, Arienne (2008-05-13). "Marisa Miller's model year just got 'Maxim' exposure". USA Today (Gannett Company). Retrieved 2010-04-13. Maxim editorial director James Kaminsky says 2008 is indeed the year of Miller. "She represents the return of the great American supermodel, and she's veering towards ubiquity," he says. "But in a really great way."
  6. 1 2 3 4 Morgan Brennan (2010-07-09). "Marisa Miller: Supermodel Turned Super-Brand". Forbes. p. 2. Archived from the original on 2013-01-23. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
  7. 1 2 "The sexiest woman on the planet: Californian supermodel Marisa Miller wins FHM international poll". Daily Mail (London). 2010-05-11. Retrieved 2010-05-16.
  8. 1 2 3 Carson, Kelly (2008-05-23). "Malibu magazine: Suburbia". Archived from the original on 2008-06-19. Retrieved 2009-02-28. A lot has changed for the veteran Sports Illustrated and Victoria Secret supermodel. She got married, took up boxing and designed a line of sneakers for Vans, Inc.
  9. 1 2 3 Hollie McKay (2010-11-11). "EXCLUSIVE: Marisa Miller Hangs Up Wings, Focuses on the Troops". Fox News (News Corporation).
  10. 1 2 3 4 Seals, Brian (2008-02-13). "Aptos native Marisa Miller makes Sports Illustrated cover". Santa Cruz Sentinel. MediaNews Group. Archived from the original on 2010-04-13. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  11. ↑ Alia Wilson (October 3, 2009). "Aptos High students get a visit from Marisa Miller at lunchtime". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved June 20, 2012.
  12. 1 2 "13 Questions With Marisa Miller". AskMen.com (News Corporation). Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  13. ↑ Bjorkman, James. "Marisa Miller, Surf School Stunner". FilmInspector.com. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  14. ↑ Perfect 10 magazine cover. Perfect 10 magazine. Fall 2004 cover. Marisa Miller shown wrapped in only a red feather boa.
  15. ↑ Maass, Dave (November 19, 2004). "Porn vs. Pirates". Last Blog On Earth. San Diego CityBeat.
  16. 1 2 3 Bookwalter, Genevieve (2009-10-02). "Monte headliners hope show starts something big; Up-and-coming acts excited for Santa Cruz, while supermodel returns home to emcee". Santa Cruz Sentinel. MediaNews Group. Archived from the original on 2010-04-13. Retrieved 2010-04-13. the woman who famously posed in Sports Illustrated wearing nothing but an iPod said she is a little anxious about bringing her work home.
  17. 1 2 "Fashion Model Directory profile". Retrieved 2009-02-28.
  18. ↑ "Marisa Miller and Heidi Klum "It Launch"". YouTube. August 2, 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  19. ↑ Zach (2008-07-15). "Beachy-Bronzed and Brilliant courtesy of Amir Slama". Retrieved 2009-11-07. Seen on the covers of Shape Magazine, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Editions, and in Victoria’s Secret Swimwear Catalogues, Marisa Miller was one of the most anticipated models on the runway.
  20. ↑ "Supermodel Marisa Miller Getting 'Angel' Wings". Fox News (News Corporation). 2008-09-15. Retrieved 2008-09-20. I'd love to design my own swim collection for them (VS)," Miller recently told Pop Tarts. "Heidi (Klum) does the lipsticks, I would love to one day do the bikinis.
  21. ↑ "Marisa Miller to Rock Victoria Secret's New Diamond-Studded Bra". People StyleWatch. Time Inc. 2009-10-21. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
  22. ↑ "£2million underwear is a bra-gain". The Sun (London: News Corporation). 2009-10-21. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
  23. ↑ "Marisa Miller Still a Victoria's Secret Gal, Still Hot". TMZ.com. Time Warner. 2010-01-20. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  24. ↑ "Beauty and the Brewer". 2008-08-09. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  25. ↑ "Harley-Davidson Recruits American Supermodel Marisa Miller to Salute U.S. Military Personnel During the Month of November". Yahoo! Finance (Yahoo!). 2009-11-02. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
  26. ↑ Rovito, Rich (2010-05-28). "Harley-Davidson launching campaign featuring Marisa Miller". Milwaukee Business Journal. Retrieved 2010-05-29.
  27. ↑ "Marisa Miller Sets Sail With Captain Morgan". PR NewsWire. 2010-06-29. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
  28. ↑ Vaccaro, Mike (2010-10-13). "Sexy new NFL spokeswoman delivers mixed message". New York Post. Retrieved 2010-10-19.
  29. ↑ Rhoden, William (2010-10-17). "Sis, Boom, Bah (Humbug): Cheer Squads Have No Place in the N.F.L.". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-10-19.
  30. ↑ Miller profile at Surftecsup
  31. ↑ Meier, Fred (2012-05-16). "Buick airs 'smart and sexy' Marisa Miller Enclave ad". USA Today. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  32. ↑ "Carmen Electra to Host Bravo's 'Manhunt: The Search for America's Most Gorgeous Male Model'". The Futon Critic. 2004-09-08. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
  33. ↑ "The Yips". How I Met Your Mother. Season 3. Episode 10. 2007-11-26. CBS.
  34. ↑ Chapter 1: E3 Starts Right Now. GameTrailers.com. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
  35. ↑ "Six Degrees magazine". Retrieved 2009-02-28.
  36. ↑ "Marisa's banned ad "too sexy"". The Sun (London: News Corporation). 2010-06-16. Retrieved 2010-06-16. (Video)
  37. ↑ Daily Mail Reporter (17 June 2010). "Guitar Hero ad starring FHM's Sexiest Woman Marisa Miller branded too hot for TV". Daily Mail (London: Associated Newspapers Ltd). Retrieved 2010-06-26. Over the years the Guitar Hero campaign has seen a string of stars recreate the Risky Business scene, including Heidi Klum.
  38. ↑ Borys Kit (2011-08-25). "Marisa Miller Joins Ryan Reynolds in 'RIPD' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. The Victoria's Secret supermodel will make her acting debut Universal's Robert Schwentke-directed project.
  39. ↑ "Maxim Releases Hot 100 of 2008 List. Find out which supermodel came out on top.". Film.com. 2008-05-14. Archived from the original on 2010-04-03. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
  40. ↑ Maxim Staff (2010-05-05). "2010 Hot 100. The definitive list of the world's most beautiful women.". 10. Marisa Miller
  41. ↑ "BDSSP Smokin' Sixteen Brackets". Retrieved 2008-05-15.
  42. ↑ Top 99 Most Desirable Women 2006 Edition (Miller is No. 14) Ask Men web site Archived June 9, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
  43. ↑ Top 99 Most Desirable Women 2007 Edition (Miller is No. 12) Ask Men web site
  44. ↑ Top 99 Most Desirable Women 2008 Edition (Miller is No. 9) Ask Men web site
  45. ↑ Top 99 Most Desirable Women 2009 Edition (Miller is No. 3) Ask Men web site
  46. ↑ Top 99 Most Desirable Women 2010 Edition (Miller is No. 2) Ask Men web site
  47. ↑ "Spike TV Guys' Choice Award winners". Spike. MTV Networks. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  48. ↑ "Full list of FHM's top 100 world's sexiest women 2010. Cheryl Cole, Megan Fox and Marissa Miller have topped FHM's sexiest women poll for 2010, but Sienna Miller, Charlotte Church and Billie Piper have struggled to perform.". Metro. 2010-04-29.
  49. ↑ "Cheryl Cole 'sexiest woman' for second year". BBC News (BBC Corp.). 2010-04-29. Archived from the original on 2010-05-03.
  50. ↑ "Biography of Jimmy Miller April 28, 1969 to August 7, 2004". The Jimmy Miller Foundation. Archived from the original on July 15, 2010. Retrieved 2009-10-14.
  51. ↑ "Marisa Miller Profile". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2009-10-14. I like to have curves and feel like a woman. I hope that people see that in my photos and know that healthy is better than skinny
  52. 1 2 Jonathan L - owner (August 2007). "Interview with Marisa Miller - the World's Leading Swimsuit Model". Models Observer. I like to have curves and feel like a woman. I hope that people see that in my photos and know that healthy is better than skinny.
  53. ↑ "Marisa Miller Welcomes Son Gavin Lee". People. 2012-12-14. Retrieved 2012-12-14.
  54. ↑ "Marisa Miller Welcomes Son Grayson Lee Bazyl". People. 2015-06-01. Retrieved 2015-06-01.
  55. ↑ "Victoria's Secret's model loses her shorts in cheeky tackle by Tom Arnold at celebrity American football game". Daily Mail (London: Associated Newspapers Ltd). 2010-02-11. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  56. ↑ Ramos, Patricia (2009-11-24). "Marisa Miller: "I Was Always Shy About My Body"". OK! Magazine. Retrieved 2010-03-29.
  57. ↑ "Marisa Miller". AskMen.com. News Corporation. 2005. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  58. ↑ Juba, Scott (2006-02-01). "Interview: Marisa Miller: The Girl Behind the Pretty Face".
  59. ↑ Connors, Claire (Summer 2009). "5 minutes to a prettier, healthier you: surfer and supermodel Marisa Miller shares some very down-to-earth insider tricks that work for every woman". Shape. Everyone in my family is a nurse except me
  60. 1 2 Coyte, Matt. "A Model Citizen" (Faces of Change inset), Rolling Stone Magazine, July 2009.
  61. ↑ http://www.peta.org/videos/marisa-miller-no-compassion-in-captivity/

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