A DIFFERENT
"GIRL NEXT DOOR"
IN FRONT OF THE
CURTAIN?
Putting together the pilot episode of "Let's
Make A Deal" in 1963, Stefan Hatos searched for a model to add beauty and grace to the show.
He considered several candidates before making the perfect choice --
Carol
Merrill.
The runner-ups for the position included:
Suzy
Parker was one of the most recognizable faces in the 1950's and a forerunner
of the supermodel. She was one of the fashion world's legendary beauties
who became the industry's highest-paid cover girl in the 1950s.
During her modeling heyday, Parker was photographed in
Paris,
Rome,
London
and New York City
in fashions by all the top designers. Known for her full, red hair and beautiful bone structure,
Parker
was the signature face for designer Coco Chanel. She later parlayed her modeling fame into a short-lived
Hollywood
acting career. In the film Funny
Face with Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn, she danced in a number
called "Think Pink" that spoofed fashion editors. She had a lead
role in Ten North Frederick
with Gary Cooper, and also appeared in The Best of Everything,
Circle of
Deception, The Interns, and
Chamber of
Horrors. She made guest appearances in a number of television series in the
'60s, including The Twilight Zone,
Dr. Kildare, Burke's
Law, Tarzan and It Takes a
Thief. Veteran publicist Dale Olson said there was an "accessibility" to
Parker.
"She came across as gorgeous, but still kind of the American girl next door."
In 1963 Parker married actor Bradford
Dillman. She didn't feel comfortable in front of the movie
camera and said she wasn't the actress that she
wanted to be, so she decided to give it up and devote her talents to being
a wife and
mother. She raised six children.
Lauren
Hutton, known for the
signature gap between her front teeth, was considered one of the first
supermodels after she appeared on the cover of Vogue a record 25 times in the
1960s and 1970s. She was a leader of the trend toward
celebrity models and the first model to negotiate a major cosmetics endorsement
contract. Hutton signed an exclusive deal to be Revlon's model, giving
future successful models new power, prestige and income. In
1968, she built on this success by taking the plunge into movies. Hutton made her film debut in Paper Lion
and won interesting notices for her
performances in James Toback's The Gambler
opposite James
Caan, and as the wealthy adulteress in American Gigolo.
She has appeared in more than 50 films.
LAUREN'S
WEB SITE The Good Stuff Make-Up web site.
