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Suzy Parker (born Cecilia Ann Renee Parker; October 28, 1932 – May 3, 2003) was an American model and actress active from 1947 until 1970. Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s, when she appeared on the covers of dozens of magazines and in advertisements and movie and television roles. She appeared in advertisements for
Revlon Revlon, Inc. is an American multinational company dealing in cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care. The headquarters of Revlon was established in New York City on March 1, 1932, where it still remains. Revlon was founded by brothe ...
and many other cosmetic companies, including Solo Products, the largest hair care product company in the country at the time. (Models did not have exclusive cosmetic company contracts until
Lauren Hutton Lauren Hutton (born Mary Laurence Hutton; November 17, 1943) is an American model and actress. Born and raised in the southern United States, Hutton relocated to New York City in her early adulthood to begin a modeling career. Though she was ini ...
and
Karen Graham Early life Karen Graham was born in Gulfport, Mississippi in 1945. Career After college, Graham moved to New York City to pursue a career as a French-language high school teacher. In 1969, Graham met model agency owner Eileen Ford via a chan ...
in the early 1970s). In 1956, at the height of her modelling career, she became the first model to earn $100,000 per year ($ today). A
song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...
that
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
wrote for her, though not released on record, appeared in their 1970 documentary film ''
Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album It may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...
'', which won the
Academy Award for Best Original Score The Academy Award for Best Original Score is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by t ...
.


Early life

Suzy Parker was born Cecilia Ann Renee Parker in Long Island City, New York, to George and Elizabeth Parker, who married in 1916. She had three older sisters: Dorian, Florian, and Georgiabell. Elizabeth believed she was undergoing menopause, but then discovered she was several months pregnant with her youngest child, Cecilia ("Suzy")."Model", by Michael Gross, 1995, page 114. Suzy's original names came from three of her mother's best friends. A then-teenaged Dorian advised her mother to arrange the names in the order, Cecilia Renee Ann Parker, so the initials of the names would spell the word "crap". Dorian claimed her mother had no idea what it meant. Parker's father George disliked the name Cecilia and called her Susie, a name which Parker would retain throughout her life. A French ''Vogue'' photographer later changed the spelling to "Suzy". Parker's family later moved to
Highland Park, New Jersey Highland Park is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States in the New York City metropolitan area. The borough is located on the northern banks of the Raritan River, in the Raritan Valley region. As of the 2020 United States Cens ...
, and then to Florida. Parker was a model with the Walter Thornton agency and later her sister Dorian, herself one of the top models of the era, introduced her to
Eileen Ford Eileen ( or ) is an Irish feminine given name anglicised from Eibhlín and may refer to: People Artists *Eileen Agar (1899–1991), British Surrealist painter and photographer *Eileen Fisher (born 1950), clothing retailer and designer *Eileen ...
.


Career

Parker and two of her sisters were tall, all measuring between and . Sister Dorian (who modelled under the name Dorian Leigh) was the sole exception, standing . In 1944, Dorian worked as an advertising copy writer when a coworker encouraged her to go to the Conover Modeling Agency. Dorian was one of the top models in the world, among the first small group of
supermodel A supermodel, also spelled super-model or super model, is a highly paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in ''haute couture'' and commercial modeling. The term ''supermodel'' became prominent in the po ...
s, which included
Lisa Fonssagrives Lisa or LISA may refer to: People People with the mononym * Lisa Lisa (born 1967), American actress and lead singer of the Cult Jam * Lisa (Japanese musician, born 1974), stylized "LISA", Japanese singer and producer * Lisa Komine (born 1978), ...
,
Dovima Dorothy Virginia Margaret Juba (December 11, 1927 – May 3, 1990), known professionally as Dovima, was an American supermodel during the 1950s. Biography Dovima was born Dorothy Virginia Margaret Juba in Queens, New York to Stanley Juba, a P ...
,
Barbara Goalen Barbara Goalen (1 January 1921 – 16 June 2002) was a British model who came to international prominence between 1945 and 1954, then gave up her career at the height of her success. Described as "the most photographed woman in Britain" and "argu ...
and
Bettina Graziani Simone Micheline Bodin (8 May 1925 – 3 March 2015), known professionally as Bettina or Bettina Graziani, was a French fashion model of the 1940s and 1950s and an early muse to the fashion designer Hubert de Givenchy. She was a designer of knit ...
. When Parker was about age 15, Dorian telephoned
Ford Modeling Agency Ford Models, originally the Ford Modeling Agency, is an American international modeling agency based in New York City. It was established in 1946 by Eileen Ford and her husband Gerard W. Ford. Company Ford Models was started in 1946 by Eileen ...
and told
Eileen Eileen ( or ) is an Irish feminine given name anglicised from Eibhlín and may refer to: People Artists *Eileen Agar (1899–1991), British Surrealist painter and photographer *Eileen Fisher (born 1950), clothing retailer and designer *Eileen ...
and Jerry Ford that she would sign on with them if they also took her younger sister, sight unseen. Eager to represent Dorian, they agreed. Expecting to meet a similarly petite, extremely thin, flawless, pale-faced, electric blue-eyed, raven-haired younger version of Dorian, they were shocked to meet Suzy for the first time. Parker was already 5'10", big-boned, and had carrot red hair, pale-green eyes, and freckles. She would become more famous than Dorian. Suzy Parker's photo appeared in ''
Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...
'' magazine when she was 15. That same year, one of her first magazine advertisements was for DeRosa Jewelry. Although she still lived with her parents in Florida, she stayed in New York City with Dorian when she had modeling assignments there. Dorian introduced Parker to her fashion-photographer friends,
Irving Penn Irving Penn (June 16, 1917October 7, 2009) was an American photographer known for his fashion photography, portraits, and still lifes. Penn's career included work at ''Vogue'' magazine, and independent advertising work for clients including Is ...
, Horst P. Horst, John Rawlings, and a young
Richard Avedon Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American fashion and portrait photographer. He worked for ''Harper's Bazaar'', ''Vogue'' and ''Elle'' specializing in capturing movement in still pictures of fashion, theater and danc ...
. Parker became Avedon's muse, she said years later that "The only joy I ever got out of modeling was working with Dick Avedon.""Model", by Michael Gross, 1980, p. 118 She became the so-called signature face of the
Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, c ...
brand. Chanel herself became a close confidante, giving Parker advice on men and money as well as creating numerous Chanel outfits for her. She was the first model to earn $200 per hour and $100,000 per year. ''
Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...
'' declared her one of the faces of the confident, post-war American woman. By 1955, she owed income taxes on her modeling income from previous years, amounting to more than $60,000 in back taxes and rapidly accumulating penalties, an enormous amount at the time. Jerry Ford paid her tax bill and found her assignments. She worked also non-stop for ''
Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...
'',
Revlon Revlon, Inc. is an American multinational company dealing in cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care. The headquarters of Revlon was established in New York City on March 1, 1932, where it still remains. Revlon was founded by brothe ...
, Hertz, Westinghouse,
Max Factor Max Factor is a line of cosmetics from Coty, Inc. It was founded in 1909 as Max Factor & Company by Max Factor, Sr., Maksymilian Faktorowicz. Max Factor specialized in movie make-up. Until its 1973 sale for US$500 million (approximately $ billio ...
, Bliss, DuPont, Simplicity, Smirnoff, and Ronson shavers, to name a few. She also was on the covers of about 70 magazines around the world, including ''Vogue'', ''
Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...
'', ''
Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...
'', '' Look'', ''
Redbook ''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the " Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publication as of January 2019 and now operates an article-comprise ...
'', ''
Paris Match ''Paris Match'' () is a French-language weekly news magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features. History and profile A sports news magazine, ''Match l'intran'' (a play on ''L'Intransigeant' ...
'' and ''
McCall's ''McCall's'' was a monthly American women's magazine, published by the McCall Corporation, that enjoyed great popularity through much of the 20th century, peaking at a readership of 8.4 million in the early 1960s. It was established as a small-f ...
''. After being introduced to, and taught photography by, war photographer
Robert Capa Robert Capa (born Endre Ernő Friedmann; October 22, 1913 – May 25, 1954) was a Hungarian-American war photographer and photojournalist as well as the companion and professional partner of photographer Gerda Taro. He is considered by some to ...
, Parker was briefly listed as a member of
Magnum Photos Magnum Photos is an international photographic cooperative owned by its photographer-members, with offices in New York City, Paris, London and Tokyo. It was founded in 1947 in Paris by photographers Robert Capa, David Seymour (photographer), Davi ...
. Her first film role was in '' Kiss Them for Me'' (1957), playing the main interest of
Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
's character. Soon after she accepted a cameo role in ''
Funny Face ''Funny Face'' is a 1957 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Stanley Donen and written by Leonard Gershe, containing assorted songs by George and Ira Gershwin. Although having the same title as the 1927 Broadway musical ''Funny F ...
'' (1957), on screen for two minutes in a musical number described as "Pink Number". Her other films include: ''
Ten North Frederick ''Ten North Frederick'' is a novel by John O'Hara, published by Random House in 1955. It tells the story of Joseph Chapin, an ambitious man who desires to become president of the United States, and his relationships with his patrician wife, tw ...
'' (1958), '' The Best of Everything'' (1959), ''
A Circle of Deception ''Circle of Deception'' is a 1960 CinemaScope British war film directed by Jack Lee and starring Bradford Dillman, Suzy Parker and Harry Andrews. Plot A Canadian officer is sent on a secret and dangerous mission during World War II. His sup ...
'' (1960 - during which she met future husband
Bradford Dillman Bradford Dillman (April 14, 1930 – January 16, 2018) was an American actor and author. Early life Bradford Dillman was born on April 14, 1930, in San Francisco, the son of Dean Dillman, a stockbroker, and Josephine (née Moore). Bradford's pa ...
), ''
Flight from Ashiya ''Flight from Ashiya'' (aka ''Ashiya Kara no hiko'') is a 1964 film about the U.S. Air Force's Air Rescue Service, flying from Ashiya Air Base, Japan. In this fictionalized American-Japanese co-production film set in the early 1960s, a flight ...
'' (1964) and '' Chamber of Horrors'' (1966). She also played dramatic roles in TV shows such as '' Burke's Law'' and ''
The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
'' plus appearances as herself on a number of quiz shows such as ''
I've Got a Secret ''I've Got a Secret'' is an American panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show, ''What's My Line ...
''. Parker's last role was in a 1970 episode of ''
Night Gallery ''Night Gallery'' is an American anthology television series that aired on NBC from December 16, 1970, to May 27, 1973, featuring stories of horror and the macabre. Rod Serling, who had gained fame from an earlier series, ''The Twilight Zone'', ...
''. She did, in a way, make one other film "appearance" in
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
' 1970 documentary film ''
Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album It may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...
'', in which the band performed their song "
Suzy Parker Suzy Parker (born Cecilia Ann Renee Parker; October 28, 1932 – May 3, 2003) was an American model and actress active from 1947 until 1970. Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s, when she appeared on the covers of dozens of ma ...
". The song, one of the few credited as written by all four Beatles, was part of their Academy Award-winning score for the
original songs Originality is the aspect of created or invented works that distinguish them from reproductions, clones, forgeries, or substantially derivative works. The modern idea of originality is according to some scholars tied to Romanticism, by a notion ...
they performed in the film.


Relationships and children

Parker was married three times. In 1950, she and her high-school sweetheart, Ronald Staton (some sources cite Charles), drove to Georgia to secretly marry. Parker said that she married him in a bikini with a raincoat on top, adding, "He was very good-looking, and it
he marriage He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
was just a sheer disaster." The young couple drove back to Florida where she was still living with her parents who were upset because of her age and because Ronald was part Cherokee. They moved to
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
and rented a house near where Dorian was living with her husband and children. Parker was already modeling in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
while Ronald was attending the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
as a freshman. Parker met journalist Pierre de la Salle (Pitou, born July 12, 1925) at a
Jacques Fath Jacques Fath (6 September 1912 in Maisons-Laffitte, France – 13 November 1954 in Paris, France) was a French fashion designer who was considered one of the three dominant influences on postwar haute couture, the others being Christian Dior and ...
party outside of Paris. She and Dorian were modeling together and separately on this trip. She returned to the United States and asked Ronald for a divorce, but he would only agree to a quick divorce if Parker gave him a large monetary settlement, paid for plastic surgery on his nose and paid for his acting lessons. She agreed, and their divorce was finalized in Mexico in 1953. Ronald was killed years later in an automobile accident. Parker and Pierre continued to date for years despite Pierre's numerous infidelities. She also was paying for his high cost-of-living expenses. They married about 1957 or 1958, but the couple kept it a secret. In 1958, Parker was a passenger in a car her father was driving when they were hit by an oncoming train. According to accident reports, neither of them heard or saw the train until it slammed into the car. Her father died of his injuries at the hospital. Parker was hospitalized, with broken bones and embedded glass (with her face untouched), under the name Mrs. Pierre de la Salle. The press jumped on this, but Pierre continued to deny that they were married. Soon thereafter, a photo spread of the couple appeared in the August 19, 1958, ''Look'' magazine cover story about her. Parker began psychotherapy to cope with her rocky second marriage and the death of her beloved father. After recovering from her injuries, Parker became pregnant and de la Salle left. She said, "He didn't want to be a father. I already hired a nanny... he was gone, history." She gave birth to their daughter Georgia Belle Florian Coco Chanel de la Salle in December 1959, whose godmother was close friend
Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, c ...
. Parker named her daughter after her older sisters Georgiabell and Florian and purposely left Dorian’s name off. Dorian and Parker feuded for many years, as Parker was fed up with Dorian’s promiscuous lifestyle and her not taking care of her children. A March 14, 1977, ''
People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...
'' magazine article featured Parker trying to launch her then 17-year-old daughter Georgia as a model. However, Georgia modeled only a few times during and after college. In 1960, Parker met actor
Bradford Dillman Bradford Dillman (April 14, 1930 – January 16, 2018) was an American actor and author. Early life Bradford Dillman was born on April 14, 1930, in San Francisco, the son of Dean Dillman, a stockbroker, and Josephine (née Moore). Bradford's pa ...
on the set of their 1960 movie, ''
A Circle of Deception ''Circle of Deception'' is a 1960 CinemaScope British war film directed by Jack Lee and starring Bradford Dillman, Suzy Parker and Harry Andrews. Plot A Canadian officer is sent on a secret and dangerous mission during World War II. His sup ...
''. She was still married to de la Salle but no longer living with him. Dillman was ending his first marriage and dating
Juliette Gréco Juliette Gréco (; 7 February 1927 – 23 September 2020) was a French singer and actress. Her best known songs are "Paris Canaille" (1962, originally sung by Léo Ferré), "La Javanaise" (1963, written by Serge Gainsbourg for Gréco) and "Désh ...
at the time. Parker obtained a divorce and married Bradford in 1963 on board a boat at sea. She changed her name to Suzy Parker Dillman following the marriage. After marrying Dillman in 1963, then receiving injuries in a car accident in 1964, Parker mostly retired from modeling and acted as a stepmother to Jeffrey and Pamela, Dillman's children from his first marriage. Parker enjoyed being a stay-at-home mother and, like her sister Dorian, who was a Cordon Bleu-level chef, Parker was an excellent cook. Parker had three children with Dillman: daughter Dinah and sons Charlie and Christopher. The family lived in
Bel Air, Los Angeles Bel Air (or Bel-Air) is a residential neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains. Founded in 1923, it is the home of the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden and the American Jewish Universit ...
, until Dinah was bitten by a rattlesnake in the yard and almost died. They then moved to Montecito in the Santa Barbara area, where Suzy remained until her death in 2003.


Later years and death

A self-described tomboy in her teens, Parker broke several bones as a result. Parker also broke bones in the 1958 car accident that killed her father. In 1964, she was nervously rehearsing for her famous appearance in the well-known ''
The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
'' episode "
Number 12 Looks Just Like You "Number 12 Looks Just Like You" is an episode of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone''. It is set in a dystopian future in which everyone, upon reaching adulthood, has their body surgically altered into one of a set of p ...
" when she was in another car accident. Parker long suffered from allergies, and in the 1990s, developed ulcers. During surgery for an ulcer, her vital signs disappeared on the operating table, but she was resuscitated. She never fully recovered and developed more ulcers and diabetes. She had multiple hip surgeries, and then her kidneys began to fail. She spent the last five years of her life in and out of the hospital. Parker decided to end dialysis treatments. She returned home and died at age 70 surrounded by family at her orchard in Montecito, California on May 3, 2003. Her husband Bradford Dillman died in 2018 at age 87."Chanel Girl Suzy Parker Dead at 69"
''CBS''. February 11, 2009.


Filmography


See also

*


References


External links

* * * *

at The Fashion Insider * ttp://www.life.com/image/first/in-gallery/51201/suzy-parker-original-supermodel Suzy Parker: Original Supermodel—slideshow by ''
Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...
'' magazine {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Suzy 1932 births 2003 deaths Actresses from New Jersey American female models American film actresses American television actresses Deaths from arthritis Deaths from diabetes People from San Antonio Actresses from San Antonio People from Highland Park, New Jersey Burials at Santa Barbara Cemetery 20th-century American actresses People from Long Island City, Queens 21st-century American women