At the age of 17, Anna (then Vicki) married Billy Smith, and that same year, they welcomed their son Daniel into the world. Time with Billy was short-lived and young Anna was left to care for her son alone.

In order to pay the bills, she began working at topless bars in Houston, where she was actually more noticed for her rear than for her breasts (she did not yet have the breasts that she's famous for today). But since she was not as rail-thin as the rest of the dancers, Anna didn't work the coveted hours of topless clubs and was instead scheduled during the afternoon shift.

Regardless, Anna (who then used several pseudonyms such as Nikki and Robin, before finally sticking to Anna Nicole) was discovered by a photographer, and quickly realized that she could use her body as a career tool. Since her childhood dream was to become the next Marilyn Monroe (her idol), Anna was inspired to make a name for herself.

anna nicole gets plastic surgery

After a breast enlargement (Anna insisted on having two implants inserted into each breast) and some cosmetic surgery, Anna was ready for the big time, and ironically, headed in the same direction as Marilyn Monroe. She entered the Play..boy Cover Contest, and appeared on the cover of the magazine at the age of 24. Two years later, Anna was crowned 1993's Play..mate of the Year, which, although is an honor in itself, led Anna to bigger and better things.

Thanks to her Play..boy appearance, Guess? president Paul Marciano, also responsible for the modeling careers of Eva Herzigova, Josie Maran and Shana Zadrick, saw Anna's potential and cast her as a Guess? model.

She made her big screen debut in the 1994 slapstick comedy, Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult, followed by an appearance in The Hudsucker Proxy, starring Tim Robbins.

anna nicole marries j. howard marshall

If audiences didn't catch Anna in these films, they surely heard of her questionable marriage to oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II -- 60 years her senior -- on the 27th of June 1994. Anna remained low-profile with her wheelchair-bound husband, until Marshall's death in 1995.

In 1996, the former Play..mate filed for bankruptcy, after a former female assistant sued her for sexual harassment (she would have had to pay $850,000 US).

anna nicole inherits $450 million

Although Marshall had left Anna with an inheritance, his heirs claimed that she could not receive what he left her, accusing her of mistreating him in his last few days and not marrying him for the right reasons. She was not mentioned in any of his wills, but claimed that he offered her half of his money, to speed up her decision to marry him. After a bitter court battle between Anna and Marshall's son, E. Pierce Marshall, Anna was rewarded $450 million in 2000.

anna nicole does reality tv

On August 4th, 2002, the E! channel began airing its first season of The Anna Nicole Show. Although Anna had gained a considerable amount of weight, viewers tuned in to watch Anna make a fool of herself week after week.

Before the second season started, producers of the show demanded that Anna drop some weight before shooting began, and with the help of TrimSpa, a supplement that claims to block fat from entering the body, Anna has trimmed down significantly and reportedly lost 80 pounds.