Elle Macpherson Biography

NAME: Elle Macpherson

OCCUPATION: Model

BIRTH DATE: March 29, 1964 

EDUCATION: Sydney University

PLACE OF BIRTH: Sidney, Australia

Model, actress. Born Eleanor Nancy Gow on March 29, 1964 in Sydney, Australia. Nicknamed "The Body," the six-foot-tall Macpherson is one of a handful of figures credited with putting the "super" in the word "supermodel."

Even prior to her ascendancy to modeling fame, Macpherson was no stranger to the high life. After her parents divorced in her early teens, her mother remarried multimillionaire Neil Macpherson, the owner of a chain of stereo equipment stores.

Like so many of her contemporaries, Sports Illustrated??s swimsuit edition was her springboard to public fame. The powerful, athletic Macpherson graced four SI covers (1986-1988, 1994) . In addition to appearances in the mainstay publications of the modeling world, Macpherson parleyed her SI success into contracts with Victoria's Secret and Playboy. For her work in the latter, she netted a whopping $25,000 per page. The spread was ten pages long.

But by the mid-1990s, she turned her attention to acting. She appeared in several films, including ‘Sirens’ (1995), ‘Batman and Robin’ (1997) and most recently ‘A Girl Thing’ (2001), a miniseries for the Showtime Network. She also appeared in a series of episodes of the hit TV sitcom ‘Friends’. Critical response to her dramatic attempts was at best mixed, and at worst, unflattering.

Macpherson also experienced mixed success in the business arena. Her personal line of lingerie, Elle Macpherson Intimates, is the top selling brand in Australia. However, her partnership with fellow supermodels Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell in the creation of the Fashion Café was less fruitful. The troubled restaurant venture went into receivership in 2000.

Building on her business successes with Intimates, Elle also released her own range of beauty products ‘Elle Macpherson – The Body’ in 2005, which sparked an appearance on the BBC’s 'The Money Programme', following her in her day-to-day life running a business.