SUZY PARKERSuzy Parker, an American actress and supermodel whose bone structure, slim figure and striking red hair helped her to stand out in the world of fashion and beauty, died on May 3, 2003.She was one of the most recognizable faces of the 1950s. Christian Dior described her as "the most beautiful woman in the world" while photographer Milton H. Greene said her beauty "defined elegance".As fashion photographer Richard Avedon said: "Suzy Parker gave emotion and reality to the history of fashion photography. She invented the form and no one has surpassed her."Originally named Cecilia Ann Renee, Ms Parker was born in Long Island City, New York, on 28 October, 1933. She was the daughter of inventor George Parker who doted on her and nicknamed her Suzy.Her family moved when she was young and she was raised in San Antonio, Texas. It was when she was 14 that her elder sister Dorian Leigh, herself a supermodel in the 1940s, introduced her to the agent Eileen Ford. Even though Ford was originally worried that she was too tall to succeed in modelling, she later described her as "the most beautiful creature you can imagine, she was everybody’s everything".It was the beginning of a successful career. Ms Parker became known as the ‘signature face’ of Coco Chanel. She was the first ever model to earn $100,000 a year. Later Vogue honoured her by naming her one of the people who symbolised confident, post-war American women. Despite all the attention, Ms Parker remained modest and self deprecating. She described herself as an "animated clothes hanger."In the early 1950s she changed profession to become a fashion photographer herself. She studied in Paris with Henri Cartier-Bresson and later worked for the French version of Vogue. In 1958 her father was killed in a car crash. Even though Ms Parker was involved and sustained life threatening injuries she made a full recovery without any visible scars.She made her acting debut in the 1957 film Funny Face. Her other film credits include 1957’s Kiss Them for Me with Cary Grant, 1959’s Ten North Frederick with Gary Cooper. It was on 1960’s Circle of Deception that she met her future husband Bradford Dillman.Although her acting talents were not always well regarded by critics, as a person she was considered to be entertaining and funny with a deep intellect. She was also renowned for her free spirit and carefree attitude to life.She married three times: her first marriage was to her high school boyfriend Charles Staton. She married her second husband, the French writer Pierre de la Salle, in 1958 but the marriage only lasted three years and they divorced in 1961. In 1963 she married for the final time to actor Bradford Dillman, changing her name to Suzy Parker Dillman.In 1968 they moved to Montecito in California to escape the celebrity life. It was here they raised their family together. They had six children; Miss Parker’s daughter Georgia from her marriage to de la Salle, two children from Mr Dillman’s previous relationship and the three children they had together; Dinah, Charles and Christopher.Ms Parker died at the age of 69 following a long history of ill health and medical problems that included respiratory problems, diabetes and hip surgery.
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