Elle MacPherson Biography

Considered a serious contender for the title of world's great supermodel, Elle MacPherson has also appeared in film and on television. One of People's Fifty Most Beautiful People, this six-foot beauty is well-loved by the citizens of her native Australia, and is the only living entertainer to have been featured on the country's postage.Elle MacPherson was born on March 29, 1963, in New South Wales, Australia. With her stunning looks, Elle was discovered at the age of eighteen while vacationing in Tasmania, Australia. After being signed by Click Model Management, she quickly gained international exposure and recognition through six years of appearances in ELLE Magazine. MacPherson has appeared on the cover of the Sports Illustrated annual swimsuit edition an unprecedented four times. In 1986, she was featured in one of the most well-known publications in the world - Time Magazine. Her remarkable beauty has graced the cover of Playboy and GQ, and by 1997 MacPherson was estimated to be worth forty million dollars, making her one of the world's wealthiest super-models.Knowing that modeling would not last forever, she began to showcase her talents in other venues in the mid 1990s. Her 1994 role in the dramatic comedy Sirens, which also starred Hugh Grant, saw her gaining twenty pounds to be more representative of the typical model of the film's time period. MacPherson appeared nude several times in the film, a move that shocked some, but one with which she had no moral objections. She appeared in Jane Eyre, and had a leading role in the 1996 romantic comedy If Lucy Fell, which also featured Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker and the prolific comedic actor Ben Stiller. MacPherson's most recent film appearance was in the 2001 film South Kensington. Elle had a five episode stint on the prime time hit series Friends where she played Janine Lecroix, Joey's roommate and girlfriend. Among her successful business ventures was the Fashion Caf Restaurant. Her business partners included fellow super-models Claudia Schiffer, Christy Turlington, and the notoriously violent-tempered Naomi Campbell. Presently she is the owner of her signature lingerie brand: Elle MacPherson Intimates.Elle married Gilles Bensimon, a photographer and creative manger of ELLE magazine, in 1985. She entered into the union at twenty-one, and the marriage lasted only a few short years, ending in divorce in 1989. Her next relationship was with Arpad Busson, an extremely wealthy financier whose worth is estimated at a staggering one hundred million dollars. During their relationship, Elle gave birth to two sons, Arpad Flynn Alexander Busson and Aurelius Cy Andrea Busson. After they had been together for six years, the couple finally announced their engagement in 2002. They separated in 2005 before the wedding took place, but recent tabloid stories have indicated that as recently as February of 2006 the couple has been spotted together and may be planning to reconcile.

• AskMen.com - Elle Macpherson