The story of the model and actress Paulina Porizkova is one of those that shrinks the heart of those who listen to it. Born on April 5, 1965 in Czechoslovakia, she experienced firsthand the invasion of the Warsaw Pact in 1968. An event that would end up marking her personal and professional life. Currently, at 58 years old, she has become an icon in defense of gray hair and the beauty of the female body at any age. After a long professional career, the actress continues to work as a model and has even participated in some television shows.
From a very young age, she assured that the most formative and important person in her life was her grandmother. Something that does not seem unreasonable, since her parents left her with her at the age of two and fled to Sweden, after the invasion agreed upon in the Warsaw Pact, around 1968. Going back for her daughter ended up being an odyssey . Paulina’s return was not as easy as expected: the communist government turned her into a symbol of her and the Swedish press had her as an icon. She herself also did not want to leave with whom she no longer considered her parents.
Her mother was imprisoned after trying to rescue her, and after seven years of fighting, thanks to an intervention by Olof Palme, Prime Minister of Sweden, the Porizkovas reunited. However, the life of this little girl, who would one day become a renowned model and actress, had already changed radically. At 19, she moved to the United States and fell in love with Rick Ocasek, the singer of The Cars. It was during the filming of the Drive video clip. Her “exotic and wild” beauty led the casting director to opt for her.
When they met, Paulina had already been on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit special. Ric Ocasek was married at the time, but he fell madly in love with that attractive young woman he met. They were married in 1989, and although the relationship would end in 2018, at which time Ocasek was seriously ill with his heart, Paulina decided to stay with him and take care of him until the end of his days. Finally, the producer died in September 2019.
Regarding her professional career, months before getting married, in 1989, she signed the highest-paid contract in the world of fashion with the cosmetic brand Estee Lauder, valued at six million dollars. She was also on the cover of renowned magazines such as Vogue, Elle or Harper’s Bazaar, and starred in advertising campaigns for brands such as Chanel, Christian Dior, Versace or Revlon.
During his long professional career, he also made his first steps on both the small and the big screen. Her greatest film success was starring alongside Tom Selleck in the film Her Alibi (1989). She also appeared alongside Thomas Jane in the film Thursday (1998). On television, Porizkova was a judge on seasons 10, 11 and 12 of the reality show America’s Next Top Model. In addition, she also made a brief appearance in the sixth season of the Desperate Housewives series, playing herself. In this way, she demonstrated that she was capable of adapting to different professional challenges.
In the last decade, and despite the fact that she recently turned 58, Porizkova not only has not stopped photo shoots, nor her professional career, but has seen her work intensify by being one of the best models over fifty. valued. Paulina is today a feminist reference who champions gray hair and the beauty of the female body at any age. In addition, she has a large presence on social networks, and she is always willing to defend these values ​​in front of her more than a million followers.
