Playmate of the Year

Background:

“I think a look is important only in live performances. Boys want to see a pretty girl in stead of an ugly girl.” Victoria Silvstedt

Swedish model and actress Victoria Silvstedt became famous after gracing the pages of Playboy magazine as Miss December 1996, and for being named the 1997 Playboy’s Playmate of the Year. Dropping the playmate stigma, the icy blue-eyed beauty created a reputation for herself as one of top models in the world with her high-profile gigs for Guess? Jeans in 1998. Silvstedt solidified her top model status by gracing on the covers of many mainstream magazines and representing numerous major brands as a product spokes model.

As for acting, Silvstedt has appeared in a number of movies, including The Independent (2000), Out Cold (2001, starred Jason London) and Boat Trip (2002, opposite Cuba Gooding Jr. and Roger Moore). After a three-year away from filmmaking, she is planned to make her return in 2007, with the British comedy Carry on London (2007).

As for her personal life, Silvstedt, whose measurements are 35 1/2-25-36 1/2, (90-60-93cm) (Vital Statistics in December 1996), is the wife of Chris Wragge. The couple recently threatened lawsuit against Sky News after images of Silvstedt supposedly working as a hooker went on the internet. Sky News must take away the page.


National Skier

Childhood and Family:

In a quiet village nearby the Arctic Circle, Skelleftea, Sweden, Karen Victoria Silverstedt was born on September 19, 1974. She was raised in a middle class family, along side an older sister and a younger brother. Before entering the world of modeling, young Victoria was a competitive skier and became the member of Swedish National Ski Team. However, a shoulder injury at age 16 abruptly ended her career. This tomboy teen then tried her luck in beauty pageants that opened her doors for a successful modeling career.

In June 2000, Victoria married the WCBS-TV Sports anchor Chris Wragge at Tuxedo Park Country Club in Tuxedo, New York. They currently reside in Manhattan, New York City, New York. Victoria enjoys horseback riding and downhill skiing.


Guess? Girl

Career:

Victoria Silverstedt began her professional career in sport before making an entrance tomodeling. She was a member of Swedish National Ski Team and reached number four in the Super-Giant Slalom, among her Olympic teammates. When she was 16, Silverstedt suffered a shoulder injury that subsequently finished her skiing career. A few years later, the Swedish beauty was discovered as a contestant in Miss Sweden Beauty Pageant and ended up in the first runner-up in 1993. Next up, she represented Sweden in the Miss World contest in South Africa and became a Top Eight finalist. Though she failed to crown the title of Miss World, Silverstedt’s graceful appearance won her a modeling agent who paved the way for a career in high fashion industry.

After the beauty contest, Silverstedt left her small village for Paris to launch a career in modeling. Standing at 5’10,” it was easy for the sensation to find works. She soon modeled for such top companies as Christian Dior, Loris Azzaro, Valentino, Giorgio Armani, Chanel and Givenchy. But, she did not receive a huge break until Huge Hefner of Play Boy approached her, and she became a centerfold in the December 1996 issue. A year later, Silverstedt gained even more attention for being Playboy’s Playmate of the Year.

With a newfound fame, Silverstedt easily scored a contact with Guess? Jeans and became their next spokes model for 1998, following in the footsteps of fellow models Shana Zadrick and Eva Herzigova. The prestigious gigs established Silverstedt as one of the world-class and high-fashion models. She has since been featured on countless covers and interviews/layouts for majority publications such as FHM, GQ, Maxim, and Gear. Her professionalism, beauty and class have also allowed her to lucratively represent numerous foremost brands as a product spokesperson including Nike, Radisson, Killian’s, Blockbuster, Renault and Coors.

The blonde beauty also segued into acting. She landed guest roles in TV series like “Sin City Spectacular,” “Unhappily Ever After” (1999), “Malibu, CA” (1999, as Inga) and “Melrose Place” (1999), and made her first film appearance in Beach Movie (1998), a comedy by director John Quinn.

Continuing acting, Silverstedt took on small roles in the comedy film The Independent (2000), the Danny Huston and Peter Weller starring vehicle Ivansxtc (2000), Naken (2000), She Said I Love You (2001), Out Cold (2001, starred Jason London) and the Mort Nathan-helmed Boat Trip (2002), a comedy starring Cuba Gooding Jr. and Roger Moore. On the small screen, she made guest appearance in one episode of “Black Scorpion” and had a two episodic role in “Son of the Beach” (2000-01). She also made her TV movie debut in Maresciallo in gondola, Un (2002).

In 2003, Silverstedt joined the cast of the 2002 drama series “Ocean Ave,” playing the recurring role of Detective Johanna Marsden, and starred opposite director/actor Massimo Ceccherini in Italian production Mia vita a stelle e strisce, La. She is scheduled to star opposite Vinnie Jones and Shane Richie in the upcoming comedy Carry on London, which is slated for a 2007 release.


Awards:
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