|
The following biography
is from
Wikipedia.org
“The
Free Encyclopedia.”
Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965 in
Basingstoke, Hampshire, England) is a British actress, fashion model, producer
and designer.
****
Biography
Early life
Hurley's father, who was of Irish Catholic
descent,[1] was an army major, while her mother was a schoolteacher. She has an
older sister, Katie, and a younger brother, Michael. Hurley took ballet classes
as a child and at the age of twelve, received a scholarship at a boarding
school, although she was subsequently expelled for poor grades. [citation
needed] She then moved to the Harriet Costello School. Hurley later attended the
London Studio Centre and Basingstoke College of Technology.
Career
In the late 1980s, Hurley won a "Face of the Year"
competition at a local newspaper in Winchester, England, and gained a year's
modelling contract with a prestigious London firm as the first prize.[2] Hurley
also launched an acting career, appearing in several low budget English and
Hollywood films, including the 1992 thriller Passenger 57 in which Hurley played
a terrorist. She also appeared on television on both sides of the Atlantic,
appearing in the British series Rumpole of the Bailey and the George
Lucas-produced The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
In 1994 Hurley attended the London première of the
film Four Weddings and a Funeral starring her then-companion Hugh Grant.
Hurley's appearance in a black Versace dress held together with gold safety pins
gained her considerable media attention. It has often been referred to simply as
"that dress" and, following Versace's murder in 1997, the London Times' obituary
cited it as the thing for which the subject was best known. In 1995 Hurley began
working with top cosmetics company Estée Lauder as their main spokesmodel.
Within her first month with the company Hurley launched the best-selling perfume
Pleasures. In 1997 Hurley was cast as the female lead in the hit Mike Myers spy
comedy Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. After the success of that
film Hurley appeared in several more high-profile films, including EdTV,
Bedazzled and 2002's Serving Sara, which was her last major American film to
date. In 2006 Hurley's contract with Estée Lauder was renewed for the 12th year
with a subsequent contract extension.
Hurley and Grant also joined forces to create
Simian Films, a production company. Through this joint venture Hurley produced
two films starring Grant, Extreme Measures (1996) and Mickey Blue Eyes (1999).
She also produced the 2004 film Method in which she starred. In 2006 the company
was dissolved as both Hurley and Grant focused on other projects.
In 2005 Hurley's beachwear line Elizabeth Hurley
Beach debuted in select Saks Fifth Avenue stores in the United States, Harrod's
in the UK, various other locations worldwide and through her website. In 2006,
the line expanded its distribution among Europe, the Middle East, Australia and
Asia. Additionally, Hurley hosted the first season of the British reality series
Project Catwalk featuring novice fashion designers.
Personal life
Hurley had a long relationship with Hugh Grant,
spanning from 1987-2001. After their relationship ended, Hurley began a
relationship with multi-millionaire American film producer Stephen Bing. In 2001
Hurley revealed that she was pregnant with Bing's child, a claim Bing rejected.
On April 4, 2002 Hurley gave birth to a son, christened Damian Charles Hurley. A
DNA test conducted 4 months after the child's birth vindicated Hurley as Bing
was proven to be the father.
Damian was baptised a Roman Catholic, although
Hurley herself has not yet been received into the Roman Catholic church despite
publicly contemplating it for a number of years. Since 2003 Hurley's companion
has been Indian textile heir Arun Nayar.
She maintains three homes: in London; in Ampney
Crucis, a village in Gloucestershire, England; and in Beverly Hills, California.
Charity work
Since she was initially signed with Estée Lauder,
Hurley has taken an active role within the company's breast cancer charity.
Hurley revealed that her grandmother died from breast cancer because she refused
to reveal the lump that she discovered for a number of years. By the time that
it was revealed, it was too late to save her life. Hurley was the Mistress of
Ceremonies at The Hot Pink Party, at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City,
to mark the tenth anniversary of The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.[3]
Additionally, Estée Lauder created a lipstick named "Elizabeth Pink" after
Hurley, the proceeds of the sale of every tube of "Elizabeth Pink" benefit The
Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
Hurley has also acted as mistress of ceremonies for
The Prince's Trust, a charity founded by Prince Charles which aids youth in
Britain.
Filmography
Method (2004) .... Rebecca Fairbanks
Serving Sara (2002) .... Sara Moore
Bad Boy (2002) .... Anna Lockheart
Double Whammy (2001) .... Dr. Ann Beamer
Bedazzled (2000) .... The Devil
The Weight of Water (2000) .... Adaline Gunne
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) ....
Vanessa Kensington
Edtv (1999) .... Jill
My Favorite Martian (1999) .... Brace Channing
Permanent Midnight (1998) .... Sandra
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)
.... Vanessa Kensington
Dangerous Ground (1997) .... Karen
Samson and Delilah (1996) (TV) .... Dalilah
Harrison: Cry of the City (1996) (TV) .... Cecilia
Harrison
Mad Dogs and Englishmen (1995) .... Antonia Dyer
The Shamrock Conspiracy (1995) (TV) .... Cecilia
Harrison
Sharpe's Enemy (1994) (TV) .... Lady Isabella
Farthingdale
Beyond Bedlam (1993) .... Stephanie Lyell
Passenger 57 (1992) .... Sabrina Ritchie
The Long Winter (1992) .... Emma Stapleton
The Orchid House (1991) (TV) .... Natalie
Kill Cruise (1990) .... Lou
Death Has a Bad Reputation (1990) (TV) .... Julia
Latham
Act of Will (1989) (TV) .... Christina
Christabel (1988) (TV) .... Christabel Bielenberg
Rowing with the Wind (1988) .... Claire Clairmont
Aria (1987) .... Marietta
Modeling Campaigns
Estée Lauder, 1995-present.
Elizabeth Hurley Beach, 2005-present.
Jordache, Fall/Winter 2006.
MQ Clothiers of Sweden, 2006.
Got Milk?, Spring/Summer 2006.
Patrick Cox, Spring/Summer 2006.
Lancel, 2005-2006.
Liverpool Department Stores of Mexico, 2005.
Saloni, 2004-2005.
****
The
above biography has been copied in part or in whole
from an article on
Wikipedia.org
"The Free Encyclopedia." It has been modified under
the GNU Free Document License Section 5 in the
following manner: (1) All links within the article
have been removed, including text links such as
"[#]"; (2) The "[Edit]" text and link have been
removed [if you would like to update the article,
you may do so from the original page]; (3) the table
of Contents links and text have been removed; and
(4) all of the sections of the original article have
not been copied. All of the above text is available
under the terms of the
GNU Free Document License.
URL of Original Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Hurley
Date Article Copied:
September 2006
We
will try to replace this article with an original
biography in the near future, but we hope this will
be of help to our visitors in the mean time. |
