14 - Sunday, Nov. 1, 1992 - North Shore News

Carol
Crenna

FASHION STATEMENTS

Many home-grown beauty
queens have ventured to New
York to get their piece of the Big
Apple pie, and, if they have what
it takes they are adopted by one
of the agencies currently vying for
the international spotlight.

Though modelling in Manhattan
has grown substantially, becoming
a highly competitive and specializ-
ed industry which encompasses
dozens of agencies, the name syn-
onymous with both runway and
photography modelling is still
Eileen Ford.

It was Ford's agency which pi-
oneered the field over 45 years
ago, and it is now Ford Models
Inc. which has seven separate

divisions with offices throughout -

the world. Ford introde ced hun-
dreds of familiar faces to the
world including Ali McGraw,
Candice Bergen, Brooke Shields,
Cybil Sheppard, Lauren Hutton
and Elsa Martinelli.

In an interview with Eileen Ford
at her agency on East 59th Strect
in Manhattan, she gives an inside
look at modelling in the ’90s, and
at herself as a powerful leader in
the industry.

Eileen Ford admits to being a
fairy godmother.

She remembers an article in Life
magazine many years ago which
described her as ‘‘The God-
mother’’ and reported, ‘‘She takes
sugar wnd spice and everything
nice anc. turns it into cold, hard
cash.” Yhe name stuck, though
Ford definitely prefers the image
of a fairy godmother who takes
each Cinderella and turns her into
a fairy-tale beauty.

She contests, ‘‘It is more inter-
esting to me to have made an im-
pact on young people’s lives for
the good. I not only make for-
tunes for myself, | make fortunes
for them, too. And, they have a
good life with Ford.”

It is mo secret that Ford
cherishes her models like daugh-
ters, and like good investments.
When they arrive at her door, she
takes them in and gives them a
home. She feeds them, grooms
them and nurtures them until long
after they have become stars.

During the interview with me,
she simultaneously signs a birth-
day card to be given to one
model, takes a call from another,
speaking in fluent French, then
organizes a rescue for another
who is trapped on Staten Island
with a car that broke down.

She manages to keep her mind
on the topic of Canadian models
in New York and recalls a lavish
wedding which she attended for
one of her models outside Toron-
to.

She adds, *‘! sometimes play
mother to them, but I have been
doing that for a lot of years. J

FASHION

Role mode

NEW YORK ~ The overwhelming success of Calgary-
born modelling phenomenon Linda Evangelista has given
Canadian models new incentive to reach for the top.

genuinely like the girls that ! work
with, and they sometimes seem
like daughters.’’

She still interviews and chooses
each model personally in her
photography division, and often
travels herself on ‘‘girl-hunts’’ to
see potential models in other
countries. She calls all of her
models ‘‘girls,’’ whether they are
14 or 40.

What does a Ford model look
like?

The ideal look of a woman in
the ‘90s does not differ greatly
from the ideal of the '80s when it
comes to beauty. The basics of
good bone structure, healthy hair
and teeth, a clean complexion and
a slim, fit body will never change.

Ford states that number one on
the list of prerequisites is height,
with an ideal of 5°10°' though
5°g"'
cepted into the agency. Ford also
requires a model to have a long
neck, but hair and eye color is not
important.

Legs are very important, and
must be long, slender and well
shaped. She concludes, however,
by saying that she relies on her in-
stincts now ta determine which
model she will accept.

Trends in style and personality
are more obvious than physical
features in modelling. Ford ex-
plains, ‘‘The more things change,
the more nothing changes. Right

heights are someiimes ac--

now models are becoming elegant -

again. This is in tune with the new
emphasis on older, sophisticated
models.

‘They are no longer free-
spirited '60s hippies, and in the
next few years you won't even
remember what it was for models
to strut down the runway wiggling
their bottoms or having portions
of the breast revealed.”’

Eileen Ford offers some advice
to aspiring models. ‘‘Facing the
physical facts. If you don’t quali-
fy, meeting the criteria that 1 just
stated, then put it out of your
head. A clear complexion is im-
portant, but poor skin can be cor-
rected by a dermatologist, and
good skin is largely a matter of
good health, which means a pro-
per diet.

“An overly toned physique is not
the look of the ’90s, says Ford
who adds that the very feminine
1940’s image is here to stay for a
while. But she admits, ‘Models
have been exercising at gyms to
stay fit ever since I started in the
business in 1948.””

She confirms that Canadian
models have as much of a chance
to become glamor goddesses as
potential American models.

“‘They are so beautiful, and
now there are sO many of them
who do have the magic that is
cover material. We are in Canada

CANADIAN MODEL Lorca
works in Paris and New York.

Photos submitted

“THE GODMOTHER" of fashion modelling, Eileen Ford, takes each Cinderella and turns her into a

tairy-tale beauty.

scouting all the time, though
Western Canada is a bigger plane
ticket, and therefore we aren’t
there as often.’’

Ford states, “We have some
very big-time Canadian models.
Monika Schnarre of Scarborough,
Ontario is with us. She won Super
Model at 14 years old. We also
have Shalom from Toronto, Kim
Renneberg from Calgary, Lana
Ogilvie from Toronto and Lorca
from Halifax.

They live with us here, and with
Katie Ford in Paris. They are
young superstars. They are not
Linda Evangelista yet, but at 16
and 17 years old, they are much
younger.’’

If you care to
statistics to those who have al-
ready joined the ranks of her
prestigious establishment, here is a
very definitive description of each,
® Monika Schnarre is 6'1’’ with
light brown long hair and blue
eyes. She has a bust measurement
of 36’, waist is 26’ and hips are
37”, She wears a size 8 to 10 and
a shoe size of 10.

» Kim Renneberg is 5°9’', with
long light brown hair and blue
eyes. Her measurements are 33-

compare your

24-35. She wears a size 6 to 8 and
a shoe size of 7.

Lana Ogiivie is 5°10’ with
black hair, dark olive skin and
hazel eyes. Her measurements are
34-26-36. She wears a size 8 to
10.

Lorca is 5°10°’ with long light
brown hair and light brown eyes.
Her measurements are 32-24-35.
She wears a size 8.

Ford expresses concern over the
young ages of scme models. ‘‘Our
models usually start when they are
about 16. But then again, I had
Brooke Shields in the agency from
the age of 12.

**There is a very great danger in
mothers pushing their daughters
to become models too young,
however. They tend to be under-
educated, and I don’t believe in
that because in the end of your
modelling life, when your real life
begins, it is very important to be
well-educated because it opens
windows and doors for you.

**Someone asked me once which
book I had read that had the
greatest impact on my life, and I
replied that it wasn’t one book, it
was many which I've been reading
since childhood.*”

re

When asked whether it was true
that ‘‘stage mothers’? are often
behind their young daughters’
modelling careers, Ford confirms
that there are many.

She confides that one of her
agents was reccntly taking a young
girl from Texas to clients and they
all refused her because she is too
young.

In a worried tone, she remarks,
“*I don’t know what I’m going to
tell her mother. It might be inter-
esting. This one is a real tiger.”’

Ford continues, ‘‘Brooke
Shields’ mother was very suppor-
tive. She wasn't pushy at all. Terri
was a very reasonable woman,
and many are very professional,
but some of them are something
else.

“They live through the child.
But now maybe it’s going to be
the mothers that we want, not the
children!’’

It depends on the girl whether
she continues her education when
she joins the agency. Ford does
not interfere with the model’s ca-
reer plans, and proudly reports
that some of her girls get to medi-

See Ford page 16