The nickname “The Body” was given to Australian model, actress, television host, and businesswoman Elle Macpherson because of her extraordinary height and toned physique. She has been a successful supermodel for many years, but her most well-known accomplishment is her record five cover appearances in the “Sports Illustrated Swimsuit” issue, which began in 1986. She appeared on the covers of numerous well-known publications, including Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Cosmopolitan, New York, and British and Australian Vogue. She appeared in advertisements for Revlon, Christian Dior, and Omega in addition to walking the ramp for well-known brands including Perry Ellis, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Louis Vuitton. She founded several companies and served as its creative director and principal model. Notable examples of her work include the skin care brand “Elle Macpherson – The Body” and the well-known lingerie line “Elle Macpherson Intimates.” She continued to serve as host and executive producer of “Britain & Ireland’s Next Top Model” and is currently an executive producer of the reality TV program “Fashion Star” in the United States. Her acting career includes supporting parts in movies like “Batman and Robin” and “The Mirror Has Two Faces,” in addition to starring roles in the movies “South Kensington” and “The Edge.”
Early Life & Childhood
On March 29, 1964, in Killara, New South Wales, Australia, Elle Macpherson was born Eleanor Nancy Gow to Peter and Frances Gow.
Her mother worked as a nurse, while her father was an entrepreneur and sound engineer who served as president of the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, an Australian rugby league franchise. She moved home with her mother and her two siblings when her parents split when she was ten years old.
Remarried to multimillionaire Neil Macpherson was her mother. She took on their stepfather’s last name, as did her younger sister Miriam Frances Gow, who is now well-known for her work as an environmentalist. She has a brother named Brendon and another sister named Elizabeth.
East Lindfield is where she was raised. She finished her studies at Killara High School in 1981, earning her Higher School Certificate. She spent a year at the University of Sydney studying law.
Career of Elle Macpherson
Before enrolling at the University of Sydney, she traveled to the US for a year to pursue modeling in order to earn money for her legal books. She traveled to New York City and quickly inked a deal with “Click Model Management.”
She debuted as a model in a 1982 TV spot for “The Coca-Cola Company,” which produced the diet cola soft drink “Tab.” In her own country, the well-known ad helped her establish a reputation as the “girl next door.”
Throughout the remainder of the 1980s, she was featured on the covers of several high-profile magazines, including Elle, Time, Harper’s Bazaar, New York, Marie Claire, Australia, and the United Kingdom’s Vogue. For six years in a row, she appeared in every issue of the latter and was featured on numerous of its covers.
She eventually became part of the new generation of supermodels, which also included Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista, Pavlína Pořízková, Cindy Crawford, and Tatjana Patitz.
Her early modeling success led to her being named the long-term face of the upscale French skin care brand “Biotherm” in 1985.
Her growing modeling career gained even more momentum in 1986 when she was included in the Swimsuit Issue of American “Sports Illustrated” magazine. Her five appearances on the cover of Swimsuit Issue in 1986, 1987, 1988, 1994, and 2006 set a record.
She was dubbed Elle “The Body” Macpherson by “Time Magazine” in 1989 after she appeared on its cover. Later on, she frequently pursued commercial ventures under this identity.
During her prosperous modeling career, she walked the catwalk for upcoming luxury brands, fashion designers, and fashion houses like Christian Dior, Donna Karan, Valentino, Ralph Lauren, and Louis Vuitton. Additionally, she has posed for a number of renowned fashion photographers, including Francesco Scavullo, Steven Meisel, Bob Carlos Clarke, and Ellen von Unwerth.
Bubbly with a successful modeling career, Macpherson ventured into movies, landing a role as a model in the December 25, 1990, American romantic fantasy “Alice” directed by Woody Allen.
In 1990, she collaborated with Bendon Limited Apparel to establish her lingerie line, “Elle Macpherson Intimates,” as part of her entrepreneurial endeavors. Over time, it achieved global recognition and became the most popular lingerie brand in both Australia and the United Kingdom.
Macpherson’s other commercial endeavors include Elle Macpherson Inc. and her own brand of cosmetic products, “Elle Macpherson – The Body.”
She appeared nude in the popular 1994 movie “Sirens,” which sparked such a media frenzy that her ex-boyfriends were asked to appear in more of these photos. She later posed in the nude for “Playboy” in order to release these images “on her own terms” in the magazine’s May 1994 issue.
She collaborated with well-known actors on numerous other movies in the years that followed. These included “The Mirror Has Two Face” (1996) starring Barbra Streisand, “If Lucy Fell” (1996) starring Sarah Jessica Parker, and “Batman & Robin” (1997) starring George Clooney. She also starred in major motion pictures with Anthony Hopkins in “The Edge” (1997) and Rupert Everett and Sienna Miller in “South Kensington” (2001).
Her television endeavors include roles in the 2001 film A Girl Thing, the TV series Friends (1999–2000) and The Beautiful Life: TBL (2009), Saturday Night Live (1996), America’s Next Top Model (2008, 2016), and hosting shows Britain & Ireland’s Next Top Model (2010–2013) and Fashion Star (2012–2013). She oversees the latter as an executive producer as well.
Her visage appeared on multiple postage stamps issued by the twin island nation of Antigua and Barbuda in 1999, making her the first model to appear on legal cash.
She and other Australian luminaries were included at the closing ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics. She was also given the opportunity to serve as an unofficial ambassador for the Australian government’s tourism commission.
She co-hosted the Miss Universe 2001 pageant alongside English model Naomi Campbell, which took place in Puerto Rico on May 11, 2001.
She received the Style Icon award at the Elle Style Awards in 2006.
March 2008 saw her sign a three-year contract with Revlon Cosmetics, at which point she was designated Global Brand Ambassador. Since then, she has appeared in multiple print and advertising campaigns for the business.
She has appeared in numerous advertisements over the years, including ones for Victoria’s Secret, H&M, Omega, Christian Dior, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, Garuda Airlines, KFC, Chrysler, and Diet Coke.
Individual Life and Heritage
She was romantically involved with Billy Joel at the beginning of the 1980s. She first encountered Gilles Bensimon, the creative director of Elle magazine and a French fashion photographer, in 1984. The two got hitched in May 1986, but three years later they got divorced.
From 1996 to July 2005, she was romantically involved with French banker Arpad Busson, who resided in London. Arpad Flynn Busson was born in February 1998, and Aurelius Cy Andrea Busson was born in February 2003. Together, they have two sons.
She began dating Miami, Florida-based businessman and hotel heir Jeffrey Soffer at the beginning of 2009. They had a brief breakup before becoming engaged in March 2013 and getting married in July of the same year. The pair declared their intention to file for divorce in 2017.
In addition to being a patron of the National Association for the Children of Alcoholics, she is an ambassador for “RED” in Europe, “UNICEF,” and the Smile Foundation in Australia.
Net worth of Elle Macpherson
The estimated net worth of Elle Macpherson is about $3 million.