Christie Brinkley life and biography

Christie Brinkley is an American model best known for her three consecutive appearances on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in the late 1970s and early 1980s, for her long-running contract with CoverGirl, the longest ever of any model in history and for her marriage to musician Billy Joel.

Brinkley has also worked as an actress, illustrator, photographer, writer, and designer, and as an activist for human and animals rights and the environment.

Career Highlights:

1972: Enrolls in art school in Paris
1973: Marries artist Jean-Francois Allaux
1976: Signs contract with CoverGirl, beginning a twenty-year partnership
1977: Appears on the cover of Glamour
1979:
- Appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit edition
- Appears on the cover of Glamour
1980: Appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit edition
1981:
- Divorces artist Jean-Francois Allaux
- Appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit edition for the third consecutive year
1982:
- Meets Olivier Chandon de Brailles, heir to the Moët-Chandon Champagne fortune, at Studio 54
- Appears on the cover of Life
1983:
- Releases book, Christie Brinkley’s Outdoor Fitness and Beauty Book
- Appears in the video for Billy Joel’s "Uptown Girl" (the song is inspired by her) Video»
- Brailles dies in an auto-racing accident (2 MAR)
- Appears on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar
- Appears on the cover of Rolling Stone with Michael Ives
- Makes her national acting debut in National Lampoon’s Vacation (29 JUL)
- Appears on the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine
- Appears on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar
1984:
- Appears on the cover of Playboy
- Appears on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar
- Marries Billy Joel (23 MAR)
1986:
- Appears on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar
- Has daughter Alexa Ray with Joel (25 DEC)
1992:
- Hosts CNN’s Living in the Nineties with Christie Brinkley
1993:
- Paints the cover of Billy Joel’s highly successful album River of Dreams; Rolling Stone names it cover of the year
1994:
- Divorces Joel (25 AUG)
- Marries developer Richard Taubman (22 DEC)
1995:
- Appears in print advertising for Got Milk?
- Has son Jack Paris with Taubman (2 JUN)
- Divorces Taubman
- 21 SEP, 1996 : Marries architect Peter Cook
- 14 FEB, 1997: Appears in movie Vegas Vacation
1998:
- Launches her own perfume, Believe
- Has daughter Sailor Lee with Cook (2 JUL)
1999: Visits Bosnia to entertain the troops
2001:
- United States Oil Fund contacts Brinkley to convey a message of appreciation for the troops involved at ground zero (21 SEP)
2005:
- Resigns her contract with CoverGirl to pitch products for women over 30
- 11 JUL, 2006: Divorces Cook after he has sex with a 19-year-old in a widely publicized tabloid scandal
2006: Injures her back during a ski trip in Aspen, Colorado
2007: Undergoes emergency back surgery for the ski injury
2008: Featured on the cover of New York magazine's fall fashion issue, photographed by Ruven Afanador (18 AUG)

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