Paulina Porizkova Fired from America's Next Top Model

Supermodel Paulina Porizkova recently learned that the business of fashion modeling can get pretty ugly. According to news reports, Paulina Porizkova, who served on the judging panel of America's Next Top Model for several seasons, was let go by Tyra Banks, the host and creator of the show. To add insult to injury, Paulina received a phone call with news about her firing on her forty-fourth birthday!

I grew up in the era of the supermodel, and I always admired Paulina Porizkova. She brought beauty, an aura of mystery and grace to all her modeling assignments and many magazine covers, including the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. I was always impressed by the way Paulina Porizkova danced to her own drummer, and she always seemed more independent and intellectual than some of the other popular models of her time.

After her modeling heyday was over, Paulina Porizkova tried acting, raised a family with husband Ric Ocasek of the music group The Cars, and became a published author when she cleverly turned her previous experience as a fashion model into her first novel. Since the still lovely Paulina is over forty, one could speculate that ageism played a role in her America's Next Top Model firing; however, previous judges Twiggy and Janice Dickinson are both well over forty years old.

According to Paulina, she was told she had an "ego problem" and fired from America's Next Top Model because they needed to "cut some fat." It's hard to imagine Paulina Porizkova could have more of an ego problem than the obnoxious and controversial Janice Dickinson, who used to be a panel judge for several seasons of America's Next Top Model. I can't believe that the show would drop one of the most beautiful women in the world and one of the most successful fashion models of all time from their cast just for her "ego." If the producers needed to fire Paulina Porizkova in order to trim America's Next Top Model, perhaps the show's future is in jeopardy.

I enjoyed watching Paulina Porizkova on the judge's panel at America's Next Top Model, but since I'm not a big fan of the show, I think she's better off leaving the cast. I'm sure greater things are just around the corner for Paulina. Perhaps Paulina Porizkova can turn her experiences working for Tyra Banks into another novel, or maybe she can find a berth as a judge on Bravo's reality TV show Make Me a Supermodel?

Source:

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20278592,00.html