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Laetitia Casta Profile |
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Birth Date: May 11, 1978
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Birth Place: Pont-Audemer, France
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Birth Name: Laetitia Marie Laure Casta
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Height: 5'7"
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Biography |
Born the 11th of May, 1978, Laetitia Maria Laure Casta is
the middle child to father Dominique and mother Line.
Dominique, raised on the island of Corsica, moved to
Normandy where he met Laetitia's mother. Laetitia (which
means "joy" in Latin) enjoyed drawing and writing stories at
an early age, and admits that she was quite a daydreamer in
grade school.
Although she surprisingly didn't attract many males while in
school and recalls feeling awkward and self-conscious, her
luck began to change at age 15. Laetitia was discovered by a
photographer and an agent from an important Paris modeling
agency, Madison Models, while on a beach near Corsica.
After her father finally agreed to the agency taking some
test photos of Laetitia, it took the founder of Madison
Models no time to see her unmistakable potential; she didn't
even need the help of makeup or nice clothes, as she came to
the photo shoot in jeans and a T-shirt. Laetitia's career
took off when the extremely busy director of the French
edition of Elle was also impressed by Laetitia's looks.
Modeling contracts and appearances in magazines quickly
ensued. In search of another star, Paul Marciano -- founder
and art director of Guess? and credited for the success of
Claudia Schiffer -- was immediately taken by Laetitia's
perfection. Thanks to Marciano, Americans had the luxury of
getting acquainted with Laetitia for her work in the Guess?
ad campaign. Her work as the Guess? Girl was her debut
advertising campaign.
Next came her work with Victoria's Secret, in 1996. Laetitia
graced many covers of the Victoria's Secret catalog,
featured as one of the Angels, the name attributed to the
other four models of the company.
In 1997, Laetitia joined the ranks of fellow models by
appearing in the popular Sports Illustrated Swimsuit
Edition, for a total of three consecutive years.
One year later she was honored by Rolling Stone, who named
her the hottest model of the year, and placed a nude
Laetitia on the cover of their "Hot" issue. Although this
was not the first time the magazine had featured a nude
celebrity on the cover, it was considered the most
controversial issue.
In addition to Rolling Stone, Laetitia has graced the pages
of many magazines, including the Italian edition of Glamour;
Vogue; and Cosmopolitan, to name a few.
Guess? and Victoria's Secret weren't the only modeling
contracts signed by Laetitia. She became a spokesperson for
the cosmetics company L'Oreal in 1998, following in the
paths of fellow model Kate Moss and actress Jennifer
Aniston.
One of the biggest highlights of Laetitia's career is her
relationship with designer Yves St. Laurent. The designer
has considered Laetitia an inspiration since 1998, and
consequently the outfits she wears to public appearances are
all personal Yves St. Laurent creations.
Her appearance in the exclusive Pirelli calendar --
considered a collector's item because of the beautiful shots
by only the best photographers -- can also be considered one
of Laetitia's accomplishments. The 1999 issue, themed "Women
Through the Decades," features Laetitia as representative of
the women of the 1950s.
As if an illustrious modeling career wasn't enough, Laetitia
has also taken her talents to the big screen in her feature
film debut -- 1999's Astérix and Obélix -- the most
expensive French film ever made, co-starring Gerard
Depardieu and Oscar winner Roberto Benigni. Laetitia also
starred in La Bicyclette Bleu (The Blue Bicycle), a
three-part made-for-French TV movie set in World War II
France.
Adding to an already complete portfolio, Laetitia posed nude
in print advertisements and billboards for diamond e-tailer
Diamond.com. Clad solely in strands of gems, diamonds had to
be added to Laetitia's body digitally to censor the
controversial ad (apparently there was concern that the
billboards would cause accidents).
She ventured into music video when she appeared in the Chris
Isaak video for "Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing," shot by
fashion/celebrity photographer Herb Ritts.
In 1999, Laetitia was honored by her native country when she
was chosen by French mayors to appear on French coins and
stamps for 10 years, as the image of Marianne (embodiment of
the French Republic), an honor formerly held by Brigitte
Bardot.
The official face of France will next be seen in Les Ames
Fortes (a.k.a. Strong Souls). Playing the part of a young
peasant must have been a more challenging task for Laetitia,
but it was finally the kind of role she was looking for; one
that didn't rely on her good looks (who are we kidding,
she's a goddess whether she's in rags or a ball gown).
She can also add "maman" to her list of accomplishments, as
Laetitia is expecting her first child in fall 2001, with her
fashion photographer boyfriend, Stephane Sednaoui. |
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Other
Information |
Once invited a homeless man for dinner in her hotel while in
London.
Laetitia Casta was victim of an agression by a Parisian cab
driver. The man lost his temper in a traffic jam, and
started to verbally abuse her while she was on her phone.
Scared by the attitude of the man she and her friend paid
and left the cab. The cab driver continued to insult them
and got out of his cab to spray them with mace gaz. Later
the cab driver made up a story (that she was playing merry
hell and screaming) to justify his agression when the police
arrested him. The tabloids simply repeated his version
keeping it that way as it was more juicy and scandalous than
the truth. The man was condemned by the court a week later.
Net worth $5.3 million dollars [1998]
Has appeared in over 80 covers of different magazines around
the world.
Has a brown belt in judo.
Enjoys driving go-carts.
Has an older brother and a younger sister.
Discovered at age 15 while lying on the beach with her
family
Has been the "Guess Girl" in numerous ad campaigns for Guess
jeans Cover appearances for "Elle, " "Mademoiselle, "
"Seventeen, " "Cosmopolitan, " and "Glamour" magazines
Sizzled in several Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issues
Daughter, with boyfriend, fashion photographer Stephane
Sednaoui, Sahteene Sednaoui (b. Paris, (19 October 2001)
Measurements: 35C-24-35 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine)
Engaged to Stefano Accorsi
Her father, Dominique Casta, is Corsican and her mother,
Line Casta, is a native of Normandy, France.
Is the current 'Marianne'. In France there is a tradition
that in every town hall is the bust of the most beautiful
woman in a decade. Marianne is the symbol of liberty and
republic in France and since January 2000 that role is on
Laetitia for the next ten years.
Gave her stage debut in Jean Giraudoux's play "Ondine"
(2004).
Announced she is expecting her second child in September
2006, by her her Italian boyfriend Stefano Accorsi. Her
first child, Sahteene, was fathered by her former boyfriend,
Stéphane Sednaoui. |
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