Saturday 1 October 2011

Kim Kardashian

Kimberly "Kim" Kardashian Humphries, October 21, 1980 is an American businesswoman, socialite, television personality, model, and actress. She is the daughter of late attorney Robert Kardashian, and is known for a sex tape with her former boyfriend Ray J as well as her E! reality series that she shares with her family, Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Kardashian's prominence has increased as of January 2011 with the premiere of Kourtney and Kim Take New York, the second spin-off of Keeping Up with the Kardashians (the first being Kourtney and Khloé Take Miami), debuting on E!, with the series following Kim and sister Kourtney Kardashian as they leave Los Angeles to open a third D-A-S-H store in New York City.
Kardashian has launched multiple fragrances, guest starred on numerous shows, competed on ABC's Dancing with the Stars, and has had roles in movies such as Disaster Movie and Deep in the Valley. In 2010, Kardashian, along with her sisters Kourtney and Khloé, released an autobiography, Kardashian Konfidential.




Early life


Kardashian was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of late attorney Robert Kardashian and Kris Jenner (née Houghton). Her father was a third generation Armenian American and her mother is of Dutch and Scottish descent. Her paternal great-grandparents immigrated to Los Angeles from Armenia. Her last name in Armenian  means "son of a stonemason." Although only half Armenian, she states that she "was raised with a huge Armenian influence, always hearing stories of Armenia, eating Armenian food and celebrating Armenian holidays".
Kardashian has two sisters, Kourtney and Khloé, and one brother, Robert. She has stepbrothers Burton Jenner, Brandon Jenner, and reality TV star Brody Jenner, step-sister Casey Jenner, and half-sisters Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner.
She attended Marymount High School.






Career


2007–present: Reality television
Kardashian first rose to fame in February 2007 when she starred in a sex tape with R&B singer Ray J. In October 2007 she along with her two sisters, mother, brother, half-sisters, and stepfather starred in the E! television series, Keeping Up with the Kardashians. The series has aired five seasons to date, with two spin-off series.
Her first acting role was in the television series Beyond the Break. She then starred in the 2008 disaster film spoof Disaster Movie as Lisa. Kardashian appeared in the How I Met Your Mother episode "Benefits". She also appeared on the Season 3 premiere of the series 90210 with her sisters Khloé and Kourtney; they all played themselves.Kardashian was a guest hostess of WrestleMania XXIV and appeared as a guest judge during Cycle 13 of America's Next Top Model On December 16, 2009, Kardashian made a guest star appearance on CBS's CSI: NY with Vanessa Minnillo.
Kardashian was one of 13 participants on the seventh season of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with Mark Ballas and was the third contestant voted off the show on September 30, 2008, finishing in 11th place overall.






2007–2010: Modeling and retail


In December 2007, Kardashian posed nude for Playboy. She has also featured in numerous international editions of FHM, including the cover of the April 2010 Australian edition and the UK March 2011 edition. In February 2008, Bongo Jeans announced that Kardashian would be their face model. She also models for Balenciaga shoes, Carl's Jr. fast food, Sugar Factory lollipops, and various other products.
Kardashian released her own fragrance product in 2010.
In March 2009, Kardashian launched an endorsement with ShoeDazzle shopping, of which she is the co-founder and chief fashion stylist.. The following month on April 9, 2009, Kardashian released a workout DVD series, Fit In Your Jeans By Friday, with trainers Jennifer Galardi and Patrick Goudeau. In September 2009, Fusion Beauty and Seven Bar Foundation launched "Kiss Away Poverty", with Kardashian as the face of the campaign. For every LipFusion lipgloss sold, $1 went to the Foundation to fund women entrepreneurs in the US.
Kardashian in Santa Monica, California on May 13, 2009 at
Maxim's 10th Annual Hot 100 Celebration


Famous Cupcakes, a Los Angeles bakery, created a vanilla cupcake mix for Kardashian. The cupcake flavor is called Va-Va-Va-Nilla.
Kardashian has also created jewelry along with her sisters, Khloé and Kourtney. They produced a collection for Virgins, Saints, and Angels in 2010.
Again with her sisters, Kardashian has released various clothing lines. One called K-Dash was to be sold on QVC in 2010, and in the same year they produced a range for Bebe. As of August 2011 they are creating another for Sears, called the Kardashian Kollection.
In addition, Kardashian and her sisters created a sunless tanner called Kardashian Glamour Tan in 2010.
On July 1, 2010, the New York City branch of Madame Tussauds revealed a wax figure of Kardashian.






2010–present


Kardashian is the producer of The Spin Crowd, a reality television show about Command PR, a New York City public relations firm, run by Jonathan Cheban and Simon Huck. The show follows them as they settle into their new offices in Los Angeles. Kardashian is friends with both, specifically Cheban, and frequently appears on her reality shows. She also appeared at the 2010 MTV VMAs on September 12, 2010. She also appeared in and was the subject and judge of a task on the ninth episode of Season 10 of The Apprentice in 2010; the two teams had to create an in-store display for her new perfume line, to be sold at Perfumania.
Kim, Kourtney, and Khloé wrote an autobiography entitled Kardashian Konfidential. The book was released in stores on November 23, 2010.
In December 2010, Kardashian filmed a music video for a song titled "Jam (Turn It Up)," the video was directed by Hype Williams; Kanye West makes a cameo in the video. Kardashian premiered the song during a New Year's Eve party at TAO Las Vegas on December 31, 2010. The song was produced by The-Dream and Tricky Stewart. Kardashian said that she was forced into doing the song by friends such as Ciara, Kanye West, and "Turn It Up" producer The-Dream. When asked if an album is in the works, Kardashian replied: "There's no album in the works or anything – just one song we did for Kourtney and Kim Take New York, and a video Hype Williams directed, half of the proceeds we're giving away to a cancer foundation, because The-Dream's and one of my parents passed away from cancer. It's just all having fun – with a good cause". Jim Farber, writing for the Daily News, called the song a "dead-brained piece of generic dance music, without a single distinguishing feature," and suggested that the single made Kardashian the "worst singer in the reality TV universe."
Kardashian's 2010 earnings were the highest among Hollywood-based reality stars, being estimated at $6 million.






Personal life
Kardashian at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival for the premiere
 of Wonderful World. Relationships


In 2000, Kardashian married music producer Damon Thomas; their relationship ended in divorce in 2004. Subsequently she dated R&B singer Ray J, NFL star Reggie Bush and Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Miles Austin. She was also seen with model Gabriel Aubry. Kardashian then began dating NBA player Kris Humphries of the New Jersey Nets; they married on August 20, 2011 in Montecito, California. Kardashian and Humphries made $17.9 million on nuptials. Reportedly, the wedding cost 20 million dollars and neither Kardashian or Humphries payed for any of it. Three $20,000 Vera Wang gowns and $400,000 worth of Perrier Jouet Champagne were free, as were invitations from Lehr & Black estimated at $10,000 and $750,000 for catering for the 500 guests at the reception.




Sex tape


In February 2007, a pornographic home video she made with singer Ray J was leaked. Vivid Entertainment bought the rights for $1 million and released the film as Kim Kardashian: Superstar on February 21. Kardashian sued Vivid for ownership of the tape. In late April 2007, Kardashian dropped the suit and settled with Vivid Entertainment for $5 million.




Activism


Kardashian has supported the recognition of the Armenian Genocide on numerous occasions and has encouraged Barack Obama and the United States government to consider its acknowledgement. On April 21, 2011, a few days before the 96th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, she wrote about the issue on her blog in an effort to put it under spotlight and also sent a tweet to her fans urging its recognition.
On April 1, 2010, Kardashian joined Cyndi Lauper in the launch of her Give a Damn campaign to create a wider awareness of discrimination against the LGBT community as part of her True Colors Fund.




Controversy


In May 2009, Kardashian caused controversy over the way she held a cat for a photograph. In 2010, animal rights organization PETA criticized Kardashian for repeatedly wearing fur coats, and named her as one of the five worst people or organizations of 2010 when it came to animal welfare.
A mainstream UK national newspaper, The Guardian, has commented on her ability to attract payments of up to US$10,000 from sponsors for each tweet that she broadcasts, noting that she is "an American reality TV star whose sole talent lies in her large rump".
Cookie Diet lawsuit
Dr. Sanford Siegal, the creator of the Cookie Diet, sued Kardashian, claiming she defamed him on Twitter. According to Siegal, Kardashian tweeted in October that he was "falsely promoting" that she was on the cookie diet. Siegal filed a claim in a Florida state court claiming the statements are false and defamatory. He also alleges that Kardashian was on QuickTrim's payroll when she posted the tweet. Kardashian's tweet appears to stem from an article on CookieDiet.com, that named Kardashian as one of many celebrities who saw positive results on the diet. Kardashian sent a cease-and-desist order to Siegal, demanding the link be removed.






Filmography


2007–present: Keeping Up with the Kardashians as Herself
2008: Dancing with the Stars as Herself
2008: Disaster Movie as Calvin's girlfriend, Lisa Taylor
2009: CSI: NY as Debbie Fallon (1 episode)
2009: America's Next Top Model as herself (Season 13, 1 episode)
2009: Deep in the Valley as Summa Eve
2009: How I Met Your Mother as herself (1 episode)
2009: Beyond the Break as Elle (4 episodes)
2010: 90210 as herself (season 3 premiere)
2011–present: Kourtney and Kim Take

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