Vickie Lynn Marshall (November 28, 1967 – February 8, 2007), better known under the stage name of Anna Nicole Smith, was an American model, sex symbol, actress and television personality. She first gained popularity in Playboy, becoming the 1993 Playmate of the Year. She modeled for clothing companies, including Guess jeans and starred in her own reality TV show, The Anna Nicole Show.

Born and raised in Texas, Smith dropped out of high school and was married at the age of 17. Her highly publicized second marriage to oil business executive and billionaire J. Howard Marshall, 63 years her senior, resulted in speculation that she married the octogenarian for his money, which she denied. Following his death, she began a lengthy legal battle over a share of his estate; her case, Marshall v. Marshall, reached the U.S. Supreme Court on a question of federal jurisdiction. In the months before her death, she was the focus of renewed press coverage surrounding the death of her son, Daniel Smith, and the paternity and custody battle over her daughter Daniellynn.

Early life

Born Vickie Lynn Hogan in Harris County, Texas,Ancestry.com. Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 on-line. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005. Anna Nicole was the only child of Donald Eugene Hogan (born July 12, 1947) and Virgie Mae (née Tabers; born July 12, 1951), who married on February 22, 1967.Fact: date=August 2008 Her father then left the family; he and Virgie divorced on November 4, 1969. Virgie's oldest child, Anna Nicole's half-brother, is David Luther Tacker, Jr. (born 1966). Anna Nicole was raised by her mother and aunt, Elaine (Todd) Tabers, wife of Virgie's brother, Melvin Tabers. Virgie's first child was fathered by her (later) stepbrother Donald Luther Tacker Sr. Virgie's mother Paralee Allman was married to Donald's father George Tacker.Fact: date=August 2008

Virgie, who worked as a law enforcement officer in Houston for 28 years, subsequently married Donald R. Hart in 1971.Fact: date=August 2008 Their child was Donald Ray Hart, Jr. (born 1972). After Virgie married Donald Hart, Anna Nicole changed her name from Vickie Hogan to Nikki Hart. Virgie and Donald Hart divorced in 1983. Virgie then married Joe D. Thompson (1987, divorced 1991), James T. Sanders (1996, died 1996), and James H. Arthur (2000).

Anna Nicole's father Donald married Wanda Faye Atkinson in 1970 and had the following children: Donna Hogan (born 1971), Donald Ray Hogan (born 1973), and Amy Hogan (born 1975).Ancestry.com. Texas Marriage Collection, 1814-1909 and 1966-2002 on-line. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005. Donald and Wanda were divorced in 1978.Ancestry.com. Texas Divorce Index, 1968-2002 on-line. Provo, Utah, U.S.: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005. Donald married Carolyn S. Vandver in 1996.