16 years after her death, the name of Anna Nicole Smith still stands for fame and controversy. She was a model, an actress, and a television personality who first gained popularity when she won the title of 1993 Playmate of the Year after posing for Playboy magazine.
“I love the paparazzi,” she once told the Washington Post.
“They take pictures, and I just smile away. I’ve always liked the attention. I didn’t get very much growing up, and I always wanted to be, you know, noticed.”
Sadly, the life of glamour took its toll. Smith married petroleum tycoon J. Howard Marshall who was 63 years her senior. This relationship wasn’t just controversial, but a high-profile one and many believe it marked the start of Smith’s downfall. Six months after tying the knot, then 90-year-old Marshal died.
Following his passing, Smith and Marshal’s family got involved in a long and controversial legal battle over his fortune and assets. The case ultimately went as high as the US Supreme Court in 2006.
In 2007, a tragedy struck beautiful Smith died of overdose in 2007, just a few months after she gave birth to her baby daughter Dannielynn. After her death, several men claimed to be the baby’s dad and after paternity tests were ordered, Larry Birkhead got paternity rights.
Today, Dannielynn is all grown up and resembles both her mom and her dad. In fact, she got the best of both and is a real beauty.
Larry takes great care of his daughter and shares adorable photos of the fun time they spend together. They live in Kentucky and Larry makes sure his daughter’s life is as normal as possible. She attends a public school and has a lot of friends.
Speaking of her likes and dislikes and what makes her happy, Larry says Dannielynn wants to follow into her late mom’s footsteps when it comes to acting.
The girl once said, “It’s really cool to like, act as a character and not yourself. It’s like portraying a new person. It’s fun.” She and her dad have appeared on several shows such as ‘Life after Anna’, ‘Wife Swap‘, and ‘The Millionaire Matchmaker.’
Dannielynn wants to try herself as a YouTuber, but her dad thinks she’s way too young to be doing something like that. He wants her to stay out of the spotlight and enjoy her teen years the way her friends do. Speaking to US Weekly, Larry said, “If it’s something you want to do when you get older, you can, but right now let’s sell some Girl Scout cookies.”
Some years ago, an unnamed source told National Enquirer, “Anna Nicole was seduced by the showbiz lifestyle, and Larry wants to make sure Dannielynn doesn’t end up like her. “[Anna Nicole was] chasing stardom and surrounded by greedy hangers-on.”
However, Larry does his best to keep the memory of Smith alive. Last year, Dannielynn paid tribute to her mom by wearing her heat from her appearance at the Kentucky Derby in 2004 and a pink dress. The resemblance with her mom is there, although as she grows older, Dannielynn seems to be taking more after her dad.
Speaking of her character, Larry told Fox News, “She’s fun and fearless like her mom was. She’s a good kid. I’m just happy that I’ve been able to spend all the time I have been able to have with her.”
At the Barnstable Brown Gala that took place ahead of the Derby, the now-17-year-old wore a blouse with photographs of her mom. Larry wore a tie featuring the same images.
“She’s showing off her fashion sense but at the same time paying tribute to her mom,” Larry said. He added that he and his daughter had decided to pay tribute to Anna Nicole Smith because it marked the 20th anniversary of the day he had met the model back in 2003. At the time, he was a photographer covering the event.
The late model’s clothes are in Larry’s possession so Dannielynn often goes through them.
“And everything she has of her mom’s is cataloged in storage, with photos of the event where she wore it,” Larry revealed.
“So someday, she can give them to her kids if she wants to.”
We hope Dannielynn will fulfill all her dreams.
Millionaire Demolishes Old Man’s House, Unexpectedly Sees His Childhood Photo among Ruins — Story of the Day
A rude millionaire who believed money could buy anything demolished a poor old man’s house to build a mall. While checking the ruins later, he accidentally found his childhood photo among the rubble.
Can a person’s greed for riches blind them so miserably that they destroy someone else’s dreams to build theirs? In July 2021, Florida-based real estate tycoon Elliot Morris happened to shatter a poor old man’s dreams to fulfill his pursuit of wealth.
Elliot was looking for a perfect landscape to build a deluxe mall in the city when his eyes fell upon old Joe Brooke’s land. The young builder loved the location and fixed his mind to raising his new mall there.
He decided to tear down the old man’s house on the plot. When old Joe objected to it, Elliot saw him as nothing more than a thorn in his way that was easy to get rid of…
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
“Please, I beg of you. I don’t have anybody, and this house is the only treasured memory I have of my late wife,” Joe begged Elliot, who had visited with his men. “I have nowhere to go. Please don’t make me homeless.”
“How did you get my mom’s photo?” the man asked old Joe. “That’s me with her. Do you know my mom? What is your relationship with her?”
But Elliot turned a deaf ear to the poor old man’s pleas. “Look here, old man. I already talked to the mayor, and he is on my side. I’m bringing this thing down in two weeks. All you’ve got is 14 days to pack your stuff and leave with whatever money I give you. Is it clear?”
Poor Joe was worried. He refused to accept a dime in exchange for his beloved house and kept crying. But Elliot was far from kind and walked away, grinning. “Two weeks and I’ll be back,” Joe heard the rude rich man’s faint voice from outside.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
Joe’s house was a bit farther away from his clustered neighborhood, so nobody stepped forward in his favor. The two weeks were nothing short of nightmarish for the poor old man. He hoped something would happen and change the rich man’s mind. He anticipated a miracle and never packed his things. But before he knew it, the day for the demolition had arrived.
“Please, I beg you! Please don’t destroy my house!” old Joe pleaded with Elliot and his men, who arrived two weeks later with heavy machinery outside his house to tear it down.
“Didn’t I tell you to pack your things?” Elliot retorted. “It’s not my problem anymore. Here, take this check and leave. I don’t have time to listen to your silly, old stories.”
Elliot ordered one of his men to take old Joe to the nursing facility. He handed out the check for the house, but the old man refused to take it.
Before leaving, a teary-eyed Joe looked at Elliot and said, “You’ve changed a lot, young man. Money has blinded you and ruined your soul…You cannot buy everything with money.”
“What rubbish! Take this old man from here,” Elliot ordered. He brushed Joe’s words as nothing and walked further to watch the house being torn down. Joy filled his heart as he saw the bricks and roof chipping away from the building, crashing onto the ground.
“I’ll be back in a while. Keep working, and do not touch anything until I arrive,” he said, driving past the dusty house in ruins.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
That evening, Elliot returned to the demolished spot to celebrate his feat. “Getting rid of that old thorn was so easy!” he exclaimed as he walked over the broken bricks.
Just then, he stumbled upon the broken glass of a photo frame. He looked at the photo and gasped in shock.
“Mom? What is her photo doing here?” he said, picking up the picture. Elliot dusted it and realized it was an old photo of his mom with a baby.
“That’s me,” he exclaimed again. “But what is our photo doing in this old man’s house? I have to find out,” he said and immediately drove to the nursing home to see Joe.
“You? Why have you come here? Aren’t you happy yet?” the old man cried after seeing the young builder. “What more have you come to destroy?”
Joe refused to look at Elliot, who held his hand and showed him the photo he’d recovered from the demolished ruins.
“How did you get my mom’s photo?” he asked. “That’s me with her. Do you know my mom? What is your relationship with her?” Elliot was furious. He had known that his mother was a single parent, and finding her picture in Joe’s house raised many questions in his mind. “Tell me…how do you know my mother?”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
Joe, who remained silent, finally spoke out, revealing something Elliot never knew.
“I found your mother Samantha on the road with a baby in her arms 30 years ago,” Joe said. “I was on my way home from my wife’s funeral and found your mom hopeless and drenched in the rain while trying to protect you.”
As Elliot heard this, tears slowly started to fill his eyes. “Then what happened?” he curiously asked.
“I took her in and gave her shelter. Her boyfriend, your dad, had kicked her out for another woman,” Joe narrated. “Samantha lived in my house for five years, and I treated her like my daughter.”
“But if she lived with you, why did she move out? We had a bigger house,” Elliot asked, still doubtful of old Joe’s revelation. “Is there something I’m missing?”
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
“I bought her a new house and helped her start a small business from my savings. She grew into a successful businesswoman but never forgot this old man. Samantha often visited me until she died ten years ago,” Joe explained. “I had also been to her funeral, but who would notice this poor, old man. You had grown into a successful, rich man, and I was happy to see how she raised you.”
At this point, Elliot’s heart broke. He recalled his mother once telling him about a loving father who was behind her success. But all this while, he had no idea that she had been talking about old Joe.
Guilty and heartbroken, Elliot decided to mend his mistake. The next day, he put up an “Under Construction” board on Joe’s property and ordered his men to build a new house there. In less than four months, a beautiful home replaced the one he demolished.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
Elliot gifted this house to Joe and apologized to him for being so ignorant and forgetful of his past. He also promised to do his best to return the old man’s kindness. But the humble man he was, Joe forgave the young builder and refused any form of help.
“You are my grandson, and I will accept only this house from you, and nothing more. I do not expect any material help from you other than your love,” Joe said, creating a massive impact on Elliot. “You are always welcome to visit this old man as my grandson, not as a wealthy man filled with guilt. Even your mom wanted to help me, and I had told her the same!”
Joe happily moved back to his new house and lived a modest life. He inspired Elliot and taught him that money perishes but not compassion and love.
In the end, Elliot built a couple of retirement homes for older adults in the city. He helped people in need and never tore down another house that belonged to someone else unless they were willing.
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Unsplash
What can we learn from this story?
- Do not ruin someone else’s happiness to build your dreams. In Elliot’s efforts to build his mall, he destroyed old Joe’s beloved house. He did not consider the old man’s pleas and ruined his happiness to fulfill his own.
- Create something useful for others when you get a chance. When Elliot realized his mistake, he apologized to Joe and built a house for him. And because he had the resources, he did his best to help the needy.
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