Veronica Webb
Encyclopedia
Veronica Webb is an American model
, actress, writer
, journalist
and television personality. Webb was the first African-American to have a major cosmetics contract. Webb appeared on covers of Vogue
, Essence
and Elle
magazines and on the runway for Victoria's Secret
and Chanel
.
, the daughter of Marion (née Stewart), a public health nurse, and Leonard Douglas Webb, an electrician. She grew up in a working class community. One of Webb's sisters became an oncologist and another is a mathematician.
As a youth, Webb looked at magazines and admired the freedom of women who were involved in the fashion industry. Models controlled the way they appeared while other women did not. She enjoyed comic books and dreamed of becoming an animator. She identified with heroes in comics who usually came from ordinary places.
Webb graduated in 1983 from Detroit's Waldorf School and moved to New York to study design. After a makeup artist saw her in a housewares boutique, Webb dropped out of school to become a model.
She also appeared in the music video for New Order's "Round and Round" off their 1989 album "Technique"
.
to earn her college degree and was discovered on the streets by a New York makeup artist In New York, Webb pursued a modeling career and eventually became a spokesmodel
for Revlon
. She was the first black supermodel to win an exclusive contract for a major cosmetics company. In 1991 Webb made her feature film debut in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever
Her film credits include Someone Like You...
, The Big Tease
, and Spike Lee’s Malcolm X
and Jungle Fever
. She has also been featured in a recurring role on the television show Damon
and has appeared in Just Shoot Me!
, and Clueless
. She admits that comedy comes much easier for her than drama.
As a runway model she was in demand to be photographed wearing fashions from the collections of Azzedine Alaia
, Isaac Mizrahi
, Karl Lagerfeld
, and Todd Oldham
. Alaia and Lagerfeld became her friends.
Webb credits as a broadcaster include Good Morning America
, Vogue magazine's syndicated style show Trend Watch. Veronica has been named on American Vogue's best dressed list three times.
She served as editor-at-large of Interview
magazine, and was also monthly columnist for Paper Magazine, New York City's style guide to downtown cool, for five years. Veronica wrote a weekly column on American culture in Panorama, Italy’s popular weekly news magazine, and has contributed as a writer for Details
, Elle
, The Sunday Times (UK)
and The New York Times
Syndicate. Webb was recently added as a contributing editor for Conde Nast's Cookie magazine a lifestyle guide redefining modern motherhood. Esquire
commissioned her to write an essay on cigars after she did a photo shoot with the publication with Regis Philbin
. The periodical's editors were interested that she enjoyed brainy, self-made men, who enjoyed smoking cigars.
In 1998 Miramax Books
published Veronica Webb Sight: Adventures In The Big City. The volume is a remembrance of her life with a collection of her essays. Harvey Weinstein
approached her while she was in line at the White House
about publishing her essays and memoir. In the book Webb is especially frank about both her naivety and arrogance as a youth.
Webb was the co-host during the first season of Bravo's Tim Gunn's Guide To Style
, before being replaced with fashion expert, personal stylist and salon owner Gretta Monahan for subsequent seasons.
In 2006, Webb played a high powered fashion editor opposite Rockman Dunbar in the independent feature film Dirty Laundry.
In 2010, Webb was named a member of the Eucerin Skin First Council to promote skin health.
whom she lived with during her stay in Paris.
Webb dedicates her time to several charitable organizations: LIFEBeat, Product Red and the RPM Nautical Foundation. LIFEBeat is close to Webb's heart because she was deeply affected by the AIDs crisis in the 80's as a model living in New York. Webb got involved with RPM because of her ex-husband, George Robb, who works to bring up shipwrecks for museums and governments.
She married George Robb in 2002 and the couple divorced in 2009. Their daughters are Leila Rose Robb (born October 2002) and Molly Blue Robb (born May 2004). Even though she's been at the top of the modeling business and explored acting and writing, Webb says the biggest job to date is being a mom. "There was never a doubt in my mind that I'd have kids," Webb says. "There's no way to imagine how challenging parenthood is until it's on you. But I waited until I had sown my oats and was financially and emotionally ready."
Webb is passionate about decorating—colors and textiles, and traveling the world. She collects shipwreck artifacts and textiles from around the world.
Webb ran the ING New York City Marathon for the first time in 2009. She ran for Harlem United Community AIDS Center. http://nymag.com/daily/fashion/2009/10/yigal_azrouel_to_sweat_in_fron.html
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
, actress, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and television personality. Webb was the first African-American to have a major cosmetics contract. Webb appeared on covers of Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
, Essence
Essence (magazine)
Essence is a monthly magazine for African-American women between the ages of 18 and 49. The magazine covers fashion, lifestyle and beauty with an intimate girlfriend-to-girlfriend tone.-History:...
and Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
magazines and on the runway for Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly-traded Limited Brands with sales of over US$5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006...
and Chanel
Chanel
Chanel S.A. is a French fashion house founded by the couturier Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, well established in haute couture, specializing in luxury goods . She gained the name "Coco" while maintaining a career as a singer at a café in France...
.
Early life
Webb was born in Detroit, MichiganDetroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, the daughter of Marion (née Stewart), a public health nurse, and Leonard Douglas Webb, an electrician. She grew up in a working class community. One of Webb's sisters became an oncologist and another is a mathematician.
As a youth, Webb looked at magazines and admired the freedom of women who were involved in the fashion industry. Models controlled the way they appeared while other women did not. She enjoyed comic books and dreamed of becoming an animator. She identified with heroes in comics who usually came from ordinary places.
Webb graduated in 1983 from Detroit's Waldorf School and moved to New York to study design. After a makeup artist saw her in a housewares boutique, Webb dropped out of school to become a model.
She also appeared in the music video for New Order's "Round and Round" off their 1989 album "Technique"
Technique (album)
Technique is the fifth studio album by New Order, released in 1989 via Factory Records. Partly recorded on the island of Ibiza, it incorporates Balearic beat and acid house influences into the group's electro/rock sound...
.
Career
Webb moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to earn her college degree and was discovered on the streets by a New York makeup artist In New York, Webb pursued a modeling career and eventually became a spokesmodel
Spokesman
A spokesperson or spokesman or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have received formal training in journalism, communications, public relations and...
for Revlon
Revlon
Revlon is an American cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care company founded in 1932.-History:Revlon was founded in the midst of the Great Depression, 1932, by Charles Revson and his brother Joseph, along with a chemist, Charles Lachman, who contributed the "L" in the Revlon name...
. She was the first black supermodel to win an exclusive contract for a major cosmetics company. In 1991 Webb made her feature film debut in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever
Jungle Fever
Jungle Fever is a 1991 American drama film directed by Spike Lee, starring Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra. It was Lee's fifth feature-length film. The film mainly explores interracial relationships...
Her film credits include Someone Like You...
Someone Like You (film)
Someone Like You is a 2001 romantic comedy film, based on Laura Zigman's novel Animal Husbandry which tells a story of a heartbroken woman who is looking for the reason she was dumped. The film stars Ashley Judd, Greg Kinnear, Hugh Jackman and Marisa Tomei and was directed by Tony Goldwyn...
, The Big Tease
The Big Tease
The Big Tease is a 1999 comedy film starring Craig Ferguson, directed by Kevin Allen, and written by Ferguson and Sacha Gervasi.- Plot :Ferguson plays Crawford Mackenzie, a Scottish hairdresser who, while being filmed as part of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, is invited to the World Hairdresser...
, and Spike Lee’s Malcolm X
Malcolm X (film)
Malcolm X is a 1992 biographical motion picture about the Muslim-American figure Malcolm X . It was co-written, co-produced, and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Denzel Washington as the titular character. It co-stars Angela Bassett, Albert Hall, Al Freeman, Jr., and Delroy Lindo...
and Jungle Fever
Jungle Fever
Jungle Fever is a 1991 American drama film directed by Spike Lee, starring Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra. It was Lee's fifth feature-length film. The film mainly explores interracial relationships...
. She has also been featured in a recurring role on the television show Damon
Damon (TV series)
Damon was a US comedy television series starring Damon Wayans. The show lasted for eleven episodes between March and July 1998.It was created by Leo Benvenuti, Steve Rudnick, and Damon Wayans and directed by John P...
and has appeared in Just Shoot Me!
Just Shoot Me!
Just Shoot Me! is an American television sitcom that aired for seven seasons on NBC from March 4, 1997 to August 16, 2003, with 148 episodes produced. The show was created by Steven Levitan, the show's executive producer.-Description:...
, and Clueless
Clueless (TV series)
Clueless is a television series spun off from the 1995 teen film of the same name . The series originally premiered on ABC on September 20, 1996 as a part of the TGIF lineup during its first season...
. She admits that comedy comes much easier for her than drama.
As a runway model she was in demand to be photographed wearing fashions from the collections of Azzedine Alaia
Azzedine Alaia
Azzedine Alaïa is a Tunisian-born couturier and shoe designer, particularly successful since the 1980s.-Biography:Alaïa was born in Siliana, Tunisia on 7 June 1940. His parents were wheat farmers but his glamorous twin sister inspired his love for couture. A French friend of his mother fed Alaïa's...
, Isaac Mizrahi
Isaac Mizrahi
Isaac Mizrahi is an American TV presenter, fashion designer, and was the creative director of Liz Claiborne. He is best known for his eponymous fashion lines.-Early life:...
, Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel...
, and Todd Oldham
Todd Oldham
Todd Oldham is an American-born designer and president of L-7 Designs Inc. His fun, lighthearted approach to fashion and style has become known to millions through his fashion lines, interior designs, books and by appearing in television shows...
. Alaia and Lagerfeld became her friends.
Webb credits as a broadcaster include Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, Vogue magazine's syndicated style show Trend Watch. Veronica has been named on American Vogue's best dressed list three times.
She served as editor-at-large of Interview
Interview (magazine)
Interview is an American magazine which has the nickname The Crystal Ball Of Pop. It was founded in late 1969 by artist Andy Warhol. The magazine features intimate conversations between some of the world's biggest celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thinkers...
magazine, and was also monthly columnist for Paper Magazine, New York City's style guide to downtown cool, for five years. Veronica wrote a weekly column on American culture in Panorama, Italy’s popular weekly news magazine, and has contributed as a writer for Details
Details (magazine)
Details is an American monthly men's magazine published by Condé Nast Publications, founded in 1982. Though primarily a magazine devoted to fashion and lifestyle, Details also features reports on relevant social and political issues.-History:...
, Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
, The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Syndicate. Webb was recently added as a contributing editor for Conde Nast's Cookie magazine a lifestyle guide redefining modern motherhood. Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
commissioned her to write an essay on cigars after she did a photo shoot with the publication with Regis Philbin
Regis Philbin
Regis Francis Xavier Philbin is an American media personality, actor and singer, known for hosting talk and game shows since the 1960s. Philbin is often called "the hardest working man in show business" and holds the Guinness World Record for the most time spent in front of a television camera...
. The periodical's editors were interested that she enjoyed brainy, self-made men, who enjoyed smoking cigars.
In 1998 Miramax Books
Miramax Books
Miramax Books was a publishing imprint started by Bob and Harvey Weinstein of Miramax Films and was known for the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. It published the memoirs of many major celebrities, including David Boies, Madeline Albright, Rudolph Giuliani, Tim Russert, and others...
published Veronica Webb Sight: Adventures In The Big City. The volume is a remembrance of her life with a collection of her essays. Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein, CBE is an American film producer and movie studio chairman. He is best known as co-founder of Miramax Films. He and his brother Bob have been co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company, their film production company, since 2005...
approached her while she was in line at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
about publishing her essays and memoir. In the book Webb is especially frank about both her naivety and arrogance as a youth.
Webb was the co-host during the first season of Bravo's Tim Gunn's Guide To Style
Tim Gunn's Guide to Style
Tim Gunn's Guide to Style is an American reality television series, hosted by Project Runway's Tim Gunn and cohosted by model Veronica Webb in the first season, and cohosted by Gretta Monahan in subsequent seasons. It focuses on style and fashion. The first episode aired on September 6, 2007 on the...
, before being replaced with fashion expert, personal stylist and salon owner Gretta Monahan for subsequent seasons.
In 2006, Webb played a high powered fashion editor opposite Rockman Dunbar in the independent feature film Dirty Laundry.
In 2010, Webb was named a member of the Eucerin Skin First Council to promote skin health.
Personal life
Webb learned French from Azzedine AlaiaAzzedine Alaia
Azzedine Alaïa is a Tunisian-born couturier and shoe designer, particularly successful since the 1980s.-Biography:Alaïa was born in Siliana, Tunisia on 7 June 1940. His parents were wheat farmers but his glamorous twin sister inspired his love for couture. A French friend of his mother fed Alaïa's...
whom she lived with during her stay in Paris.
Webb dedicates her time to several charitable organizations: LIFEBeat, Product Red and the RPM Nautical Foundation. LIFEBeat is close to Webb's heart because she was deeply affected by the AIDs crisis in the 80's as a model living in New York. Webb got involved with RPM because of her ex-husband, George Robb, who works to bring up shipwrecks for museums and governments.
She married George Robb in 2002 and the couple divorced in 2009. Their daughters are Leila Rose Robb (born October 2002) and Molly Blue Robb (born May 2004). Even though she's been at the top of the modeling business and explored acting and writing, Webb says the biggest job to date is being a mom. "There was never a doubt in my mind that I'd have kids," Webb says. "There's no way to imagine how challenging parenthood is until it's on you. But I waited until I had sown my oats and was financially and emotionally ready."
Webb is passionate about decorating—colors and textiles, and traveling the world. She collects shipwreck artifacts and textiles from around the world.
Webb ran the ING New York City Marathon for the first time in 2009. She ran for Harlem United Community AIDS Center. http://nymag.com/daily/fashion/2009/10/yigal_azrouel_to_sweat_in_fron.html
Filmography
- Jungle FeverJungle FeverJungle Fever is a 1991 American drama film directed by Spike Lee, starring Wesley Snipes and Annabella Sciorra. It was Lee's fifth feature-length film. The film mainly explores interracial relationships...
- In Too Deep
- The Big TeaseThe Big TeaseThe Big Tease is a 1999 comedy film starring Craig Ferguson, directed by Kevin Allen, and written by Ferguson and Sacha Gervasi.- Plot :Ferguson plays Crawford Mackenzie, a Scottish hairdresser who, while being filmed as part of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, is invited to the World Hairdresser...
- Dirty LaundryDirty Laundry (film)Dirty Laundry is a 2007 drama film written, directed, and starring Maurice Jamal. It was produced by 20th Century Fox and distributed by Codeblack Entertainment. It is available on DVD and is rated PG-13.-Plot summary:...