Monday, October 6, 2008

WOMEN

Write a two to five paragraph profile of the woman you researched from the Annie Leibovitz book. Make her interesting using a combination of personal observations, facts, personal and private information. 

21 comments:

JM Robinson said...

Ann Richards
I chose to research Ann Richards. I decided to choose her based on the fact that she appeared not out of place but in a strange place for such an old woman. She appeared interesting to me for many reasons. One is that she looked about eighty years old and was holding a huge shotgun, hunting quail. The shotgun looked as if it could snap her old frail arms like toothpicks. Although she looked aged in the picture, there was something that made her look active and in control.
Ann Richards has short, white, hair and wrinkled skin. She looks like she could be a great grandmother, but at the same time, looks like a woman who has accomplished something more. From this picture I would assume that she is a very rich and prestigious person. The way she is standing and the clothes she is wearing make her look this way. I could not judge what type of job she has but it looks like she is somebody in a position in charge.
Ann Richards is the former governor of Texas. She served as Governor from 1991 to 1995. In 1976 Richards won the election for State Treasurer in the state of Texas. She first came into the national spotlight during the 1988 Democratic national Convention. She gave a keynote speech that is considered to be very significant by rhetorical experts. In 1990 Richards won the election to become Governor of Texas, making her the first woman to become Governor of Texas. The previous woman that was governor, Miriam Ferguson, is considered a proxy governor since her husband was impeached. During her time as governor she instituted the Texas lottery and cracked down on gun control.
Ann Richards was born on September 1, 1933 in Lakeview, Texas. She grew up in Waco and went to College at the University of Baylor. Through much of her life, Richards struggled with alcohol abuse and for a long time refused to get help. After ending her marriage with her husband in 1980, she finally sought and received treatment for her problem. Richards served as a Senior Adviser to Washington D.C. based law firm until she died from Esophageal Cancer on September 13, 2006.
Many things surprised me of Ann Richards, based on the picture I saw. When I saw the picture I assumed maybe she was the wife of somebody important or a retired actress. I did not think that she was a rigid politician and eventual governor of Texas. This surprised me because she had a frailty about her. Honestly, if she was not holding a gun in the picture, I would have thought she was somebody’s sweet old grandma. Another thing that surprised me was that she struggled with alcoholism. Now I might be seen as narrow minded for saying this but she just really did not look like someone who struggled with that. I guess everybody has their own set of problems.
There was not much that didn’t surprise me about Ann Richards. Just about every fact I learned about her seemed like something I wouldn’t have guessed. However, there was one thing about her that did not surprise me. Before she was involved in politics, she was a teacher. She taught every age from Elementary all the way up to High School. This was not surprising to me because in the picture, she looked just like the first grade teacher that I had. Even though that is biased, it still is the only thing that did not surprise me.

Brittaney Hebert said...

The woman in the photo appears to be sophisticated, yet unrefined as she’s breast feeding her son in a fur coat and high heels. It seems as though this blond headed beauty may have gone from rags-to-riches. The elegant red and gold surroundings in the photo show that she has class and money. Her prideful, conceited personality is portrayed through her puckered lipped, low gaze, and high chinned expression. I think that this woman may be an old and very wealthy business man’s wife. She seem as though she may be a singer, or have some sort of talent. the overall picture appealed to my interest and led me wanting to know why this high-class lady becomes an average woman for a snap-shot of her breast feeding.
Jerry Hall was born in Dallas, Texas on July 2,1956 as a twin. She has three older sisters, and is the daughter of Marjorie and John P. Hall. Jerry Hall began her adventurous life after she got in a car accident and used the extra money to move to France. Staying at a hostel, a fashion agent, Claude Haddad, discovered her as she was sun bathing. She moved to Paris and sang in clubs and parties with singer, model, and roommate Grace Jones. She moved in with Antonio Lopez and began her modeling career. Singer Bryan Ferry became her lover, and they were engaged. She became extremely famous and was featured on several magazines such as the Italian Vogue, and Cosmopolitan. Later that year she met Mick Jagger, Rolling Stones singer, at a dinner party. They eventually began dating as Jagger and his wife divorced. Hall gave birth to her first daughter Elizabeth Scarlett on March 2, 1984, in New York City. Elizabeth was the first of four children that Hall would have for Jagger. In 1990, Hall married Jagger in a Balinese ceremony consisting of a Hindu ritual. The marriage ended in 1999. Jerry Hall is now the Levitra Global Spokesperson and is touring the world for the campaign in treatment for erectile dysfunction. She now lives in London with her children and is helping with the LK Today Modeling competition.
Jerry Hall was married to a rock star. I was surprised because the arrogant picture she took seemed as though she had a more sophisticated life. She modeled in France but is from a small suburb in Dallas, Texas, which surprised me as well. Her Hindu ritual marriage was also bizarre to me as she doesn’t seem as she’d be of Hindu belief.
Jerry Hall was an average girl, daughter of a truck driver, which I predicted as she seemed to come from a rags-to-riches lifestyle. Her beauty seemed to portray that she had a talent, which singing and modeling is what truly brought her along. The child she shows in the picture also help to show that she is still of the world and not a perfect goddess as she seems to be.

Cassie said...

In the photograph of Eileen Collins, she looked so comfortable in astronaut gear. Astronaut gear is notoriously hot and heavy, so any woman who could be so comfortable in one, must love what she does. She looked so confident and sure of herself standing in probably 90 degree weather. She looked like she was ready for anything. I thought that she could be very important in the world of space travel by the way that she held her composure, with a hint of a smile that said look at what I have done. Any woman or man who is an astronaut must be very smart and talented, so she must have a special area of expertise.
Eileen Collins was born in Elmira, New York on November 19, 1956. She was always a lover of space even when she was just a child. The fascination with flying started when she was nineteen and took flying lessons, even though she was a woman it did not surprise her father. She was one of three children in her hometown of New York. Her father and mother were both huge impacts on her life, both have recently passed away. She graduated from Community College, Syracuse, Stanford, and Webster University. All together she has a degree in Mathematics and Science, a masters of Science, and a masters of Arts. She married pilot Pat Youngs in 1987. Together they have two children. They currently live in New York.
She joined the air force only to rise to become a high ranking Colonel. This is not an easy thing for a woman to do today much les in the 90s. However she was dubbed infamous when she became the first female pilot and first female commander of the space shuttle Columbia in July of 1999. The mission lasted from the 22 to the 27 of July. The world of NASA did not have many women in it before Collins because it was seen as a hard and vigorous job that men should do, especially flying. There is no doubt that she paved the way for female pilots. She has recently retired from the Air force as a colonel and in 2006 she retired from her job as a pilot and is pursing personal interest, including volunteering for the USAA.
Her strength and persistence made her important in the space travel community, which I had expected. However; I was surprised by the fact that she paved the way for woman by becoming the first female pilot and commander of a space shuttle. That is a huge accomplishment. Eileen Collins made the history books by doing what man did not think a woman was capable of. She did it though, and still managed to have a career, a husband, and children.

Tiffany said...

Ann Richards is not a typical woman, clearly seen in a photograph holding a huge rifle in the woods downing beers.
Ann was born in Lakeview, Tx on September 1, 1933. She grew up in Waco and graduated from Waco High School. She then attended Baylor University on a debate scholarship. She married her high school sweetheart David Richards and moved to Austin where she was a teacher and had four children. She taught social studies and history at Fulmore Junior High School in Austin. She also served as a politics professor at Brandies University from 1997 to 1998.
Ann didn’t start off as a politician, but she was always interested in politics and she had the potential and attitude for politics. Ann campaigned for Texas liberals and progressives, by 1970’s she was an accomplished political worker. Ann was elected as state treasurer of Texas in 1982 and re-elected in 1986. She later became the governor of Texas in 1990. As governor she appointed women and statewide offices. The Texas Lottery was also instituted during her governorship as a means of supplementing school finances. She also reformed the Texas prison system. She was the second female governor of Texas.
Along with her great success came problems. Ann’s marriage ended in the late seventies due to her heavy drinking and the strain of politics on her relationship. Her drinking became more pronounced and she completed treatment for alcoholism in 1980.
Ann Richards demonstrated interest in social causes such as equality, abortion, and women’s rights. She was a tireless campaigner for Democratic candidates throughout the United States. Sadly, she was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in March of 2006 and died on September 13, 2006 at night in her home in Austin.

Brittany Haynes said...

When I first looked at the picture of Ila Borders I saw that there was something different about her photograph She was standing on the pitchers mound in a baseball uniform and was holding a baseball in her hand instead of a softball. I then found out that a woman has played college baseball and independent professional baseball, and many are not informed. This woman is no ordinary woman; she is Ila Borders. Her career began at Southern California College and then she transferred to play at Whittier College in California. She was the first woman pitcher to start in men’s NCAA college baseball. She was a very talented left-handed pitcher. Her fastball ranged from 76 to 79 mph and she could also throw a wicked curve ball. She wasn’t this good by chance, her father played in the minor leagues and she picked up baseball because of him. After she was done playing college baseball she went on and signed with St Paul Saints, which was an independent northern league. One month after she had been playing for the Saints she was traded to Duluth Superior Dukes.

At the age of 26, Ila Borders decided to retire from her baseball career in 2000. In 2003 she did an interview and stated that she was training to be a firefighter, but that after she was done with that she was ready to start playing baseball again. She said that if we would hear about her playing again then we would know that she accomplished all of her goals. She told the press that she retired from baseball because the publicity was to stressful and at that age she did not know how to deal with it. I never found out if she decided to start playing baseball again, but I do know that now she is a firefighter in Arizona.

Phillip Westbrook said...

The woman I picked is former first lady Barbara Bush. Even though I know who she is, I know nothing about her. That is the reason why I chose her. In her photograph she looks very important. She also looks rather rich in the way of her jewelry. Also her hair is done perfectly. She looks very well put together and organized. Her picture also shows that she is rather old. I picked an older person because there would be more to learn about someone who has been around longer. It will be interesting to see what kind of a person she really is.
Barbara Bush was born June 8, 1925 in New York City, New York. Before she was first lady she spent much oh her time taking care of her children while her husband worked. Barbara Bush is married to former President George Walker Bush. During his presidency, Barbara worked very hard to fight against illiteracy in America. In doing this she founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. This was very important to her and she devoted much of her time to this organization. Barbara also found time to bring national attention to the needs of homeless people across America. Much of her time was spent helping others who were less fortunate. She now lives in Houston, Texas with her husband.
In doing my research about Barbara, I discovered many interesting facts about her career and her life. Although I did not mention above, I was really surprised to learn that Barbara Bush was already 63 years old when she became first lady. This is very old and I found it impressive that she could handle such pressure. Also I found it surprising that she dropped out of college to marry her husband. I would not expect this from a woman such as the First Lady. It was enjoyable to uncover facts that I did not know about Barbara Bush.
When I did my research I was not surprised to learn some things. Barbara did a lot of work during her years as First Lady. Much of her time was spent helping others and creating foundations for the benefit of others. This is not at all surprising. From what I can remember, all former First Lady’s have done something in the form of peace work around the country or the world. Indeed it was gracious of her to give her time to others but when I saw what she did I was not at all surprised.

kevin.tran said...

The reason why I chose Gweneth Paltro is because I think the overall picture was intriguing. The interesting thing about her photograph was that she was being held by another woman, what appeared to be her mom or some sort, but not knowing for sure. She is wearing a white dress, what seems to look like a wedding dress, with one strap slumped over her shoulders. Her eyes are closed, making her seem as if she’s in some sort of a trance. The person that’s holding her seems focused on the camera, as opposed to Gweneth who has her eyes closed staring downward. The assumptions that I’ve made is that if the dress was a wedding dress, then gweneth could’ve been in a sad mood because of her closed eyes. Not knowing any further background information of the picture, I would assume that gweneth is crushed and the person that’s trying to comfort her is her mother.
It’s hard to determine what job she has from what the picture portrays, but I would assume that she’s a model. Very skinny and graceful with her pose. From what little I know about her, gweneth seems like a very successful person, having heard her name in a few movie titles. Gweneth was born on September 27, 1972 and grew up in Los Angeles, California. Her mother and father both had a background with film, he father being a film director and mother an actress. Before becoming an actress, Gwyneth went to University of California to study art history. She then dropped out and committed herself to acting. Her debut film was in 1990 with the movie Shout. Her later years would then bring her on to fame where she would star in the movie Shakespeare in Love, which won a Golden Globe award for both Best Musical Picture and Best Screenplay. This would become her first major breakthrough.
Gweneth is said to be very proud of having a Jewish Ancestry and is a decendant of David HaLevi Segal, a famous 17th century polish Rabbi. She used to have an Engagement with Brad Pitt for three years, which was highly publicized. She has also had romances with Ben Affleck, Luke Wilson, and Chris Heinz. On December 5, 2003 she married Coldplay singer Chris Martin. Five months later, she gave birth to her first child Apple Blythe Alison Martin. In 2006, Gweneth was criticized for telling a Portuguese magazine that British people were more intelligent and civilized than Americans. She then denied these rumors and did a press conference in Spanish to clear things up.
Some of the things that surprised me about her were the amount of famous actors that she’s had romantic relationships with. Most of the Actors are well known names, and to think that she’s had a relationship with all of them is surprising. Also, her family background of having parents already into the film and acting industry was something I wouldn’t have expected. Becoming the new face for Estee Lauder’s perfumes also caught me off guard because of the company’s normal “models” approach.
What didn’t really surprise me was her Duet with renowned rap artist Jay-Z. I think that it doesn’t really suit her because she’s such a successful actress. Also, the rumor about her speaking bad about Americans I found irrelevant. I don’t think that someone like Gweneth would say such things, and it was probably just a hoax to try and bring down her success.

Evan Riley said...

Marion Jones
Speed, power, performance, fame, wealth; there are just a few words to describe the finely tuned athlete and world record holder sprinter, Marion Jones. Transforming from a high school sprinter who broke many records to a dual collegiate athlete at UNC, Jones ran into a few mishaps during her career. She attended the University of North Carolina on an athletic scholarship; she was a star point guard on the Lady Tar Heels basketball team and also ran track there. Jones began to get romantically involved with one of her track coaches, resulting in his removal from the program due to student / teacher relation policy violations. Soon after her tenure at UNC Jones and her former track coach got married.
In 1997, Marion Jones won the gold medal at the US Championships in the 100 meter dash. In 1998, Jones set another milestone in her career and for all women. She was the first woman to win three individual events at the US Championship track and field meet. Jones won the 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, and the long jump. Then in 2000, she qualified to make it to the Sydney Olympics. At the Olympics, she won 5 gold medals in events consisting of open sprints, sprint relays, and jumps. Marion Jones was an American Hero and at the top of her game.
Jones then split from her husband and former UNC track coach. On June 28, 2003, she gave birth to her ex-boyfriend’s son, Tim Montgomery Jr. He was the son of fellow American track sprinter Tim Montgomery. Allegations soon followed about Jones doping during her 2000 Sydney Olympics run. Rumors and stories began to build up, then press charges came. In a press conference before one of Jones’ court sessions, she admitted guilt to the doping charges of using steroids and performance-enhancing drugs. The USATF took away all 5 of Jones’ Olympic gold medals and other winnings and banned her from the sport for a period of time. She also served a court ordered 6 month sentence for her charges. Jones’ profile then soon turned from an American track star to a waste of natural talent and national embarrassment.

Kortney Sorensen said...

When I reviewed the photographs, I came across this woman who was wearing just green crew sock. With her bare back side showing; I was intrigued to find out not only what she look like from a frontal view but who she was inside. Before researching about Karen Finley, I thought she look depressed and lonely in her apartment on her forest green recliner. Not to my surprise I found that she is an artist who stands for emotional despair, violence against women, a sense of loss, and abuse.

Karen was born in 1956, and lived in Chicago for most of her life. Through her life, she experienced a lot of family trauma. She has no problem telling people about the time her father put her in the freezer. Later when she was twenty- one her father committed suicide. She married Ryan Ruth, but sadly their marriage failed after she had a child.

At the age of thirty, she pursued her career as a performance artist. Through her controversial outlook on life, the public eye saw her music as obscene due to its graphic depiction of sexuality and abuse. No matter who interviewed her, the reports could never let her naked exposed body go. Throughout her life, she proudly was pictured in Playboy and won Miss magazine women of the year award. Another achievement she accomplished is her many of her work that appear today in an art gallery in New York. Today she calmed her wild life and currently teaches teen and adults writing workshops in New York.

GeraldSoder said...

“Wow, that woman is fucking huge,” are actually the words I said aloud when I first laid eyes on the photo I chose. The photo was near the back of the book, and it was a picture of a black woman in a leopard bikini in a hotel room. I mean that in itself sounds random, but this woman was at least six feet two- hundred fifty pounds, a solid beast. She looked as if she was chiseled out of black marble like a Greek sculpture. I was in awe of this astonishingly large woman; she just looked so strong and powerful. I instantly wanted to know how she got so big and why. So I began wondering what kind of job this woman could possibly have. I narrowed my decision down to two choices. My choices included a professional bodybuilder, and the incredible hulk. Obviously enough, the most probable job was an easy guess. I knew she must have been a professional body builder.
Growing up with my father being a former professional bodybuilder, the bodybuilding physique has always impressed me. With this being said, this woman’s photo stuck out like a sore thumb. She is quite possibly the most muscular woman I have ever seen in my life. Her back and shoulder muscles were massive, her arms were the size of my thighs, even her ass had muscle definition. There was no body fat in sight, she was superwoman! My imagination began running wild, and I really could see this woman throwing her ex-boyfriend’s car on the roof of a building. She had to be well known around the world, a woman this big is not something that goes unnoticed. Based on the first impression of just a mere photo, I knew she must have been very successful in bodybuilding contests. If I was this impressed by a photo, imagine seeing this brute in person. Like everyone else, I assume steroids had to play a role somewhere in her lifetime, a female body just isn’t suppose to be that big.
This remarkable woman’s name is Lenda Murray. She was born in Detroit Michigan, on February 22, 1962. She is the second oldest of six daughters born to Darcelious and Louvelle Murray. She is perhaps the world’s most successful female bodybuilder. Lenda has won Ms. Olympia, the most prestigious award in female bodybuilding, eight times in her career. Her first win being the first Ms. Olympia contest she ever competed in. Lenda’s success in the bodybuilding circuit has given her great fame and popularity, appearing on many magazines and television shows. Lenda’s body was such an impressive achievement it set the standard for what female bodybuilders are judged against. At competition time Lenda was less than seven percent body fat, a remarkable feat to achieve. The average body fat percentage for a normal woman is twenty-five. She was unstoppable, so it seemed until she lost the Ms. Olympia title in 1996, and again in 1997. Losing her title forced Linda to go into retirement, but after four years she returned back to the circuit to win two more Ms. Olympia titles in 2002 and 2003. This quality of determination was not something new for Lenda. Growing up, she was always an amazing athlete. Lenda was always prominent in sports from high school at Henry Ford High School to college at Western Michigan University. She focused on track and field as well as cheerleading. She was even selected as the university’s homecoming queen. Lenda was so talented that after college she went on to be a professional cheerleader for the Michigan Panthers, a football team for the United States football league. School also was a first priority in Lenda’s life. She majored in political science in college, and was on her way to become a lawyer. Lenda had talent as well as a strong intellect, a powerful combination that has helped her achieve great success. After moving on from cheering, reason being she could not be as little as her smaller team mates, Lenda discovered that the more she exercised the bigger her muscles would grow, and make her stand out. So in 1984, she joined a Detroit health club called the Power House Gym. This was the turning point of Linda’s career. At the Power House Gym, Linda befriended many male bodybuilders, who told her she was a natural for the sport. The bodybuilding saga was thus started. Lenda soon realized she had a knack for weight training, and the rest was history. In an interview Linda stated, “I thought weight training was interesting, but I didn't imagine being a bodybuilder. I think it was meant for me to walk into that room." She began training intensely, two to four hours a day, and had a strict high protein, low fat diet. This was the remarkable thing about Linda; it was her determination and drive that got her that big, not steroids. Lenda was a prime example of the success of hard work ethic. Today, Lenda is retired, but still active in the gym. She now lives a great life with her husband, Urel McGill, in Atlanta, Georgia.
In conclusion, after researching the life and success of Linda Murray some things have surprised me, while other things have not. For starters, this pinnacle of female physique was all natural, and never used steroids or performance enhancers. This surprised me because most other athletes in bodybuilding take that easier route to achieve success, but not Linda. She worked her ass off, using a strict workout plan and diet. Also, Linda was noted for her beauty and femininity, she was not some huge half male tomboy. She was just a big girly-girl. This same iron bodied woman was a homecoming queen. She is the total opposite of what everyone perceives female bodybuilders to be, big guy-ish steroid heads.
Although some things surprised me about Lenda, other things did not surprise me at all. Just from reading the story of her life and seeing her achievements, one can see that Lenda is very talented and hardworking. She is dedicated and never backs down from a challenge. Even after going into retirement, she came back to win two for Ms. Olympia titles. This amazing achievement just shows how competitive and determined she truly is. Lenda ethic is as good as it gets, she is truly one of a kind.

jimmy egu said...

Marion Jones. The combination of explosiveness, power, speed, and beauty. Jones was the face of women's track and field during the late 90s and early 2000s. She dominated in the 100m dash with a personal best of 10.65, the 200m with a personal best of 21.62, the 300m with a personal best of 35.68, and the 400m with a personal best of 49.59. Marion Jones also won many medals during her era of domination.
Marion was stripped of the five medals she won during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia because in October 2007, she admitted she used steroids before the Summer Olympics and claimed that she lied when she previously denied steroid use in statements to the press. Marion recieved a two year suspension from track and field and forfeited medals, results, prizes, and points recieved after September 1.
Some people actually believe that she was doping in high school as well. She won state in the 100m four times in a row and even participated in the Olympic trials at a young age.

jitchmohn said...

Jerry Faye Hall
Jerry Faye Hall is a very pretty and rather tall woman. She has a unique look in her eyes as she nourishes the child. Is she a care taker of the child? Is she the mother of the child? It almost looks as if she is staring straight through the situation. She knows she is nourishing the child, but has no emotional bond with it. She looks like she is too busy worrying about herself, like normal trophy wife I suppose.
She looks rich, extremely rich. Maybe it is the leopard skin cover on her, or maybe it is the elaborate décor, but it is obvious she is a wealthy woman. Considering she looks like a trophy wife, whether she is talented or not, her talent probably goes to no good use. Unless she is a model, in which case she just would just have to do what she seems to be good at; look good and flaunt what she’s got.
Born on July 2, 1956 in Dallas, Texas, Jerry Faye Hall is the daughter of Marjorie and John P. Hall. She has three older sisters and a twin sister, Terry. At six feet tall and flowing blonde hair and blue eyes Jerry was quite the beauty. Following a major car accident Jerry collected the insurance money and moved to France. While sun bathing at a French hotel she was discovered by fashion agent Claude Haddad. She then moved to Paris where she would soon become one of the first distinguished supermodels. She began modeling in Paris and while living with singer/supermodel Grace Jones. She and Grace Jones started partying all the time and became infatuated with the Parisian nightlife, often doing risqué cabaret acts to make some extra cash. Soon after she moved in with fashion illustrator Antonio Lopez, and her modeling career took off. She began making over $1,000 a day and by 1977 had been on over forty magazine covers including Vogue and Cosmopolitan. After her career took off she would become engaged to Bryan Ferry, whom she would soon leave for the lead singer of the Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger. After having the first of four children, Elizabeth Scarlett, she returned to modeling and also began a small career in film. Her biggest roll in film may have been in Tim Burtans, Batman. After having four children, she and Mick would divorce in 1999. Today Jerry Hall is living in London and is the official spokesperson for Levitra, a pill to help men with erectile dysfunction, which is a serious problem.
I have seen Tim Burtans Batman about a thousand times and never known that Jerry Hall was the actress playing Alicia Hunt. She just doesn’t seem like a Batman type of girl to me. It is also a bit of a surprise that as a notorious rock star, trophy wife, she has only been married twice. And I find it almost ironic that she is the spokesperson for the erectile dysfunction pill, Levitra. What a perfect job for the former trophy wife of a sex-crazed rock star.
In her picture she has the look of the type of woman who could only be a rock star wife. The look on her face just doesn’t speak genius to whomever admirers her picture. Her eyes a little baggy and wrinkles in strange places just spell out party animal, and girl with little talent to the spectator. At six feet tall with her physical features and stunning good looks (at a younger age) it is no surprise that she would be discovered as a future supermodel at a young age.

Taylor Moncrief said...

Alison Estabrook
I chose Alison Estabrook from New York City because of the rough look on her face. I felt like I could interpret so many reasons as to why she looks so depressed in the photograph. The picture caught my attention because I want to be a surgeon one day, and when I saw the picture of her standing there with a stern look on her face, I wanted to know the reasoning. She has a face mask hanging down around her neck as if she just got done with a surgery. She’s wearing scrubs, so this automatically told me her profession is in the medical field. From the look on her face, it seems like she is either worn out from a long day at work or she is a bitter person. She’s not looking at the camera, so this makes it hard to connect with the photograph. I think she is one of those women who don’t have a family because their whole life revolves around their career. I wouldn’t want to work with her or for her because of the harsh vibe she is giving off. She also seems very irritable. She’s standing in an operating room and since the picture is in black and white, it’s a little eerie. Even though I probably won’t find out why the editors chose such a depressing picture to display, I liked the endless possibilities of guessing why they did end up choosing it. She is probably just an ordinary surgeon the book asked to photograph. I don’t think she is famous. Obviously she is talented, because I think anyone in the medical field has to be in order to have gotten the job in the first place. I think she is a very wealthy person because most doctors are pretty well off since their business will never die down.
After researching Alison Estabrook, I found out that she is indeed very well known for what she does. She is the Chief of Breast Surgery Service at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center. She established the Comprehensive Breast Center which is a facility for breast cancer patients. She also co-founded the Women at Risk program. It provides medical care to women who have the highest risk of obtaining breast cancer. There aren’t a lot of facts about her personal life, but I found stuff on her personal goals and feelings. When she first started out in the medical field she said there weren’t many female breast surgeons. While saying this was a struggle of her, she said she knew she couldn’t let this discourage her; she had to ignore all of the distractions from negative people who were saying how hard it was going to be to succeed. She was interviewed about her decision to not have kids and she says that she doesn’t regret not having kids because it would have been impossible to keep her career going. She said she loves what she does and she’s happy. Alison also went on to say that it is not like she doesn’t have the company on kids around her. She said she has a few godchildren from her friends. I think she was saying this as a defense mechanism so people wouldn’t think she was being selfish for her decision not to have kids. She lives in a New York suite on West 59th street. Alison Estabrook attended Barnard College and graduated cum laude in biology. She got her medical degree at NYU and completed her residency at Columbia where she is now as a surgeon.
I was surprised to find out that Alison Estabrook wasn’t just an ordinary surgeon who was asked to be photographed. I didn’t think she was well known across the United States either. I was wrong about her being a bitter person. She is a very caring person, whose goal in life is to make other people happy and rid them of their breast disease. It also surprised me that, not only is she a well known surgeon but she has organizations of her own that have helped people all over the United States. It was surprising that there weren’t any detailed biographies on her life, like what year she was born in. her career is the only thing that is talked about.
I wasn’t surprised to find out that she does not have kids. I figured she was too busy to have a family, and I was right. She is also extremely talented as I thought she was. Assuming that she had a long day at work in the photograph was right, because she is a very hard working person. Her current income was never talked about, but it’s safe to stick with my assumption that she is very wealthy. With all of her attributions she is bound to be making a good living.

Corday Barnes said...

When I first looked at Lenda Murray in the photo essay Woman by Anne Leibovitz, I was amazed by the photo of her. There were so many interesting things about that photograph that made me want to learn more about her. In the photo, she had muscles on every part of her body. I never saw an African American woman built so muscular. In the photo, she faced backward and flexed her muscles in a leopard bathing suit. From the looks of the picture, she looked like she was kind of cute with her pony tail and diamond stud earrings; but, I could only see a side glimpse of her faced . I assumed based on her appearance, her clothing, and the set up of the photograph that she most likely is a body builder that is famous, rich, and talented.

Lenda Murray, born February 22, 1942 in Detroit, Michigan, is a champion female bodybuilder from the United States. She is the world’s most successful female bodybuilder to this date. She is an eight-time winner of the Ms. Olympis title, which is the highest achievement in professional female bodybuilding. Even in high school, Lenda Murray was very athletic, a record-holding sprinter and a varsity cheerleading. She went on to attend Western Michigan University where she earned a degree in political science. During this period, she continued to cheerlead and became the second African American to be chosen as the university homecoming queen. After cheerleading for the Michigan Panthers,in a now-defunct United States Football League, Murray took to the bodybuilding stage in 1985. She rose quickly through the ranks, soon winning contests at the state and regional levels. She appeared in many mass-market publications like Sports Illustrated, Ebony, Mademoiselle, Banity Fair, and the book I discovered her at Women by Annie Leibovitz. She retired in 2004 and now she is married to Urel McGill and lives in Atlanta, GA.

By Lenda Murray being so muscular, I thought she would be more tom boyish but I was wrong. From the looks of her photos, she’s actually real feminine and acts like any other normal women. I was surprised to see some of the pictures of her that were attractive with her clothes on. I’m not usually attracted to girls with a lot muscles, especially more than me, but she looked nice. Now, she even looks more attractive because she’s retired and she is not all that muscular like she used to look. I was not surprised at all that she was a bodybuilder. Her body type showed that she was a bodybuilder. I also wasn’t surprise on how athletic and famous she was because any women with all those muscles must be a little famous. I also wasn’t surprise when I found out she was married. Lenda Murray had a successful career and seem to maintain a feminine outlook even with all those muscles.

Caroline14 said...

The woman in the photograph that stood out to me was incredibly beautiful with her soft,undamaged skin and her silky white hair. The woman in the picture was Elizabeth Taylor. The photograph portrayed her as a very stunning and elegant woman and something about her made me think that she had been through a lot through her life. She looked incredibly happy with herself and the life she had made. This was the fact that made me want to found out more about her. Her elequent expression and her danty black dress made me think that this woman was extremely wealthy, along with the expensive puppy she was holding. The wrinkles in her skin show her true age although her soft, romantic-looking eyes show how old she is inside. Any woman who is that age and looks so happy and so content must have had a good life.
Elizabeth Taylor was born in England into a wealthy American family. Her well known acting career began at the unbelievably young age of ten when she starred in the Universal Film "There's One Born Every Minute." Universal quickly dropped her after the making of this film and MGM was the next to grab her. Young Elizabeth Taylor's acting career really "set sail" after her amazing role in "National Velvet." As many acters and actresses, her acting career had many ups and downs through the years until she had won no less than two Oscars, had been ranked the highest payed actress in world, and ranked in several lists of beautiful women. With her stunning violet eyes, not only did she capture the hearts of her audiences, but she also captured the hearts of her many husbands. After nine marriages, some successful while others not, Elizabeth Taylor not only was she known as one of the most beautiful bachelorette, but she was the mother of four and the grandmother of nine. Elizabeth's career took a hard hit after four back surgeries, the removal of a benign brain tumor, hip replacements, and numerous other ailments. Even after years of acting and hardships, Elizabeth was still heard saying that she wished she could still act. After retiring from acting in 2003, Elizabeth Taylor committed to her love of jewelry and spent the rest of her years establishing this love.
I think she was an incredible woman. She lived a very interesting life and took advantage of every situation she was in. She loved what she did, and she did what she loved and this in itself is an accomplish.

Perfect Paul said...

Kathleen M. Sullivan

From the very beginning of our country there have been debates on what the constitution really means. Kathleen M. Sullivan, fascinated with constitutional law, has been trying to figure this out for most of her life. As a lesbian herself, Kathleen has fought for and defended gay rights. Her career as a lawyer has brought her to argue before the appeals court and US Supreme Court many times. It is no mistake that Kathleen was named one of America’s top 100 influential lawyers by the National Law Journal. Her career is not a one way street. She gives back what she has learned over the years as a professor at Stanford Law School. After being named the Stanley Morrison Professor of Law in 1996 she became the dean of Stanford Law School. This was a great accomplishment because there has never been, in the history of Stanford, not just Law School, has a woman been given the job of Dean.

To many it may seem that everything comes easy to Kathleen but in reality she has worked hard all of her life. Back in 1981 when Kathleen was just graduating Harvard law school her mentor, Laurence Tribe, called her, “The most extraordinary student I have ever had.” The California bar exam is said to be one of the hardest bar exams out there. Around 50% of the people who take the exam pass it. Kathleen was set on passing the July 2005 California bar exam but failed on her first attempt. Her hard work and dedication did not let her give up and call it quits. In February of the following year Kathleen returned to take the California bar exam and passed. Even though her achievements are a laundry list full of publications, cases, affiliations, and honors; but she is not done. Speculation says she may even be in line to be elected as a Judge in the Supreme Court if a Democrat is elected president.

rebecca paz said...

Ms. Osceola McCarty
When I turned to page219 in the book “Women”, I saw an old, short, stout, black woman with a sweet and humble look on her face. The photo was taken on the side of an old house in Mississippi. At first glance, Ms. Osceola McCarty looked like what many would perceive as a slave or house maid of some sort. As I did some research, I discovered that the humble and caring look on her face was indeed reflecting her personality. Osceola McCarty had a heart-warming story.
Ms. Osceola McCarty was born in Wayne County Mississippi in 1908. She did not live what we today would consider an easy life. When she was in sixth grade, McCarty’s aunt became very ill. McCarty selflessly decided to drop out of school to take care of her relative, completely leaving behind her dreams of a higher education. She lived in a simple framed home and worked as a washer woman in Hattiesburg, Mississippi to make money; her life revolved around domestic duties like washing, ironing, and folding clothes. She was never married. In 1994, she retired due to arthritis in her hands.
Ms. Osceola seemed like a sweet old woman who worked hard and lived a simple, modest life. Although abandoning her dreams of a higher education, Osceola McCarty never forgot how important an education really was. In 1995, she shocked the University of Southern Mississippi with a $150,000 donation. She had saved the money over so many years from her modest earnings as a washerwoman. Upon giving the donation, she simply said “I just want to help somebody’s child go to college.” “I just want it to go to someone who will appreciate it and learn.” Representatives at The University of Southern Mississippi were amazed at the old woman’s donation. The university, respecting Ms. Osceola’s wishes, used her donation to start a scholarship for needy African- American students.
Ms. Osceola McCarty’s unique donation was recognized all over the country. She received an honorary doctorate from Harvard University and was even given the opportunity to carry the Olympic torch at the 1996 summer games. Most awarding of all, Ms. Osceola McCarty got her wish and gave many deserving young people the chance to get a higher education, the education she couldn’t have.

zfickes said...

Madeline Alright, born Madeline Korbel is the former secretary of defense who served under Bill Clinton. She was unanimously voted in by the senate to become the first woman to hold this position. She also formerly served as the U.S Permanent representative to the U.N council. Her resume goes much deeper, formerly being on the staff at the National Security Council for years. She was born in Prague Czechoslovakia, on May 15, 1937. She and her family were in constant hiding during the Nazi occupation to avoid persecution. Her father Josef Korbel was a member of the Czech diplomat corps. They were granted political asylum in 1948 and immigrated to the United States. She did not find out until recently, that her grandparents were Jewish and had perished in concentration camps, most likely Auschwitz.
She is a very bright woman with a Master's degree and a doctorate from Columbia University, but as viewed by many as over-aggressive. She was once quoted as saying "what's the point of having a superb military you're always talking about if we can't use it" in response to a failed vote on military use. Many see her as a controversial political figure and others as a ground breaking powerful woman. Albright's other black eye on her record came when she made comments about the thousands of Iraqi kids who had perished throughout the war. She was at one point in time viewed as the most powerful woman in the world.
She married Joseph Albright in 1959; they had three daughters and divorced in 1982, which led to a slew of questions from reporters about power struggles within the relationship.
I found it surprising that such a bright woman is surrounded by so much controversy. The dislike for her even comes from within the Democratic Party. However, i believe that in politics you are bound to make enemies. I also found it suprising that although she looks like a very a powerful woman, she has very humble begginings and was not even a citizen in this country for the first decade of her life.

zach rhodes said...

At first glance one my easily mistake Lenda Murray as a man or a monster of a woman. But to tell you the truth the first thoughts that ran through my head when I first gazed upon the magnificent physique that Lenda Murrays adorns, consisted of images of long walks on the beach, loving to be the center of attention and a sensitive woman trapped in a mans body. But after a little research I found that my assumptions were far from the truth.

By looking at Lenda Murray, it may not be a surprising fact that she is a professional body builder. Her passion for body building was inspired by her father, who also is a professional body builder, at an early age. Lenda jokes by saying, “my only other career option was to be the incredible hulk.” Lenda received her first taste of success when she won Ms. Olimpia in 1995. This taste only made her hunger even more for fame and attention through her sport. Since he victory in 1995 Lenda has consecutively placed first in the Ms. Olimpia competition seven times.

Although Lenda has become one of the most successful woman body builders of all time, she has traveled a long road in order to achieve these successes. Lenda was born on February 22, 1962 in Detroit Michigan. She attended Henry ford High school as a teenager, and was accepted to the University of Western Michigan where she was latter crowned home coming queen. Upon entering college Lenda chose to pursue a degree in Law, a dream she never achieved. Along the way she was inspired by he father and friends to become a professional body builder.

joel j said...

Polly Weydener
I picked the picture of Polly Weydener because she looked like a women that has been through a lot of struggles in her life. From the picture it would seem like she has very little in life because of her shabby appearance and the fact that the picture was taken in a bathroom. With a body full of wrinkles I assumed that she had had a pretty rough life and achieved very little from all the effort she put forth.
When I finally researched her I found out that her life was much different than the picture presented her. I found that she was born in 1922 and in 1935 she moved to Chicago where she lived most of her life. She was a registered nurse and when she retired in the late 60s she became a chiropractic massage therapist. As a hobby she teaches belly and ballroom dancing. She also has two daughters, four grandchildren, and one great grandchild

Colin said...

Courtney Love
The beautiful women with bruises and scratches represent the highs and lows in Courtney Love’s life. The picture shows Love in the early morning sipping on coffee with a satin robe on. At a closer look there are scratches and bruises on her legs and her hair is nappy and chaotic. This woman has seen everything from living in a hippie commune to being nominated for best supporting actress, from being the “nice Jewish girl” to overdosing on oxycontin. Courtney Love has seen it all.
On July 9, 1964 in San Francisco, CA, Courtney Love was born. She had a very troubling childhood. Soon after her birth her biological split up after her father was giving Courtney LSD. She than lived with mom, Linda Carroll, moving in and out of Hippie Communes in Oregon. Courtney was sent off to a New Zealand boarding school at age eleven. After a few years in New Zealand Courtney moved back to the United States. To support he love of music and her dream to be successful, Courtney became a stripper. In the mid 1980’s Courtney got her first break as the lead singer of Faith No More. Although it was short-lived, Love got her first taste of stardom. Although Courtney Love’s “dominating personality” did not mesh with Faith No More, it would mesh with the rest of the rock culture.
A few years later in 1989 Love taught herself the guitar and started the band Hole. Although Hole was fairly successful, the biggest upside of Hole was the relationships she formed with some of the most influential figures on the rock scene. One of the figures she met was Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana. It took a while but the two were married on February 24, 1992, Courtney wearing a satin dress and Cobain wearing green pajamas. Six months later Love gave birth to Frances Bean Cobain. She admitted later to taking heroin while carrying baby Frances. Not being able to deal with his drug addiction and pressures of being a star, Courtney Love’s husband, Kurt Cobain committed suicide on April 5, 1994 at the age of twenty-seven. A very angry Love called Cobain an “asshole” at the memorial service and said that if he couldn’t handle it he should have just “Quit being a Rock star.” Tragedy struck Love’s life again just 2 months later as the Hole’s bassist, Kristen Pfaff, died of a heroin overdoes. In 2003 Courtney overdosed on oxycontin and had to release custody of Frances Cobain who was now eleven. After a short stint in jail and a few months of rehab Courtney was granted custody of Frances, just the average life of a Rock star.
The Bruises and scratches are much the thicker than skin deep. They run deep in the veins and the soul of Courtney Love. It’s a life of hard work and good fortune to become successful and a life of drug addiction and suicide. The striking women in the satin robe has seen it all.