Gia Carangi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gia Carangi
Carangi in 1982
Born	(1960-01-29)January 29, 1960 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	November 18, 1986(1986-11-18) (aged 26) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Cause of death	AIDS-related complications
Occupation	Model
Years active	1978–1983
Modeling information
Height	173 cm (5 ft 8 in)
Hair color	Brown
Eye color	Brown
Agency	Wilhelmina Models Ford Models Legends Elite Model Management

Gia Marie Carangi (born January 29, 1960 – died November 18, 1986) was an American fashion model. Many people consider her to be the first supermodel. She appeared on the covers of many famous magazines. These included Vogue and Cosmopolitan. She also worked in ads for top fashion brands like Armani, Dior, Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent.

Gia Carangi died at age 26 from complications related to AIDS. This was in 1986. Her life story was made into a movie called Gia in 1998. It was an HBO television film starring Angelina Jolie as Gia.

Gia Carangi's Early Life

Gia Carangi was born in Philadelphia on January 29, 1960. She was the youngest of three children. Her father, Joseph, owned a restaurant. Her mother, Kathleen, stayed at home. Gia had two older brothers. Her father was Italian, and her mother had Irish and Welsh family roots.

Gia's parents had a difficult marriage. Her mother left the family when Gia was eleven years old. Relatives remembered Gia as a shy child. She was also described as a "mommy's girl." She really wanted her mother's attention. As a teenager, Gia found attention from other girls. She would send them flowers to become friends.

When she went to Abraham Lincoln High School, Gia became friends with "the Bowie kids." This group loved David Bowie. They copied his unique and glamorous style.

Gia Carangi's Modeling Career

Gia Carangi started modeling in Philadelphia newspaper ads. She was discovered in a hair salon. At age 17, she moved to New York City. There, she signed with Wilhelmina Models. Her first big photo shoot was in October 1978. It was with a famous photographer named Chris von Wangenheim. By the end of 1978, Gia was already a well-known model.

Her rise to fame was very fast. Vogue magazine called it "meteoric." Gia later said, "I started working with very good people, I mean all the time, very fast. I didn't build into a model, I just sort of became one."

Gia was a favorite model for many fashion photographers. These included Von Wangenheim, Francesco Scavullo, Arthur Elgort, Richard Avedon, and Denis Piel. She was very popular in the fashion world. She could choose which photographers to work with. Scavullo was one of her most frequent collaborators.

Gia appeared on many fashion magazine covers. She was on the April 1979 issue of British Vogue. She also appeared on the April 1979 and August 1980 issues of Vogue Paris. The August 1980 issue of American Vogue also featured her. She was on the February 1981 issue of Vogue Italia. Gia also graced multiple issues of Cosmopolitan between 1979 and 1982.

During these years, she was in many advertising campaigns. These were for top fashion brands. They included Armani, André Laug, Christian Dior, Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent. At the peak of her career, she was known simply as Gia. She also appeared in the Blondie music video for the song "Atomic".

In November 1980, Gia left Wilhelmina Models. She then signed with Ford Models. However, she was dropped within a few weeks. Her career began to face challenges. Modeling jobs became harder to find. Some of her friends in the fashion world stopped talking to her. They worried it might hurt their own careers. In February 1981, she moved back to Philadelphia. She lived with her mother and stepfather.

In late 1981, Gia wanted to make a comeback. She signed with Elite Model Management. Some clients did not want to work with her. But others were willing to hire her. This was because she had been a top model. Scavullo photographed her for the April 1982 cover of Cosmopolitan. This was her last cover for an American magazine. Sean Byrnes, Scavullo's assistant, later noted a change in her appearance. He said, "I could see the change in her beauty. There was an emptiness in her eyes."

Gia then mostly worked with photographer Albert Watson. She found work modeling for department stores and catalogs. She was in an advertising campaign for Versace. This shoot was done by Richard Avedon. He hired her for Versace's next campaign. But during that photo shoot in late 1982, Gia felt unwell. She left before any good pictures were taken. By the end of 1982, she had very few clients. Gia's last photo shoot was for a German clothing company. It took place in Tunisia. She left New York for the last time in early 1983.

Gia Carangi's Later Years and Death

In December 1985, Gia Carangi was admitted to Warminster General Hospital. This was in Warminster, Pennsylvania. She had a severe lung infection called bilateral pneumonia. A few days later, she was diagnosed with AIDS-related complex. This meant her body was struggling with the effects of AIDS.

In the fall of 1986, Gia was hospitalized again. On October 18, she went to Hahnemann University Hospital. This hospital is in Center City Philadelphia. Gia died there one month later, on November 18, 1986. She was 26 years old. She was one of the first famous women to die from AIDS.

Her funeral was held on November 23. It was at a small funeral home in Philadelphia. No one from the fashion world attended her funeral. However, weeks later, Francesco Scavullo sent a Mass card. He was a friend of Gia's and heard the news.

Gia Carangi's Legacy

Gia Carangi is often called the first supermodel. However, this title has also been given to other models. These include Margaux Hemingway, Audrey Munson, Lisa Fonssagrives, Dorian Leigh, Twiggy, Jean Shrimpton, Cheryl Tiegs, and Janice Dickinson.

Model Cindy Crawford became famous the year Gia died. People sometimes called Crawford "Baby Gia." This was because she looked like Gia. Crawford later said, "My agents took me to all the photographers who liked Gia: Albert Watson, Francesco Scavullo, Bill King. Everyone loved her look so much that they gladly saw me." The Argentine model Mica Argañaraz has also been compared to Gia. Mica sees Gia as a beauty icon.

Gia Carangi's life has been the subject of several works. A book about her, Thing of Beauty, was published in 1993. It was written by Stephen Fried. The title comes from a famous poem. The biographical TV movie Gia came out on HBO in 1998. Angelina Jolie starred in it. Jolie won awards for her performance, including a Golden Globe Award.

A documentary called The Self-Destruction of Gia was released in 2003. It showed old footage of Gia. It also had interviews with her family and former co-workers. These included Sandy Linter. The film also showed footage of actress-screenwriter Zoë Lund. She had been asked to write a movie script about Gia's life.

Another book about Gia was published in 2015. It is called Born This Way: Friends, Colleagues, and Coworkers Recall Gia Carangi, the Supermodel Who Defined an Era. Sacha Lanvin Baumann wrote it. Sondra Scerca, who first brought Gia to Wilhelmina, is writing a memoir. It is titled GIA, WILLY and ME. It is expected in 2022.

The AIDS Memorial Quilt has panels for Gia. One panel has her full name. Another panel just says "Gia." There is also a panel that mentions Gia along with other people.

Designers and Brands Gia Represented

• Armani
• Bloomingdale's
• Citicorp
• Cutex
• Christian Dior
• Perry Ellis
• Diane von Fürstenberg
• Lancetti
• Levi's
• Maybelline
• Yves Saint Laurent
• Versace
• Vidal Sassoon

Film and Television Appearances

See also

In Spanish: Gia Carangi para niños