Kim Kardashian

Kimberly "Kim" Kardashian West (born Kimberly Noel Kardashian; October 21, 1980) is an American reality television personality, socialite, actress, businesswoman and model. Kardashian first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after a 2003 sex tape with her former boyfriend Ray J was leaked in 2007. Later that year, she and her family began to appear in the E! reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Its success soon led to the creation of spin-offs including Kourtney and Kim Take New York and Kourtney and Khloé Take Miami. Kardashian's personal life soon became subject to widespread media attention.

In recent years, Kardashian has grown an influential online and social media presence, including tens of millions of followers on Twitter and Instagram. She has released a variety of products tied to her name, including the successful 2014 mobile game Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, a variety of clothing and products, and the 2015 photo book Selfish. Her relationship with rapper Kanye West has also received significant media coverage; the couple married in 2014 and they have two children together.

Time magazine included Kardashian on their list of 2015's 100 most influential people, while Vogue described her in 2016 as a "pop culture phenomenon." Critics and admirers have described her as exemplifying the notion of being famous for being famous. She was reported to be the highest-paid reality television personality of 2015, with her total earnings exceeding US$53 million.

Early life
Kardashian was born on October 21, 1980 in Los Angeles, California, to parents Robert and Kris (née Houghton). She has an older sister Kourtney, a younger sister Khloé, and a younger brother Rob. Their mother is of Dutch, English, Irish and Scottish ancestry, while their father was a third-generation Armenian American. After their parents divorced in 1991, her mother married again that year, to Caitlyn Jenner (then Bruce), the 1976 Summer Olympics decathlon winner. Through their marriage, Kardashian gained step-brothers Burton "Burt", Brandon, and Brody; step-sister Casey; and half-sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner.

As a teenager, she attended Marymount High School, a Roman Catholic all-girls school in Los Angeles. In 1994, her father represented football player O. J. Simpson during his murder trial. Simpson is Kim Kardashian's godfather. Kim's father died in 2003 of cancer. In her 20s, Kardashian was the close friend and stylist of socialite Paris Hilton, through whom she first garnered media attention.

2007–2009: Breakthrough with reality television
In February 2007, a sex tape made by Kardashian and Ray J in 2003 was leaked. Kardashian filed a lawsuit against Vivid Entertainment, who distributed the film as Kim K Superstar. She later dropped the suit and settled for a reported US$5 million.

In October 2007 Kardashian, in addition to her mother Kris Jenner, her step-parent Caitlyn Jenner (then known as Bruce), her siblings Kourtney, Khloé, and Rob Kardashian, and half-sisters Kendall and Kylie Jenner, began to appear in the reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. The series proved successful for E!, and has led to the creations of spin-offs including Kourtney and Kim Take New York and Kourtney and Kim Take Miami. In one of the episode, Kim discussed an offer from Playboy to appear nude in the magazine. That December, Kardashian posed for a nude pictorial for Playboy.

In 2008, she made her feature film debut in the disaster film spoof Disaster Movie, in which she appeared as a character named Lisa. That same year, she was a participant on season seven of Dancing with the Stars, where she was partnered with Mark Ballas. Kardashian was the third contestant to be eliminated.

In January 2009, Kardashian made a cameo appearance during an episode of the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, in the episode "Benefits". In April, she released a workout DVD series through her television production company Kimsaprincess Productions, LLC which has seen the release of three successful workout videos, Fit in Your Jeans by Friday, with trainers Jennifer Galardi and Patrick Goudeau. Kardashian played Elle in four episodes of the television series Beyond the Break.

Kardashian become a guest host of WrestleMania XXIV and guest judge on America's Next Top Model in August of that year. In September, Fusion Beauty and Seven Bar Foundation launched "Kiss Away Poverty", with Kardashian as the face of the campaign. For every LipFusion lipgloss sold, US$1 went to the Foundation to fund women entrepreneurs in the US. The following month, she released her first fragrance self-titled "Kim Kardashian". In December 2009, Kardashian made a guest star appearance on CBS's CSI: NY with Vanessa Minnillo.

2010: Early endorsements and retail ventures
2010 saw Kardashian venture into several new endorsement deals, including endorsing various food products for Carl's Jr. In January 2010, she starred as Summa Eve in the film Deep in the Valley. In April, Kardashian sparked controversy over the way she held a kitten for a photograph, holding it by the scruff of its neck. With sisters Kourtney and Khloé, Kardashian is involved in the retail and fashion industries. They have launched several clothing collections and fragrances. Animal rights organization PETA criticized Kardashian for repeatedly wearing fur coats, and named her as one of the five worst people or organizations of 2010 when it came to animal welfare. June saw Kardashian guest star with Khloé and Kourtney as themselves on the season three premiere episode of the series 90210. That same month, Kardashian was involved in a lawsuit against one of her endorsements. Sanford Siegal, the creator of the Cookie Diet, sued Kardashian, claiming she defamed him on Twitter. According to Siegal, Kardashian tweeted in October 2009 that he was "falsely promoting" that she was on the cookie diet. Siegal filed a claim in a Florida state court charging that her statements were false and defamatory. He also alleged that Kardashian was on QuickTrim's payroll when she posted the tweet. Kardashian's tweet appears to stem from an article on CookieDiet.com, that named Kardashian as one of many celebrities who saw positive results on the diet. Kardashian sent a cease-and-desist order to Siegal, demanding the link be removed.

On July 1, 2010, the New York City branch of Madame Tussauds revealed a wax figure of Kardashian. In November, Kardashian served as producer for The Spin Crowd, a reality television show about Command PR, a New York City public relations firm, run by Jonathan Cheban and Simon Huck. The show followed them as they settle into their new offices in Los Angeles. That month, she also appeared on season ten of The Apprentice. Kim, Kourtney, and Khloé wrote an autobiography titled Kardashian Konfidential, which was released in stores on November 23, and appeared on New York Times's Best Seller List.

In December 2010, Kardashian filmed a music video for a song titled "Jam (Turn It Up)". The video was directed by Hype Williams; Kanye West makes a cameo in the video. Kardashian premiered the song during a New Year's Eve party at TAO Las Vegas on December 31, 2010. The song was produced by The-Dream and Tricky Stewart. When asked if an album was in the works, Kardashian replied, "There's no album in the works or anything—just one song we did for Kourtney and Kim Take New York, and a video Hype Williams directed, half of the proceeds we're giving away to a cancer foundation, because The-Dream's and one of my parents passed away from cancer. It's just all having fun—with a good cause". Jim Farber, writing for the Daily News, called the song a "dead-brained piece of generic dance music, without a single distinguishing feature," and suggested that the single made Kardashian the "worst singer in the reality TV universe."

That month, the International Business Times reported that Kardashian's 2010 earnings were the highest among Hollywood-based reality stars, estimating them at $6 million.

2011–2012: Continued career and legal issues
In January 2011, Kardashian released her debut song "Jam (Turn It Up)", which was produced by The-Dream. The music video for the single was directed by Hype Williams. The single sold 14,000 downloads in five days and reached number one on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.

In April 2011, Kardashian released her third fragrance "Gold". Also in 2011, she filed a $20 million lawsuit against Old Navy and its parent company, Gap Inc. for right of publicity. Old Navy used actress/model Melissa Molinaro in their Old Navy commercial featuring the actress singing and dancing. Kim Kardashian claimed that Old Navy used Molinaro as a look alike to Kim in order to promote their brand. Kim Kardashian was also seeking order to have the actress/model Molinaro banned from Old Navy commercials. The lawsuit never went to trial but a settlement was reached by use of a mediator in 2012; the exact settlement is unknown.

In March 2012, Kardashian debuted her fourth fragrance, titled "True Reflection", which she worked with the company Dress for Success to promote. That month, Kardashian and her sisters were named in a $5 million class action lawsuit against QuickTrim, the weight loss supplement they endorse. The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, accuses the Kardashians (along with QuickTrim's manufacturer, Windmill Health Products; the retailer GNC; and others in the sales and marketing chain) of false and deceptive marketing of the diet aid. The plaintiffs, hailing from several states, brought claims under their respective states' consumer protection laws. In April, E! renewed Keeping Up with the Kardashians for two additional seasons, in a deal reported to be worth $50 million. In October 2012, Kardashian released her fifth fragrance, "Glam", which "draws on the glamour of her Hollywood lifestyle", and was made available through Debenhams.

In summer of 2012, Kardashian and her family filmed a music video in the Dominican Republic to Notorious B.I.G's song "Hypnotize".

2013–2015: Focus on social media


Kardashian appeared on the cover, and in a pictorial in Paper's winter issue in 2014 photographed by Jean-Paul Goude. On the cover, her nude buttocks are featured above the caption: "Break the Internet", which generated considerable comment in both social and traditional media. The photos show Kardashian with her hair tied up in a bun, wearing only a pearl necklace, a pair of earrings and black satin gloves, and, on the cover, with her bare back facing the camera, holding a sequined gown below her bare, oiled-up buttocks, while smiling broadly at the camera. A Time magazine writer commented that, unlike previous celebrities' nudes that represented the women's rebellion against repressed society and "trying to tear down" barriers, Kardashian's exhibition was "just provocation and bluster, repeated images that seem to offer us some sort of truth or insight but are really just self serving. We want there to be something more, some reason or context, some great explanation that tells us what it is like to live in this very day and age, but there is not. Kim Kardashian's ass is nothing but an empty promise." However, the stunt "set a new benchmark" in social media response, and Paper's website received 15.9 million views in one day, compared with 25,000 views on an average day.

Kardashian voiced the role of an alien in an episode of the adult animated series American Dad!, in season 11 (2014–15) in the episode titled "Blagsnarst, A Love Story" on September 21, 2014. In the episode, her character crash-lands in the town of Langley Falls. The alien then develops an attraction to her fellow alien Roger.

In June 2014, Kardashian released a mobile game for iPhone and Android called Kim Kardashian: Hollywood. The objective of the game is to become a Hollywood star or starlet. The game supports a free to play model, meaning the game is free to download, but charges for in game-items. The game was a hit, earning US$1.6 million in its first five days of release. In July, the game's developer Glu Mobile announced that the game was the fifth highest earning game in Apple's App Store.

In April 2015, Kardashian and West traveled to the Armenian Quarter of the Old City in Jerusalem to have their daughter, North, baptized in the Armenian Apostolic Church. The ceremony took place at the Cathedral of St. James. Khloe Kardashian was appointed the godmother of North.

In May 2015, Kardashian released a portfolio book called 'Selfish', a 325-page collection of self-taken photos of herself. In December 2015, Kardashian released an emoji pack for IOS devices called Kimoji. The paid app quickly became a top earner for Apple, becoming one of the top 5 most bought apps that week.

In August 2015, Kardashian was the cover model for Vogue Spain.

2016–present
On October 2, 2016, while attending Paris Fashion Week, Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint in the apartment where she was staying. Five individuals, dressed as police officers, bound and gagged her, then stole $10 million worth of jewelry. The thieves got in her residence by threatening the concierge. Once they accessed Kardashian's room, they held a gun to her head, tying her wrists and legs and wrapping duct tape around her mouth as a gag. Kardashian, who was placed in the bathtub, was physically unharmed and reportedly begged for her life. She managed to wriggle her hands free from the plastic ties around her wrists and scream for help. The thieves escaped. On October 6, 2016, it was revealed that filming for the next season of Keeping up with the Kardashians had been placed "on hold indefinitely" after the robbery. Production resumed on October 26. Kardashian postponed a makeup demonstration in Dubai due to the incident.

Kardashian will make a cameo appearance in Ocean's Eight set for release on June 8, 2018.

Fashion ventures
Kardashian is one of the many celebrity turned entrepreneurs who are able to leverage their television success by launching profitable side businesses. Kardashian is the founder of the television production company, Kimsaprincess Productions LLC which produces workout DVDs, launched an eponymous fragrance line and the e-commerce shoe shopping website, ShoeDazzle. With her sisters Kourtney and Khloe, she also owns and is expanding D-A-S-H clothing boutiques, designed a clothing line for Bebe and nabbed diet (Quick Trim) and skincare (PerfectSkin) products endorsements.

In 2006, Kardashian entered the business world with her two sisters and opened the boutique shop D-A-S-H in Calabasas, California. In 2007, Kardashian and three partners Brian Lee, Robert Shapiro and MJ Eng founded ShoeDazzle, an online shoe and accessories website. The site now boasts more than 3 million customers, who pay a monthly fee for access to a personalized selection of shoes, jewelry and handbags every month. The site also landed a $40-million investment from the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. The company is valued at $280 million as of 2012. In March 2009, she launched an endorsement with her company, ShoeDazzle shopping, of which she is the co-founder and chief fashion stylist. She then endorsed multiple other projects including a vanilla cupcake mix flavor called 'Va-Va-Va-Nilla' for the bakery, Famous Cupcakes.

Beginning in early 2010, Kardashian and her sisters designed and developed clothing lines for Bebe stores and 'Virgins, Saints, and Angels'. In April 2010, Kardashian and her sisters released a sunless tanner "Kardashian Glamour Tan", that month. In October 2011, Kardashian and her sisters opened their Kardashian Khaos store in Las Vegas. In November 2012, Kardashian and her sisters internationally launched the 'Kardashian Kollection' in England, as well as launching a line of cosmetics, 'Khroma Beauty'.

Marriages
In 2000, 19-year-old Kardashian eloped with music producer Damon Thomas. Thomas filed for divorce in 2003. Kardashian later credited their separation to physical and emotional abuse on his part. Prior to the completion of her divorce, Kardashian began dating singer Ray J.

In May 2011, Kardashian became engaged to NBA player Kris Humphries, then of the New Jersey Nets, whom she had been dating since October 2010. They were married in a wedding ceremony on August 20 in Montecito, California. Earlier that month, she had released her "wedding fragrance" called "Kim Kardashian Love" which coincided with her own wedding. A two-part TV special showing the preparations and the wedding itself aired on E! in early October 2011, amidst what The Washington Post called a "media blitz" related to the wedding. After 72 days of marriage, she filed for divorce from Humphries on October 31, citing irreconcilable differences. Several news outlets surmised that Kardashian's marriage to Humphries was merely a publicity stunt, to promote the Kardashian family's brand and their subsequent television ventures. A man professing to be her former publicist, Jonathan Jaxson, also claimed that her short-lived marriage was indeed staged and a ploy to generate money. Kardashian filed suit against Jaxson, saying his claims were untrue, and subsequently settled the case which included an apology from Jaxson. A widely circulated petition asking to remove all Kardashian-related programming from the air followed the split. The divorce was subject to widespread media attention.

Kardashian began dating American rapper and longtime friend Kanye West in April 2012, while still legally married to Humphries. Her divorce was finalized on June 3, 2013, while Kardashian gave birth to her first child with West, daughter North West, on June 15, 2013. Kardashian and West became engaged on October 21, Kardashian's 33rd birthday, and married on May 24, 2014 at Fort di Belvedere in Florence, Italy. Her wedding dress was designed by Riccardo Tisci of Givenchy with some guests' dresses designed by designer Michael Costello. Kardashian gave birth to her second child, son Saint West, on December 5, 2015. The couple's high status and respective careers have resulted in their relationship becoming subject to heavy media coverage; The New York Times referred to their marriage as "a historic blizzard of celebrity."

Wealth
As of May 2014, Kardashian was estimated to be worth US$45 million. In 2015, Forbes reported she had "made more this year than ever as her earnings nearly doubled to $53 million from 2014's $28 million," and reported that she "has monetized fame better than any other." Much of her income include wholesale earnings of the Sears line, the Kardashian Kollection, which raked in $600 million in 2013 and the Kardashian Beauty cosmetics line, Kardashian-branded tanning products, the boutique-line DASH, as well as sponsored Instagram and Twitter posts which are collectively worth $10,000-25,000 per post.

Advocacy
Kardashian has expressed pride in her Armenian and Scottish ancestry, although she is not a citizen of either country and cannot speak Armenian. She has advocated for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide on numerous occasions, and encouraged President Barack Obama and the United States government to consider its acknowledgement.

In April 2015, she traveled to Armenia with her husband, her sister Khloé, and her daughter North and visited the memorial of the victims in Yerevan. In April 2016, Kardashian wrote an article on her website condemning The Wall Street Journal for running an advertisement denying the Armenian Genocide. During an interview with GQ for the July 2016 issue, Kardashian described herself as a Liberal Republican, fiscally conservative but socially progressive.

Awards and nominations
Teen Choice Awards

Other awards