Vanessa Minnillo: Snapshot

Name
Vanessa Minnillo
Date of Birth
November 09, 1980
Birth Place
Pampanga, Philippines
Former MTV VJ Vanessa Minnillo may have been crowned Miss Teen USA and dated Yankees stud Derek Jeter, but the brunette babe didn't make a splash until she snapped up former Newlywed Nick Lachey – after his well-documented marriage to Jessica Simpson ended.

At 17, the South Carolina cheerleader bested the nation's prettiest girls to become Miss Teen USA, and eventually landed a spot on MTV's countdown show TRL. After leaving the music network, Minnillo continued her romance with Lachey, marrying the former boy bander in July 2011, changing her name to Vanessa Lachey, and announcing her pregnancy with their first child.

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Vanessa Minnillo: Five Fun Facts

  1. Vanessa Minnillo and Nick Lachey share the same November 9th birthday.
  2. Vanessa Minnillo, a self-proclaimed ''military brat,'' attended eight different schools before the age of 14.
  3. Vanessa Minnillo uses her diary as a way to review relationship patterns. "It's always about my relationships," Minnillo told Shape. "I'm so happy to finally have someone [Lachey] who makes me believe in the fantasy of love again!"
  4. Before appearing in Bongo Ads, Vanessa Minnillo was an all-star cheerleader who appeared on the cover of two Varsity uniform catalogs.
  5. Before meeting Nick Lachey, Vanessa Minnillo told American Cheerleader Magazine in 2004 that her favorite MTV show was reality series The Newlyweds.

Vanessa Minnillo: Biography

1995

Vanessa Minnillo

Something to Cheer About

Although it'll be years before Minnillo sees her mother again, she finds stability with her father and a "best friend" in Donna. "My dad promised me that he would not station himself anywhere else once I got to high school," Minnillo tells American Cheerleader Magazine in 2004. She becomes an all-star cheerleader, a member of the National Honor Society at Charleston's Bishop England High School and models in the "Varsity Spirit Fashions" catalog.

1998

Vanessa Minnillo

August 17

Miss Teen USA

Minnillo, 17, beats 50 contestants when she is crowned Miss Teen USA in Shreveport, La. She receives more than $150,000 in cash and prizes, and is also named Miss Congeniality by her peers. When asked, during the competition's Q&A section, if she would take a pill that would keep her young forever, Minnillo replies: "Yes. I'm having the time of my life and I'd like to remain this age forever."

2003

Vanessa Minnillo

Summer

MTV Calls

Minnillo hosts MTV's summer-long series The Morning After, which helps her ink a deal in September with the network. As the latest VJ, Minnillo appears on the daily countdown show Total Request Live, MTV News, and other shows in development. "That show was my trial run, my test ground," Minnillo tells American Cheerleader Magazine. "At the end of August, the executive VP of programming shook my hand and said, 'Welcome to the family.' A week later, I moved to New York."

Read More on Vanessa Minnillo's Life

Photo Credits

Top Left: ABC

BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): Courtesy of Varsity Spirit Fashions; Miss Universe Organization/AP; Michael Loccisano/FilmMagic

Edited by Julia Wang

Vanessa Minnillo

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