Vanessa Minnillo: Snapshot
- Name
- Vanessa Minnillo
- Birth Date
- November 09, 1980
- Birth Place
- Pampanga, Philippines
At 17, the South Carolina cheerleader was crowned Miss Teen USA, and eventually landed a spot on MTV's countdown show, TRL. Today, Minnillo has opted out of her contract with the music network to promote fashion brand Bongo and spearhead her own makeup line with Flirt! Cosmetics. The brunette babe also dated New York Yankees stud Derek Jeter on-and-off for two years, but now hopes for a happy ending with Lachey.
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Vanessa Minnillo: Five Fun Facts
- Vanessa Minnillo and boyfriend Nick Lachey share the same November 9th birthday.
- Vanessa Minnillo, a self-proclaimed ''military brat,'' attended eight different schools before the age of 14.
- 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!"
- Before appearing in Bongo Ads, Vanessa Minnillo was an all-star cheerleader who appeared on the cover of two Varsity uniform catalogs.
- Before she became Nick Lachey's girl, Vanessa Minnillo told American Cheerleader Magazine in 2004 that her favorite MTV show was reality series The Newlyweds.
Vanessa Minnillo: Biography 
- 1995
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
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
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."
Photo Credits
Top Left: Jordan Strauss/WireImage
BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): Courtesy of Varsity Spirit Fashions; Miss Universe Organization/AP; Michael Loccisano/FilmMagic
