| Lauren Conrad | |
| |
| Gender: | Female |
|---|---|
| Age: | (age 26) |
| Born: | February 1, 1986 |
| Occupation: | Television personality Fashion designer Author Author |
| Years Active: | 2004–present |
Lauren Katherine Conrad (born February 1, 1986) is an American television personality, fashion designer, and author. In 2004, she rose to prominence as one of the original cast members on Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County, a former MTV reality television series. In 2006, she received her own spin-off series, The Hills, which followed her personal and professional life as she pursued a career in the fashion industry. Conrad has written several books, notably the L.A. Candy and The Fame Game trilogies, and has two fashion lines, LC Lauren Conrad and Paper Crown.
Early life
Conrad is the first of three siblings, born on February 1, 1986 in Laguna Beach, California to parents Jim and Kathy. Her younger siblings are Conrad Breanna and Brandon.
Career
2004–2009: Laguna Beach and The Hills
Conrad appeared on MTV's Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County in 2004, which followed her during her senior year of high school during the first season. She gave a tour of her family's house for an episode of MTV Cribs. Upon graduation, Conrad attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for one semester with her friend Heidi Montag. During the series' second season, she returned home and began taking classes at a local community college before subsequently transferring to the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. After the success of Laguna Beach, MTV developed The Hills, a spin-off series documenting the lives of Lauren and her friends (Heidi Montag, Audrina Patridge, and Whitney Port) in Los Angeles, California. The first season premiered on May 31, 2006. Conrad landed an internship at Teen Vogue during the season. According to Lisa Love, the West Coast editor of Vogue who evaluated her for the internship position, Conrad had to interview successfully in order to get the job, "regardless of what the cameras wanted." At the time, she was also housemates with Montag. The second season premiered on January 15, 2007. The season saw the deterioration of Conrad and Montag's friendship, as Montag increasingly spent her time with her new boyfriend, Spencer Pratt. During the season finale, Montag moved in with Pratt, and Patridge become Conrad's housemate. The third season premiered on August 13, 2007. By this time, Conrad and Montag's friendship ended after rumors of a sex tape with Lauren and her ex-boyfriend Jason Wahler surfaced. Lauren suspected that Pratt spread the rumor, whom Heidi stood by when Lauren confronted her. Conrad, along with co-worker and friend Whitney Port, went on a trip to Paris to assist Teen Vogue during the Crillon Ball. Both eventually left their positions after being offered to work at Kelly Cutrone's People's Revolution, a fashion PR firm. The season also saw Lauren's close friend, Lo Bosworth, become housemates with her and Patridge as the three moved into a new home. The fourth season premiered on August 18, 2008. After the season concluded, rumors were widespread that Conrad wanted to leave the series. The producers persuaded her to film ten more episodes at the beginning of the fifth season to settle her relationships prior to her departure. The first half of the season premiered on April 6, 2009. She made her final appearance on the series on May 31, 2009, at Montag and Pratt's wedding. The second half of the season premiered on September 29, 2009, with former Laguna Beach castmate Kristin Cavallari hired as Conrad's replacement. The sixth and final season premiered on April 27, 2010 and concluded on July 13, 2010. There was much speculation that Conrad would make a guest appearance in the series finale, and while this was proven false, she later stated that she filmed an alternate ending of the series with Brody Jenner.
2007–2009: Early fashion endeavors
In January 2007, Conrad was named the first official spokesperson of "mark.", a line created by Avon and marketed toward young women. She was featured in the brand’s magalog and in the "mark." online community. Conrad was succeeded by Ashley Greene in June 2010. In 2007, Conrad appeared as a satirical version of herself in the comedy Epic Movie. In 2008, Conrad made a cameo appearance in an episode of Greek. In May 2009, Conrad appeared as a cartoon and ironic version of herself in an episode of Family Guy. Conrad had previously done voice work for the show in the episode Prick Up Your Ears in a spoof of Laguna Beach. In March 2008, Conrad's first fashion line, The Lauren Conrad Collection, debuted at the Mercedes-Benz LA Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios. That year, she earned an estimated $1.5 million for her television appearances, fashion line, and product endorsements. She announced the following year that she would be taking a break from the line, resulting in the cancellation of 2009's spring and summer lines. In fall 2009, Conrad launched LC Lauren Conrad in Kohl's stores throughout the United States. Conrad appeared as a guest judge during Cycle 13 of America's Next Top Model. In August 2009, Conrad appeared on an episode of the tenth anniversary edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, playing for her charity: m.powerment by mark. She was asked one question for $50,000 and answered correctly after using her "Ask the Audience" lifeline. In 2010, she guest starred on Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.
2009–present: Books and continued career
Conrad released her first novel, L.A. Candy, on June 16, 2009. Inspired by her personal life, the book focuses on a young woman who moves to Los Angeles and becomes the star of a reality show. It was a New York Times bestseller. The second novel, Sweet Little Lies, was released on February 16, 2010. The final novel, Sugar and Spice, was released on October 5, 2010,along with Lauren Conrad Style, which serves as a style guide and discusses her experiences in and her knowledge of the fashion industry. In 2009, Conrad launched Blue Eyed Productions, which has purchased the rights to turn the L.A. Candy trilogy into a movie, in which Conrad would serve as an executive producer. On September 24, 2010, Conrad announced during an On Air with Ryan Seacrest interview that she would star in an upcoming MTV reality series. The show would focus on her fashion career rather than focusing on her personal life, which she says "will be something very different" from The Hills. The series began filming in mid-October 2010. However, after MTV had viewed the pilot, the network decided to not pick up the series. MTV's head of programming, David Janollari, said, "She did do a pilot. There were talks about whether we could somehow manage to put together a special based on that footage but that's also a big question mark based on her interest in that and the finances. We decided not to go ahead with the show," later adding, "We love her! We would love her on our network! It was a great attempt but it just didn't feel like a perfect fit for us now." Conrad released a statement of her own, reading, "We sold a show to MTV, filmed it and are really proud of the final result. MTV felt the subject matter was too high brow for their audience and offered me the opportunity to change the show by incorporating more of my personal life. We agreed going into the project that this show would be an aspirational one, focusing on my career and my goals and not my personal relationships. We delivered the show that we sold and are sorry MTV didn't feel their viewers were savvy enough to appreciate it." In April 2011, Conrad, along with her hairstylist Kristin Ess and her makeup artist Amy Nadine, launched a beauty website called The Beauty Department. The site offers beauty advice and tips as well as how-tos and tutorials. Conrad later announced plans to expand the website to include a beauty and cosmetic line as well as to expand her current fashion lines. In fall 2011, Conrad launched another fashion line, Paper Crown. The line is her third collection after The Lauren Conrad Collection and LC by Lauren Conrad. Her now defunct reality show would have focused on the creation and launch of the line. The first novel of the L.A. Candy spin-off trilogy, The Fame Game, was released on April 3, 2012. The second book in The Fame Game series, Starstruck, will be released on November 6, 2012. She is also writing another book, titled Lauren Conrad Beauty, which will be released on October 16, 2012
Published works
- L.A. Candy (2009)
- Sweet Little Lies (2010)
- Sugar and Spice (2010)
- Lauren Conrad Style (2010)
- The Fame Game (2012)
- Lauren Conrad Beauty (2012)
- Starstruck (2012)
Awards
| Year | Award | Result | Category | Series |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Teen Choice Awards | Won | Choice Female Reality TV | The Hills |
| 2007 | ||||
| 2008 | ||||
| 2009 | ||||
| 2010 | Nominated |
Gallery
Seasons Photos
