Born November 28, 1967 as Vickie Lynn Hogan, she first gained popularity as Playboy magazine's 1993 Playmate of the Year. Her highly publicized marriage to oil business executive and billionaire J. Howard Marshall, who was 63 years her senior, resulted in tumultuous speculation that she married the octogenarian merely for his money, which she denied. Following his death, she began a lengthy and ongoing legal battle over a share of his estate. Smith's career and public image subsequently suffered as her weight gain and antics were reported in supermarket tabloids and in her reality television series, The Anna Nicole Show (2002-2004). Her son, Daniel Wayne Smith, passed away five months previous to Anna.