Anna Nicole Clips

Author: Traci Love

Anna Nicole Smith as we know her started her life out on November 28, 1967 as Vickie Lynn Hogan born in Harris County, Texas. She was the only child of Donald Eugene Hogan (born July 12, 1947) and Virgie Mae (née Tabers; born July 12, 1951). Her father didn’t stick around her long in her life as he left both her and her mother. They were only married for two years. Subsequently Anna was raised by her mother Virgie and Elaine (Todd) Tabers, wife of Virgie’s brother, Melvin Tabers. Anna had a half-brother, David Luther Tacker, Jr., who was one year older than her.

Her mother then remarried two years after her divorce to Anna’s father to Donald R. Hart and they gave birth to Anna’s younger half-brother Donald Ray Hart, Jr. It was after this marriage that Anna had her first name change, even her first name! Her new name was now Nikki Hart. She obviously thought this marriage would last, but alas it did not. It did make it 12 years. Her mother went on to marry many times more to Joe D. Thompson (1987, divorced 1991), James T. Sanders (1996, died 1996), and James H. Arthur (2000).

This carousel of men did not give Anna the right idea of what a good relationship was all about. Her mother was NOT the best of role models for her. It is no wonder that she did not have good luck in this department.

Her father also remarried and had more children, giving Anna more half-siblings, Donna Hogan (born 1971), Donald Ray Hogan (born 1973), and Amy Hogan (born 1975).

Her next name change came at age 17 when she married Billy Wayne Smith, who was 16 and a cook at the restaurant where she worked. The couple married April 4, 1985 and next year she gave birth to their son Daniel Wayne Smith. She and Billy separated in 1987 and she moved to Houston with one-year-old Daniel. They were officially divorced February 3, 1993, in Houston. I have not heard why Anna waited so long to get divorced.

I do know that her persona she developed was around the “Smith” name so there had to be some good reasoning, probably because it was Daniel’s last name and thereby not being outwardly obvious that she wasn’t with his father. It was a different approach than what she experienced by her mother who changed her name constantly. It makes a woman feel more joined to their children, this I know from experience myself.

Things were moving fast for Anna, she went through different jobs, such as Red Lobster, WalMart, and then exotic dancing. This is when she was able to afford voice & modeling lessons that launched her career. She auditioned for Playboy and got the cover for March 1992 as Vickie Smith. She then vowed to be “The Next Marilyn Monroe” and she lived up to that promise, even if it killed her and ultimately it did. When this Playboy Playmate job got serious and she became Playmate of the Year in 1993 she had decided to change her name one more time to “Anna Nicole Smith”.

It wasn’t until she met J. Howard Marshall II, an oil billionaire, that she changed her name yet again. She finally divorced Billy and became Marshall’s bride, in a very unorthodox fashion in 1994. She had a two-year relationship with him previously where he reportedly lavished gifts on her and asked her to marry him several times. On June 27, 1994, Anna, 26, and Marshall, 89, married in Houston. TX. This resulted in a great deal of gossip about her marrying him for his money – gee I wonder why? Though she reportedly never lived with him, Smith maintained that she loved her husband, and age did not matter to her. Thirteen months after his marriage to Smith, Marshall died on August 4, 1995, in Houston of pneumonia.

So let’s recount:

1. Vickie Lynn Hogan
2. Nicki Hart
3. Vickie Smith
4. Anna Nicole Smith
5. Anna Nicole Marshall

I count five (5) name changes and only 2 due to marriages. That is a lot of rearranging of one’s persona’s in a very short time. With each change comes some alterations, something gained and something lost. I have a strong feeling that somewhere within those changes some of the good stuff, the “glue-that-binds” kind of stuff got lost. What do you think?

I don’t think it was the changes due to marriage that did the most damage. I think it all started with the remarriage of her mother and the letdown of him leaving just like her own father that did the most damage – she changed her name to his and now this bond was broken for her as well as her mother. Then the next most powerful change was the “Sex Goddess” persona that emerged as “Anna Nicole Smith” and all the work of living up to a legend it brought with it.

My contention is that with every name change you go through, you change as well, for better or for worse, just like marriage vows!

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