Kathleen Marie Ireland (born March 20, 1963) is an American supermodel, actress and businesswoman from Glendale, California best known for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue from 1984-1996. She has acted in several films, including Alien from L.A., Necessary Roughness and Loaded Weapon 1. Aside from her work as an entertainer, in 1993 she created her own brand marketing company, "Kathy Ireland Worldwide", which has made her the world's richest former model. In July 2008, Forbes Magazine called her, "the prototype for model-turned-mogul."
Her cover image on the 1989 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue is iconic and has been referenced and recreated in other media.
"Worldwide Tropes":
- Alliterative Name: In Loaded Weapon 1. Her character was named Destiny Demeanor.
- As Herself: In The Player.
- Bad "Bad Acting": See Dull Surprise. And yet, she has not even received one Golden Raspberry Award nomination.
- Celebrity Voice Actor: In Fantastic Four: The Animated Series and the The Incredible Hulk (1996), King of the Hill and Totally Spies! (the latter being her last acting credit of any kind to date).
- Con Woman: As Marsha Thomas in Miami Hustle and as Brittany Maddocks on Melrose Place.
- Dull Surprise: Her performance, or, more accurately, her seeming lack of one in Alien From L.A. made her the unintentional Trope Namer via the Mystery Science Theater 3000 treatment of the film.
- Game Show Appearance:
- Hand-or-Object Underwear and/or Toplessness from the Back: Frequently in her modeling work and her film work. She did a print ad for the Bulova 98R01 Ladies Watch, with the Tagline, "I'd feel naked without my Bulova."
- Leg Focus: 5'10, and her legs and butt are something to see. She played Destiny, the Catherine Trammell sendup in Loaded Weapon 1, complete with the "Basic Instinct" Legs-Crossing Parody.
- She did a somewhat straighter version of the scene in Miami Hustle, but nothing was shown.
- Lingerie Scene: In modeling for her brand, as well as in acting.
- The Gun episode "The Shot."
- The Tales from the Crypt episode "Beauty Rest."
- Loincloth: As a Human Alien in Mom and Dad Save the World.
- Made-for-TV Movie: Several.
- Danger Island
- A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Wicked Wives
- Bandit: Beauty and the Bandit
- Miami Hustle
- Once Upon a Christmas (and its sequel, Twice Upon A Christmas - Kathy's final movie to date)
- Ms. Fanservice: She was a supermodel, after all.
- Pretty in Mink: She modeled for an American Legend Mink campaign.
- Punny Name: Her character in 1995's Backfire! was named "Jessica Luvintryst."
- Romantic Comedy: Amore!.
- Sexy Soaked Shirt: A picture from the shoot for the 1991 Swimsuit Issue is a wet-T-shirt-scene. Despite this, she played Nipple and Dimed much straighter than some of her contemporaries.
- She Also Did:
- The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) had a tournament from 1997-2005 that went under different names. In 2000, it was called the Kathy Ireland Greens.com LPGA Classic.
- In 2001, the LPGA renamed the Philips International Honoring Harvey Penick to the Kathy Ireland International Honoring Harvey Penick, as she was the title sponsor.
- Vocal Dissonance: She's 5',10", with a downright squeaky voice, almost like a female Mike Tyson.
- Walking Swimsuit Scene: Couldn't be in the Swimsuit Issue without them. She was on the cover three times, twice solo and once with Elle MacPherson and Rachel Hunter.
- The TV spots for the Poorly Disguised Pilot Danger Island emphasized her swimsuit scenes (the movie itself even featured them behind the end credits).
- What Beautiful Eyes!: Her green eyes are easily her most famous feature.
- What Could Have Been: Miami Hustle was originally going to be a Pamela Anderson vehicle titled Hello, She Lied. Anderson sued to get out of the project because she objected to the nudity. The script was toned down and reworked for Kathy.
- Wrestler in All of Us: She once did a photo shoot where she was wearing a black Leotard of Power and holding a guy in a Full Nelson.
