Cindy Crawford's Dad Wasn't Initially Supportive Of Her Modeling Career

Cindy Crawford's ubiquitous face has been on many a coffee table magazine, Times Square billboard, and Paris Fashion Week runway. However, what you likely didn't know about Crawford is that, before the original supermodel's heroic title was linked to her name, she nearly missed her chance due to her dad's hesitance about her pursuing a career in the industry — though he didn't entirely understand what modeling entailed, and believed it was a lot more sexual than it is.

In Season 1, Episode 1 of AppleTV+'s "The Supermodels," Crawford revealed that her father John Crawford disapproved of her first shot at modeling because he didn't realize one could have a legitimate career as a model. "He thought modeling was, like, another name for prostitution," Crawford said with a chuckle. She added that her parents accompanied her to her first assignment.

Even with initial doubts about what would become of his daughter, John supported Crawford's aspirations, according to the supermodel. Crawford posted a professional photo of herself and her father on Facebook in 2015, captioning the post: "Happy Father's Day to my dad! Thanks for making me dream big."

In the episode, Cindy Crawford also revealed her own doubts about modeling. "I didn't even know it was a real job," she said. "I didn't know how I would get from DeKalb, Illinois, to a magazine." It was one local Illinois photographer who saw something big in Crawford, and he deemed it worth photographing — Crawford said it changed the whole trajectory of her life. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Crawford revealed that Roger Legal asked to photograph her for a local college newspaper. "I agreed, and he shot this picture at the backyard pool of my high-school boyfriend," she said of the bikini shot. She added that Legal pushed her to scout an agent in Chicago, where she signed with Elite Model Management.

Crawford stunningly transformed from a small-town high school valedictorian to one of the most prominent figures in fashion — from her 1990 cover of Vogue to her iconic 1992 Pepsi commercial. Crawford is more confident than she's ever been in her modeling career, doing shoots for brands like Haute Living, Vanity Fair, and even Khloe Kardashian's brand Good American, per the model's Instagram. 

In an interview with W Magazine, Crawford likened her modeling career to that of an athlete, noting that like athletes, her body has changed over time. "I'm aware that I don't look the same as I did when I was 25, but I bring experience and confidence in front of the camera that I didn't have then," she said. "And I still like what I do. I never thought I'd be working the way that I am at this stage."