Bravo’s Real Housewives of Atlanta said farewell to the lovely, but not very dramatic, Lisa Wu Hartwell and have added two newcomers for the third season of the popular reality series. In addition to entertainment lawyer Phaedra Parks (and her controversial ex-con husband Apollo Nida!) viewers will be treated to the gorgeouliciousness of supermodel Cynthia Bailey!
Cynthia is long lean and lovely and promises to take center stage as she contemplates sealing the marriage deal with boyfriend of three years Peter Thomas. Could there be anything more dramatic and entertaining than a Real Housewives wedding?!? I guess we’ll find out!
Here’s a video clip of Cynthia’s Crib from Bravo followed by some background info:
ABOVE: Cynthia Bailey’s historic August, 2002 Essence cover, the first time a model was ever credited on the cover! (Click image to enlarge – you can see Cynthia’s name in the lower right corner) Below the image is Cynthia’s Theme Song by Bruce Springsteen, perhaps the greatest tribute song to hot babes ever written!
Born in Alabama, Cynthia Bailey moved to New York City 20 years ago to pursue a modeling career. The former high school homecoming queen and multiple beauty pageant winner caught the attention of the famous Wilhelmina modeling agency, who signed Cynthia to a 5-year contract and jump-started her career by getting her the cover of Essence magazine!
ABOVE: Cynthia Bailey’s first Essence cover from June, 1995.
Cynthia developed a friendship with Essence editor-in-chief Susan Taylor and would appear in the magazine and on the cover many more times throughout her career.
Once she hit the ground running with the Essence cover, Cynthia embarked on a truly remarkable modeling career that had her living in Paris for nearly a year and strutting runways for some of the most famous designers in the world. Her image was used in video and print ad campaigns for Maybelline, Mercedes, Oil of Olay, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Macys, Target, Talbots, Bergdorf Goodman and Lord & Taylor among many others.
Cynthia even branched out into acting, beating out Naomi Campbell for a part alongside Sandra Bernhardt in the movie Without You I’m Nothing. She also graced the small screen with appearances on The Cosby Show, New York Undercover and as co-host for BET.
As far as her personal life, Cynthia dated actor Leon Robinson for a time and the couple share a daughter, Noelle Forde Robinson. She is currently (SPOILER!) married to Peter Thomas and the two co-own Uptown Lounge in Atlanta.
Cynthia has been friends with NeNe Leakes for a while and the two will struggle with opposite ends of the relationship spectrum as one marriage begins and another one ends.
So what do I think of Cynthia Bailey being cast on The Real Housewives of Atlanta? KUDOS! Cynthia is a bona-fide supermodel with an impeccable resume and is sure to stir up some jealous drama amongst some of the less “bona-fide” ladies of the ATL! I just hope this season involves lots of poolside scenes and shopping for lingerie!
Here are some Cynthia Bailey links followed by a couple more photos of the potently perty peach from her modeling portfolio:
Cynthia Bailey’s website
Cynthia Bailey’s bio on BravoTV.com
Cynthia Bailey on Facebook
Photos of Cynthia Bailey at Uptown Lounge for the K’orus Wine company launch
Sharon Quinn’s night out with Cynthia Bailey
Blogger Tami meets Cynthia Bailey (with photos)
Here’s an appearance by Cynthia Bailey on Teen Diaries Blog Radio talking about what it takes to become a model:
Cynthia Bailey on IMDB
Video of Cynthia on the red carpet at Baby Phat Summer 2008
Video of Cynthia at 2010 Fashion’s Night Out in Atlanta
