Kathy Ireland - Early Life

Early Life

Kathy Ireland was born in 1963 in Glendale, California, the daughter of John Ireland, a labor union organizer, and Barbara Ireland, who worked in charity. Her first job was a paper route in 1974. At age 17, Ireland was discovered by an agent for the Elite Model Management company, and by the time she graduated from San Marcos High School in Santa Barbara in 1981, she was working steadily as a model. She appeared on covers for Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Women's Fitness; and in campaigns for consumer products, including Bulova, Fruit of the Loom, Caress Soap, Budweiser, Cheerios, Baked Lays Potato Chips and a plethora of other projects.