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BIOGRAPHY

Vanessa Minnillo
	BIOGRAPHY | GALLERY | GOSSIP | BLOG

Vanessa Joy Minnillo, born November 9, 1980, is an American television personality. She was Miss Teen USA 1998, and is currently a host on MTV's Total Request Live.

Minnillo was born in Clark Air Base, Philippines to Vincent Minnillo and Helen Berecero.

Her father is an American of Italian and Irish descent; the ethnicity of her estranged mother remains ambiguous with Minnillo initially referring to her as a Filipina from the province of Leyte , and then later referring to her as Polynesian during an interview with Maxim magazine for her October 2006 cover story.

As a child, her family moved numerous times due to her father's work in the United States Air Force. Her family spent time in California, Nevada, Florida, Germany and Japan before eventually settling in Charleston, South Carolina. Her parents are divorced, and she has a close relationship with stepmother Donna Minnillo, and an older adopted brother, Vincent. Vanessa is fluent in English and has passive knowledge of the Philippine language, Tagalog and the Philippine dialect, Kapampangan.

Minnillo became Miss South Carolina Teen USA 1998, and went on to win the 1998 Miss Teen USA Pageant. She was the first delegate from South Carolina to capture the title and received the Congeniality Award in 1998. In the competition she received the highest scores in the Interview, Swimsuit, and Evening Gown categories.

Minnillo was one of the finalists in E!'s competition to find a replacement for Brooke Burke as hostess for the show Wild On. The job eventually went to Cindy Taylor.

Before joining MTV, she had minor roles in The Bold and the Beautiful, television series City Guys, That's Life, and Maybe It's Me.

Minnillo has been hosting TRL on MTV since 2003. Her first interview on TRL was with hip-hop artist Chingy. In 2005, she also became a New York-based reporter for the entertainment news show, Entertainment Tonight. In addition to her work on TRL, she has served as a host or co-host for a variety of MTV specials, and served as a celebrity judge for the Miss Teen USA pageant in 2003. She has been cast as herself in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, appearing as the love interest of Chris Evans' character, The Human Torch.

In May 2006, Maxim magazine listed Minnillo as #15 in their Hot 100 issue. She was listed as #62 in the 2005 issue and was the Maxim cover girl for both the October 2005 and October 2006 issues.

Minnillo was chosen for BONGO Jeans' Spring/Summer 2007 advertising campaign, and will be featured in a series of print ads depicting and inspired by classic 60's pin-up girls.