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an interview of 2003 about midshipman date
You could call it a dream date between the model and the midshipman. Carolyn Murphy is a supermodel for Estee Lauder. Twenty-one-year-old Robert Madell is a Navy midshipman. Normally their paths would never cross, but last month he seized an opportunity to ask her out, never expecting she'd say yes. She did. And last night he was the envy of all of his classmates when she accompanied him to the Academy's Second-Class Ring Dance, an event marking the junior class graduation to their senior year.
Carolyn Murphy, good morning to you.
Ms. CAROLYN MURPHY (Estee Lauder Model Who Went On Date With Midshipman

Hi. Good morning. How are you?
KOTB: Great. A few hours' sleep you had last night. Tell us about the date. How was it?
Ms. MURPHY: It was really surreal. I really commend Robert Madell for even inviting me to the dance, and it was truly an honor.
KOTB: Now let's back up a second. Robert decided--he had a lot of guts, this guy. He decided...
Ms. MURPHY: He sure did.
KOTB: ...that he wanted to ask you out to this dance. How did he go about doing that, Carolyn?
Ms. MURPHY: Well, actually Leonard Lauder was there at the Naval Academy last month having a speech--or giving a briefing to these midshipmen about leadership and the aspects of leadership. So Robert Madell, he seized the opportunity, and he went up to the podium where they had to clearly state what he was seizing, what risk he was going to take, and he said, 'I would like to take your spokesmodel to my ring dance.' And Leonard said, 'Well, of course. I'm sure Carolyn would love that.' And here we are. I had a great time.
KOTB: And he--he actually sent you a formal invitation, didn't he, Carolyn?
Ms. MURPHY: He did. It was really sweet. I--I got a Xerox copy of the actual invitation, but not only with that, was there--there was a great letter that he wrote, very eloquent, very gentlemanly. And I wasn't surprised when I met him last night. He was very charming.
KOTB: OK, so he sees you, you see him, your very first moment, tell me what he was like. Was he losing his mind?
Ms. MURPHY: Well, it was really incredible. I was actually in a state because we pull up to the academy, which is absolutely gorgeous, and we arrived in the Memorial Hall, and I met the superintendent of the school. And then there was Rob with his parents. And he was so calm, very assured, very confident, and he had a corsage for me. He put it on. We took a few photos, and we said, 'Let's go dance.' And then that was it.
KOTB: Now, unfortunately, Robert couldn't be with us today.
Ms. MURPHY: No.
KOTB: But I can imagine when he walked into that dance with you the buttons must have been popping off of his--his outfit. How did he introduce you to everybody?
Ms. MURPHY: Well, he--you know, like I said, he was very confident, very self-assured, and he just said, 'Hey, everybody. This is my date Carolyn.' And all of the men and women, they looked so handsome, and I was really impressed with the whole setting. And like I said, it was really surreal. But he was very, very calm, great conversation, and we danced. We danced almost the whole night. It was really fun.
KOTB: So he was a good dancer?
Ms. MURPHY: He was a good dancer. Great conversation, though, and his parents were very sweet. And I think they did a really good job.
KOTB: OK, and once sort of the gee-whiz factor was over, when he--when I guess the stun wore off that he was actually with you, were you guys able just to sit down and talk like two, you know, I guess regular people on a date?
Ms. MURPHY: We--we actually did. And we took the time--I guess, you know, walking from the Memorial Hall to the actual dance hall we took the time to kind of fill each other in on what we liked, what we didn't like, and it was just the start of a really nice relationship. I think we'll remain pen pals. But yeah, we sat down and we had a chocolate chip cookie and some Sprite, and we spoke.
KOTB: Now, this obviously wasn't a love connection. You have a serious relationship.
Ms. MURPHY: Yes.
KOTB: What does your--what does your boyfriend think of this whole deal, that you were going to go on this date?
Ms. MURPHY: Well, fortunately, my boyfriend, you know, he's involved in the industry to a certain extent, so we're quite used to fans and whatnot coming out of the woodworks, but this is very special to me. It was very heartfelt because of the extent of the military history within my family. So it wasn't really about a blind date. It was more or less me coming home, in a way, and supporting these--these wonderful kids, you know, these midshipmen. So there's was a little bit more of a heartfelt meaning behind it for me, and, of course, my boyfriend supports anything that makes me happy.
KOTB: All right. Carolyn Murphy, good for you.
Ms. MURPHY: Thank you.
KOTB: Thank you so much.
Ms. MURPHY: Thanks. Thank you.
KOTB: And we'll be right back.
LOAD-DATE: May 20, 2003