OK - I've spent some more time thinking about everything the past few days (including a final trip to the University of Arizona library yesterday).
Have I at least confirmed the model in the photo that I am looking for is James King? I would have to say that I have as besides my belief that I now finally remember identifying her at the time (only being able to because she was also the cover model of the magazine) I can't find any other reason for me to know who she was (despite her evident fame at the time).
This is a long story from three years earlier that I am in the middle of reading now:
James is a girl (Published 1996)
And this from the year before the photo I am looking for was taken:
Anyway, I digress a tiny bit with some history there but this actually helps confirm the time frame of the photo I've been looking for. In 1999 (when I think my photo was) she was possibly beginning her recovery. In 2000 and 2001, it was less about her as a model and more about her personal story.
In any event, my search field got narrowed to magazines that she was actually on the cover of. According to FMD, we have only these up until 2002:
UK: 'Scene' - January/February 1998; 'Elle' - February 1999; 'Tatler' - April 2002; 'Glamour' - May 2002
US: 'Details' - June 1999; Cosmopolitan' - August 1999; 'Cosmopolitan' - May 2000; 'Details' - May 2000; 'Mademoiselle' - October 2000; 'Detour' - October 2000; 'Paper' - November 2000; 'Cosmopolitan' - December 2000; 'GQ' - April 2001; Entertainment Weekly - June 2001; 'Teen Vogue' - Spring 2002
(There is more but all of the other countries were non-English speaking - I still looked at these anyway but feel comfortable ruling them out based on either the cover or timeframe)
From what I have been able to tell, the list actually seems accurate, with a few other small things I found on E-Bay also (nice cover on something called Flaunt but I know that wasn't it).
I considered/researched all of these, although I didn't consider anything after 1999 to be very likely to begin with. Also, I actually hated about half of those covers as well.
The only realistic possibilities ended up being: Elle UK February 1999 (which was already looked at in 2019 by librarians in the UK - a small part of me wants to ask them to pull this one issue and look again but when I look at the Table of Contents I just can't see this being the issue) and the three Cosmopolitan issues (even though I was pretty sure I had looked at those already).
Well, on my trip to the library yesterday I confirmed those three issues are off the table (and since I was there anyway, ran James King through the Vogue US and Harper's Bazaar (US and UK) archives and think it is safe to say my photo is not in any of those places either.
So, can it really be that I find out the model is James King and she is on the cover of the magazine (of which there are a finite number of possibilities) my photo is in and still somehow not find the photo?
That would illogically appear to be the case except for the "non-original" covers that FMD does not list. For instance, either two or three of those Cosmopolitan covers were used by other countries (for various reasons, I don't think any of those are in play).
That brings us back once again to Elle UK February 1999 and
any other issues that used that very same cover.
But, the only other issue that has English as one of its main languages that used this cover was Elle Korea April 1999 - where I was sure my photo was until they said it was not.
What is left?
The non-English language issues:
Elle China April 1999
Elle Japan May 1999
Of the two, I like Japan more because I remember orange more than I do purple. Also, there are some missing issues in the archive so it's possible Taiwan or Thailand or other countries may be possibilities. Elle Taiwan June 1999 was actually the
ONLY at least partially English-language issue that is unknown as to whether or not James is on the cover of the issue or not. That said, it is my belief the correct month is going to be either April or May 1999.
To be honest, the odds are probably against me finding the photo at this point and I may have to give up in the next few weeks if it is not in these last few somewhat low probability places. I just don't remember this being in a magazine in which I was completely unable to follow the narrative - perhaps there is a small bit of English in one of these magazines.
The only other option may be to ask Jaime herself (she does appear to have a Twitter account) and see if she would know and answer (if she even handles the account to begin with).
https://coversarchive.wixsite.com/gallery/elle-international