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'I turned Pamela Anderson into a sex symbol!' The make-up artist to the stars who gave the Baywatch beauty her iconic look
She is the woman who created Pamela Anderson's iconic bombshell image - and helped turn her into a phenomenon. After meeting Pamela, then a young actress and model, on the set of a Playboy cover shoot, make-up artist Alexis Vogel knew just what she had to do.
'I'd heard about her, she'd been on Home Improvement and she'd just started on Baywatch, but she didn't really have her image - she was a baby', Alexis tells MailOnline, 'She was pretty fresh-faced, but I wanted to give her more of an image. I really, really loved Bridget Bardot, that sex kitten with perfect features, but of course, this was of course a retro version, making it my own - and her own look.'
That August 1993 cover was Pamela's famous photoshoot with Dan Aykroyd in the guise of his SNL Conehead character Beldar. But it was the only the start of a 21-year friendship between Pamela and Alexis. Stunned by her reflection, Pamela told Alexis, then working on Playboy cover shoots and editorial: 'I have to have you do my make-up every day for the rest of my life!'
By November 1994 - Pamela's next Playboy cover - she was a bleach-blonde vamp.
Alexis says: 'I still have her saying that on tape, I saved it. The rest is history, she's been very loyal, we've been loyal to each other. We have a very, very close friendship, we're like best friends. After all these years of working together and in all kinds of conditions, it's been a non-stop wonderful ride.'
At the age of 47, mom-of-two Pamela still maintains her tried and tested sex-bomb image - and Alexis is still doing her make-up. 'Sometimes we go really sexy and sometimes we don’t, sometimes it's more dramatic, smoky eyes or cat eyes,' Alexis says: 'We just did a gorgeous all black and white Marilyn Monroe inspired shoot with her shorter hair. We call the main look 'Baby Bardot' and we have little names for all the other looks.'
The pair are so close that Alexis feels like an aunt to Pamela's two sons, Brandon, 18, and Dylan, 16, with ex-husband, Tommy Lee. Bizarrely, Alexis reveals that Pamela is a strict mom - which seems at odds with her public persona, admitting: 'She's a really good mom, a little bit strict, but she's had to be.'
And the boys are as far removed from Hollywood's grip as can be - despite having an actress and a wild rocker for parents. Alexis says: 'They turned out wonderful, independent and little businessmen. There are no drugs. They are very, very polite and I don't know which one is more beautiful and they're very smart, they got the best of both parents.
aww, too bad, the same old look is back. i loved the surprise of the short haircut and the new look it promised.