Businesswoman. Founder and co-owner of the Ford Modeling Agency, one of the world's biggest, most prestigious, and successful modeling agencies. She was responsible for launching the careers of many famous models such as Brooke Shields, Candice Bergen, and Christie Brinkley. Eileen Ford was the daughter of Nathaniel and Loretta Marie (nee Laine) Otte, born on March 25, 1922, in New York City. Ford and her three brothers were raised in wealth in Great Neck, New York. The Ottes owned their own company, a firm that determined credit ratings of corporations. Ford told Judy Bachrach of People Weekly, "My family believed I could do no wrong. That's probably why I have utter confidence in myself-even when I shouldn't have. I got everything I wanted from my parents: Brooks Brothers sweaters, Spalding saddle shoes. None of the people I grew up with had identity problems. We all had perfectly marvelous lives." Ford was not motivated as a child to have a career or even attend a university. Loretta Otte eventually made her daughter attend Barnard College, from which she graduated in 1943 with a bachelor's degree in psychology. Ford wanted to go to law school, but the fashion industry lured her in a different direction. Loretta Otte had been a model, and Ford also modeled during breaks from Barnard. Ford liked the allure of the industry. After graduation, she worked as a photographer's stylist at the Eliot Clarke studio for a year. Ford met Gerard "Jerry" W. Ford in August 1944 and eloped with him three months later, on November 20, 1944. Jerry Ford was a student and football player at Notre Dame University at the time of his marriage. The Fords eventually had four children: Jamie, Bill, Katie, and Lacey.