“I have a daughter who has no mother. I have to paint a picture for Dannielynn of who her mother was, ”said Dannielynn’s father, Larry Birkhead.
See the full story at “20/20” TODAY AT NIGHT at 9 pm ET on ABC.
The father and daughter began their journey in Smith’s hometown of Mexia, Texas, which has a population of 7,459.
That’s when they met Jo McLemore, the best friend from Smith’s school, who told Dannielynn that she looked like her mother.
As a teenager in the 1980s and 1990s, a young Smith – born Vicki Lynn Hogan – was determined to leave Mexia.
She found work as a dancer at a strip club in Houston, where she made her name. In 1991, billionaire investor J. Howard Marshall II joined his club and she would later marry him, despite the 63-year age difference.
At the same time, she began to gain strength in her modeling career, working with Playboy and Guess. She ended up moving to Hollywood while making her name as Anna Nicole Smith.
However, Larry Birkhead, who met Smith in the early 2000s while working as a photographer, said he was attracted to her off camera.
“Do you know what she would rather do? Do you know what a VCR tape is?” he asked his daughter on her trip.
“Yes,” replied Dannielynn.
“She went up to this Blockbuster, rented movies and sat in bed all weekend and ordered takeout. She loved staying at home and watching horror movies. And then she painted,” he said.
When the pair stopped in Los Angeles, Larry showed Dannielynn a warehouse full of Smith’s personal belongings.
“She has a big heart like her mother’s, and I think she could appreciate these things,” he said.
On Friday’s 20/20 special, Birkhead is opening up about the many ups and downs in Smith’s life. He said he did not refrain from reporting Smith’s life to Dannielynn, but said he is aware that she sees the moments that are worth celebrating in her life.
Copyright © 2021 KABC-TV. All rights reserved.