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56-439: Gia Carangi is a Philadelphia native who moves to New York City to become a fashion model and immediately catches the attention of the powerful agent Wilhelmina Cooper . Gia's attitude and beauty help her rise quickly to the forefront of the modeling industry. However, her persistent loneliness, especially after the death of Wilhelmina, drives her to use mood-altering drugs such as cocaine and heroin . She becomes entangled in

112-672: A beauty icon. Carangi's life has been the subject of several works. A biography of Carangi by Stephen Fried titled Thing of Beauty —taken from the first line of John Keats ' famous poem Endymion —was published in 1993. Gia , a biographical film starring Angelina Jolie , debuted on HBO in 1998. Jolie won a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance, among other accolades. A documentary titled The Self-Destruction of Gia , released in 2003, showcased footage of Carangi, contemporary interviews with Carangi's family and former colleagues, including Sandy Linter, and footage of actress-screenwriter Zoë Lund , herself

168-457: A chain-link fence with makeup artist Sandy Linter. Carangi immediately became infatuated with Linter and pursued her, though the relationship never became stable. By the end of 1978, her first year in New York, Carangi was already a well-established model. Of her quick rise to prominence, described by Vogue as "meteoric", Carangi later said, "I started working with very good people, I mean all

224-507: A contaminated needle, she became one of the early notable public women to die of the virus. Her life was dramatized in the television film Gia (1998), directed by Michael Cristofer and starring Angelina Jolie as Carangi. Carangi was born on January 29, 1960, in Philadelphia, the third and youngest child of Joseph Carangi, a restaurant owner, and Kathleen Carangi ( née Adams), a homemaker. She had three older brothers, one of them

280-488: A defense mechanism against the harsh push toward femininity, and a reclaiming of agency that is often lost due to sexist ideas of what girls are and are not able to do. In western culture, tomboys are expected to one day cease their masculine behavior, usually during or right before puberty, return to feminine behavior, and are expected to embrace heteronormativity . Tomboys who do not do such are occasionally stigmatized, usually due to homophobia . Barbara Creed argues that

336-519: A group of obsessive David Bowie fans who emulated Bowie's "defiantly weird, high-glam" style. Carangi was drawn to Bowie for his fashion preferences and his ambiguous gender play and outspoken bisexuality. One of Carangi's friends later spoke of her " tomboy persona", describing her relaxed openness about her sexuality as reminiscent of the character Cay in the film Desert Hearts (1985). Carangi and her "bi-try Bowie-mad" friends hung out in Philadelphia's gay clubs and bars. Though she's associated with

392-540: A heroin addict, who had been commissioned to write a screenplay based upon Carangi's life at the time of her own death of drug-related causes in 1999. A biography of Carangi by Sacha Lanvin Baumann titled Born This Way: Friends, Colleagues, and Coworkers Recall Gia Carangi, the Supermodel Who Defined an Era , was published in 2015. Sondra Scerca, who brought Carangi to Wilhelmina, is currently writing

448-499: A memoir titled GIA, WILLY and ME , which will be released in 2022. Carangi is commemorated on the AIDS Memorial Quilt on block #5949. Tomboy Tomboy is a term referring to girls or young women with masculine traits. It may include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and engaging in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men . The word "tomboy"

504-414: A passionate affair with Linda, a make-up artist. Their love affair first starts when both pose nude for a photo shoot and make love afterward. Gia tries to get clean and begins taking methadone . However, Gia eventually starts using again and Linda gives her an ultimatum. Gia chooses the drugs. Failed attempts at reconciliation with Linda and with her mother, Kathleen, drive Gia back to heroin. Although she

560-632: A perceived correlation between tomboyishness and lesbianism. For instance, Hollywood films would stereotype the adult tomboy as a "predatory butch dyke ". Lynne Yamaguchi and Karen Barber, editors of Tomboys! Tales of Dyke Derring-Do , argue that "tomboyhood is much more than a phase for many lesbians"; it "seems to remain a part of the foundation of who we are as adults". Many contributors to Tomboys! linked their self-identification as tomboys and lesbians to both labels positioning them outside "cultural and gender boundaries". Psychoanalyst Dianne Elise's essay in 1995 reported that more lesbians noted being

616-460: A phase of gender presentation in adolescence. Some parents might be concerned by the lack of femininity in their child but the tomboy phase is, in fact, crucial to physical development between the ages of 8 and 13, according to Joseph Lee , the playground movement advocate in 1915. Some girls start to embrace femininity as age increases while some persist to be tomboys in adulthood. Psychologists speculate that childhood tomboy behavior results from

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672-586: A positive viewpoint. Feminine traits are often devalued and unwanted, and tomboys often respond to this viewpoint. This can be due in part to an environment that desires and only values masculinity , depending on the decade and geographical region. Idealized masculinity is atop the hegemony and sets the traditional standard, and is often upheld and spread by young children playing with one another. Tomboys may view femininity as having been pushed on them, which results in negative feelings toward femininity and those who embrace it. In this case, masculinity may be seen as

728-431: A thoroughly uninhibited and highly effective portrait of a woman living from thrill to thrill." Christopher Null of Filmcritic.com gave the film 3 out of 5 stars. Conversely, Film Freak Central gave the film only 1.5 out of 4 stars and commented: " Gia isn't hagiography, I'll give it that, but it is reductive to a fault." Gia Carangi Gia Marie Carangi (January 29, 1960 – November 18, 1986)

784-498: A tomboy than straight women. While some tomboys later reveal a lesbian identity in their adolescent or adult years, behavior typical of boys but displayed by girls is not a true indicator of one's sexual orientation . With raising female liberation and gender-neutral playgrounds (at least in the US) in the 21st century, an increasing number of girls could technically be considered "tomboys" without being referred to as "tomboys" because it

840-428: A young child's innate curiosity combined with family dynamics and imposed societal gender roles and behavioral customs. The preference of athletics and masculine clothing can be explained by adolescent tomboys' curiosity about outdoors and physical games, by which comfortable clothing such as pants and jersey helps to facilitate their physical engagement. A 2002 study suggests that some girls are "born tomboys" because of

896-484: Is a compound word which combines "tom" with "boy". Though this word is now used to refer to "boy-like girls", the etymology suggests the meaning of tomboy has changed drastically over time. In 1533, according to the Oxford Dictionary of English , "tomboy" was used to mean a "rude, boisterous or forward boy". By the 1570s, however, "tomboy” had taken on the meaning of a "bold or immodest woman", finally, in

952-454: Is acceptable is very short and rarely are tomboys allowed to peacefully and happily age out of it without changing and without giving up their tomboyness. Tomboyism in fiction often symbolizes new types of family dynamics, often following a death or another form of disruption to the nuclear family unit, leading families of choice rather than a descent. This provides a further challenge to the family unit, including often critiques of socially who

1008-456: Is allowed to be a family – including critiques of class and often a women's role in a family. Tomboyism can be argued to even begin to normalize and encourage the inclusion of other marginalized groups and types of families in fiction including, LGBT families or racialized groups. This is all due to the challenging of gender roles, and assumptions of maternity and motherhood that tomboys inhabit. Tomboys are also used in patriotic stories, in which

1064-499: Is believed to have started heroin chic. Carangi is often considered to be the first supermodel , although that title has been applied to others, including Margaux Hemingway , Audrey Munson , Lisa Fonssagrives , Dorian Leigh , Twiggy , Jean Shrimpton , Cheryl Tiegs and Janice Dickinson . Model Cindy Crawford , who rose to prominence the year Carangi died, was referred to as "Baby Gia" because of her resemblance to Carangi. Crawford later recalled, "My agents took me to all

1120-425: Is considered normal for girls to engage in physical activities, play equally with boys, and wear pants, masculine or gender-neutral clothing. The association between lesbianism and tomboyism is not only outdated but can also be disrespectful to both heterosexual women and lesbians. Tomboys in fictional stories are often used to contrast a more girly and traditionally feminine character. These characters are also often

1176-442: Is eventually able to break her drug habit after much effort, she has already contracted HIV from intravenous drug use, which has progressed to AIDS. She spends the remainder of her life in the hospital. Gia received positive reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 88% of 16 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.0/10. Kalamazoo Gazette commented: "Jolie gives it her all in

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1232-523: Is used less frequently than before in the West mainly because it is now a societal norm for adolescent girls to engage in physical activities, play with peers of the same and opposite gender, and wear comfortable clothing. Sebastian Zulch of Bustle argued that since the term tomboy implicitly associates a behavior to masculine gender and reminds the societal expectation for girls, its use could be considered condescending and sexist. Tomboy can be seen as

1288-625: The US's depressed economy, tomboyism amongst young girls emerged because the young girls' parents permitted or even promoted the tomboy upbringing due to the decaying economy and the American turbulent political climate. During the American Civil War , American society fully realized the importance of healthy women. When hostilities of the North and South broke out and thousands of men fled to

1344-433: The age of 26; she was among the first famous women to die of the disease. Her funeral was held on November 23 at a small funeral home in Philadelphia. No one from the fashion world attended. However, weeks later, fashion photographer Francesco Scavullo , Carangi's friend and confidant, sent a Mass card when he learned of her death. Carangi's rise to fame as an androgenic brunette in an industry full of blue-eyed blondes

1400-577: The army. As a result, mothers focused on improving the physical constitution of their daughters while taking care of their own. Many women who had subscribed to the Cult of True Womanhood before the Civil War found themselves engaging in an array of masculine actions during it. Women being given the duties of men during the period of Civil War encouraged tomboyism. While first wave feminism mainly focused on women's suffrage , second wave feminism expanded

1456-413: The battlefield, many adolescent girls and young women were pushed to be responsible for tasks that would be traditionally considered in the men's realm. Women who had not been allowed to have independent bank accounts were now expected to take care of the finances. American wives, mothers, and young girls who used to rely on the men in the household for security now had the duty of protecting their homes from

1512-672: The camera. Scavullo recalled a fashion shoot with Carangi in the Caribbean when "she was crying, she couldn't find her drugs. I literally had to lay her down on her bed until she fell asleep." During one of her final location shoots for American Vogue , Carangi had red bumps in the crooks of her elbows where she had injected heroin. Despite airbrushing , some of the photos, as published in the November 1980 issue, reportedly still showed visible needle marks. In November 1980, Carangi left Wilhelmina Models and signed with Ford Models , but she

1568-566: The discussion of gender inequality in areas such as sexuality, family dynamics, workspace, and laws in relation with patriarchy and culture. With the main purpose of critiquing the patriarchal system, this movement opened avenues for women in education, employment, and legal protection against domestic violence. In the late 20th century, the term tomboy describes girls who wear unfeminine clothing, actively engage in physical sports, and embrace what are often known as "boy toys" such as cars, or other activities usually associated with boys . The term

1624-482: The female character wishes to serve in a war, for a multitude of reasons. One reason is patriotism and wanting to be on the front lines. This often ignores the many other ways women were able to participate in war efforts and instead retells only one way of serving by using one's body. This type of story often follows the trope of the tomboy being discovered after being injured, and plays with the particular ways bodies get revealed, policed and categorized. This type of story

1680-467: The groundwork for tomboyism. In Charlotte Perkin Gilman's 1898 book, Women and Economics , the author lauds the health benefits of being a tomboy, that girls should be "not feminine till it is time to be". Joseph Lee, a playground advocate, wrote in 1915 that a "tomboy phase" was crucial to physical development of young girls between the ages of 8 and 13. Coupled with the birth of first wave feminism and

1736-761: The height of her career, Carangi was most known in modeling circles by only her first name. During this time, she also appeared in the Blondie music video for the single " Atomic ". A regular at Studio 54 and the Mudd Club , Carangi usually used cocaine in clubs. After her agent, mentor and friend Wilhelmina Cooper , died of lung cancer in March 1980, a devastated Carangi began using drugs and developed an addiction to heroin. Carangi's addiction soon began to affect her work; she had violent temper tantrums, walked out of photo shoots to buy drugs, and fell asleep in front of

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1792-507: The higher testosterone levels of the mother during pregnancy. Being a childhood tomboy does not determine one's sexual orientation or life-long gender presentation. The idea that there are girl activities and clothing, and that there are boy activities and clothing, is often reinforced by the tomboy concept. Tomboyism can be seen as both refusing gender roles and traditional gender conventions, but also conforming to gender stereotypes. The concept may be considered outdated or looked at from

1848-535: The impact of "tomboy" as a pejorative term. Sociologist Barrie Thorne suggested that some adult women take pride in describing their childhood selves as tomboys, "as if to suggest: I was (and am) independent and active; I held (and hold) my own with boys and men and have earned their respect and friendship; I resisted (and continue to resist) gender stereotypes". In the Philippines, tomboys are masculine-presenting women who have relations with other women, with

1904-464: The individual could not find a boyfriend. This largely reduces the value of women to only romance and diminishes girls' confidence in working in what is traditionally defined as the "boy's realm. " During the 20th century, Freudian psychology and backlash against LGBT social movements resulted in societal fears about the sexualities of tomboys, and this caused some to question whether tomboyism leads to lesbianism . Throughout history, there has been

1960-501: The late 1590s and early 1600s, the term morphed into its current meaning: "a girl who behaves like a spirited or boisterous boy; a wild romping girl." Before the mid-19th century, femininity was equated with emotional fragility, physical vulnerability, hesitation, and domestic submissiveness, commonly known as the " Cult of True Womanhood ". Under the influence of this ideal of femininity, women did not engage in strenuous sports or any physical activity. This paradigm remained stagnant until

2016-563: The lesbian community, she did not want to take up "the accepted lesbian style." After being featured in Philadelphia newspaper ads and being discovered by Sondra Scerca in Maurice Tannenbaum's hair salon, Carangi moved to New York City at the age of 17, where she signed with Wilhelmina Models . Her first major shoot, published in October 1978, was with top fashion photographer Chris von Wangenheim , who had her pose nude behind

2072-551: The mid-nineteenth century. During the Long Depression of the late 1800s, the US's increasing economic instability made fragile femininity no longer desirable. Young women joined the workforce to support their families and learn practical job skills, and thus a more robust physique was needed to support the physical demands of job practices. This led to the paradigm shift in people's expectations of young women from languishing, decorative beauty to vigorously healthy, thus laying

2128-515: The motherly attention that she desired. Those who knew Gia blamed her "fractured childhood" for the instability and drug dependence that plagued her adult life. Carangi was sexually abused when she was 5 years old, an event which traumatized her. In her adolescent years, Carangi found the attention she sought from other teenage girls, befriending them by sending flowers. While attending Abraham Lincoln High School , Carangi bonded with "the Bowie kids",

2184-616: The ones that undergo a makeover scene in which they learn to be feminine, often under the goal of getting a male partner. Usually with the help of the more girly character, they transform from an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan, ignoring past objectives and often framed in a way that they have become their best self. Doris Day 's character in the 1953 film Calamity Jane is one example of this. Tomboy figures who do not eventually go on to conform to feminine and heterosexual expectations often simply remain in their childhood tomboy state, eternally ambiguous. The stage of life where tomboyism

2240-421: The other women tending to be more feminine, although not exclusively, or transmasculine people who have relationships with women; the former appears more common than the latter. Women who engage in romantic relationships with other women, but who are not masculine, are often still deemed heterosexual. This leads to more invisibility for those that are lesbian and feminine. Scholar Kale Bantigue Fajardo argues for

2296-474: The photo shoot, in late 1982, Carangi became uncomfortable and left before any usable shots of her were taken. Around this time, Carangi enrolled in an outpatient methadone program but soon began using heroin again. By the end of 1982, she had only a few clients that were willing to hire her. Carangi's final photo shoot was for German mail-order clothing company Otto GmbH in Tunisia; she was sent home during

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2352-452: The photographers who liked Gia: Albert Watson , Francesco Scavullo , Bill King . Everyone loved her look so much that they gladly saw me." Additionally, Carangi, whose sexual orientation has been reported as either lesbian or bisexual, is considered a lesbian icon and is said to have "epitomized lesbian chic more than a decade before the term was coined." Argentine model Mica Argañaraz has often been compared to Carangi, whom she considers

2408-523: The shoot for using heroin. She left New York for the final time in early 1983. Carangi spent most of her modeling earnings on drugs, and spent the final three years of her life with various lovers, friends, and family members in Philadelphia and Atlantic City, New Jersey . She was admitted to an intense drug treatment program at Eagleville Hospital in December 1984. She was in intense therapy and

2464-539: The similarity between "tomboy" in the Philippines and " tombois in Indonesia ", and " toms in Thailand " all as various forms of female masculinity. In China, tomboys are called "假小子" (jiá xiao zi), which literally translates as "pseudo-boy". This term is largely used as a derogatory term to describe those girls with masculine characteristics. Most of the times calling someone a "假小子" is a humiliation which implies that

2520-448: The time, very fast. I didn't build into a model, I just sort of became one." Carangi was earning half a million dollars in a year at the height of her career. Carangi was a favorite model of various fashion photographers, including Von Wangenheim, Francesco Scavullo , Arthur Elgort , Richard Avedon and Denis Piel . Well-integrated within the fashion world, she had the selection of several photographers, most notably Scavullo. Carangi

2576-480: The tomboy's "image undermines patriarchal gender boundaries that separate the sexes", and thus is a "threatening figure". This "threat" affects and challenges the idea of what a family must look like, generally nuclear independent heterosexual couplings with two children. Gender scholar Jack Halberstam argues that while the defying of gender roles is often tolerated in young girls, adolescent girls who show masculine traits are often repressed or punished. However,

2632-453: The ubiquity of traditionally female clothing such as skirts and dresses has declined in the Western world since the 1960s, where it is generally no longer considered a male trait for girls and women not to wear such clothing. An increase in the popularity of women's sporting events (see Title IX ) and other activities that were traditionally male-dominated has broadened tolerance and lessened

2688-526: Was able to stay sober for 7 months. After treatment, she got a job in a clothing store, which she eventually quit. She later found employment as a checkout clerk and then worked in the cafeteria of a nursing home. By late 1985, she had begun using drugs again and was engaging in prostitution in Atlantic City. She had cancelled the meetings with her therapist, bought as much heroin as she could, and attempted suicide but failed. In December 1985, Carangi

2744-543: Was admitted to Warminster General Hospital in Warminster, Pennsylvania with bilateral pneumonia . A few days later, she was diagnosed with AIDS-related complex . Carangi was hospitalized in October 1986, feeling weak. On October 18, she was admitted to Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia. Carangi died at the Hahnemann Hospital of AIDS-related complications 1 month later, on November 18, 1986, at

2800-625: Was an American supermodel, considered by some to be the first supermodel . In 2023, Harpers Bazaar ranked her 15th among the greatest supermodels in the 1980s. She was featured on the cover of numerous magazines, including multiple editions of Vogue and Cosmopolitan , and appeared in advertising campaigns for fashion houses including Armani , Dior , Versace and Yves Saint Laurent . After Carangi became addicted to heroin , her career rapidly declined, which ultimately led her to quit modeling in 1983. In 1986, at age 26, she died of AIDS -related complications. Believed to have contracted it from

2856-462: Was determined to make a comeback in the fashion industry and signed with Elite Model Management . While some clients refused to work with her, others were willing to hire her because of her past status as a top model. Scavullo photographed her for the April 1982 cover of Cosmopolitan , her last cover appearance for an American magazine. Sean Byrnes, Scavullo's long-time assistant, later said, "What she

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2912-406: Was doing to herself finally became apparent in her pictures. ... I could see the change in her beauty. There was an emptiness in her eyes." Carangi then mainly worked with photographer Albert Watson and found work modeling for department stores and catalogs. She appeared in an advertising campaign for Versace , shot by Richard Avedon. He hired her for the fashion house's next campaign, but during

2968-473: Was dropped within weeks. By then, her career was in a steep decline. Modeling offers soon ceased and her fashion industry friends, including Sandy Linter, refused to speak to her, fearing their association with her would harm their careers. In an attempt to quit using drugs, she moved back to Philadelphia with her mother and stepfather in February 1981. Carangi underwent a 21-day detox program, but her sobriety

3024-538: Was featured on the cover of many fashion magazines, including the April 1979 issue of British Vogue , the April 1979 and August 1980 issues of Vogue Paris , the August 1980 issue of Vogue , the February 1981 issue of Vogue Italia , and multiple issues of Cosmopolitan between 1979 and 1982. During these years, she also appeared in various advertising campaigns for high-profile fashion houses, including Armani, André Laug, Christian Dior, Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent. At

3080-426: Was from her father's previous marriage and 1 younger half-brother. Her father was Italian, and her mother was of Irish and Welsh ancestry. Joseph and Kathleen had an unstable, violent marriage, ultimately leading Kathleen to abandon the family when Carangi was eleven years old. Gia was described as "needy and manipulative" by relatives who recalled her as spoiled and shy as a child and a "mommy's girl" who did not receive

3136-459: Was short-lived. She was arrested in March 1981 after she drove into a fence in a suburban neighborhood. After a chase with police, she was taken into custody where it was later determined she was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine. After her release, Carangi briefly signed with a new agency, Legends, and worked sporadically, mainly in Europe. In late 1981, although still using drugs, Carangi

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