Cindy Crawford says cocaine incident almost made her give up modelling
Rhiannon Ingle
Featured Image Credit: Image Press Agency / Newscom / Alamy
Cindy Crawford has opened up about a cocaine incident that almost led to her giving up modelling altogether.
The famed supermodel pretty much ruled the catwalks of the nineties, but it turns out the the decade-spanning career almost never happened due to one particular drug-fuelled night, with Crawford revealing that the incident was 'so in my face'.
Crawford first began modelling back in her junior year of high school for a a small modelling agency that was later sold to Elite Model Management.
The 57-year-old first rose to stardom following her iconic work in a 1992 Pepsi campaign.
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Spring-boarding the model into a highly success career, Crawford has since become one of the biggest names of the decade joining the likes of fellow famous models like Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks.
Yet, Crawford's iconic catwalk career almost never lifted off the ground following a life-changing cocaine incident at the very start of her entrance into the world of modelling.
It all started when Crawford won a scholarship to Northwestern University, Illinois, back in 1984.
Just 18-years-old at the time, Crawford made the huge decision to say goodbye to a life of academia and decided to try her luck with modelling instead.
Yet, after a pretty messy party, the covergirl almost took a total U-turn after seeing some of the darker scenes of the industry she was just beginning to enter.
Speaking to Maxim magazine, Crawford revealed that it all started when she was just a teenager in 1985 attending a social work dinner in Italy.
She said: "I was at dinner in Milan with several big photographers and several of the big models at the time, and there were people snorting coke right there."
Recalling one of the characters present at the dinner, Crawford noted: "This one girl got up on the table, wearing a short skirt and nothing underneath."
Clearly not used to the kind of activity everyone was seemingly partaking in at the dinner, Crawford immediately called up her mum terrified of the huge mistake she thought she'd made.
She had begged her mom to help her get back into college and far away from that traumatic experience.
"Here I was," she added, "Just 18, out of Illinois. I called my mom, and said, 'I can't do this. Get me re-enrolled'."
Remembering just how of an impact that dinner in Milan had on her, Crawford concluded: "That first experience was so in my face."
Luckily, Crawford was persuaded to give the modelling gig another go and went on to work with some of the biggest names in fashion and pop culture.
While she has since retired from full-time modelling back in 2000, the legacy of Crawford and her iconic image will forever remain.