- Name: Kristin Clotilde Darnell or Kristin Clotilde Holby
- Date of birth: November 9, 1951
- Age: 72
- Place of birth: Oslo, Norway
- Nationality: American, Canadian, Norwegian
- Education: Mamaroneck High School
- Parents: Aase-Grethe Holby, Warren Barrett Holby
- Spouse: James E. Darnell
- Height: NA
- Occupation: Actress, model, fabric designer
- Years active: 1970-1986
- Net worth: $1.2 million
When you x-ray the tale of Norwegian-American model cum actress Kristin Darnell, you will agree that the world of the performing arts is not just meant for everybody. The mother of three merely dipped her toes into the water and took off upon discovering that it was far from what she wanted from life. Today, Kristin is only remembered for the two movie credits she recorded.
Leaving the movies behind, Darnell found herself on the runway where she made her living, working and walking for several A-list fashion and cosmetics brands. A peek into the runway queen’s love life reveals that she has been married three times with three grown-up children to show for her years in marriage. However, there is still a whole lot more to learn about the life of Kristin Darnell. Read on to get the full details.
Kristin Darnell is a Norwegian national
She was called Kristin Clotilde Holby at birth but known by the stage name Kristin Clotilde Darnell. Kristin was born on the 9th of November 1951 in the city of Oslo, Norway, but a better part of her formative years was spent in the United States of America, precisely in Larchmont, New York.
Growing up in NY, Darnell passed through Murray Avenue School and later joined Mamaroneck High School for higher academic qualifications. With plans to forge a career in the fashion industry, the emerging model cum actress decided to undergo courses in clothing plans. This led her to enroll in Rhode Island School of Design where she honed her skills as a texture architect or fabric designer and later launched her career working in a textile company.
She had her stint in the movies and modeling world
From fabric designing, Kristin Darnell surfaced on the runway in the late 1970s, working for top-notch couture houses, including the likes of Ralph Lauren, Yves Saint Laurent, Shiseido, Chanel, and Givenchy. She also played in print and television advertisements and promotional campaigns, appearing for cosmetic and fashion firms. Her modeling days spanned from the 1970s to the 80s before she went into entrepreneurship, launching Clotild: a brand of women’s apparel located in Larchmont, NY.
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During the 1980s, while she was still enjoying relevance in the modeling world, the runway queen decided to try her hands at acting. This decision led her to score a role on the set of the 1983 movie entitled Trading Places. In the film, Kristin Darnell breathed life into the character of a debutante Penelope Witherspoon who was cast as the love interest of Louis Winthorpe III, a part depicted by Dan Aykroyd.
Though she was really good on set and portrayed the character of a rich young socialite very well, critics still found faults with her depiction of the role, dismissing it as not having enough substance, besides, it was described as a lot of hot air by many. Even though Trading Places elicited mixed reactions from the public, it marked Kristin’s emergence into the limelight, but unfortunately, she didn’t last in the movie industry, quitting after her supporting role in Manhunter – a 1986 movie.
Her net worth was last estimated at $1.2 million
Kristin Darnell started earning good pay from her early days in the fashion industry as a texture architect. The fabric designer’s paycheck was boosted by her emergence into the limelight as a model. Besides, with the caliber of couture houses she worked with, it is not surprising that she was able to accumulate the huge sum of $1.2 million in net worth.
Also contributing to Darnell’s bottom line is her acting gig, even though it was rather short-lived. Presently, the 70s and 80s model is now reaping from the proceeds of her dress shop, Clotild where she sells lady’s clothes.
Kristin Darnell’s movies
- Trading Places – 1983
- Manhunter – 1986
The former model’s family background
We lack the details on her parents but they have been identified as Aase-Grethe Holby and Warren Barrett Holby. Far from being the only child in the Holby family, Kristin shared her childhood with a sister called Grethe Holby.
Kristin’s big sister who is older than her by three years grew up to become a stage director, theatre producer, dramaturge, and choreographer.
Grethe got married to Arthur Elgort (an actor best recognized for his work in Texas Tenor: The Illinois Jacquet Story, Colorado Cowboy: The Bruce Ford Story, and Scratch the Surface ). Grethe and her spouse have three children, Sophie Elgort (photographer, artist, and director), Ansel Elgort (an actor known for The Fault in Our Stars), and Warren Elgort (movie director and photographer)
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Kristin is a wife and a mother of three
A throwback photo of Kristin and her twin daughters image source
Kristin Darnell is said to have been married three times with a record of two divorces. The former runway queen was barely 33 years old when she tied the connubial knot with her first husband Sebastian White who earns a living as a physicist. Kristin and Sebastian tied the nuptial knot in 1984 but the details of their married life are not known. Consequently, no one knows how long their union endured and when they decided to call it quits with their marriage.
The only known fact about the Kristin/Sebastian union is that it produced three children out of which the last two are twin daughters, Camila and phoebe White. We equally do not know the ages of her children but according to reports, they are all grown up and may have their own families. A report once surfaced, talking about how the former runway model loves to spend time with her grandchildren.
Searches revealed a second marriage for Kristin Darnell with a man simply identified as Jacques Malignon, but sadly, the date of their wedding and divorce is not known. It was when Kristin moved to Larchmont, New York, during the early 1990s, that she met and fell in love with her current spouse, James Edwin Darnell. James works at Rockefeller University as a professor emeritus of biology. The record did not capture the exact date of their nuptials but the couple’s marriage is believed to have endured for a long time.
Where is Kristin Darnell now?
Since we can’t seem to lay our hands on a wealth of info on Kristin Darnell’s present whereabouts, it will be safe to assume that she is still managing her clothing shop in Larchmont, New York. Besides, the former model is enjoying marital bliss with James Edwin Darnell since there is no news of any divorce or separation from them.