Biography
Born June 4, 1985 in Hod HaSharon, Israel, Bar Refaeli was the daughter of a model, Tzipi Levine, and followed in her footsteps while still an infant. Refaeli was so popular in her home country that she attracted international attention, which helped her become the first Israeli supermodel to conquer the United States. Inundated with offers, she drew considerable attention for her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition layouts, including landing the cover of the 2009 installment. Although enormously proud of her heritage, Refaeli sometimes found it difficult to juggle cultural expectations with the sexier side of her modeling jobs. One such stumbling block was that she had dodged enlistment in the Israel Defense Forces, which was mandatory for both women and men. In an effort to smooth things over with government officials, Refaeli agreed to help promote Israel's military, but her decision irked many of her detractors. Similarly, Refaeli faced considerable homeland pressure to only date Jewish men, and her romantic life was constantly scrutinized in ways her peers' were not. An occasional actress as well, Refaeli landed a role on the Israeli television series "Pick Up" (2005), but made more frequent appearances on talk and variety shows, preferring to keep a lower profile. That was made considerably more difficult when she began a relationship with arguably the world's biggest movie star at the time, Leonardo DiCaprio, who had a recent breakup with another international supermodel, Gisele. The new couple were spotted in Israel as well as in the United States, and their relative silence on their relationship only helped fan the flames of interest from media and gossip outlets. A low-key but popular talk show guest, Refaeli was chosen to host the rebooted "House of Style" (MTV, 1989-2000, 2012) for its lone episode. Impressively, she managed to retain her mystique even after she and DiCaprio split in 2009, with the two playing it so close to the vest that it was rumored that they had reconciled the next year, only to part ways again in 2011. Regardless of the status of their relationship, Refaeli remained enormously popular as a glamorous global figure. She took a rare starring role in the psychological thriller "Session" (2011) but chose to focus more on her modeling work and, perhaps inspired by the famously earth-friendly DiCaprio, on charitable causes, including environmental and animal welfare organizations. That same year, Refaeli also launched "Under.me," her own line of comfortable, fashionable undergarments.
