Sarah Jessica Parker
She's famous for being the ugly duckling who grew up to be an international fashion icon.
Sarah Jessica Parker endured years of sniping over her geeky looks, wayward hair and prominent nose.
And she was even voted the Unsexiest Woman Alive by lads' mag Maxim.
Sarah has admitted that hurt, but she's had the last laugh... the 43-year-old star of Sex And The City has made more than her three co-stars combined since the series ended in 2004, thanks to a string of hit films and lucrative advertising deals worth £12.5million.
The former child star now looks set to rake in another £7.5million for reprising her role as the world's most fabulous singleton in the movie which has its premiere in London tomorrow.
Not bad for the girl who was "starved for attention" as a kid and who spent a lifetime battling to make her kooky looks work for her.
She realised early on she was never going to be "the pretty girl". She says: "There were some not-terribly-veiled conversations. Anything from as silly as plucking my eyebrows to getting my nose fixed."
Sheer determination has got the girl who grew up in the coalmining town of Nelsonville, Ohio, where she is today. "Nothing in life comes easy... you have to earn everything. You have to know the difference between what you want and what you need. I always knew I needed to work.
"As a child I was lucky to get any attention, let alone be spoiled," she says. "My father was a poet. My mom was busy with eight children and my step-dad was a truck driver. It sounds crazy, but I'm grateful for all that now.
It gave me a good work ethic."
That tough childhood stood her in good stead for the film industry. "If I had been raised a child of privilege, I wouldn't be who I am today," she says.
As our amazing early photo shows, the young Sarah had none of the typical cuteness favoured by Hollywood for its child stars.
But, as that twinkle in her eye suggests, this youngster had more get-up-and-go than her peers.
She landed her first TV role at the age of eight, when she starred in The Little Match Girl.
Singing and ballet lessons led to a stint on Broadway as Annie. There was a small part in 1984 hit Footloose, followed by the lead role in the teen dance movie Girls Just Wanna Have Fun - starring opposite future Oscar-winner Helen Hunt. Her breakthrough came in 1991 when she co-starred with Steve Martin in the comedy L.A. Story.
A string of roles opposite hunky leading men followed: Nicolas Cage in 1992's Honeymoon in Vegas, Striking Distance the next year with Bruce Willis and Miami Rhapsody in 1995 with Antonio Banderas.
But she didn't become a household name until she landed the role of shoe-obsessed Carrie Bradshaw in Sex And The City. Co-stars Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon and Kim Cattrall have all made millions on the back of the show, but their earnings are dwarfed by Sarah's.
Not only that, but her quirky dress sense have made her a fashion icon with her own perfume.
Add a film-star husband - Matthew Broderick - and five-year-old son James Wilkie, and the picture is complete.
Sarah was wooed by marketing execs as soon as SATC ended four years ago.
She landed multimillion-pound deals with Gap and cosmetics firm Garnier and picked up £3.5m to design a clothes range.
She has also earned millions from the six movies she has done since 2004, including The Family Stone and Failure to Launch. Sex And The City: The Movie almost didn't get made because of wrangling over who was to get paid what. Much to the relief of fans the world over, they eventually agreed on the figures and filming started in New York.
Liverpool-born Kim Cattrall, 51, who played man-eater Samantha in the 94 episodes of the series, is said to have been paid £3m, and Cynthia Nixon, 42, who played cynical lawyer Miranda, and prim Charlotte - Kristin Davis, 43 - got £1m each. Sarah made £5m, with an extra £2.5m for producing the film.
Despite her riches, SJP is determined to stay grounded.
She recently revealed she doesn't want her son to be spoiled and that she dresses him in hand-me-downs.
She says: "Just because mommy and daddy are rich and famous, that doesn't mean he should ride the gravy train through life."
With film stars for parents and that tough work ethic, little James could soon follow in his mum's Manolo-clad footsteps up the red carpet.
sharonvangeuns@sundaymirror.co.uk
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