Finding the next Tyra at the mall

Jeff and Mary Clarke can quickly spot the look -- and the size -- guys and girls need to model

LISA JONES TOWNSEL Post-Dispatch Fashion Editor

St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO)

August 7, 2005

Their job is intensely mysterious and undercover. Jeff and Mary Clarke of O'Fallon, Mo., change lives, directions, fate. They are fashion scouts, the people who walk malls, circulate at parties and scan bus stops and convenience stores in search of the next Tyra or Giselle.

To look at them, they're just another mixed-race couple who enjoy spending time with their blended family of four. But their outright talent to spot those with the striking features that can set fashion mags such as Vogue and Glamour ablaze distinguishes them from your average suburbanites.

The year was 1997 when Mary, then owner of an Iowa-based modeling agency, contemplated leaving the business. It was around this time that she and a group of friends headed out to the Airliner bar in Iowa City. Her buddies made the Cedar Rapids native promise not to talk business. And she didn't, for a while. But then she spotted a young chap with a crown of tousled brown hair, deep eyes and an infectious, full-mouthed smile.

"You should be a model," she told the University of Iowa student from Homestead, Iowa.

Their conversation lasted much longer than usual. "Right from the get-go, he was open. He told me of his interest in acting, and I told him that this would be the catalyst," she recalls saying.

Soon after, Mary entered the student, Ashton Kutcher, in an area modeling contest, which he won. The prize included a trip to New York City -- a good thing, since the seasoned scout needed to introduce the 19-year-old to some of her agent friends. Not surprising, more than a dozen agents came a-knocking, and within weeks, Kutcher was on his way.

"He didn't come back," Mary says. Kutcher went on to do runway work in Europe and New York, Abercrombie ads, and, of course, he eventually landed a role in the Fox series "That '70s Show."

Mary and Jeff still stay in touch with Kutcher, who now hosts and produces MTV's "Punk'd," although they're always on the lookout for the next new face to join him.

Size matters

While many might think that the duo would be more likely to find the chiseled features lithe bodies of models in larger cities such as Chicago, New York or LA, the Clarkes are settled in St. Louis for now. They look here for attractive talent in ordinary places, such as gas stations, malls and grocery-store aisles.

The reason is twofold: One, there's less competition. Although there are a handful of modeling schools and talent agencies in town, what the Clarkes do -- handpicking models for agencies in New York and Europe -- is unique. Second, the fresh-face Midwestern girl-and-boy-next-door look, they say, is often a welcome sight at these far-flung agencies.

Over the years, Mary and Jeff have discovered exactly what their agency friends are looking for. But, like everything else in the topsy-turvy world of fashion, those sought-after looks can change from season to season.

"September 11th changed what advertisers were willing to pay for," Jeff explains. "Before that, it was funky, weird, exotic, especially for editorial."

Now, he and his wife say, looks are more mainstream and whitewashed.

"They're more handsome or pretty with an edge or twist, with really full lips and high foreheads," Mary says.

The prime age for girls is between 13 and 22. For guys, age skews a bit older, between 17 and 25.

But there's not as much leniency when it comes to body size.

"The hardest part is the body," notes Mary, who says girls should typically be at least 5 feet 9 but no taller than 5 feet 11, with few exceptions. Moreover, hips must not span more than 35 1/2 inches. If they're wider, Mary says, she can pretty much hang up her modeling dreams.

If the hip measurement is on target, it's likely that everything else will be proportionate, Mary explains. But sometimes it's just normal growth that derails some girls, like those who "blossom" in the bust line, heaving over the acceptable B-cup size.

"The agencies that we cater to hire girls in print for major magazines and runway work, where size is even more critical. It's a smaller window, the tiniest segment of the market," says Mary.

Guys don't have it much better. They must be between 5 feet 11 and 6 feet 2, with few exceptions. (In fact, 5-11 is a questionable height, the Clarkes say.) And, while male models are expected to have a taut body and ripped abs, they can't be bulky.

"They can't be too buff," Mary says. "They have to fit into a size 40 to 42 jacket. And if he's been pumping iron, he'll have to lay off. They need to be lean, defined and not too buff, especially for the European designers who have a tendency to cut things really narrow." A couple who scouts together Jeff Clarke, 31, worked as a manager at Structure (now Express Men) at Northwest Plaza when Mary scouted him out back in 1997. They got married in 1999 and lived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, until they decided to move back to St. Louis in 2001. Today, it's Jeff who confers with agents about model bookings and the couple's latest sightings.

His arm and neck serve as canvases for sprawling tattoos that read "King of Kings" and "Born Again," giving new meaning to wearing religion on your sleeve.

"We go through spurts," says Jeff, with the phone still up to his ear. "For a while, we were only finding girls."

He and Mary admit they can't go anywhere without considering the different model requests that they get faxed or e-mailed daily from agencies.

"You first notice their build," Mary, 43, says almost apologetically about comments that she knows can be misconstrued as judgmental.

"You sort of feel like private eyes," Jeff chimes in. "But I think that it is a gift that God gave us."

In the short time they've been here, the Clarkes have already helped to make stars out of a few locals.

They found Jennie Runk in 2003 when the 17-year-old teen worked part time at PetsMart. Since then, the Chesterfield native has become a working plus-sized model. She signed with the Wilhemina Models agency in New York, and has graced the pages of various publications, including Vogue.

The duo found Lindsay Lullman of Town and Country at a local Borders bookstore. In 2002, Lullman, 17, was signed to work for Elite Models in New York. Since then, she has been featured in Abercrombie & Fitch ads, United Colors of Benetton ads and appeared in French Glamour magazine and other publications.

Michael Hope of Rock Hill thought he was about to complete his senior year at Webster Groves High School in 2004 when the Clarkes approached him at the St. Louis Galleria. Shortly thereafter, he was picked to model for the Louis Vuitton fashion show in Paris, not to mention appear in numerous publications here and abroad. This summer, the 19-year-old has modeled for more than a half dozen fashion runway shows. He graduated from Webster High School in May.

As seen on TV

One night while relaxing in bed, the Clarkes watched the evening news on TV. A blond lifeguard came on, explaining his role in helping to save a drowning child at the Shaw Park swimming pool in Clayton.

As Jeff tells it, he sat up and almost got giddy. The guy possessed the "Blue Lagoon"-handsome quality that the Louis Vuitton show was seeking for its Spring 2006 show. Immediately, Jeff used his Tivo to freeze the TV frame. He took a snapshot of Mark Lubis and sent it to a casting agent even before meeting Lubis.

"Go get that boy" was the written response from the Vuitton people.

With that, the Clarkes were on their way to the community pool, where they were met with skepticism.

"So many times, they think you're selling them classes," Mary explains.

Lubis did. But he cautiously listened and played along.

"We were watching the news, and you came on. You came on and we said, 'He's cool,'" Mary tells the 20-year-old who has a strong jaw line and overgrown buzz cut.

"Agencies in New York may be interested," she says.

They tell him of the Vuitton casting.

Visibly overwhelmed, Lubis asks about the amount of time modeling might take away from his education. He will be a sophomore at Loyola University in Chicago this fall.

The Clarkes talk about flexibility and accommodating him. They also tell him that the money can be "really great."

"And we don't charge up-front fees," says Mary, who explains that she and Jeff are paid directly by the hiring agencies.

The Clarkes tell Lubis that they will need to take a few pictures, too, to turn in to the Vuitton casting director.

Although at first hesitant, Lubis agrees and leads the couple to an unused party room on the pool grounds.

They take pictures of him smiling, looking serious, sitting and leaning against a wall. They convince him to take a few without his shirt. (Photos of girls, they say, would require them to appear in a two-piece bikini.)

"I'm interested, but I'm going to have to talk to my parents," Lubis tells the Clarkes.

Lubis' parents eventually meet the Clarkes. And later, the Vuitton people request even more images of him. But in the end, he doesn't get the show.

"Long hair was what they were looking for," Mary explains.

Those are the breaks, but the Clarkes still plan to seek options for Lubis in the Chicago market this fall.

"Different filter" is used for prospects During a recent summer day, the Clarkes venture out to the Galleria, still looking for a possible male model for the Vuitton show and other bookings.

Although quite deliberate about each glance, neither looks stiff nor dares to stare at anyone who passes by.

But with their eyes, they compare notes and swap nods.

"We're really particular about who we approach," Jeff says. "It has to almost be a sure thing. If either of us is questioning it, then we don't."

A tall, lanky guy with a mop of blond wavy hair sweeps by.

"There would have been a time that we would have been looking for him," Mary says.

But looks aren't all that count. The boy's demeanor bothers Jeff. "He's a little effeminate. As a male model, you can't be or can't look as if you are," he says. "But girls can be boyish."

You can be pretty or doggedly handsome and still not be model material, the two say.

"It's a different filter that you put them through," Mary explains.

A model's skin must be clear of blemishes, she says, and hair needs to be updated. And then of course, there's the size issue.

Too often, Mary says, they find teens who are "overly done up with makeup and with hair that is too highlighted and skin that is too tanned."

"Nine times out of 10, we're looking at young people. Height is an initial factor," Mary says. "And you end up bypassing people on that a lot."

A girl with straight blond hair, parted down the middle, zips by the Clarkes in a T-shirt and blue jeans. She doesn't look to be any larger than a size 6.

"Cute girl. She'd have to lose weight to model in New York. though, and she's not interesting enough. But she could probably do a commercial or two locally," Mary says.

They admit that it's difficult to "let people down gently." But Mary and Jeff continue to perfect the art.

"We're a bridge. We know the rules. And if we approach somebody, we feel that it's something they can do," Jeff says.

An African-American young man with sandy red hair worn in twists passes by.

"Not tall enough. Nose is too wide. But his hair, it can be fixed," Mary notes, adding, "I know it makes us sound horrible -- I know -- but it's the business."

Scouting is just a part of what the Clarkes do. They also serve as the buffer, helping to refine the looks of potential picks before presenting them to the modeling agencies.

"To get their skin clear, they have to lay off soda and fried food," Mary says. "They're hormonal. It's hard. When a model goes on a casting call, it's with no makeup, in jeans and a T-shirt and flip-flops."

To date, the Clarkes, as owners of Mother Model Management, have placed models far and wide, in New York agencies such as Next, Elite and Wilhemina Models as well as others in Los Angeles, Miami and as far away as Spain and Tokyo. They also directly represent a few models themselves.

The models the Clarkes find who are ultimately hired by the top-tier agencies represent a continued investment to the couple. They get 10 percent of every casting of each model for as long as he or she remain in the modeling business. Suffice it to say, the money adds up.

A youngster, no more than age 12, whizzes by the Clarkes at the mall. His crown of blond hair bounces and almost covers his blue eyes.

"I'd love to see him when he grows up," Mary says. "But then again, things change at this age."

Neither Mary nor Jeff model now. Mary did a few pageants and print jobs when she was younger. Jeff had planned to pursue a modeling career shortly after their meeting, but then the two fell in love and married.

"It's all fantasy. Even on our part. I fantasize about finding the next boy or girl all the time," Jeff admits.

When it's time to present the pictures of new finds, he says, he resists the urge to try to build up hype around potential modeling clients. "When I first got in the business, we'd sell a girl. Or say, 'He's great' or 'She's great.' Now it's, 'Here it is. You make the decision.'"

The Clarkes' media brand, ModelTruth , LLC, recently released a how-to DVD, "10 Ultimate Truths," ($40, www. modeltruth .com) aimed at wannabe models. The disc highlights advice given by top agents at key firms. It also shows a collage of runway pictures and working models and shares some insight into this beautiful, demanding and very elite world of style.

"We felt a huge responsibility to use our voice, to speak to every young person viewing the DVD about their value and beauty regardless of their ability to work as a model," Mary says in the DVD publicity material.