Christie Brinkley Turns 65, Reveals Biggest Regret From Her 45-Year Modeling Career

Christie Brinkley got the party started early for her birthday this year. The iconic supermodel, who turns 65 today, wore a sparkly mini dress — that showed off her killer legs — as she celebrated her milestone at a party held in her honor. The party was hosted at the Gramercy Park Hotel earlier this week. Christie’s daughter, Alexa Ray Joel, even serenaded the birthday girl with a sultry version of “Happy Birthday to You” in her honor.

At one point during the party, Brinkley joked about her age, according to People.

“Groundhog’s Day is my birthday, and I’ll be turning 50 for the 15th time,” Christie told her party guests.

Christie Brinkley has long said she believes that age is just a number, which is no surprise, considering the gorgeous mom of three has aged very well. Brinkley said her numerical age has nothing to do with how old she is.

“Everybody pays so much attention to your number,” Brinkley said. “I like to say, ‘That’s just my biological age, but my spirit age is totally different.’ Your spiritual age comes from everything about you, not just this assigned number because that’s how long you’ve been around, kicking around this crazy old world.”

Christie Brinkley is known as one of the greatest American supermodels of all time. After being discovered by photographer Errol Sawyer in 1973, a teenaged Christie was soon introduced to the legendary John Casablancas of Elite Modeling Agency. Christie went on to become the first model ever to grace the cover of the coveted Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue three years in a row, from 1979 to 1981, inclusive.

When it comes to regrets, she only has a few. Even though she has graced the cover of more than 500 magazines, walked countless runway shows, and has launched several thriving businesses of her own, Christie Brinkley told Entertainment Tonight she still has one major career regret.

“I didn’t do Saturday Night Live when they asked me. God, what was I thinking?”

It seems Christie Brinkley is a fan of the late-night sketch comedy show. Her ex-husband, Billy Joel, first performed as a musical guest on the show during her SI heyday in the late 1970s. In 2017, Christie told Social Life magazine that some of her favorite things are “my kids and my friends, my puppies, music, trying to dance, SNL, Stephen Colbert, and trying to yodel,” per Fox News.

As for the career goals she did accomplish, Christie Brinkley said her Sports Illustrated adventures have been some of her favorite moments in her modeling career.

In 2017, Christie Brinkley capped off her SI career when she posed for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue alongside her daughters Alexa Ray Joel and Sailor Brinkley Cook.