Photo: Myrna M. Suarez/Getty
Christie Brinkleyhas an enviable career, but she’s most proud of being a mom to her three kids.
The formerSports Illustratedmodel welcomed her first child with her ex-husbandBilly Joel, daughter Alexa Ray Joel, 38, in 1985. Shortly after her and the “Piano Man” singer’s divorce in 1994, she welcomed her son Jack Paris Brinkley Cook, 29, with then-husband real estate developer Richard Taubman, though the couple split not long after his birth. In 1996, Brinkley married architectPeter Cookand the latter adopted Jack before the pair welcomed their daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook, 26, a few years later in 1998. However, Brinkley and Cook ultimately divorced in 2008.
Brinkley’s kids are all grown up now, and some of them have even followed in her footsteps, pursuing careers within the entertainment industry in some form. Through the years, theNational Lampoon’s Vacationstar has enjoyed watching each of them pave their own path.
“You learn so much from each child, just getting an opportunity to see the world through their eyes. I have three real individuals,” she toldParadein May 2018. “They all find magic in different places, and I feel so fortunate to be able to experience that.”
Brinkley has never been shy aboutposting photos of her familyon her Instagram page, and she often shares sweet birthday tributes, cute group shots and more of her children.
Read on to learn everything to know about Christie Brinkley’s three kids.
Alexa Ray Joel, 39
Alexa Ray Joel Instagram
Brinkley welcomed her eldest child, Alexa Ray Joel, on Dec. 29, 1985, with her second husbandBilly Joel(Brinkley and Joel divorced in 1994 and did not have any other children).
Alexa inherited her father’s musical genes and is an accomplished singer-songwriter. She’s released several songs and has even performedalongside her famous dad. In 2021, Alexa premiered a brand new song titled “Seven Years.”
After releasing the song, Alexa spoke to PEOPLE abouthow proud her dad was of her. “[Joel] called me right away,” Alexa recalled of her dad’s reaction to the song. “He’s pretty low-key, but he was like, ‘Honey, this is great!’ [and] I said, ‘Oh you kind of sound more like my mother. So enthusiastic!'”
Alexa also released a vintage-inspired music video for “Seven Years,” which was essentiallya love song dedicatedto her fiancé,Ryan Gleason. She told PEOPLE that when he heard the song for the first time, “he started crying.” She added, “It narrates both the highs and lows of my relationship, with an overarching message of hope … and pangs of reeling vulnerability and melancholia throughout.”
Alexa and Gleason have been dating for about eight years. Theygot engagedin 2018 while on vacation. In 2020, Brinkley toldExtrathat theirwedding was “on hold"due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Brinkley’s oldest daughter has even dabbled in some modeling, mostly doing family photoshoots with her mom and her half-sister, Sailor. In 2017, the trio posed for theSports IllustratedSwimsuit issue, and in 2021, they posed for anNYDJ campaignfor Mother’s Day.
Despite her time in the spotlight, Alexa has opened up about how she was shy growing up. “I was a painfully shy teenager,” she told PEOPLE in February 2017. “Before I decided to be a performer, I was a little shell-shocked when paparazzi would be around. When you’re young, it’s easy to pick on you. There was a tabloid page that would draw things on my face.”
Alexa has also notedhow different she isfrom her mom. After describing her mom as “the classic, timeless, golden, all-American bombshell,” she described herself as “more ‘La Dolce Vita’-meets-a-mermaid-meets-vintage-bohemian.”
Jack Paris Brinkley-Cook, 29
Jamie McCarthy/Getty
Although Brinkley’s daughters have both opted to follow in their famous parent’s footsteps, Jack is much more private. He doesn’t work in the entertainment industry and he rarely posts on social media. He also doesn’t usually get involved in family photoshoots or speak to the media. He did, however, participate in his family’s spread for PEOPLE’sWorld’s Most Beautiful issuein 2017.
While he may not like to be in front of the camera like his mom, Jack does embody his mom’s adventurous spirit. “I think that the main thing I got from my mom was a sense of adventure,” Jack told PEOPLE. “Probably my favorite thing in the world is the ocean. I surf, I sail, I swim. Whatever it is, everything that has to do with the ocean, I’ve learned from her so I think that’s something I’ve gained from her because she loves the ocean, too.”
Sylvain Gaboury/Patrick McMullan/Getty
However, if his schooling indicates anything, he might eventually have a future in Hollywood. He attended Emerson College to study marketing but left after a year to study acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute, where he graduated in 2016, according toW Magazine.
In 2019, helaunched a Hamptons ride-share appcalled ROVE to help people get from N.Y.C. to the Hamptons. The app allows beach-goers to arrive in style in a 13-seat Mercedes Sprinter van for an affordable price.
As for his personal life, Jack started dating modelNina Agdalin 2017. The couplebroke upin 2021 after dating for four years.
Christie Brinkley Instagram
Sailor Brinkley-Cook, 26
Jared Siskin/Patrick McMullan/Getty
The youngest of Brinkley’s kids, Sailor Lee Brinkley-Cook, was born on July 2, 1998, to Brinkley and Cook. Sailor is the spitting image of her model mom, so much so that the two areoften called twins. In a 2017 interview with PEOPLE, Alexa described Sailor as “the young,spunky, sassy, bold, perfect little sporty model.”
Sailor is following in her mom’s footsteps and pursuing a career in modeling. She’s been photographed for publications likeSports IllustratedandVogueand has also done modeling gigs with her mom. In 2019, Sailor and her momwalked the runway togetherfor the Elie Tahari show during New York City Fashion Week. And in 2018, sheposed nudeforSports Illustratedfor the magazine’s “In Her Own Words” campaign. She told PEOPLE that she felt comfortable being nude in front of the cameras because she was working with her friends, saying, “It’s like we’re in the locker room or something.”
When Sailor first began modeling, she received tons of sound advice from her supermodel mom. “Her biggest advice when it comes to being on a set would bejust to be as gracious as you can. I always try and introduce myself to everyone in the room. And I always try and acknowledge everyone in the room,” Sailor recalled to PEOPLE in a February 2023 interview. “Because I mean, my job is almost pretty much the easiest.”
She continued, “That’s what she taught me, is to really acknowledge my surroundings while I’m in it and not be a diva and have fun with the creatives that I’m working with.”
Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
Sailor has also been open about herbody image struggles. In a May 2020 post on Instagram, Sailor got honest about the way she felt about herself, writing: “I’ve been so down on myself recently. Crying about my cellulite, letting the fat on my body ruin my day, getting mad that I’m not as skinny as I once was. The body dysmorphia and leftover eating disorder tendencies have been coming in strong.” She went on to say she had been comparing herself to other girls on Instagram, and added, “I’m so tired of thinking anything makes up ME is something to be ashamed of.”
She talked about similar body image issues during an interview onGood Morning Americalater that month. “I just have this awful feeling that if I’m not skinny, I’m not worth being celebrated and I’m not worth being praised,” she said. She added that her mom didn’t “fully know the pain” she was going through.
source: people.com
