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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Autopsy on Playboy model starts | Autopsy on Playboy model starts |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A post mortem examination is being carried out on the body of Anna Nicole Smith, a former Playboy model and widow of an octogenarian oil tycoon. | |
| The 39-year-old was found unconscious in a Florida hotel late on Thursday and could not be resuscitated in hospital. | |
| Smith's mother, Virgie Arthur, said she believed drugs could have played a role in her daughter's death. | |
| The model spent much of the past decade in the limelight in a bitter feud over tycoon Howard Marshall II's will. | The model spent much of the past decade in the limelight in a bitter feud over tycoon Howard Marshall II's will. |
| An emergency hearing into her baby's paternity, disputed by her partner and an ex-boyfriend is also expected. | |
| Larry Birkhead, a former boyfriend who says he is the father of Smith's five-month-old daughter has filed an emergency motion seeking DNA from the body of the former model to verify his claim. | Larry Birkhead, a former boyfriend who says he is the father of Smith's five-month-old daughter has filed an emergency motion seeking DNA from the body of the former model to verify his claim. |
| Howard Stern, the model's lawyer and partner, says he is the father. | Howard Stern, the model's lawyer and partner, says he is the father. |
| Smith's 20-year-old son, Daniel, died days after the girl's birth. | |
| 'Too many drugs' | |
| The autopsy began shortly after 0900 local time (1400 GMT) at Broward County medical examiner's office in Florida. | |
| Dr Joshua Perper, who is performing the autopsy, said if Smith had not died of natural causes the findings of the post mortem examination would not be immediately announced. | |
| "I am not a prophet, and I cannot tell you before the autopsy what I am going to find," Mr Perper said. | |
| Obituary: Anna Nicole Smith A life in pictures | |
| Meanwhile, Mrs Arthur said she believed her daughter was abusing drugs. | |
| "I think she had too many drugs," she told ABC television. | |
| "I tried to warn her about the drugs and the people she hung around She didn't listen. She was too drugged up. The last interview I saw of her, she was so wasted," Mrs Arthur said. | |
| But Smith's lawyer, Ron Rale, told NBC that she "sounded fine" when he had talked to her recently. | |
| "She's been obviously grieving still over Daniel and depressed but I didn't have any indication that she was on any medication or sedation," he said. | |
| Courtroom battles | Courtroom battles |
| Smith was born Vicki Lynn Hogan in Mexia, Texas, on 28 Nov 1967. | Smith was born Vicki Lynn Hogan in Mexia, Texas, on 28 Nov 1967. |
| A former topless dancer, she achieved considerable success as a model. | A former topless dancer, she achieved considerable success as a model. |
| She was named Playboy's playmate of the year in 1993 and secured a lucrative contract with Guess Jeans. | She was named Playboy's playmate of the year in 1993 and secured a lucrative contract with Guess Jeans. |
| In 1994, she married the 89-year-old Howard Marshall II after he repeatedly proposed to her. | In 1994, she married the 89-year-old Howard Marshall II after he repeatedly proposed to her. |
| His death just 14 months later triggered a long feud with his family over the inheritance of his estate which saw Smith make regular courtroom appearances. | His death just 14 months later triggered a long feud with his family over the inheritance of his estate which saw Smith make regular courtroom appearances. |