Daniel Franco

Daniel Franco
Born	November 11, 1971 (1971-11-11) (age 39)
Residence	Living in New York
Education	Otis College of Art and Design Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising
Occupation	fashion designer
Television	Project Runway Season 1 (12th) Season 2 (12th)

Daniel Franco, a native of Los Angeles, California, was born November 11, 1971. He achieved notability for appearing in two seasons of Project Runway.

Biography

He holds both a bachelor of fine arts degree from Otis College of Art and Design and an associate's degree in fashion design from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising.

In 1995, Franco received critical acclaim when he was voted Best Designer in a nationwide contest for fashion students by The Fashion Group International. He received top honors in both the career and the leisure categories. By 1999 he had broadened his design experience by working in New York City as a fashion forecaster, assisting Richard Tyler and designing for BCBG.

Also in 1999, Franco designed his first clothing line, which was sold exclusively through Saks Fifth Avenue. The company, Prototype was jointly run with his wife. He took a five-year hiatus from the fashion industry to run his family's business when his father had a seizure and took ill. Not only did Franco deal with his father's illness but Franco also suffered Ménière's disease during this time. Shortly after his recovery and divorce he returned to the fashion world as a contestant on the first season of Project Runway. His experience on the show inspired him to relaunch the Daniel Franco collection with his first fashion show. His debut was well received by buyers, media and critics alike, which motivated him to return to television for another chance at Project Runway. Daniel Franco also created a collection for LA Fashion week in the fall of 2006.

Franco auditioned for FOX's American Idol in Season 9, but did not make the age cut off. He was featured during the Adam Lambert look-a-like montage.^[1]

Project Runway

Franco appeared on seasons 1 and 2. During Season 1, he was out on the first episode (the challenge for that episode was to create a sexy, glamorous outfit for a night on the town made only from materials bought at a Manhattan supermarket). However, he returned on the second season. He had one of the lowest scores during the first episode (The designers were given six yards of plain white muslin, $20 and 1 week to create an outfit that best represents who they are as a fashion designer). He had one of the highest scores for the second episode's challenge (create an outfit using the clothes the designers are wearing at the time the challenge is announced), but he was out by the fourth episode (that episode's challenge was to create a lingerie line of 3 looks in groups of 3.) Franco famously stated, "I love you, Heidi," to host Heidi Klum on the Season 2 reunion episode.

References

1. ^ http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/01/27/daniel-franco-american-idol/

External links

• Biography on Bravotv
• Personal Website
• Daniel Franco at the Internet Movie Database

Persondata
Name	Franco, Daniel
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Date of birth	November 11, 1971
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