Happy birthday, Rebecca Romijn

Rebecca Shore | Nov 5, 2013

Rebecca Romijn :: Antoine Verglas/SI

What is there to say about Rebecca Romijn, our 1999 cover model whose chain-mail bikini cover was, in fact, not her most revealing look of that issue? I'll defer to SI Senior Writer Austin Murphy, in his unabashedly giddy account of Swimsuit's first-ever body painting shoot:

The conference has been convened to make the final selection of suits that [body painting artist Joanne Gair] will re-create on the supermodels. Gair is crazy about the pastel bikini-and-shirt combo she's going to paint on Rebecca, but [creative director Steve] Hoffman wonders, "Is it sexy enough?" To find out, he asks Rebecca to model the ensemble for us. When she emerges from the changing room, spontaneous applause erupts at the table. I find myself biting down on the first knuckle of my right forefinger and recalling the parting advice of my wife, Laura: "Try not to make too big an ass of yourself.""What do you think, Steve," I say. "Is it sexy enough?" The question is rhetorical: Right now, the sight ofRebecca would be a serious risk to the health of any man on heart medication. . . .Around midmorning I walk past the pool, where a dark-haired, seriously handsome man is floating on a raft. We exchange smiles. He is John Stamos, the guy Rebecca married three weeks earlier*. "Duty calls," I trill [to Stamos], holding up my notebook."No problem," he says. "But when you get home, just remember to send me some naked pictures of your wife."I recount this exchange to Laura on the phone that night. "He should be careful what he wishes for," she says.*Rebecca and John split in 2004. She wed actor Jerry O'Connell in 2007 and they have two kids.

So here's your celebratory gallery and video. But please, in the words of Laura, try not to make asses out of yourselves.