(CNN) -- Anna Nicole Smith, the voluptuous former model whose life as a Playboy centerfold, billionaire's widow and reality TV star made her the center of tabloid attention, is dead. She was 39.

Smith was found "unconscious and unresponsive" in her room at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino and Hotel in Hollywood, Florida, according to Hollywood Fire and Rescue.

Born Vickie Lynn Hogan in Mexia, Texas, Smith was known as much for her sometimes-turbulent life off-camera as she was for her acting career. Most recently, she was embroiled in a dispute over the paternity of her daughter, Dannielynn Hope, and suffered the death of her 20-year-old son, Daniel Smith. He was the son of Anna Nicole and Bill Smith, who were married in 1985 and divorced in 1987.

A high-school dropout, Smith was working as a topless dancer in Houston when she made her first appearance in Playboy in 1992. After she was named Playmate of the Year in 1993, Smith appeared in ads for Guess jeans and had a small part in the movie "The Hudsucker Proxy." That led to appearances in several movies, including "Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult" in 1994.

"She had something magic," Paul Marciano, CEO of Guess jeans, told CNN. "People still ask me about Anna Nicole."

Marciano said he was the one that changed Smith's name. "I did not like Vickie Smith," he said.

In June 1994, the then-26-year-old Smith married Texas oil baron J. Howard Marshall II, 89, who had an estate valued at $1.6 billion. He died the following year, and Smith waged a 12-year feud with Marshall's son, Pierce Marshall, over the inheritance.

She initially won a $474 million judgment, but that was scrapped when a Texas state court ruled that Pierce Marshall was the sole heir. In May 2006, however, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Smith could pursue her fight in federal court. Pierce Marshall, 67, died in June.

In 2002, Smith launched a reality television program, "The Anna Nicole Show," on the E! Entertainment network. At one point, it was the network's highest-rated program.

In September, Smith gave birth to Dannielynn Hope in a hospital in the Bahamas. Her son was found dead in his mother's hospital room while he was visiting her, on September 10. Pathologist Cyril Wecht, who obtained test results from a Pennsylvania laboratory, told CNN Daniel Smith died from a combination of methadone along with antidepressants Lexapro and Zoloft.

Later that month, Smith's attorney, Howard K. Stern, told CNN's "Larry King Live," that he was Dannielynn's father and that he and Anna Nicole planned to marry. "Based on when the timing of when the baby was born, there really is no doubt in either of our minds," Stern said.

But entertainment reporter and photographer Larry Birkhead also claimed he was the girl's father, saying in a statement given to CNN that Smith had told him he was the father. Birkhead had waged a legal fight to determine the child's paternity, attempting to have a DNA test done.

Smith, who had battled with her weight for years but had slimmed down recently, was also a spokeswoman for Trimspa weight-loss products, said Robin Bonnema of the company's public relations department.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/08/obit.smith/