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The New Zealand Herald
The New Zealand Herald
Entertainment

Anna Nicole Smith's daughter gives rare interview alongside dad Larry Birkhead

The teenage daughter of the late model and actress Anna Nicole Smith may also pursue a career in front of the camera, she revealed in a rare interview with her dad.

Nicole Smith died of an accidental drug overdose in 2007 in the wake of the death of her son Daniel Wayne Smith.

She left behind her infant daughter, Dannielynn Birkhead, now 13-years-old, who this week gave a rare insight into her life in an interview with DailymailTV.

Larry Birkhead and Dannielynn Birkhead at the Kentucky Derby in May. Photo / Getty Images.

Her father, Larry Birkenhead, explained people are always asking if she will follow in her mother's footsteps and find work as an actress or model.

"And I never push her in a certain direction," he explained.

"Actually, I get calls all the time and I say 'no, she's not interested in doing that kind of stuff'.

"Right now she's just being a kid."

While he is happy for his daughter to take her time growing up, the proud dad said Dannielynn was already receiving praise for her acting abilities.

The pair live a quiet country life in Kentucky, a far cry from the bright lights and glamour of Hollywood.

"She surprised me because last year she took an acting class," he said.

"I got an email from a teacher and she said 'Dannielynn gave one of the most believable performances of the whole, whole entire school'.

"So, if she wants to do something like that when she's older … we'll see when we get there."

The teenager spoke her love of acting, explaining: "It's really cool like to act as a character, not yourself. Portraying a new person is fun."

Larry went on to explain how he and Danielynn talk openly about their family's tragic past. However he remains conscious of the need to shield her from negativity.

"[Dannielynn] knows just really that her mom was famous and she knows about [Anna's late son] Daniel," said Larry.

"I try to incorporate both of them because sometimes Daniel gets forgotten.

"We try to talk about him and I shared a birthday with him, so we always celebrated together."

The late Anna Nicole Smith in 2006. Photo / AP.

Daniel died of an accidental overdose in 2006, while the 20-year-old was visiting Anna Nicole in hospital, just a week after she had given birth to Danielynn. Just five months later, 39-year-old Anna Nicole passed away.

Larry feels it's important to remind Danielynn of fond memories of the pair, when tabloid headlines tend to focus on the negative aspects of Anna Nicole's troubled life.

"You know, I tell her stories about them and I try to not make it heavy because she's just now becoming a teenager and I think some of that stuff will come," he said.

"That's the thing, there's so many bad things that people say and rarely do you hear the good things she did for charities and different people.

"Those are the stories I like to tell, you know? Not the ones you see in the checkout stand."

- Additional reporting DailymailTV

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