Supermodels ruled the world in the 1980s. Well, they ruled pop culture at least. Everyone knew who Cindy, Elle, Claudia, Kate, Linda, and Naomi were without the need for last names.

But in the late 1990s, actresses, pop singers, and other entertainment celebrities began gradually replacing models on fashion magazine covers and ad campaigns, leaving many models in anonymity. Now the term “supermodel” is limited to a few elite stunners like Gisele Bundchen and Heidi Klum who pull in the big dollars.

This fact makes Savvy’s Search for the Million Dollar Woman even more extraordinary – that one woman will win an unprecedented $1 million prize and global fame based on her photos and how her personality shines through with Savvy.com readers. The title of the world’s most beautiful woman will no doubt look good on a resume.

While promoting their new show on Bravo, Make Me a Supermodel, hosts Niki Taylor and Tyson Beckford reflected on the modeling profession. When told about Savvy’s $1 Million competition, they acknowledged that the millionaire-model is a rarity these days with most models struggling to work more than part-time.

“It’s different now,” said Taylor, who appeared three times in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition and was the first spokesmodel under 18 to sign a major contract with CoverGirl cosmetics. “(Clients) are definitely not paying what they used to pay… Like with the whole economy now. The industry has definitely changed since Tyson and I first started. The modeling world is more commercialised. It’s very selective.”

“A Giselle can still pull down big money for doing Victoria’s Secret shows and, you know, Selita Banks and those girls are making big money. But to say what we made as supermodels… no, they’re not making that now,” said Beckford, who got his big break as an “accessory” to Naomi Campbell and has appeared in films such as Zoolander and Into the Blue.

Both believe the culture is in a cycle, that high-profile models like Savvy’s Million Dollar Woman will soon be in high demand.

“Models will be back in again,” Beckford said. “We’re waiting for it,” Taylor said. Beckford joked that with the writer’s strike in Hollywood “(actors) need the work right now so we’re willing to share.”

TV shows like America’s Next Top Model and Make Me a Supermodel are starting to show everyday people that modeling is not as easy or glamorous as it seems from the outside looking in. Savvy’s Search for the Million Dollar Woman will also conclude with a reality TV show about the 16 finalists living together in a house in Sydney, Australia.

“The guy that does construction, you know, he’s sitting there watching the show like ours and saying, ‘I work harder than that.’ But it’s a different type of job where it doesn’t stop. The whistle might blow at 5 and you’re done shooting, but you still have to maintain those looks and your body. You’ve still got to go on go-sees. It’s not over. You might have booked one campaign, but it’s not over there.”

Modeling is also a business that requires a thick skin.

“If someone’s not right, I’m going to tell them to help them. I’m not telling you to chop you down or be mean or degrading. But the reality of being a ‘supermodel’ is the whole world is looking for a flaw,” Beckford said.

Still, they wouldn’t trade their lives for anyone else’s.

“We have both gotten to travel to different countries and meet different people; work with some amazing artists, photographers, hair and makeup, wear some really amazing clothes and eat different foods. I mean, modeling is the best job ever,” Taylor said.

“The travel is always good. And, you know, no one could deny the pay,” Beckford said.

The woman who win’s Savvy’s Search for the Million Dollar Woman will no doubt spend much of 2009 traveling to promote Savvy and its partners. She will get a sense of what Taylor and Beckford have been doing for years.

Both hosts are almost as famous for nearly dying in car accidents as they are for walking the runways.

In 2001, Taylor was critically injured in Atlanta, suffering a collapsed lung and serious liver damage. She had to undergo 8 operations and physical therapy. Her younger sister and fellow model Kristen died a few years earlier from a heart muscle disease.

“I am more of a daredevil now than I was before. I believe I’m going to heaven. I got a second chance at life. I’m happy to be alive,” Taylor said.

Beckford was able to pull himself out of his wrecked car before the flames reached him. He told Oprah Winfrey the accident had a profound effect on his spirituality.

“(I’m) happy to be alive and take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of me. You just say, I’ve seen that light and I’m not ready to go into that light yet. So much now that you just want to spend it with your friends, your family and just do as much as you can before, you know, you’re about to go into that light. Take advantage of all the great opportunities that life has to offer you because you never know when it’s your last,” Beckford said.

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On the Web:

Make Me a Supermodel Official Page

Savvy’s Search for the Million Dollar Woman