Monday, Dec. 06, 1999

Ask Dr. Notebook

By Harriet Barovick, Val Castronovo, Matthew Cooper, Mitch Frank, Daniel Levy, Michele Orecklin, Alice Park, Desa Philadelphia, Hope Reeves and Owen Thomas

Q. Most of the articles that mention Donald Trump's girlfriend Melania Knauss refer to her as a supermodel. I've never heard of her. Is she really a supermodel?

A. Absolutely not. Knauss has appeared on only the following magazine covers: Ocean Drive, Country Living, Self, Hamptons and British GQ. She's also done a watch-company ad and a Panasonic commercial, and some inside shots for Allure. That's it. Technically, "supermodel" applies only to the six who gained unprecedented success in the late '80s and early '90s: Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer and Kate Moss. None of whom the Donald is currently dating.

Q. I notice Nike is letting you design your own sneaker on its website. You can even ask for words to be emblazoned on the heel. Are there any words Nike won't let me use?

A. Plenty. No obscenities, obviously, but also no competitors. Reebok, Adidas, Converse, Fila and DKNY are out (though you can use Hilfiger and FCUK). Otherwise, the censorship seems arbitrary. You can have Chevy or Mercedes on your sneakers but not Ford, Saturn or Volvo. Strangely, Nike also banned the word Jordan--and the word TIME.