Shana Hiatt - Biography

Last Editor: amcoodies				Shana Hiatt Biography -   Name : Shana Hiatt Date of birth : 1975

Shana Hiatt Trivia -

Married to James Van Patten, brother of "World Poker Tour" (2003) co-host Vincent Van Patten. Sister-in-law of Nels Van Patten, Vincent Van Patten, Nancy Valen and Eileen Davidson. Niece-in-law of Timothy Van Patten and Joyce Van Patten. Daughter-in-law of Dick Van Patten and Pat Van Patten. Appeared in a Playboy photoshoot in April 1995

Shana Hiatt Detailed Biography -

Shana Hiatt was born in 1975 on the East Coast, and was raised mostly in Tabernacle New Jersey, near Philadelphia. Shana spent her early childhood years traveling around the country as an "Army brat" with her parents and one younger brother. Traveling would be a recurring theme in Shana's life. As a young girl, Shana's future career was already being discovered. At age eight, Shana became very interested in television, She would sit in front of the TV for hours, watching newscasts and analyzing the broadcasters. Shana wanted a career as a television news reporter. In high school, Shana would prove to be a stellar athlete. Shana was a champion lacrosse and field hockey player, not to mention the hottest school cheerleader! After graduating high school, Shana enrolled in New Jersey's Burlington County College in order to study broadcast journalism, pursuing her early childhood dream of television broadcasting. However, at age 18, Shana Hiatt was drop dead gorgeous, and it wouldn't take long for modeling agents to catch wind. Shana begain modeling part-time during this period, and was an immediate success. Shana secured the well-known and respected agent, Ray Manzella, the agent who made careers for Jenny McCarthy, Vanna White, and Pamela Anderson, and started her successful modeling career. Read more about Shana's modeling career in our next section, Shana Hiatt the Model. While attending a fundraiser in Hawaii to help fund shelters for battered women, Shana met her future husband, James Van Patten, brother of World Poker Tour commentator, Vince Van Patten, and son of Dick Van Patten from the television series, "Eight is Enough". James Van Patten, or Jimmy, encouraged Shana to pursue her interest of working in front of the camera, which Shana did and became a huge success. Check out Shana Hiatt's Filmography here. Shana is now 29 years old, married to Jimmy, and living in the San Fernando Valley (Southern California) with their two dogs, a Chihuahua named GooGoo and a cockapoo named Tyler, and their Siamese cat, Gemini. Shana is also a well-known television personality, who gets to travel all over the world covering the World Poker Tour events. Since her childhood Shana wanted to become a TV reporter and travel around the world. She would sit in front of the TV for hours, watching newscasts and analyzing the broadcasters. However, she enjoyer a lot of other things in life. In high school she was a champion lacrosse and field hockey player, not to mention the hottest school cheerleader. After graduating school Shana enrolled in New Jersey's Burlington County College and began modeling part-time. Before becoming a WPT host she proved to be an excellent dancer, was crowned Miss Hawaiian Tropic USA in 1995, starred in several films and was a guest host on the very popular television show, E! Entertainment's "Wild On" series. n 2004 she debuted as the WPT host. “It was a fun experience, because poker was so new to me,” says Shana. “I was thrilled to get the job so that I could learn more about the game." Now she understands the game but does not play poker very often. She enjoys other aspects of her job: “My favorite part [of the job] is traveling to so many beautiful locations, including Paris, Aruba, Costa Rica, and the many casinos in the United States. Costa Rica offered the most diverse scenery of all of the locations we visited with its rainforests, stunning waterfalls, and a live volcano.” So her dream has come true! Being asked about her favorite poker player miss Hiatt never names someone particular. Not even her spouse (yes! she does have one!) James Van Patten who is a poker player and the brother of the WPT co-host Vince Van Patten, who makes commentary to the show together with Mike Sexton. “I love them all,” she says about the tournament participants. In her free time Shana enjoys active rest. “I’ll go for a run, do yoga, ride my bike, walk my dogs, or play softball with my friends," she boasts. She also continues working as a model. Her picture was on the cover of several popular magazines, such as Muscle Media Magazine and Playboy not to mention other numerous magazines, which issued her photos.