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Catwalk catfight

Tyra rips 'hateful' Naomi

By BILL HUTCHINSON
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER


Tyra Banks


Naomi Campbell

Sassy supermodel Tyra Banks is fueling a catfight with catwalk counterpart Naomi Campbell, telling a national magazine how "hateful" she is.
Banks gripes that Campbell has treated her so badly at times that she's almost given up the runway.

"She did so many hateful things, like getting me thrown off shows because she was more famous," Banks told Newsweek.

The feud between the Victoria's Secret lingerie ladies was revealed last year in the unauthorized biography about Campbell, "Naomi: The Rise and Fall of the Girl From Nowhere."

Banks is so miffed by the London-born diva's fits that she can't even bring herself to utter Campbell's name.

"It got so bad that I called my mother and told her I wanted to just give up," said the 30-year-old Banks, a California-born cutie who began modeling in Paris at 17.

Campbell's catty conduct is no big surprise in the world of jet-setting fashionistas.

The 33-year-old Campbell, who has been modeling since she was 15, is known for making demands like being the first and last to appear on the runway at fashion shows.

She was once arrested for grabbing an assistant by the throat and assaulting her with a telephone. She pleaded guilty to the charges in 2000.

In 2002, Campbell admitted to a British court that she was a drug addict after she sued the London Mirror for running a photo of her leaving a Narcotics Anonymous meeting.

Banks, a Catholic high school graduate who has been the goody-goody of the fashion world, said she's not about to let the likes of Campbell deter her from being the next Oprah Winfrey.

"I want to be successful across the board," said Banks, whose new TV reality show "America's Next Top Model" is a ratings bonanza for UPN.

"I want an empire like Oprah's," said Banks, who also is trying to launch a singing career. "I may do it with a little more cleavage, but I plan to get there."