Aoki was born in New York City, New York, and grew up in California and London, attending high school at The American School in London. Her Japanese American father, Rocky Aoki, a former Olympic wrestler, was the founder and owner of the Benihana restaurant chain until his death on July 10, 2008. Her mother, Pamela Hilburger, is a jewelry designer of German and English heritage.[1] Aoki was discovered in New York at a Rancid concert she had gatecrashed. She started modeling when she was 13, the same year Ao - en.wikipedia.org