Category: Women of Playboy Stories By Laura Diez

After a soldier on duty in Vietnam purchased a lifetime subscription to Playboy, the brand had to follow through on an offer made years prior – that the first issue of a lifetime subscription would be hand-delivered by a Playmate. Jo Collins, Playmate of the Year 1965, was requested… and in January 1966, she flew to Saigon and spent three days touring combat areas. We’re overviewing her history with the brand – from Miss September 1964 to a Bunny Mother and Playboy representative at Veterans Day events in the ’90s. Plus, the details of her three days touring Vietnam, visiting [See More…]

Book club!! We’re recapping and reflecting on Izabella St. James’ memoir, Bunny Tales: Behind Closed Doors at the Playboy Mansion. As one of the girlfriends in the final group of seven, leaving just before the Girls Next Door era, Izabella reflects in this book on the benefits, drawbacks, and misconceptions about living as one of the Seven Girlfriends of Hugh Hefner. I’m highlighting anecdotes and pointing out some differences in what Izabella tells us in this 2006 account, versus what we’re hearing more recently from her and others about this time at the mansion. Find me everywhere! Linktr.ee/literallylaurad Time stamps: [See More…]

Gloria Steinem’s 11-day undercover stint as a Bunny in Playboy’s New York City club was the subject of a bombshell essay that changed her career. The impacts of her exposé absolutely impacted the Bunnies working across clubs – from the pay discrepencies, mandatory gynecological exams, and regular harassment from customers. However, a lot of the women working alongside Gloria, while she was posing as “Bunny Marie,” had mixed feelings on her essay, as their experiences at the clubs may not have aligned with the cruel workplace described in the essays. Kathryn Lee Young (Scott), author of The Bunny Years, collects [See More…]

Vanna White, national treasure best known as the longtime cohost of Wheel of Fortune, had to pay her bills pre-fame with some jobs she isn’t particularly proud of (like many aspiring stars!). In 1982, just before she landed her role on Wheel of Fortune, Vanna White modeled for lingerie catalogs. She beat out 200 other models, earning her spot on Wheel later that year. In 1987, however, at a career peak – those photos came back around. Her “friend” Hugh Hefner had purchased private photos of Vanna White and put her on the cover of Playboy Magazine against her wishes. [See More…]

Sandy and Mandy Bentley were two of the most iconic women of the late ’90s, early 2000s – brought into the public eye as twins dating Hugh Hefner at the same time, during his first group of multiple girlfriends. We’ll overview how Sandy and Mandy landed at the Playboy Mansion, and the unfortunate crimes that followed them afterwards – including a Ponzi scheme, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewels, and the untimely murder of two men. Find me everywhere: linktr.ee/literallylaurad Time stamps: 00:00 Intro 00:41 Bentley Twins’ upbringing 01:32 Meeting Hugh Hefner 02:58 Twin “gimmick” and iconic style [See More…]

Our newest RHOC, Carmella Garcia, joins a decent group of Real Housewives that have a history with Playboy Magazine. We are overviewing Carmella’s time with the brand: from her appearance as a contestant on “Who Wants to be a Playboy Centerfold?” to becoming Playmate of the Year 2004. Plus, why we all loved her on Girls Next Door, and her time as a WWE Diva. We’ll then go through the eight Real Housewives that appeared in Playboy Magazine – plus two honorable mentions. Find me everywhere: linktr.ee/literallylaurad Time stamps: 00:00 Intro 00:44 Carmella + Who Wants to be a Playboy [See More…]

On the week marking what would be Marilyn Monroe’s 100th birthday, we are revisiting (and reframing) one of the most famous brand relationships she was understood to be a part of: Playboy Magazine, serving as their first ever cover model. We’ll overview the story of why Marilyn posed nude in the first place, how Hugh Hefner got his hands on the rights to those images, and her own reflection on how she was used to generate millions (with not even a thank-you note). Plus, the follow-up invitation to pose for the magazine, after she posed unclothed in a swimming pool [See More…]

Marilyn Grabowski spent over 40 years as Playboy’s West Coast Photography Editor. Known as “Mo,” she was the woman who decided what was “sexy” for generations of Americans, discovering Pamela Anderson, Dorothy Stratten, and Anna Nicole Smith along the way. She formed friendships with women who came through her studio, and may have been the recipient of allegations about what went on at the Playboy Mansion. This is the complicated legacy of “Mo.” Find me everywhere: linktr.ee/literallylaurad Time stamps: 00:00 Intro 01:40 Youth 02:24 Photo Editor, Talent Scout 05:02 Artistic lens 06:21 Nose surgery 08:13 Pamela Anderson 10:08 Dorothy Stratten [See More…]