The 48-year-old blond bombshell will be the subject of the last nude issue of Playboy, according to a press release from the magazine. Playboy’s executives announced in October the naked pictorials would cease to exist come March 2016.
“I got a call from [Hugh Hefner’s] attorney who said, ‘We don’t want anybody else. There’s nobody else, could you do the last cover of Playboy?'” she told Entertainment Tonight, which initially broke the story.
The former “Baywatch” actress will appear in a slew of sexy photographs in the January/ February 2016 double issue, shot by famed fashion photographer Ellen Von Unwerth. Additionally, the Hollywood star divulged intimate memories of her years with the legendary publication to her acting colleague and magazine contributor James Franco.
With 14 cover appearances and 15 pictorials, Anderson has appeared in Playboy more than any other woman in the magazine’s history. She shot her first cover at just 22 years old, an opportunity that transformed the unknown Canadian native into an overnight sensation. The pictorial drew the attention of “Baywatch” producers and the rest is TV history.
“The photographer shot me in one roll of film because I was nervous and throwing up,” she admitted to Franco during the interview. “But, then I saw the pictures, and from there it was hard to keep my clothes on! I was painfully shy before, but then it clicked in my head that nobody cares what you look like naked except you. People are more concerned about themselves and their own flaws.”
Despite more than a dozen flawless covers, Anderson still wouldn’t describe herself as pretty.
“I don’t think of myself as beautiful, but I know I have a deep, sensual drive,” she said. “People respond to that more than physicality because your spirit never ages. I’m a bit of an exhibitionist, and I like being playful and having fun.”
Decades later, Anderson has become synonymous with the bunny brand, having spent countless time posing in the magazine’s pages and as an insider at Hugh Hefner’s mansion.
“I don’t want to get too detailed, but I’m sure one of my sons was conceived there,” she said of the famed house.
Giving Up Nudity
When Playboy announced it would be giving up the nude photos last October, the magazine knew everyone would be asking ‘why?’
According to an article in CNN Money, Playboy is reacting to the Internet revolution. In Playboy’s case, it is about the ubiquity of online pornography.
“You’re now one click away from every sex act imaginable for free. It’s just passé at this juncture,” Playboy’s chief executive Scott Flanders told The New York Times, which first reported the news.
His comments sent shock waves through the magazine industry. Playboy, founded by Hugh Hefner, has been a controversial part of American popular culture since its debut in 1953.
“Yes, we’re taking a risk by going non-nude,” according to Playboy, “but this is a company—like all great companies—that has risk in its DNA.”
Playboy has a circulation of around 800,000 — way down from its pre-Internet glory days when it boasted a circulation of many millions.
The issue will be on new stands December 11.
