Pamela Anderson: The Swinger

Q: Let's talk about something I know is true. French Penthouse recently published Polaroids from your honeymoon. The X-rated images depict you making mouth music on Tommy's organ.

A: Tommy and I moved into his house in Malibu before we bought our home, which is currently under renovation. Like a silly newlywed couple, we took two Polaroids. Everybody has done that. This is so ridiculous because we put them on the bedside table, then we moved. We figure that the movers stole the photos and had them published.

Q: Really? You think your moving men had access to the kinds of people who would hook them up with French Penthouse?

A: We're trying to think of anybody else who was in the house. There were some construction workers, so one of them could have stolen the pictures. [Laughing] But those were good shots. When I saw the first Polaroid, I was like. "Whoa, baby, we should frame this."

Q: You're laughing now, but what went through your head when you first saw the published photos?

A: I was devastated. Then I changed my attitude, to "Whoa! I'm having sex with my husband? That's really bad!" In the end, who cares? Just the fact that somebody would publish those photos says more about them than it does about me. The rumor I heard is that, we had hired somebody to photograph us and publish them. That is completely ridiculous. Do you really think we would hire someone to take blurry Polaroids?

Q: Speaking of naked pictures, it was the opportunity to pose for a 1990 issue of Playboy that brought you from Vancouver to L.A. How did you make the leap from LaBatt's beer spokesmodel to centerfold girl?

A: A representative from Playboy approached me at a fashion show in Vancouver--my boyfriend was modeling--and asked if I wanted to be in the magazine. My boyfriend said, "Absolutely not." I figured that'd be the end of it. Then, after my LaBatt's commercials aired, Playboy called me and asked if I wanted to come down to Hollywood and pose for the cover. My boyfriend was in a bad mood and he was treating me terribly--yelling at me because I was watching some cute guy on TV or something--so I asked how much they'd pay and when they wanted to see me. The woman promised to get back in touch. I hung up, turned to my boyfriend and told him, "Let's leave it to fate. If they call me again, I'll go. If they don't, then here I am with rotten you, and you can yell at me for the rest of my life."

Q: We know they called back. The magazine work led to a bit in the 1991 movie The Taking of Beverly Hills, a spot on Married ... With Children, and your stint as the Tool Time Girl on Home Improvement. Then, in 1992, came Baywatch, the most popular TV series around the world. Last year, your Playboy video, The Best of Pamela Anderson, knocked Forrest Gump from the number one spot on the video charts. What did you buy with the royalties?

A: Nothing. They used video clips of me that had been made when I first came down here. I signed away all of those rights, so now they make all this money off me and I get zero. That's what happens when you're naive and you come to town without any power. All the posters that come from Playboy and Baywatch? I don't get paid for those either. You just get burnt and it sucks. All this stuff is out there so that other people can make money. There are these blonde Baywatch dolls that have come out and the people from Baywatch say they're not based on my character. So they don't pay me for that.

Q: You sound resigned to being ripped off. Don't you mind?

A: Of course I mind being ripped off, but I don't have the heart or the time or the patience to go alter people. I turned down $100,000 to shoot a calendar, and then somebody came out with an unauthorized calendar. If you have the nerve to abuse me, go ahead. That isn't what's important to me. Money is not important. On the other hand, though. I really wish I did have some of that money because then I would be able to put another swing above my husband's piano.

Q: Another swing?

A: I don't have a trapeze yet--I am taking trapeze lessons, though--but I have a swing above Tommy's piano. He bought it for me for my birthday. Tommy loves watching me up there. He will sit at the piano, play music, and I swing from one end of the room to the other. Naked. Well, sometimes with a big hat on. I have the best seat in the house. It's just fun. If I didn't want to have kids someday, I would probably join the circus.

Q: You mentioned that you're renovating the house. What will it be like when it's completed?

A: Very fantasy-oriented, very gothic. There will be rooms that are completely purple with pewter ceilings. We will have swings in our bedroom and more swings over the piano.

Q: You married Tommy after knowing him for only four days. The two of you were partying in Cancun before having a poolside wedding. How did your family members and friends respond to news of the nuptials?

A: I wish I'd tape-recorded everybody's reaction when we called to tell them. The members of Tommy's band couldn't believe it. My best friend cried. My mother threw the phone.

Q: How come you didn't let her, or anyone else for that matter, know ahead of time?

A: I wanted to get married without any outside influences. People are always pulling me in all different directions, telling me what to do, and this was one decision I made completely on my own. I didn't want anybody saying, "You sure you don't want to think about it? I just wanted to do it.

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