How many magazines can boast having the most beautiful women in the world, movie icons, TV stars and celebrities’ strip for pictorials? Most of these famous ladies were honored to be part of the Playboy brand, which elevated their celebrity status like actress Joan Collins, who posed for Playboy at age of 50, at the height of her Dynasty fame and was the original cougar, making it sexy to be an older woman.
From past and present icons that include Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Farah Fawcett, Dolly Parton, Bo Derek, Rachel Welch, Kim Basinger, Suzanne Somers, Madonna, Charlize Theron, Mariah Carey, Anna Nicole Smith, Lindsay Lohan, Drew Barrymore, Sharon Stone, Pamela Anderson and Kim Kardashian, they graced the cover of Playboy and their male fan base grew along with their erections.
Given this new policy, my recommendation to Hugh Hefner and the executives at Playboy to stay on top is to have pictorials of “Nearly Nude Stars” who are comfortable in their own skin, dressed sexy without revealing it all.
I must admit then, that I was surprised to hear that Playboy recently decided it would no longer be showing full nudity in its magazine. Given this new policy, my recommendation to Hugh Hefner and the executives at Playboy to stay on top is to have pictorials of “Nearly Nude Stars” who are comfortable in their own skin, dressed sexy without revealing it all. I think celebrities who are famous for raising the pulse rates of men — like Scarlett Johansson, Cameron Diaz, Halle Berry and “slightly older” stars such as Helen Mirren — would be popular choices for the new Playboy era.
It would be a shame to see Playboy magazine subscribers plummet lower than it already has from 5 million to less than 1 million because they stop publishing nude photos. Of course I am slightly biased, as I have appeared in the magazine myself nearly nude when I had my own show on the Playboy Channel called “Pillow Previews.” More recently, I was on Playboy Radio giving sex advice with Dr. John Gray bestselling author of “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus.”
Tina Fey joked about her dream to pose for Playboy on “Saturday Night Live,” but many young women do have strong positive self-images of themselves and the ambition to make money, find fame, boost their confidence and discover sexual empowerment by modeling for the most tasteful men’s magazines in the world. Many of these models such as Betty Page, Jenny McCarthy, Shannon Tweed, Pamela Anderson, Carmen Electra and Kendra Wilkinson all became successful household names thanks in part to Playboy.
So I hope that Hugh Hefner at 89 years young will continue to tease and titillate readers with plenty of sensual skin. And Playboy’s new look won’t discard the format that marked the launch of an empire in 195 with centerfold Marilyn Monroe but evolves into a feast for all of our senses that fulfills our sexual appetite in the form of beautiful photos and erotic words that trigger our imagination and empowers us to intensify our desires.
Dubbed “America’s Leading Sexologist” by no less an authority than Cosmopolitan Magazine, Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Dr. Ava Cadell is a clinical sexologist, AASECT certified sex counselor, and founder of Sexpert.com. She has just released her 10th book, entitled “Idiot’s Guides: Kama Sutra.”
