# So, Playboy Bunnies are hookers after all, and other musings on the history of Playboy **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 3, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744 "2011-07-03T20:01:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/21 "2011-07-04T02:07:04Z")
There is actually so many former playmate of the month hookers working now a days that their prices are dropping like a rock. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/22 "2011-07-04T02:17:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And here, I had always taken it as the default working hypothesis that there was a large overlap between the set of ladies willing to take off their clothes for money, and the set of ladies willing to have sex for money. The price would have to be right, of course, and we’ve all heard the old joke about “we’ve already established what you are”. And doubtless, there would be at least some who would be willing to do one but not the other. But like I said, default assumption. I, too, am surprised at the OP’s surprise. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/23 "2011-07-04T02:29:17Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I, too, am surprised at the OP’s surprise. But…but… they’re Playboy _Playmates_. Avatars for all that is right, and good, and decent in this world. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/24 "2011-07-04T03:03:53Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Honestly, nothing in the book was all that wildly unbelievable. A lot of the book is petty female “mean girls” bullshit drama between the girls. Despite her best efforts to paint herself in a positive light she mostly comes across as a very spoiled, highly entitled, duplicitous gold digger. Her description of Hefner’s relatively sad and tatty lifestyle are about what you would expect. She’s not making him out to be a monster, he’s just sort of a tragic figure. Nothing in the book rang (to me) all that false. There’s a market for this type of book. Many would feel that Hefner is a success story - he’s a self-made millionaire who’s enjoyed a long and successful life and lives in a mansion surrounded by beautiful naked women. Either because they believe he’s a sinner or because of jealousy, there are people who want to read that he’s not as happy as he appears and is secretly miserable under the facade. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/25 "2011-07-04T03:34:21Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > There’s a market for this type of book. Many would feel that Hefner is a success story - he’s a self-made millionaire who’s enjoyed a long and successful life and lives in a mansion surrounded by beautiful naked women. Either because they believe he’s a sinner or because of jealousy, there are people who want to read that he’s not as happy as he appears and is secretly miserable under the facade. In the book he, personally, was very satisfied with his lifestyle. The author’s opinion was that (overall) it was a self deluding and somewhat sad and empty existence by a person desperate to keep up appearances way past the point it should matter to rational man of his age. She acknowledged his significant achievements in founding Playboy, but felt it was a kind of undignified lifestyle he chose to pursue. Having said all that she still took the money and perks. ---
**Author:** ![Ura-Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/51bf81/32.png) [@Ura-Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ura-Maru)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/26 "2011-07-04T03:41:40Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And here, I had always taken it as the default working hypothesis that there was a large overlap between the set of ladies willing to take off their clothes for money, and the set of ladies willing to have sex for money. This may be why your invitation to the Great Straight Dope Burlesque Show (and Poetry Reading) gets ‘lost’ every year. – I just go for the poetry. Wait. Not the poetry. The other thing. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/27 "2011-07-04T03:42:08Z")
Here’s a link to an article that was linked to here four years or so ago: [http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/282qadjs.asp](http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/282qadjs.asp) Larry Miller says that he saw Anna Nicole Smith at a date with an unnamed short Saudi Arabian at an expensive restaurant. Smith told Miller that she had agreed to the date on the condition that she get an expensive piece of jewelry out of it (and possibly some additional money), but she insisted that sex was not part of the deal. I suspect that a lot of this goes on. An actress that is no longer getting the big roles (or maybe never got the big roles) agrees to go on a date with a rich man, possibly with sex guaranteed, but possibly not. She and the rich man settle on a large price for the date. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/28 "2011-07-04T03:42:17Z")
Quoth **Exapno** : > [@](#): > > The whole history of Hollywood is one long tale of girls trying for the stars, missing them, and winding up selling their bodies for money, directly or indirectly. Phrase it like that, and most of the ones who _hit_ the stars end up selling their bodies, too. I mean, even if Jessica Alba (say) never does nude scenes, can you really deny that her body is her primary draw as an actress? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/29 "2011-07-04T03:50:58Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Quoth **Exapno** :Phrase it like that, and most of the ones who _hit_ the stars end up selling their bodies, too. I mean, even if Jessica Alba (say) never does nude scenes, can you really deny that her body is her primary draw as an actress? And then you’re right down the slippery slope to saying that every women who gets married is selling her body. I’d rather draw the line. Jessica Alba and the other actual stars are being paid for more than showing their bodies. They presumably have some talent. Those on the other side of the line I’m drawing don’t have any other high-paying marketable talent. That’s a lot sadder. I don’t feel sorry for Jessica Alba. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/30 "2011-07-04T04:15:07Z")
Oh, right, I wouldn’t say that her body is the _only_ thing Alba is selling. But she’s had more success than other actresses with comparable or greater talent, but lesser bodies. And I’d stop the slope somewhere short of marriage, since I don’t think of a marriage as being primarily a financial transaction. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/31 "2011-07-04T15:21:41Z")
> [@astro](#): > > She acknowledged his significant achievements in founding Playboy, but felt it was a kind of undignified lifestyle he chose to pursue. Having said all that she still took the money and perks. Yeah, a very common ocurrence (not just in this context, but for many people who had to sit through less-than-perfect jobs or life situations because it paid the bills better than being a checkout clerk). At least she did not go the _“Oh, I found Jesus now I think it’s all so terrible!”_ route, too many people claim to “see the light” only after having exhausted all the fun and games. And looking back at this… > [@](#): > > “Some women who get naked for money, might fuck you for money” - There, that’s got it. Heck, one could imagine the logic flow to be in the opposite direction, that she who’ll do the more, will more easily do the less, but we know that is not necessarily so either. The more succint and indisputable statement would be “Some women might fuck you for money”, full stop. But that’s not news. And it doesn’t give us a hint of where to look for them 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/32 "2011-07-04T15:54:30Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I mean, even if Jessica Alba (say) never does nude scenes, can you really deny that her body is her primary draw as an actress? Jessica Alba is extremely hot, but so are the thousands of playmates selling their ass for a few hundred bucks. She is not a famous actress because she is hot, but she wouldn’t be one if she wasn’t. You might not think she is a great actress, but compare her acting to the acting of the average pornstar with equal looks and you can see why one is mainstream actress and the other isn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2011, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/33 "2011-07-04T16:29:58Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And I’d stop the slope somewhere short of marriage, since I don’t think of a marriage as being primarily a financial transaction. It’s not? Then why did I get married for the health insurance? 🙂 Seriously, a sizable proportion of marriages are financial transactions. I can’t guess at an exact number but it’s too obviously true not to be stated. And the marriage benefits in this country are too valuable for those of us who otherwise wouldn’t care one way or the other not to get married. As the whole gay marriage argument is loudly asserting. ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/34 "2011-07-07T01:36:46Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > [And sometimes you do.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0597872/bio) Her Playboy pictorial was titled “Playing Doctor.” That was not nearly as good of a link as I hoped it would be. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/35 "2011-07-10T01:03:14Z")
> [@ratatoskK](#): > > I’m SHOCKED! Absolutely SHOCKED at such a thing! Agree. I think this is one of those prank threads. Next thing you know, \*\*astro \*\*will be saying that there is some place in the world where hot young blondes \*don’t \*line up for sex with 80 year old men. Best wishes, hh ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/36 "2011-07-10T01:07:45Z")
Great. Now what do I have to look forward to? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/37 "2011-07-10T01:15:14Z")
> [@handsomeharry](#): > > Agree. I think this is one of those prank threads. > Next thing you know, \*\*astro \*\*will be saying that there is some place in the world where hot young blondes \*don’t \*line up for sex with 80 year old men. > > Best wishes, > hh Don’t like blondes, so I still have a chance! ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/38 "2011-07-10T01:24:13Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Great. > > Now what do I have to look forward to? ☹ The redhead line, the brunette line, and the raven-haired beauty line. Then there’s the baldies … but nobody fucks with the baldies! ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/39 "2011-07-10T01:36:20Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Here’s a link to an article that was linked to here four years or so ago: > > [http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/282qadjs.asp](http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/282qadjs.asp) > > Larry Miller says… I keep visualizing Larry Miller the actor, but I thought surely it’s not. Though he writes like he is. Larry Miller writes for the Weekly Standard? Weird if true. :investigates: _Wrote._ Looks like his last column was in 2007. Hm. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744/40 "2011-07-10T01:45:30Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > It seems to me quite reasonable that just because a woman’s sexual morality encompasses taking money for doing some things, it does not follow that she would accept money for doing ANY thing. That would be the old slippery slope argument. (Insert joke here.) Anybody remember the old catechism that went, “Girls should not chew gum, because a girl that will chew gum will smoke cigarettes, and a girl who will smoke cigarettes will drink liquor, and well, we know what a girl who will drink liquor will do!” CLASSIC slippery slope! > > I remember once watching an interview of a porn star who explained that she would not do anal, because that was only for her husband. She had set limits for herself, they aren’t the ones most people would set, but they were hers. It sounds reasonable, but human morality doesn’t seem to work that way. People who are willing to break one social taboo are likley willing to break others. And ethics very often is a matter of a slippery slope: you do one thing, and it’s not so bad, you get used to it, and then something “worse” doesn’t seem so bad. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-playboy-bunnies-are-hookers-after-all-and-other-musings-on-the-history-of-playboy/587744.md?page=3)