Playboy (circa 1960s) - was to have starred Tony Curtis as Hefner, with his full co-operation. Alas this film was never made. But could any film fantasy have competed against the fantasy of Hugh Hefner’s 1960’s reality?

The Naked Runner (1967) - Spy thriller starring Frank Sinatra. Very brief footage of Frank in the London Playboy Club. Frank also dated former Playboy Bunny Marianna Case.

Americathon (1979) - This is an almost amusing comedy about a Telethon to raise cash for poverty-stricken America (as if!). Features tragic Dorothy Stratten in a patterned Bunny costume escorting Meat Loaf on to the studio floor. He plays a Dare Devil.

North Dallas Forty (1979) - Nick Nolte in an American Football pic (yawn not another football picture). Features a blonde in a black Bunny costume at a party. It is actually a real Bunny costume. Perhaps the actress was a real Bunny from the Dallas Playboy Club, which was located in the Dallas Cowboys’ building.

Woman on the Run: The True Story of Lawrencia Bambenek (1993) - starring Tatum O’Neal. Actually features a scene shot in a good facsimile of the Lake Geneva Playboy Club-Hotel. Includes brief shots of table-hopping Bunnies plus Tatum O’Neal looking gorgeous in a black Bunny costume.

A Bunny’s Tale (1984) - Is there anyone who hasn’t seen this? Watchable ABC-produced TV movie version of Gloria Steinem’s magnificent (if supercilious) SHOW article. Saturated with the usual sentimental camaraderie and romantic sub-plot which blight most TV true story pics. The movie is unfortunately not faithful to the structure, wit and insight of Gloria’s legendary A Bunny's Tale / I was a Playboy Bunny article. A straight filming of the article would have made for a more entertaining and intelligent picture. It is a pity the tails are like white pancakes, oh well. A Bunny’s tail should be fluffy! Available on video and repeated intermittently on various TV networks worldwide.

Otley (1969) - Quirky British spy comedy starring Tom Courtenay. This has a very good scene (but alas too brief, ah always too brief) in the London Playboy Club with a gorgeous, real-life VIP room Bunny.

Carry On At Your Convenience (1971) - Dire Carry-On film. A nasty anti-union calamity of a film that belongs in a toilet. This film has one scene set in a cheap restaurant where the waitress wears an ersatz Bunny costume. If you know the Carry-On series you can imagine the humour that the Bunny costume provokes. If you don’t know the Carry-On series you are a lucky soul.

A Tale of Two Bunnies (2000) - ABC’s excellent, quirky comedy. Starring Julie Condra and Mariana Black looking beautiful in and out of the world-famous Bunny costume. Anachronistic but enjoyable. This was obviously made with Playboy’s co-operation since the costumes are identical to the ones currently being used by Playboy for their Bunny promotions. This is currently available for rental on VHS under the title ‘The Price of Beauty.’ ABC will no doubt soon release it for commercial sale. Why not email them giving some encouragement to do so. If you love Bunnies acquire this good-natured fantasy.

Sammy Somebody (circa early 70s) - Obscure TV movie. Has scene(s) in the Miami Playboy Plaza Hotel, including Playmate Bunny Carol Vitale. This film is as scarce as an honest politician. I have never seen either.

Purab aur Pachim (East and West) (1970) - Indian comedy featuring a scene shot in the London Playboy Club.

Star 80 (1983) - Mariel Hemingway starring as the tragic 1980 Playmate of the Year Dorothy Stratten in Bob Fosse’s sensitive, stylish film. It depicts the terrible series of events in Dorothy’s brief life. This movie has a scene of Dorothy serving keyholder yahoos in the LA (Century City) Club. The TV movie based on Dorothy’s story, ‘Death of a Centerfold,’ starring Jamie Lee Curtis, does not feature any Bunny moments at all. Jamie Lee Curtis Bunnied-up? A missed opportunity. But like Star 80, it is equally harrowing.

Old Dracula, aka Vampira (1974) - Horror spoof starring David Niven. Very brief London Club scene.

Lover Come Back (1961) - Carry Grant entertains clients in a nightclub where the showgirls wear ersatz Bunny costumes.

The Feminist and the Fuzz (1971) - An early role for Farrah Fawcett co-starring as a Playboy Bunny, girlfriend of the main character. She loses him to the female lead, the ‘Feminist’ of the title. As if Bunny and Feminist were opposites! Thank God ‘The Bunny Years’ set that argument to rest. Another hard to find film.

Mooch Goes to Hollywood (1971) - Shaggy dog story about a shaggy dog. Mooch is a little Benji-type dog who dreams of being a starlet. Zsa Zsa Gabor provides the voiceover and Svengali encouragement to the pup. One moment of madness in this endearingly insane movie has Mooch appearing in a dream sequence wearing pink Bunny ears and a fluffy tail. Who wrote this movie? Boy, those drugs were strong in the Seventies! Features another blink and you’ll miss it moment of Bunny watching: Playmate-Bunny Gwen Wong at the door of the original Hollywood Playboy Club on Sunset Boulevard. Mooch tries to become a Bunny but the Club doorman throws her out as Gwen looks on. Alas the camera does not go inside the Club.

WUSA (1970) - Starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Perhaps the best example of a film with a scene shot in a Playboy Club. Filmed in the New Orleans Playboy Club, this features lots of beautiful passing Bunnies, including Gwen Wong (you can never get too much of a good Bunny!). The actual scene also features a wonderful piece of over-acting by Anthony Perkins (a master of misguided mannerisms).

Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World (1973) - Awful British children’s movie. Features a scene with an ersatz Bunny serving the ever-irritating Jim Dale in a cheap British motorway café. Avoid.

Used Cars (1980) - Stripper wearing Bunny ears in woeful comedy. If you are feeling masochistic rent a copy tonight from your local flea-pit video emporium, then sit back and try to figure out where your life went wrong.

Oh Dad, Poor Dad (1967) - Jonathan Winters all too briefly surrounded by (Jamaica Club?) Bunnies in a fantasy sequence. Another blink and you’ll miss the Bunnies moment. At least this film isn’t ashamed to be quirky. Alas, it is gratingly so, unlike...

Lord Love a Duck (1966) way out comedy with Roddy McDowall in brilliant form. The mother of Tuesday Weld’s character plays a Kitten Club waitress, her ex husband asks “How’s the Bunny business doing?” He gets the reply “I am not a Bunny, I am a cocktail waitress.” Damn straight you ain’t a Bunny! Brilliant film, worth watching for the sheer insanity and offbeat script. Roddy McDowall calls Tuesday Weld, “you poor, poor Bunny” at the end. No Bunnies though, alas. But this loon-fest flick does feature the Playmate of the Year for 1965, Jo Collins, who was a Bunny Mother at the Denver Playboy Club. That’s enough trivia, thank you.

Hefner: Unauthorised (1999) - An amusing, if flippant and lightweight look at Hefner’s life. This film is as airbrushed as any centerfold. It features a scene depicting the creation of the Bunny costume. Based upon Victor Lownes’ recollection of the Bunny’s Birth subsequently retold by Russell Miller in his book ‘Bunny: The Real Story of Playboy.’ Ilse Taurins, Victor’s then girlfriend, wore the first prototype costume (one her mother had made). This scene merges weeks of experimentation into one minute of movie scene. The cuffs and collar did not arrive until months AFTER the Chicago Club opened on Walton Street. Knowingly anachronistic throughout but a fine film for laid back viewing. If you want a more factual history of Hefner and the Empire he built, buy a book. But then that can be said for many a subject. Find out more about the History of the Playboy Bunny.

Legally Blonde (2001) & Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001) - In each film, the lead character, played by Reese Witherspoon and Renee Zellweger respectively, arrives at a party (thinking it is to be in fancy dress) wearing a Bunny Girl costume.

If there is any movie or show you think I have overlooked, then please let me know.

Ex Playboy Bunnies Website
www.geocities.com/explayboybunnies