Fresh-faced, feminine and fierce, Playmate Connie Kreski from Wyandotte, Michigan was voted our Miss January 1968 when she only 20 years old. “I’m just a girl who wants to live life to the hilt for the next ten years or so and afterward settle down to raise a family,” said the all-natural blonde when she first began garnering attention from her Playmate centerfold. “I'm enrolled at the Mercy School of Nursing in Detroit.” Her studies had to be put on hold once she was crowned our Miss January 1968 and received her first Playmate check which she spent on a new place to live in the outskirts of Detroit. “I hadn’t realized just how much stuff I managed to accumulate over the years until I tried getting it all together,” laughs blue-eyed Connie as she moves into her new apartment with the help of her friends. “My friends couldn’t have been more helpful. They worked from noon until after dark, not stopping till everything I brought was put away.” Becoming our Playmate of the Month definitely has its perks, but Connie did not know the extent of them until she was informed she won the coveted title of Playmate of the Year. Along with receiving a Ford-powered fire-breathing Shelby GT 500, Harley-Davidson M-65 motorcycle and a custom-built ten-speed Schwinn Varsity bicycle all in Playmate pink, our Miss 1969 also won the attention of the movie industry here and abroad. “Circumstances have pushed me into acting now and I love it. The best part of film work is meeting really creative people, but too many producers emphasize looks over acting ability and I hope to combine both in my career,” says the busty blonde who is still in shock over how much her life has changed in a short amount of time. “Being a Playmate, beginning an acting career and now getting elected Playmate of the Year—it’s all happened so quickly that it doesn’t seem real to me. With all those beautiful girls in competition, I find it hard to believe.” Beautiful and humble to the end, Connie deserves every perk that comes her way especially the ability to travel. “Outside of Detroit, I’ve only been to Chicago and Los Angeles. I really haven’t seen much of America,” admits our Miss 1969 who recently traveled to London as part of her Playboy tour. “London swings just as much as I heard it did—maybe even more. Just shopping for clothes could have taken up all my time if I'd let it—the Mod shops in Knightsbridge sell the wildest outfits I've ever seen. I love the people and especially the feeling of openness and space. There’s grass all over the city. It’s so much prettier than Detroit, my home town. I should have been born in London.” With her Playboy earnings in the bank and her pile of presents, our outdoorsy Playmate plans to keep traveling and eventually wants to go back to school to earn her nursing degree. “I want to get out into the world and see and do everything I possibly can,” confesses our Playmate of the Year. “Many people seem to think I’m a dumb blonde, but I'm smarter than most of the people who talk down to me.” Never underestimate Connie Kreski.