Jean Bell

Jean Bell was no stranger to paving the way for young, African-American women in the Sixties when Playboy called her with great newsshe had been voted our Miss October 1969. I was the first black woman to enter the Miss Texas Pageant as part of the Miss Universe Contest after I competed in the Miss Houston contest proudly states the all-natural beauty. I saw an ad for the Miss Houston contest in the paper. I'll try most anything once, so I called to apply. I didn't tell them on the phone that I was blackbut they found out soon enough at the audition. The woman in charge did a kind of double takebecause, until then, it was an all-white contestbut nobody said anything. I came in only fourth, but I did better in the Miss Texas contest after thatI got third in that one. Winning third place was fruitful for the black-haired pageant contender. She won a scholarship to a modeling school in Houston and began her life as a fulltime model who didnt have time to worry discrimination or racial barriersshe has goals to accomplish. I'm not very involved with politics or civil rights. I just try to get along, says our busty Playmate of the Month who was overwhelmed with joy when she got the call from Playboy. Modeling is a free and interesting life, because you never know where or for whom youll be working next. It can be pretty demanding, though. I'd like to get into TV commercials next. With aspirations to act in Hollywood after becoming the first black woman to grace the cover of Playboys January 1970 magazine alongside models Lorrie Menconi, Kathy MacDonald, Shay Knuth and Leslie Bianchini, Jean starred in the movies like Mean Streets and T.N.T. Jackson. Most notably, she acted on several television shows from Starsky and Hutch and Sanford and Son to Baretta and The Beverly Hillbillies, but now its time for her to set her focus elsewhere. I want to marry the right man. Like the Dylan song says, 'Love is all there is'; if somebody could make people learn that, the world might be a better place in which to live, explains our Miss October 1969 who says her ideal date would include her favorite pastime. I guess its silly, but Im a fanatic about bowling. For a while, I considered trying to become a professional bowler; but, unfortunately, Im not quite good enough. Whether shes taking breaking down racial barriers or bowling a nearly perfect game, when Playmate Jean Bell puts her mind to something, nothing and no one can stop her.