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 news—she 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 black—but they found out soon enough at the audition. The woman in charge did a kind of double take—because, until then, it was an all-white contest—but nobody said anything. I came in only fourth, but I did better in the Miss Texas contest after that—I 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 didn’t have time to worry discrimination or racial barriers—she 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 you’ll 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 Playboy’s 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 it’s 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 it’s silly, but I’m a fanatic about bowling. For a while, I considered trying to become a professional bowler; but, unfortunately, I’m not quite good enough.” Whether she’s 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.