Terry Nihen

Most models never know when they’ll receive that life-changing call from Playboy. But, for some girls, instead of receiving a call from Playboy, they’re discovered and encouraged to pose by our Playmates. Terry Nihen was found by our Miss February 1983 and without her perseverance, she says, she would never have become our Playmate of the Month. “I was a contestant in a bikini contest at a disco. First prize was a trip to Fort Lauderdale. Melinda Mays was one of the judges,” explains Terry. “She suggested that I try out for Playmate. I was fairly rude about it. There were other girls in the contest who were better-looking. It had never crossed my mind that I could be mistaken for one of the women in Playboy. But, I thought about it for a day, then called her.” Melinda had every reason to push Terry into posing—she has a naturally voluptuous body that is accentuated beautifully by her dark chestnut brown curls. Not to mention, our Miss December 1983 has a fierce workout regime that leaves her body in exquisite shape. “I taught an exercise class three times a night. I got shin splints and had to cut down, but I'm still pretty active. I want to get into weight training. I don't want big muscles, just to get everything really hard, to be the best I can be,” says Miss Nihen. “My attitude toward modeling is a lot like my attitude toward exercise. You go as hard as your heart can go. I’ll take it until I can’t take it anymore or until it takes me somewhere else. I’m doing this mostly because of a dare.” Dare or not, Playboy has always been lurking around Terry’s household and state of mind. She admits if she didn’t try out for Playboy, she would have regretted it. “I can’t remember a time when Playboy wasn’t in my house. My brother brought it home, and each copy passed from sister to sister,” explains Terry of how she was introduced to the magazine. “I don’t know when I first thought of modeling as a career. I knew it was a clothes-on, clothes-off proposition. Just look at Vogue. Different magazine, same job. But, I do know I couldn’t have done this when I was 18. I was too impressionable. I would have looked at the pictures and just seen the outside. Now, I know myself inside and out.” We’re glad to also know that Terry Nihen is as gorgeous on the inside as she is on the outside.