Barbara Edwards

[Alan DeMoss]

While cleaning out some old 1.4 MB hard discs (remember those?), I found this which I had cut-and-pasted from an old Yah00 Group. Here goes:

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17September1997

moderator: Everyone please welcome Barbara Edwards to the Cyber Club.
barbaraedwards: Hi, everybody. I loved being at the Chicago Glamourcon! I hope to see you at the next show in April.

Redwing: Barbara, what can you tell us about the Playmate Alumni Association?
barbaraedwards: I was just invited to join, so I have not attended the first meeting. It seems like a lot of fun; a lot of charity events and a chance to get to know the girls and meet with them more often. It is very special. I'm glad that we have a group for the Playmates now. I'll tell you more about it when I go to my first meeting.

terry: When you posed for Playboy, did you feel personally that you fit the "girl next door" image that Mr. Hefner was going for when selecting models?
barbaraedwards: Absolutely not. I felt like I had no chance. I thought all the women were so beautiful. I felt like the ugly duckling. But they made you feel beautiful and they still do.

Redwing: Barbara, what was it like being the PMOY?
barbaraedwards: It was hard work. I got to meet a lot of wonderful people. And I got a Jaguar and $100,000. I was on Letterman, too! He was funny. He always tries to humiliate the Playmates and I made him turn bright red. He asked me to sign my centerfold and I pointed and said, "Should I sign here?" He turned bright red. I'll let you think about where I told him I'd sign!

Redwing: Barbara, do you still have the Jaguar?
barbaraedwards: I sold it. After three years it finally copped out and it was in the garage too much.
I sold it as a collector's item to a plastic surgeon.

Redwing: Barbara, how were you discovered?
barbaraedwards : I actually went to various modeling agencies and was accepted by all of them. They told me to go to Playboy and try out. I walked in with my measly three pictures and I saw a girl walk out who didn't get in. I started walking to the elevator to leave and someone caught me and asked me to be a Playmate. I said "No way! My father would kill me." But I decided to do it anyway. So I did the test shoot and they called me two weeks later and told me I'd made it.
I couldn't believe it. I screamed, jumped up and down, hollered, told strangers off the street...everyone but my mom and dad. My first shoot was rejected and I cried so hard. I asked why they wouldn't use my picture and they said that it was a beautiful picture, but they thought they could get better pictures. The second shoot was with the fur. They picked that one. I actually got pneumonia from wearing a fur coat in the summer. The second shoot was hard. I broke the heel off of a boot.

Rosshutt : On Letterman you said your father was proud. What was his initial reaction when you did tell him?
barbaraedwards : When my issue came out, I was going to buy all the issues where my parents lived so they wouldn't see me. He yelled at me, he yelled at Hef. But then after I became PMOY, he became proud. My grandma was proud of me too, and even to this day, my mom collects everything I do.

Billarvola : Barbara, legend has it that you throw a great party. Can you share any juicy details?
barbaraedwards : I do throw a great party. Only when all of our friends from L.A. and Chicago come party with us! I plead the Fifth when it comes to juicy details!

poison13 : What do you remember about the singing Playmates group?
barbaraedwards : The humiliation of the Velcro vests. Every night one of them would open up. We had only one piece of Velcro holding them together. The only time we were applauded was when one of our vests popped open. We were so embarrassed. We worked really hard, though.
Not one of us will ever forget the floating restaurant in Hong Kong. They served us sushi. Now, sushi is different in Hong Kong than it is here. At least here it's dead --*there it moves!

Billarvola : Which of your fellow Playmates do you count as close friends?
Barbaraedwards : Ola Ray, Cathy St. George, Veronica Gamba, Tracy Vaccaro, Penny Baker, Kym Malin, Rebecca Feratti, Ava Fabian.... I love them all. I could go through them all.

Redwing : Barbara, how is your family?
Barbaraedwards : School started! YES! My kids are wonderful. I can't have the same babysitter more than once. The last time I had a babysitter, I came home and found the babysitter handcuffed.

Terry : What do your children think of you being a Playmate?
Barbaraedwards : They love it. My kids go around sharing my trading cards. But I don't let my son do that. All of the Playmates' kids are so unique. Their minds are more open.

Redwing : Barbara, whose handcuffs were they?
Barbaraedwards : They were my husband's.

Redwing : Barbara, how did you meet your husband?
Barbaraedwards : A blind date. Gig Gangel set us up. We went to a restaurant and then out to dance. We didn't talk with each other all night. We were too afraid! I brought a friend and so did he and they got along great. They were having a great time at the club. I kissed my husband that night and I almost fainted.

Terry : When was your first kiss?
Barbaraedwards : It was in Hawaii. I was a sophomore in high school. I didn't know how to kiss.
I was a little bully girl and hung out in a girl gang. A boy tried to kiss me and I punched him.
But then I realized that I liked it and that's about when I started liking boys. The next year I came back to school from summer vacation with boobs and a body and found my first boyfriend. He taught me how to kiss.

Terry : What was the most shaping experience you had in high school?
Barbaraedwards : In Hawaii, right before I moved to the mainland, I was on the outrigger team and we made first place in our state. We worked so hard on it, we had to swim five miles every day in addition to paddling the boat. When I moved to the mainland, I was three years behind the schools here, but because of winning first place, I knew that I could work my way through school.
It taught me to be the best that I can be.

Redwing : Barbara, what did you do with $100,000 at such a young age?
Barbaraedwards : I shopped, and I bought three real estate properties, invested in stocks and mutual funds and paid my taxes.

Terry : Who are some of your favorite musicians now?
Barbaraedwards : First of all, I wrote a song. I'm into hip-hop and we're working on putting it in front of some really big artists right now. They are looking at it like another "We Are the World." It's about children getting killed by gang-bangers and guns. I love Snoop Doggy Dog, Foxy Brown, Coolio, Tupac.... I love rap, and I love Whitney Houston and*Barbara Streisand.
I went into the hood in East L.A. to research my song so I could cry along with those mothers. I was there and witnessed a gang fight. I saw it firsthand, mothers who were crack addicts, 10- and 13-year-olds getting stoned and carrying guns. It was very sad.

Redwing : Barbara, what do you enjoy reading?
Barbaraedwards : I love to read poetry. I love reading songs that we create. I love reading Danielle Steele. I like business books, books on how to make money. I do not like scary books and movies. I used to love watching scary movies, but I can't watch them anymore.

poison13 : Is art still playing a major part in your life?
Barbaraedwards : When I was in high school, I really wanted to reach that peak in my artwork. Just recently I've just been able to reach that peak. I do a lot of ceramics, painting, pools.
I do a lot of Renaissance work. I paint huge platters. I write too. I write poetry and stories about people's lives. When I was having problems with my marriage, I wrote poetry. My friends showed my artwork in California. I've been offered teaching jobs, but I don't have the patience for it.

robert0259 : Do you have a Web site?
Barbaraedwards : I'm putting it together right now. I will get back to everyone on that.

Mlfoust : Do you feel at an advantage in the world, being able to express yourself artistically? Not everyone can.
Barbaraedwards : Yes. That is so true. If you cannot express your artistic ability then you will not be the person whom God wants you to be. You will feel so empty and you will need something to replace that with and it might not be good.

Redwing : Barbara, do you have a fan club? If so, details please.
Barbaraedwards : You can write to me through Playmate Promotions right now, but I will be getting a P.O. box soon. I will let you know when that happens.

Mikavannikov : When you look back at your Playmate photos, do you feel you are looking at yourself? Or do you feel as if you are perhaps looking at someone else, and that the experience is just a distant memory?
Barbaraedwards: I would say each photograph that I took is a memory in itself for me. There are some that are real, that are me, but there are some that I can't connect to at all and it doesn't even seem like me. The test shots that I did seemed like the ones that I can most connect to.

Redwing : Barbara, if a fan saw you in public, would you prefer they said hello or left you alone?
Barbaraedwards : I love it when they say hello! People think we're untouchable.

robert0259 : What inspired you artistically? Was it a teacher in school, or was it earlier?
Barbaraedwards : In third grade I started to draw and paint. I would never do what my teachers would tell me to do. I was actually flunking art up until I was in junior college. I had a teacher there who took me under his wing. *He was the best of the best. He brought the ability out in me and helped me to love and and see things the way artists should see things.

Moderator : We have five minutes left, everyone. Please send your final questions!
Billarvola : Please tell us about this da Vinci passion.
Barbaraedwards : I love da Vinci. He's a fantastic artist. His etchings are unbelievable. I love the strokes of the painting and the way he draws.

Redwing : Barbara, do you prefer your guy with or without facial hair?
Barbaraedwards : I like hair on the face, but not hair on the chest. A little hair is okay, I guess, but there's only one perfect man -- it's the Trojan at USC!

Moderator : That's all of the time we have today. Let's all thank Barbara Edwards for joining us today.
Mikavannikov: Thanks, Barbara!
Ricky9 : Thank you for chatting.
poison13: Thank you for joining us, Barbara!
Mlfoust : Your an interesting lady, Mrs. Edwards. It's been a pleasure.
Barbaraedwards: Goodbye, everybody, it was nice talking with you on the Internet. Have a great year. I hope to talk with you all again soon. I hope to see you next year in Chicago or maybe sooner when I chat again. I love you all. Goodbye!
moderator : That's it, everyone! Let's all gather in the Events Lobby and chat some more

[Alan DeMoss]

Found another, verbatim. Way outdated, and I hope this doesn't violate any VEF policies.

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16 March 1999

moderator : Good evening everyone! Tonight we have a special treat for you...Miss September 1983 and Playmate of the Year 1984 -- Barbara Edwards -- here to chat with you all...let's all wish her a warm welcome!
barbaraedwards : Hi everyone! I haven't seen or talked to anyone in a long time. I am currently redesigning my Personal Page for Playboy. I am excited about being here tonight! I sure do miss my fans, so I am so excited to be here chatting with you all!
ace : Hi Barbara, welcome to a Cyber Club chat!
conleypj : Hello Barbara, thank you for taking the time to chat with us today.

ace : What influenced you to do Playboy?
barbaraedwards : I just wanted my freedom from home, it was my escape from home. I would have been forced to stay home and go to college and do what they wanted me to do. I decided not to do what they wanted me to, and I did what I wanted to do. I am in the entertainment field, now I am behind the cameras producing my first sitcom film, The Chamber of Sex. I have also been handed Sammy Davis Jr., the lifetime story. We just raised finances on that with Jim Weller, senior advisor to Reagan and Bush. He is one of the hottest directors and producers with 120 awards under his belt.

lpadilla : Hi Barbara! What have you been up to since your last chat?
barbaraedwards : A lot of stuff! I am now representing a girl, Dag Mare Peterson. She used to be married to Cheap Trick, the guitar player. She is a pretty big actress. I am sending her to Germany next week to do the cover of Galla and Bunte. I am also looking at a script right now from United Artists for producing! I think I have the millennium girl, she is really hot! She is getting her callback from Playboy this Thursday! I am keeping my fingers crossed. I have also been very busy being a mom, a wife and promoting people.

graydrake : Do you plan on being at Glamourcon in Chicago this May?
barbaraedwards : Oh, I wish I could, I just don't have the time. But I will definitely be sending some girls there. Just to clarify I am a producer in L.A. and Germany. My partner represents Backstreet Boys and N Sync. I have a personal interest in a couple of people, and I have taken personal interest in a couple of girls. Michael Reed wants me to look at his work, and he wants me to represent him. All I can say is that it is a high maintenance job...these people are so high maintenance. {laughs}

lpadilla : What had your love life/romantic experiences been like when you became a Playmate, and how did it change?
barbaraedwards : When I left home and did my test for Playboy I met my husband, and he is the only one that I have ever been with, so I wouldn't know. I was married right before I was tested for Playmate of the Year. We kept it a secret. I told Hef the day of my PMOY party. {laughs}

lpadilla : Barbara, in your video sequences, was the guy in the sailboat with you your husband, or just a model/actor?
barbaraedwards : That was a cute model! He was so tempting. He was cute, wasn't he? {laughs} I guess those videos were the closest I have ever gotten to sex with other men. They are kind of educational, aren't they? {laughs}

ace : Did you ever stay in the Mansion? If so, what was your favorite part about it?
barbaraedwards : Yes, I did. I stayed there for quite a while in fact. I liked most of it, I remember my husband and I took a tour. My husband and I initiated our little visit in every room. {laughs} By the tennis courts, by the monkey cage and down by a hill by the front gate. Every place we did the deed, we were filmed by the cameras and we didn't even know it. I said to my husband, "Trust me honey, no one is going to see us, down here." That security system is unbelievable! Wilt Chamberlain was there, and he showed me where the cameras were! They are even in bushes! {laughs}

wolphman : Where do you see groups like N Sync and the Backstreet Boys in five years?
barbaraedwards : I am almost 40, and I think they are so cute. In five years I think N Sync will still be hot, and I think Backstreet Boys will fade. They are fading now. N Sync is real hot right now. I think the next groups are going to be real ethnic. I think it will be a mixture between R&B and rock and roll. But I do think we will have a female group coming out. I give N Sync four years! {smiles}

graydrake : You recently did a Revisited video. How different was shooting that compared to the first video you did for Playboy?
barbaraedwards : It was awful because they didn't let me do that creativity. We got into a little warfare with the director of the video but we ended up winning. I walked into the studio and I saw this Playmate of the Year get electrocuted. I have never seen anything like it. They told her not to get out of the bathtub, but she did. I can't think of her name right now. She walked into the makeup room and told me what happened.

ace : What is your all-time favorite movie? And who are your favorite actors and actresses?
barbaraedwards : Jane Seymour is my favorite actress, and Burt Reynolds and Tom Cruise are my favorite actors. I also like Meryl Streep and Michelle Pfeiffer. I have met a lot of people. Lucille Ball, Liza Minelli and many more. I am a star-struck person.... It wasn't Titanic, that was for sure. By time I got around to seeing it, I was like, Is that it? I love that movie with Will Smith's wife. It is a comedy and it is so funny, I can't think of the name right now.

blofeldt : Hi Barbara. Do you think Girl Power was a little overdone by Geri Halliwell, etc.?
barbaraedwards : I never saw Girl Power. I really don't get a chance to go to the movies that much, when I get to go I go to the Academy. The last movie was Shakespeare in Love. I loved that movie.

ace : What is your favorite music preference these days?
barbaraedwards : I love rap. I love classical too. I like it all! I don't care for straight rock and roll. I think mixing rock and roll and R&B is so cool...that is what is rap. There is no other music in the world. Will Smith is so talented. Oh, by the way, the name of that movie was called Woo!

Ashwood : Do you still enjoy drawing?
barbaraedwards : I have my own art studio. I am carving a table right now. I love drawing. I am always covered in sawdust. The neighborhood kids come over and do art projects with me. {laughs}

ace : Do you still keep in touch with other Playmates? If so, like who?
barbaraedwards : Ola Ray, one of my best friends. I am friends with so many of them. They all call me and we all get together. I always keep in touch with my girls, just like Hef. {laughs}

graydrake : Do people react differently toward you once they find out that you are a Playmate?
barbaraedwards : I went to the Mike Tyson fight, a ten-hour drive, and I had ringside tickets. It took me two hours to get to the ringside. People were calling out my name. Yes, people act differently to me. I love it though! I love people! I always get tickets to ringside fights. People still recognize me. Even now that I am a blonde. I have been blonde for about six months now. Blondes definitely have more fun, I am having a great time.

blofeldt : How did you judge the Lewis-Holyfield fight? Did you think Lewis whipped Holyfield?
barbaraedwards : Right when Lewis got up, I said that was the Jolly Green Giant fighting the pea. That was a waste of money, you knew who was going to lose. Holyfield was so cute with his cocky little attitude.

ace : Barbara, if you could travel in time, where would you like to go? The past or future? Why? (But you can't change the past.)
barbaraedwards : I would love to go to the Renaissance. I love the way the women were treated and how they acted. It is my favorite place. To dress up and just go out there. That is just my time. I think that is what the world is lacking today.

moderator : Wow, how time is flying! We are coming to the end of our chat tonight...make sure to get in all of your final questions for Barbara!
dabowyer : Barbara, it would be nice to see a recent picture of you on the Personal Page. It's always nice to see what Playmates look like now, compared to the photo shoots from then. I'm not talking about nudes -- just a photo. Any chance?
barbaraedwards : I am working on updating my Personal Page as we speak. I am working on sending some new pictures to Kate. Some things to look for: a digital video that stops and you can print the pictures into your computer, DVD. It is really hot. I have new photographs coming out as well. So look for my page within the next couple of months. {smiles}

moderator : Is there an address fans can write to you at --other than Playboy's L.A. office??
barbaraedwards : You can write to me at: 120 S. San Fernando Blvd. 452, Burbank, CA 91502. I love getting fan mail, so please write to me. I really miss my fans! {smiles}

ace : Which is your favorite Mansion party??
barbaraedwards : This past Christmas! Liz Stewart and I owned that party! We looked good and we had the best outfits, we had a great time. {laughs} I dropped an earring back to my diamond earrings, and we knew we owned the party when six guys jumped to the ground to look for it. {laughs}

moderator : Will you be celebrating St. Pat's Day tomorrow?
barbaraedwards : If I get over this flu, then I will be at the Jockey Club in Beverly Hills.
ace : Thanks for chatting Barbara, it was a pleasure having you with us today. Take care and be well.
graydrake : Goodbye Barbara, it was wonderful chatting with you.
wolphman : Goodnight Barbara -- thanks for stopping in!
conleypj : Goodnight Barbara, Happy St. Pat's!
lpadilla : Thanks for chatting, Barbara! See you again soon, we hope!
jstuders : Thank you Barbara for chatting with us tonight.
barbaraedwards : Thanks for all your great questions, I had a great time. Please keep in touch! I want to hear from all you guys. Out of sight, you know that saying, so keep in touch and keep in sight. {waves goodbye, blows kisses}
moderator : Thank you everyone who came out for this chat! Barbara is one interesting lady!! Let's all head to the Auditorium!