Going bare so others can bear
She’s been heralded for years as the most downloaded person on the Internet, which means … you know what it means. People love looking at Cindy Margolis.
What it hasn’t meant, all these years, though – as all those millions of lookers know – is seeing even one picture of this 21st century pinup queen without at least a little something covering her.
No longer.
Margolis, who has been titillating fans since she was an undergrad at Cal State Northridge with her own line of greeting cards, has posed very au natural for the December issue of Playboy, which hit newsstands Friday.
But it was for a good cause, explains the 41-year-old Margolis:
Q: Why now?
A: My decision to do Playboy is literally 20 years in the making. I’ve always prided myself in keeping my clothes on, being the girl next door. … Every couple years when Mr. (Hugh) Hefner would call, I would very graciously decline, because my mom would kill me, and I thought it was more mysterious keeping my clothes on.
But … when I got the (latest) call from Mr. Hefner … I thought, “Wow – at 40, they still want me?” And I thought it’s almost an inspiration – like a “you go, girl” moment. I feel empowered that you can be married and have three children and still be sexy and confident and look great. …
I worked out really hard, and the reason I wanted to do it the most is because I am posing for a purpose: a portion of the proceeds from each issue sold is going to go to my charity.
Q: That would be … ?
A: I am the celebrity spokesperson for Resolve, the national infertility association, and my three precious children were born through infertility procedures. I struggled for many years trying to have children. My beautiful son was born through in vitro fertilization. I had my beautiful twins via a surrogate. So I wanted to give back.
Q: How does your posing add to the cause?
A: First we’re going to sell a certain amount (of magazines), and then all the rest (of the proceeds) after that will go to Resolve. … Our hope is to help at least 20 to 30 families out there to have their precious babies.
Infertility costs an average of about $16,000 to $20,000 per procedure, and you don’t always get pregnant the first time. I had to go through it seven times. And adoption and surrogacy are not covered through insurance companies. I call my children “My Hundred Thousand Dollar Babies Before They Were Even Born”! …
And when I’m asked what my girls will think (about posing for Playboy) when they grow up, I’ll tell them that they have to keep their clothes on till they’re 40. But when they’re 40, they can make their own decisions.
The birthday bunch
Director Mike Nichols is 75. Actress Sally Field is 60. Actress Lori Singer (“Fame,” “Footloose”) is 49. Actor Ethan Hawke is 36. Actress Thandie Newton (“Beloved”) is 34. Model-actress Rebecca Romijn is 34. Actress Nicole Dubuc (“Major Dad”) is 28.