Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian American actress, model, media personality, and author. She rose to prominence after being selected as the February 1990 Playboy Playmate of the Month, and went on to make regular appearances on the magazine's cover and holding the record for the most Playboy covers by any individual. She then received international recognition for starring as "C.J." Parker on the action drama series Baywatch (1992–1997), which further cemented her status as a sex symbol. In 1995, a sex tape of Anderson with her then-husband Tommy Lee was stolen and leaked, which resulted in a legal fight and made her the subject of controversy. She went on to play Vallery Irons on the syndicated series V.I.P. (1998–2002) and Skyler Dayton on the Fox sitcom Stacked (2005–2006). Her film credits include Raw Justice (1994), Barb Wire (1996), Scary Movie 3 (2003), Borat (2006), Superhero Movie, Blonde and Blonder (both 2008), The Institute, Baywatch (both 2017), City Hunter (2018), and The Last Showgirl (2024). Anderson also appeared in her own reality series Pam: Girl on the Loose (2008) and has been involved with a number of television shows such as Dancing with the Stars (2010, 2012), Bailando (2011), VIP Brother (2012), Dancing on Ice (2013), and Danse avec les stars (2018). She will host Pamela’s Cooking with Love, a Food Network Canada show in 2024. Anderson is also known for her activism, having publicly supported many charitable matters and causes, particularly animal rights and PETA activities. She is also the author of the autobiography Love, Pamela (2023) and the plant-based cookbook I Love You: Recipes from the Heart (2024).

Early life

Anderson was born in Ladysmith, British Columbia, Canada, the daughter of Barry Anderson, a furnace repairman, and Carol, a waitress. Her great-grandfather, Juho Hyytiäinen, was a Finnish native of Saarijärvi, and left the Grand Duchy of Finland (which was an autonomous state within the Russian Empire at the time) for Canada in 1908. He changed his name to Anderson when he arrived as an immigrant. Anderson also has Volga German ancestry on her mother's side; her grandmother, ethnically German, was born in Russia in a Mennonite village and immigrated to Canada in 1901. Anderson received press coverage right after her birth as a "Centennial Baby", having been born on July 1, 1967, the 100th anniversary of Canada's official founding via the Constitution Act, 1867. She has a younger brother, Gerry (born 1971), an actor and producer who worked in some of her films and television shows. Anderson suffered sexual abuse as a child, a fact she revealed publicly in 2014. She said she was molested by a female babysitter from ages 6 to 10, raped by a 25-year-old man when she was age 12, and gang-raped by her boyfriend and six of his friends when she was 14. Anderson attended Highland Secondary School in Comox, British Columbia. In high school, she played on the volleyball team, and graduated in 1985. In 1988, she moved to Vancouver and worked as a fitness instructor.

Career

1989–1999: Modeling and acting breakthrough

In 1989, Anderson attended a BC Lions Canadian Football League game at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, where she was featured on the jumbotron while wearing a Labatt's Beer T-shirt. The brewing company hired Anderson briefly as a spokesmodel. Inspired by the event, her then-boyfriend Dan Ilicic produced a poster of her image, entitled the Blue Zone Girl. Anderson was flown to Los Angeles for a photo shoot; she appeared as the cover girl on Playboy magazine's October 1989 issue. She subsequently moved to the United States, settling in LA to further pursue a modelling career. Playboy subsequently chose her as Playmate of the Month in their February 1990 issue, in which she appeared in the centerfold portrait. Anderson then elected to have breast implant surgery, increasing her bust size to 34D. She increased her bust size again, to 34DD, several years later. Her Playboy career spans 22 years, and she has appeared on more Playboy covers than any other model. She has also made numerous appearances in the publication's newsstand specials. Anderson wrote the foreword in the Playboy coffee table book Playboy's Greatest Covers. After Anderson moved to Los Angeles, she won a minor role as Lisa, the original "Tool Time Girl", on the ABC comedy series Home Improvement. Her breakthrough role was as C.J. Parker on Baywatch, which she played for five seasons between 1992 and 1997 making her one of the longest-serving cast members. This has been one of her best-known roles to date and has brought her popularity from international viewers. Anderson was paid US$1,500 per episode during the first season. She reprised her role in a reunion movie, Baywatch: Hawaiian Wedding (2003), and also appeared in commercials for DirecTV in 2007. Anderson was still modelling for Outdoor Life and appearing on the cover of the magazine each year. In 1993, Anderson appeared in a music video "Can't Have Your Cake" by Vince Neil to promote his first solo album, Exposed. In 1994, she was cast in her first starring film role, in Raw Justice, also known as Good Cop, Bad Cop, co-starring with Stacy Keach, David Keith, and Robert Hays. Under the alternate title, the film won the Bronze Award at the Worldfest-Charleston in the category for dramatic theatrical films. In 1996, she played Barbara Rose Kopetski in the film Barb Wire. The movie, a thinly veiled futuristic remake of Casablanca, was not a commercial success. During filming she had barbed wire tattooed on her left upper arm instead of having it painted on by make-up artists every day, but had it removed in 2016. In April 1997, she guest-hosted Saturday Night Live. She appeared on one of two covers for the September issue of Playboy. In September 1998, Anderson starred as Vallery Irons in the Sony Pictures Television syndicated action/comedy-drama series V.I.P. created by J. F. Lawton. The series had a successful four-year run. In 1999, she appeared as a man-eating giantess in the music video for "Miserable" by California alternative rock band Lit. She appeared on The Nanny as Fran Fine's rival, Heather Biblow.

2000–2009: Rise to media prominence

Sam Newman House, a pop architecture building constructed in 2001 in St Kilda, Victoria, Australia, has a large image of Anderson's face. Sam Newman commissioned local architect Cassandra Fahey to design the building, and used the image with Anderson's permission. Permits were issued retroactively when it became a major local landmark and won the award for Best New Residential Building in the RAIA Victorian Architecture Awards. Later that year, Anderson played herself in the Miller Lite TV commercial "Pillow Fight", the sequel to the brand's earlier commercial "Catfight", with models Tanya Ballinger and Kitana Baker reprising their roles. In May 2004, Anderson appeared nude on the cover of Playboy magazine. Later, she posed naked for Stuff and GQ magazines. Anderson was also featured on the cover of the fashion magazines W, British Marie Claire, Flare, and Elle Canada and in editorials for Russian Elle and V. In 2004, she released the book Star, co-written by Eric Shaw Quinn, about a teenager trying to become famous. After this, she began touring the United States, signing autographs for fans nationwide. Her second book, Star Struck, released in 2005, is a thinly veiled look at her life with Tommy Lee and the trials of celebrity life. In 2005, Anderson starred in a new Fox comedy series Stacked as Skyler Dayton, a party girl who works at a book store. It was cancelled on May 18, 2006, after two seasons. On August 14, 2005, Comedy Central aired the Roast of Pamela Anderson. In December 2005, NBC cut a video of Anderson pole dancing to Elton John's "The Red Piano", saying that the footage was inappropriate for prime time. The video was shown on huge screens during the event, while John played "The Bitch is Back". In March 2006, Anderson received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame. In April 2006, she hosted Canada's Juno Awards, becoming the first non-singer and model to do so. She also appeared in the 2006 mockumentary Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which the title character becomes obsessed with her and plans to abduct and marry her. She appears as herself at a book-signing at the end of the film, confronted by Borat in a staged botched abduction. Anderson performed on February 13–14, 2008, in a Valentine's Day strip-tease act at the Crazy Horse cabaret in Paris. Anderson then starred in the reality series Pam: Girl on the Loose, first shown on August 3, 2008, on E! in the United States. In December 2009, Anderson guest-starred as Genie of the Lamp in the pantomime Aladdin at the New Wimbledon Theatre in Wimbledon, in southwest London. Anderson took over the role from comedian Ruby Wax, with former EastEnders actress Anita Dobson and comedian Paul O'Grady also booked for the role.

2010–2021: Shift to reality television

In 2010, she appeared in the short film The Commuter directed by the McHenry Brothers and shot entirely on the Nokia N8 smartphone as promotion for the phone in the UK. Anderson was featured in a beach-themed editorial, shot by Mario Testino for Brazilian Vogue's June 2013 "Body Issue". In November 2010, Anderson appeared on season 4 of Bigg Boss, the Indian version of the Big Brother television franchise. She stayed as a guest in the house for three days for a reported sum of Rs. 2.5 crores (approx US$550,000). Furthering her involvement in the franchise, Anderson took part in the 12th season of Big Brother in the United Kingdom in 2011. In 2012, she appeared as a Special Houseguest on the fourth season of VIP Brother, the celebrity spin-off of Big Brother in Bulgaria. On Day 12 for the first season of Promi Big Brother in Germany, she entered the house, as a Special Guest Star on the final day. David Hasselhoff, a former Baywatch co-star, was a contestant on Days 1 to 5. Anderson was a contestant on the tenth season of Dancing with the Stars, partnered with professional dancer Damian Whitewood. The season premiered on March 22, 2010. Anderson was eliminated after seven weeks. She also took part in the 15th season all-star edition in 2012 with Tristan MacManus. Anderson and MacManus were eliminated in the first week of competition. In May 2011, she was a contestant on the Bailando 2011 (Argentina), partnered with professional dancer Damian Whitewood. She left the competition after 4 weeks. In 2013, Anderson appeared on the eighth series of the British reality TV show Dancing on Ice, partnered with former winner Matt Evers. In 2018, she was a contestant on the ninth season of French Dancing with the Stars. The season premiered on September 29, 2018. Anderson was eliminated on November 8, 2018.

2022–present: Acting return and films

Anderson made her Broadway debut playing Roxie Hart in the Broadway production of Chicago for eight weeks from April 12, 2022 to June 5, 2022. It was her first time performing since 2019. On January 31, 2023, the documentary about her life Pamela, a Love Story, directed by Ryan White, was released on Netflix. Its release coincided with her autobiography, Love, Pamela (2023). In February 2024, Anderson was cast in Gia Coppola's drama film The Last Showgirl, starring alongside Jamie Lee Curtis, Dave Bautista, Brenda Song, Kiernan Shipka and Billie Lourd. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024, and she called it "the role I have been waiting for my entire career". Caryn James of BBC called Anderson "a revelation" and wrote: "The low-key devastation Anderson has captured is the real acting triumph." David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter said Anderson's "transformative performance is undeniably affecting, offering illuminating insights into both the character and the actress playing her, who has had to struggle to be taken seriously. This role should mark a turning point on that front." Anderson is slated to appear in The Naked Gun.

Activism

Animal rights

Anderson advocates for animal rights, and is an active member of the animal protection organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). She became the center of controversy when she posed for a PETA ad wearing a bikini with sections drawn on her body dividing it into ribs, rump, shoulder, etc., like a diagram of meat cuts; the ad's tagline was "All Animals Have the Same Parts". The ad was banned in Montreal, Quebec, on grounds that it was sexist. Anderson retorted, "In a city that is known for its exotic dancing and for being progressive and edgy, how sad that a woman would be banned from using her own body in a political protest over the suffering of cows and chickens. In some parts of the world, women are forced to cover their whole bodies with burqas – is that next? I didn't think that Canada would be so puritanical." She became a company spokesperson for FrogAds, Inc. in March 2012. In February 2014, she stripped for a Valentine's Day-themed ad for PETA, urging dog lovers to cuddle up with their pets during winter. On July 8, 2015, Anderson wrote to Putin to save whales. On December 15, 2015, Anderson, representing the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), met with top Kremlin officials regarding animals rights in Russia. On December 15, 2016, Anderson and IFAW officials met with Kremlin officials to discuss animal welfare and conservation. In December 2015, Anderson, a close friend of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society founder Paul Watson and a long-time supporter and advisory board member, became a full board member in order to further its efforts in opposing the hunting of whales.

Anti-pornography

Anderson has been critical of pornography. In 2016, she co-authored a viral opinion article in The Wall Street Journal with Orthodox rabbi Shmuley Boteach, in which they called online pornography a "public hazard of unprecedented seriousness." The two called for a "sensual revolution" to replace "pornography with eroticism, the alloying of sex with love, of physicality with personality, of the body's mechanics with imagination, of orgasmic release with binding relationships." They later gave a joint lecture at Oxford University to over 1,000 people. Boteach observed: "It can be intimidating to talk about pornography and eroticism alongside an international sex symbol, but I think Pamela has handled it extremely well." The two also wrote a book together, Lust for Love (2018), about how meaningful, passionate sex has been declining, and called for a new sensual revolution that emphasizes partners connecting in the bedroom.

Julian Assange

In December 2016, in a statement to People magazine, Anderson called WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange a "hero". She stated that he had done everyone "a great service" and that "[e]veryone in the world has benefited because of WikiLeaks," while decrying how "elaborate plots against him and made up sexual allegations could result in him being extradited to the US – where he would not be treated fairly – because of his exposure of truths." In April 2019, Anderson expressed anger on Twitter at Assange's expulsion from Ecuador's London embassy. In May 2019, Anderson visited Assange in Belmarsh prison with Kristinn Hrafnsson, and said she believed Assange to be innocent, saying, "He is a good man, he is an incredible person. I love him, I can't imagine what he has been going through." In October 2019, Anderson announced she would be travelling to Australia in November 2019 to challenge Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to stand up for Assange. In her announcement, she referenced the 'disparaging remarks' he made about her in 2018 and challenged him to debate the matter "in front of the Australian people." She also wrote another letter to Morrison asking him to use his influence to secure Assange's release. Morrison replied with a letter, saying that his government would respect Britain's judicial process and Assange would not receive any special help. In the text of a speech she had intended to give at Parliament House, Canberra, Anderson said that Assange was suffering "psychological torture" in jail and that "every moment he is in there, he is in danger". On January 18, 2021, Anderson spoke on the Fox News show Tucker Carlson Tonight, asking President Donald Trump to pardon Assange.

Additional activism

In March 2005, Anderson became a spokesperson for MAC Cosmetics's MAC AIDS Fund, which helped people affected by AIDS and HIV. After becoming the official spokesmodel, Anderson raised money during events in Toronto, Tokyo, Dublin, and Athens. Anderson became the celebrity spokesperson for the American Liver Foundation, and served as the Grand Marshal of the SOS motorcycle ride fundraiser. In 2009, Anderson wrote an open letter to President Barack Obama urging the legalization of cannabis. In November 2016, Anderson starred in a video public service announcement produced by the National Limousine Association and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center as part of the Ride Responsibly initiative, titled The Driving Game, which aimed to shed light on the lack of universal driver regulations in the private ground transportation industry. Anderson once again starred in a video public service announcement produced by the National Limousine Association in January 2018, this time in partnership with Promoting Awareness | Victim Empowerment (PAVE), as part of the Ride Responsibly initiative. Titled The Signs, the video pushes for passenger safety and universal driver regulations in the private ground transportation industry. In the 2019 Canadian federal election, she endorsed the Green Party of Canada. After supporting the yellow vests movement, Anderson attended a meeting of the European Spring with Yanis Varoufakis and Benoît Hamon. She appeared as a supporter on election posters of the German DiEM25 campaign in the run-up to the 2019 European Elections.

Plant-based cooking

Anderson became a vegetarian in her early teens after her father went hunting and brought home a "bloodied deer," and eventually transitioned to veganism in her twenties. She currently promotes the benefits a Plant-based diet, and in 2024 published the plant-based cookbook, I Love You: Recipes From the Heart. VegNews listed I Love You: Recipes From the Heart as one of "The Best Vegan Cookbooks of 2024" in 2024. Later in 2024, Anderson will host Pamela’s Cooking with Love, a plant-based cooking show, on Food Network Canada.

Personal life

Homes and family

Anderson has two children from her first marriage to Tommy Lee, her son Brandon Thomas (born in 1996) and her son Dylan Jagger (born in 1997). She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 2004, while retaining her Canadian citizenship. After moving to California in 1989, Anderson felt that it was important to become an American citizen in order to vote and one day petition to bring her parents to the U.S. and care for them when they were older. Anderson purchased a beach home in Malibu, California, for $1.8 million in 2001, and attempted to sell it in 2013 for $7.75 million, but later took it off the market. She previously lived in a mansion in Cassis, in the commune of Marseille, France. During the pandemic, her childhood home in Canada became her permanent residence, and she sold her Malibu home. She currently lives with her dogs in Ladysmith on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, and has a vegetable farm, Arcady.

Marriages

Anderson has been married five times. She married her first husband, Tommy Lee, drummer of Mötley Crüe, on February 19, 1995, after knowing him for only four days. They married on a beach, with Anderson in a white bikini and Lee in boardshorts. Lee was later sentenced to six months in the Los Angeles County Jail for spousal abuse after assaulting Anderson, and they divorced in 1998. A long custody dispute over their sons followed, and was finalized when they were granted joint custody in October 2002. In March 2002, Anderson publicly stated that she had contracted hepatitis C by sharing tattoo needles with Lee, and began writing a regular column for Jane magazine. In October 2003, Anderson jokingly said on Howard Stern's radio show that she did not expect to live more than 10 or 15 years, but this was taken seriously by many websites and tabloids. By 2015 Anderson had been cured of hepatitis C. Anderson later married Kid Rock, but after a miscarriage while in Vancouver shooting a new film, Blonde and Blonder, Anderson filed for divorce in Los Angeles County Superior Court, citing irreconcilable differences. In September 2007, Anderson stated on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that she was engaged, and on September 29, Anderson and Rick Salomon applied for a marriage license in Las Vegas. On October 6, 2007, Anderson married Salomon in a small wedding ceremony at The Mirage, between her two nightly appearances at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Hans Klok's magic show. The couple separated on December 13, and on February 22, 2008, Anderson requested through the courts that the marriage be annulled, citing fraud. In October 2013, Anderson stated on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that she and Salomon were "friends with benefits". In January 2014, she announced that she had remarried Salomon on an unspecified date. Anderson filed for divorce from Salomon in February 2015. The divorce was finalized on April 29, 2015. On January 20, 2020 Anderson married Hollywood producer Jon Peters. On February 1, 2020, Anderson announced she and Peters had separated, and later claimed to have never been legally married to Peters. On December 24, 2020, Anderson married Dan Hayhurst, her bodyguard. On January 21, 2022, Anderson announced that she had filed for divorce and split with Hayhurst.

Sex tape

A sex tape of Anderson and Tommy Lee filmed on a houseboat on Lake Mead was stolen from their home in 1995 and was widely distributed on the internet. Anderson sued the video distribution company, Internet Entertainment Group, who posted the video on their website ClubLove in November 1997. Anderson was pregnant during the trial and, fearful of the extreme stress causing harm to her pregnancy, dismissed the case. Thereafter, the company began making the tape available to subscribers to its websites again, resulting in triple the normal traffic on the sites. In the 2023 Netflix documentary Pamela, a Love Story, Anderson states that there was no confidential agreement over releasing rights to the video, and that she never (by choice) made money from it. Another tape, which was made before the Tommy Lee tape, involving Anderson and musician Bret Michaels from Poison, was later announced. Frames of the video first appeared in Penthouse magazine in March 1998. After Poison's and Michaels' longtime attorney, Ed McPherson, obtained a federal injunction prohibiting the distribution of the explicit sex tape that the couple made, an abridged version of the tape appeared on the internet in 1998. The story of the sex tape was later portrayed in the Hulu 2022 miniseries Pam & Tommy. In her 2023 Netflix documentary Pamela, a Love Story, Anderson said that she was not consulted about the production of the series. Critics, journalists, and academics posited that the series was profiting off of Anderson's trauma without her consent, and likely doing further harm to her. Pamela, a Love Story verified those claims, in Anderson's own words. Producers of the series were able to develop the series without her participation, permission, or consent by optioning the rights to an article published by Rolling Stone in 2014. Some critics felt that this was a similar violation of privacy that mirrored the sex tape originally being stolen and distributed without Anderson's and Lee's consent.

Honors and awards

Filmography

Documentaries

Film

Music videos

Television