Apple-pie-sweet Vanessa Williams achieved worldwide fame by winning the 1984 Miss America Crown.

And then she became a figure (and what a figure!) of skinternational skinfamy when Penthouse magazine published photos of Vanessa in artful lesbian poses with a lucky white chick on this date, in 1984 (image courtesy of All Urban Gossip).

Hailing from affluent Tarrytown, New York, Vanessa Williams seemed born into a very specific destiny on March 18, 1963, when her parents actually printed on her birth announcement: “Here she is, Miss America!”

After competing in various beauty pageants throughout the early 1980s, Vanessa Williams won the Miss America 1984 title and rocked the world as the first African-American to wear the sash and wiggle on the catwalk while Bert Parks crooned.

All seemed dreamy (for Vanessa Williams ) until nude photos surfaced that depicted the new Female American Ideal en flagrante with a blonde babe. Then things became creamy (for everyone else).

The pictures were taken by photographer Tom Chiapel, for whom Vanessa had worked as an ass-istant.

Playboy initially passed on the spread citing concerns over privacy, but Penthouse publisher Bob Guccione boasted no such qualms.

Once word broke, Vanessa Williams was pressured into relinquishing her title before the magazine was even publicly available.

Alas, as she noted at the time: “Success is the best revenge.”

Since then, Vanessa Williams added the middle initial “L.” to her professional name and has scored numerous pop hits and high-profile acting jobs. At present, she plays the hot bitch boss on Ugly Betty.

Very much worth noting is that the centerfold in the Vanessa WilliamsPenthouse issue is none other than notorious porn princess Traci Lords. She was an illegal 15 years old when her layout was shot.

Copies of this extremely collectable edition of Penthouse routinely sell for more than $100. Although when it comes to the magazine's place in skinstory, clearly the only applicable term is "priceless."