One of the most classically beautiful women ever to grace the screen is Louisiana native Devin DeVasquez! With a Spanish father and Irish mother, Devin blends the best of both possible worlds, giving her a uniquely beautiful look that she has used to her advantage for the better part of thirty years now! Devin exploded onto the scene as Playboy's Playmate of the Month in June, 1985, and was the Spokesmodel champion on Star Search the following year. From there, the sky was the limit, and Devin capitalized on her newfound fame by parlaying it into an acting career. Devin's near-topless appearance on Married... With Children during its third season lit a firestorm of controversy at the time, and her high profile relationships with everyone from Prince to Sylvester Stallone kept her name in the zeitgeist for years to come. Devin's latest project is a documentary called Beyond the Centerfold, which she is in the process of finishing up, and features the final on-camera interview with legendary pin-up Bettie Page, with whom Devin developed a lasting friendship. In our exclusive skinterview, we talk with Devin about her past and, more importantly, her future, which is looking brighter than ever!
Skin Central: The mid-80s were such a huge time in your career, Star Search, Playboy, your relationship with Prince. Of all the monumental things you did during that period, which has had the most lasting effect on you personally?
Devin DeVasquez: That was a truly magical time in my young life and at times felt like a dream because things were happening so fast. I think they all had a lasting effect on me and has helped lead me to become the person I am today.
SC: Which one are you surprised to find that people continue to bring up or recognize you from?
DD: Well Playboy is the one most associate me with, but many girls today have emailed me saying they were named after me from my win on Star Search. I get recognized alot from the movie, Can't Buy Me Love because of the success Patrick Dempsey has had on Grey's Anatomy. And I get recognized for the cult movie I did, Society with Billy Warlock.
SC: How familiar are you with Mr. Skin, and what are your thoughts on being immortalized here on the site?
DD: I know Mr. Skin is a massive high traffic site and I'm flattered that they have taken notice of little ole me.
SC: Aw, you flatter us! What’s the first nude scene you remember seeing in a movie? Did that have a lasting impact on you?
DD: I think it was Kim Basinger in 9 1/2 Weeks that made me think being nude was sexy and she had such an amazing body that doing something like that could be rather cool.
SC: You did some fantastic nude scenes in films like Society, Guns, Busted, Hard Time, A Passion; Do you have a favorite? Any that you’re particularly proud of?
DD: I really wasn't as comfortable with myself on camera back then so I can't say I had a favorite. They all had something interesting to offer me in my growth and I'm happy they have been memorable considering all the beautiful women who are nude in movies now.
SC: How about your appearance on Married With Children? Was that a lot of fun, shocking the world like that?
DD: My appearance on Married... With Children was so controversial at that time that a Michigan housewife wrote to the new network FOX and tried to get the show cancelled. She thought my taking my bra off on primetime television was distasteful and thus the press that garnered from that controversy helped keep the show on the air for about 11 years. The cast including Ed O'Neill thanked me and they were great fun to work with. I would have loved to have done more sitcom work and have studied comedy at "The Groundlings." Lisa Kudrow was my teacher, so I love doing comedy and hope to maybe dabble again with in some future projects.
SC: How did your relationship with Bettie Page start? How much of an impact did that relationship have on you personally and professionally?
DD: I had the idea back in 2002 to do a documentary about the pinup from the pinup's point of view and wanted to meet Bettie. She was very reclusive and I spoke to her on the phone through her agent Mark Roesler a few times and we hit it off. She thought it was a great idea and had never met anyone who had posed nude that wanted to interview her so she gave me an exclusive interview for this documentary. I also put the interview in my book, "The Naked Truth About A Pinup Model" which I wrote as a handbook for anyone that wanted to follow in my footsteps as a pinup model. My relationship with Bettie continued until she passed away and I was one of the last people to see her before she died. Her friendship is something I will always treasure. I spoke at her funeral and I have bought the grave site right next to hers that is also across from Marilyn Monroe, so I'll always be in good company.
SC: You have written books on a wide variety of subjects. Are there any subjects you haven’t tackled yet that you’d like to take on in the future?
DD: "True Age, Timeless Beauty" is a spiritual book about manifesting whatever you wish which includes finding the fountain of youth. I believe that is my calling now and am writing the follow up to that book, "True Wisdom, Timeless Spirit" and I'm doing speaking engagements.
SC: How do you find time for everything you’ve got your fingers in? Blogging, writing, modeling, now filmmaking How do you strike a balance between all those different areas?
DD: That's what my book is all about, balance and how to keep your life in balance. I follow my passion and I put energy into the things I love doing and let the universe guide my path.
SC: What prompted you to get involved with Hurricane Katrina relief through your DevRonn Enterprises? Being from Baton Rouge, I imagine you have special ties to that area, but do you still have family there?
DD: I don't have any family left there, most of the cousins I had moved to Houston or New York. I think it's important to give back to causes that you have a vested interest and passion for. Since I love to cook and knew New Orleans would need all the help they could get to recover from Hurricane Katrina I started with our spice, "Devin's Kickass Cajun Seasoning" as way to help. We give part of our proceeds to help victims of natural disasters and to Brad Pitt's charity, "Make It Right" that is helping to build ecological housing down in New Orleans. Our spice is my own recipe that is lower in sodium and has no MSG and it's manufactured in Louisiana so it's very authentic.
SC: How important to you is this new documentary, Beyond the Centerfold? Was this a project that you’ve always wanted to do, or has it evolved over time to become something you hadn’t thought possible a number of years ago?
DD: I started the project in 2002 and I interviewed Bettie Page, Dita Von Teese, Victoria Zdrok, Brande Roderick, Victoria Fuller and Debra Jo Fondren at that time because I knew they had something special. Then I got married and had two step-daughters that took priority over that project and it sat on the shelf for 12 years. I recently just looked at all of my footage and was blown away by all that I have shot and decided now was the time to edit it and get it out there for everyone to see my vision. It's about the pinup girl and how she has evolved from the pinup's point of view.
SC: You seem to get better looking with age. Do you foresee a time when you wouldn’t want to pose nude or appear nude on film, or is that something you want to continue doing for the rest of your life?
DD: Thank you and I do attribute that with my awareness of how I think and feel about myself. I'm more interested in nurturing my inner beauty rather than my outer beauty and while I'm not oppose to getting nude I don't think that's where my destiny lies. I'm almost 51 years old now and even though my boobs still look pretty good, I'm not sure it's something I'll strive to continue doing as I've not posed nude for the past decade. I think I have enough nude photos of me to continue giving out for years to come, but I don't think I'll be doing anymore unless my husband is photographing me and he's an excellent photographer.
SC: Speaking of your husband Ronn, he was a rock star before he became an actor, and you’ve dated other men in the music industry. Do you have a special affinity for rock stars? Do you like the edge that rock stars have, or is it more of an individual attraction on a case by case basis?
DD: I am attracted to highly creative men, but I've now been with Ronn ten years and married for five. I think Ronn is my soul mate and we have been lucky to have found each other.
SC: Thank you so much for your time, is there anything else you’d like your fans to know? Anything else you’re promoting at the moment?
DD: I've written a new book with Ronn called, "My Husband's A Dog, My Wife's A Bitch" and it's a humorous look at relationships. You can get it on Amazon and the audio book will be out real soon. Most everything can be found on my website www.devindevasquez.com
