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Barbi Benton (born Barbara Lynn Klein; January 28, 1950)[1][2] is an American retired model, actress, television personality, and singer. She is known for appearing in Playboy magazine, as a four-season regular on the comedy series Hee Haw, and for recording several modestly successful albums in the 1970s. After the birth of her first child in 1986, Benton retired from show business to raise her family.

Barbi Benton
Benton in 1977
Born
Barbara Lynn Klein

(1950-01-28) January 28, 1950 (age 72)
New York City, U.S.
OccupationPlayboy model, singer, actress
Years active1968–1986
Spouse
George Gradow
​
(m. 1979)​
PartnerHugh Hefner (1969–1976)
Children2

Early life


Benton was born Barbara Lynn Klein in New York City to a Jewish family.[3][4] Her father was a gynecologist and her mother worked as an investment counselor.[1]

She grew up in Sacramento and attended Rio Americano High School and took all kinds of lessons – from scuba diving to piano – and even did some "tearoom modeling" while in school. She enrolled into UCLA to become a veterinarian, but had to give up that career option as she could not stand the sight of blood.[1]


Career


Bill Dana (dark jacket), Don Adams (center), Benton, and Hugh Hefner from the TV program Playboy After Dark
Bill Dana (dark jacket), Don Adams (center), Benton, and Hugh Hefner from the TV program Playboy After Dark

At the age of 16, she began to model. Following high school, she attended UCLA, and at age 18 took a job with Playboy to appear on their entertainment show Playboy After Dark. She initially started as an extra on the show, but after host Hugh Hefner fell in love with Benton, her role was quickly elevated to co-host. After recording two episodes, Hefner asked the young co-ed for a date. Upon being asked, she reportedly demurred to the then-42-year-old Hefner: "I don't know, I've never dated anyone over 24 before." To which Hefner replied, "That's all right, neither have I." The two began a relationship that lasted several years, and placed Benton in the center of the Playboy enterprise. Hefner convinced her to change her name from Barbara Klein to the more "marketable" Barbi Benton. She is credited with convincing Hugh Hefner to buy the Playboy Mansion in Holmby Hills in 1974.

Benton (initially credited as Barbi Klein) appeared on the cover of Playboy four times: July 1969, March 1970, May 1972, and December 1985 and in additional nude photo layouts in the December 1973 and January 1975 issues. Though she was featured in a number of photo-essays, she was never a Playmate of the Month. She landed a spot on television's Hee Haw doing short comedy sketches, and subsequently enjoyed a career as a country singer. She also began acting, and appeared in the West German comedy film The Naughty Cheerleader (1970), before appearing as a featured repeat performer on a number of popular television series, including The Bobby Vinton Show in 1976, The Love Boat and Fantasy Island. Benton lived with Hefner from 1969 until 1976 and is known for discovering the Playboy Mansion West, where Hefner resided until his death in 2017.[5] Years later, when the television series The Girls Next Door visited her in Aspen, Colorado, she expressed gratitude that the two had remained friends.

Benton left Hee Haw after four seasons to concentrate on a more Hollywood-oriented career. She also starred in the short-lived 1977 ABC-TV comedy series Sugar Time!, about an aspiring female rock group and in films including the slasher Hospital Massacre (1982).

Benton achieved some success as a recording artist. Her record "Brass Buckles" (1975) was a top-five hit on Billboard's country singles chart. Benton has recorded eight albums, the last of which she personally produced in 1979. She also composed the songs, sang them, and played piano. One of her better-known songs was "Ain't That Just the Way" (1976). It was a number one hit in Sweden for 5 weeks, was also a major hit for Lutricia McNeal in 1996, and was recorded by the Dutch singer Patricia Paay under the title Poor Jeremy in 1977.


Personal life


Benton married real estate developer George Gradow on October 14, 1979.[1] They have two children, Alexander (born August 23, 1986) and Ariana (born July 13, 1988). They divide their time between homes in Aspen and Los Angeles.


Discography



Albums


Year Album Chart Positions Label
US Country US
1975 Barbi Doll 17 — Playboy
Barbi Benton 18 —
1976 Something New 39 208
1978 Ain't That Just the Way (No U.S. Release) — —
1988 Kinetic Voyage — — Takoma

Singles


Year Title Peak positions Album
US Country US
[6]		 CAN Country
1975 "Brass Buckles" 5 — 6 Barbi Benton
"Movie Magazine, Stars in Her Eyes" 61 — —
"Roll You Like a Wheel" (with Mickey Gilley) 32 — 19 non-album
"Ain't That Just The Way (That Life Goes Down)" 74 — — Barbi Benton
1976 "Staying Power" — 108 — Something New
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Filmography



Television appearances



Theater appearances



References


  1. Buchalter, Gail (April 7, 1980). "Former Playmate Barbi Benton Is Heels Over Head in Love with Tycoon George Gradow". People. Archived from the original on June 23, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2013. She grew up in Sacramento, where her father was a gynecologist and her mother worked as an investment counselor.
  2. "Today's Birthdays". The Wisconsin State Journal. The Associated Press. January 28, 2020. p. B4. Actress Barbi Benton is 70.
  3. Eastman, Janet (June 1980). "Barbi: Discussing the Growing Pains of Life After Hef". Orange Coast. 6 (6): 12. ISSN 0279-0483.
  4. Lambert, Josh (February 24, 2010). "My Son, The Pornographer". Tablet. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  5. Hinant, Cindy (Winter 2012). "Grids Next Door". Gnome. 1 (1): 48–53. The California Mansion, or Playboy Mansion West, is a Tudor Gothic mansion in Los Angeles found by then girlfriend, Barbi Benton.
  6. Whitburn, Joel (2011). Top Pop Singles 1955–2010. Record Research, Inc. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-89820-188-8.
  7. "A tribute to Barbi Benton".



На других языках

[de] Barbi Benton

Barbi Benton (* 28. Januar 1950 als Barbara Lynn Klein in New York City) ist ein US-amerikanisches ehemaliges Model. Sie war zudem als Country-Sängerin und Schauspielerin aktiv. Sie wurde bekannt durch Aufnahmen für das Playboy-Magazin, ihre Beziehung zu dessen Chef Hugh Hefner und die Originalversion des Songs Ain’t That Just the Way (That Love Goes Down).
- [en] Barbi Benton

[es] Barbi Benton

Barbi Benton (Barbara Lynn Klein; Nueva York, 28 de enero de 1950) es una modelo, actriz y cantante estadounidense, conocida por haber posado para la revista Playboy y por su relación sentimental con el fallecido fundador de dicha publicación, Hugh Hefner, entre 1969 y 1976. Como actriz participó en la cuarta temporada de la serie de televisión Hee Haw y en algunas películas, de las que destaca su papel protagónico en Deathstalker de 1983. Como cantante grabó cinco álbumes de modesta repercusión entre 1975 y 1988. Desde la década de 1980 Benton ha estado semi-retirada de la industria del entretenimiento para dedicarse a su hogar.[1][2]


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