Years after leaving Playboy, the Shannon twins are telling the story of their rise, their fall, their exit, and their return.
In a People profile on Sunday, Karissa and Kristina Shannon, two of Playboy’s youngest and most famous models, opened up about their humble beginnings growing up in Florida and being raised by their Italian grandmother, whom they affectionately referred to as Nonna. It’s a fascinating insight into life at the Mansion… and more.
Contents [hide]
- 1 How It Started
- 2 Not-So-Warm Welcome
- 3 Moving On
- 4 Country Life
How It Started
At just 16 years old, the twins landed a job at Ker’s WingHouse, a local hangout they said was similar to Hooters. They became local legends there and even did a photoshoot for the restaurant… And it turned out the photographer also shot for Playboy, so he sent their pics on over. And Hugh Hefner loved them right away! (Shocker, right? They’re hot blondes, and there were two of them!) The next day, Playboy reached out to set up a test shoot. Karissa told the outlet:
“Hef was dying over the photos. They were like giving us behind-the-scenes confirmation that we would be Playmates, during our test shoot. They said, ‘He loves you girls. You guys are in.’”
Kristina added:
“We knew we were in, and we were so excited because we knew it would change our lives. This was changing everything for us.”
However, they quickly learned that “what they show on TV and on [The Girls Next Door] was a 100 percent different from what was going on behind the scenes.”
Not-So-Warm Welcome
Karissa dished:
“It was such a culture shock for us. We literally … We didn’t grow up with a young mother, so we didn’t know about hair and makeup. We didn’t know much about fashion or style. And we’re a lot younger than Bridget, Kendra and Holly.”
Kristina told the outlet:
“We were literally just teenagers. We were all natural. We didn’t have fake teeth. We didn’t have fake boobs like the other girls or fake hair. We just walked around with natural faces over tan because we were always in the sun in Florida.”
The twins claimed there was a lot of “jealousy” and “bullying” from the other Playmates because of their youth, their natural beauty, and their gimmick:
“We got a lot of jealousy from the other Playmates because we were twins. We were the first twins to each get our own months, which made Playboy history. We were the youngest Playmates and the youngest girlfriends.”
Related: Bill Belichick’s GF Jordon Hudson Interrupted CBS Interview CONSTANTLY, Say Sources!
Karissa explained:
“Me and Kristina are lucky because we just have a best friend in each other. A lot of the girls got really jealous because when Hef would come around in public settings when we were filming the 55th Anniversary Playmate Search, Hef would show us special attention compared to the other girls. When we’re taking pictures, he would want to get in the middle of the twins to take a picture. Or he would be like, ‘Can you move the twins toward the front of the table? I want to sit next to them.’ So the girls started getting really jealous.”
And it got REALLY tough — especially for Kristina. Karissa recalled:
“It made Kristina cry. Kristina literally cried and wanted to leave the mansion when we were shooting. And I told her, ‘These girls are older. They know how to play the game better. But we’re pretty. We’re here. We’ve made it this far.’ And so we ended up staying and Kristina got through it, but there was so much bullying.”
Eventually, they landed their first centerfold with “full-on glam, full-on hair, lighting and shooting,” according to Kristina. She reflected:
“We shot it on Hef’s tennis court with professional photographers that cost $60,000. It was magic. It was completely different to anything we’ve ever done.”
Over the next three years, the twins received offer after offer but were limited because of their commitments to Playboy… and of course to The Girls Next Door TV show. Once they started dating Hef, that is.
Kristina shared:
“Playboy opened so many doors, but the obligations for the reality show and being girlfriends limited our opportunities.”
Yeah, dating Hef sounds like almost a full-time job. We’ve heard a LOT of awful stories already from Holly and company. Karissa added:
“We always say Playboy will always be a part of our lives. We were Playboy fans and we still are Playboy fans. Even though it turned out to be very traumatic for us, there were also a lot of high points.”
They didn’t dive too much into the trauma. Surely there was worse to face than jealousy because they were so young and beautiful… right?
Moving On
Eventually when they moved beyond Playboy, the twins went through a twin “individuality phase.” Kariss explained:
“When we moved out, we had a couple of years where we went through this individuality phase. I feel like every set of twins goes through it, particularly in your early 20s. We were both into different things and trying to be individuals, because Hef really did force the twin thing on us, more than anyone else had ever. But we’ve always been extremely close. I believe we’re twin flames, closer than most twins.”
They’re “twin flames”? Huh. Kristina tagged on:
“It’s even in the way we were born. We know we were born three months premature … When we were born, we actually weren’t breathing. Our lungs weren’t fully developed.”
Oh no! Karissa added:
“We’ve had to fight for our lives, our whole lives. We came from a lot of trauma. we’re trauma bonded.”
Eventually they got back on the same page and realized “a huge hole in both of our hearts and our spirits.” This was a hole only faith could fill. Karissa explained:
“It really crumbled who we are, especially when he took our religion away. Our believing in Jesus became a big problem, and losing that was just really big trauma that we dealt with. We had no family that was there to back us up like a lot of the girls.”
Later, with the death of their Nonna and a DUI charge for Kristina in 2014, they hit rock bottom. People referred to it — rather insultingly — as their “Anna Nicole phase,” after late Playmate and actress Anna Nicole Smith. Kristina recalled:
“Everyone was saying we were going through our ‘Anna Nicole phase.’ We gained weight. There was alcohol and pills. We were really unhealthy and lost and, even at points, suicidal. We had no one. It was just us, trying to figure it out after losing ourselves.”
That’s when the twins decided to remove themselves from LA to get back on track. Kristina recalled:
“Kristina and I decided to move. We didn’t know where to go, so we decided to go back to where we were born and leave LA. We sold the beauty salon we owned at the time, and said, ‘Let’s get the hell out of here and live a simple life. Let’s just start healing.’”
Mind you, they’d gone through all of this and were hitting this midlife crisis… at just 24 years old!
Country Life
Karissa told the mag:
“We drove the whole way, without stopping until we got to Michigan. I remember getting into Colorado and smelling that fresh air .. it was just different. Being in nature desensitized us. We ended up being diagnosed with manic depression, ADHD, bipolar disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. Being outside the city helped us slow down.”
Oh geez! With all those issues, no wonder they had a hard time.
With the change of scenery, they allowed themselves time “to find out who we are and just be selfish, try and live normally.” And that’s when they found their faith:
“We were totally just ready to be selfish for the first time. And we were all about God and praying constantly to Jesus. We were literally praying and just trying to change our lives. And I feel like this is when we really grew up.”
LOLz! So all the time being pampered in the Playboy Mansion they weren’t being selfish at all? Because that was all for other people? Like men and other models? Inneresting.
Kristina added:
“I feel like out of all of this, God was humbling us. He was humbling us and letting us know, ‘I have another plan for you.’ He’s restoring us and that’s what we feel like now. We are completely different people, but still ourselves. We’re still the playful twins who did Playboy, but we care about other things now. We are all about organics. Everything we eat, all our food is organic. All our water’s alkaline, our sheets are organic.”
Karissa tagged on:
“We meditate every day together and we’re into meal prepping and not eating out. Really self-care and just taking time for ourselves and learning how to be selfish, learning how to say no.”
Kristina noted:
“We went in our hearts, we went through our healing era, which took years. I didn’t think we would ever come out of it. But Michigan changed us. We love being in Michigan and then going to LA or Vegas for work.”
Now 35, the twins have started reconnecting to LA and are actively trying to get their real estate licenses. They also have the goal of getting pregnant together — to EACH have their own set of twins! Sounds like they’re angling for another reality show! Because either one of those premises would probably sell!
Kristina concluded:
“We’re closer than ever. And that’s why it’s like we’re so excited. We have a fresh eye on everything now. We’re open to a lot of things now and a lot of projects that we want to do. We’re interested in doing a lot of different things now”
What a life! Reactions, Perezcious readers?
[Images via FayesVision/Rachel Worth/WENN]
The post Playboy’s Shannon Twins Talk Hugh Hefner, Jealousy, Their ‘Anna Nicole Phase,’ & Leaving Hollywood To Become ‘All About God’ appeared first on Perez Hilton.
