Karen
Velez

It all started in 1984. Karen Velez was a secretary in Miami who had always wondered what she would look like as a Playmate. Playboy was scouring the country for fresh-faced knockouts as part of our Great 30th Anniversary Playmate Search. Inevitably, Playboy and Karen found each other, and thus began a memorable alliance. When Karen appeared as Miss December that year, her curiosity could finally be put to rest: She looked great. Even The Fall Guy, Lee Majors, fell for her. Though their marriage has since ended, Karen says they’ve remained close. (She still uses his name.) “I still love him to death. We get along really well.” And why not? We found her easy to please. She and photographer Arny Freytag—who shot her Playmate and PMOY features—have remained close friends as well. She jumped at the chance to work with him again. “Arny and the crew made me feel comfortable. It was a lot of fun for me.”