What is the origin of the famous Playboy Rabbit Head?
Why is a Rabbit Head always hidden on the cover?
What should I do if I can't find the Rabbit Head on the cover?
I've heard you can fold a dollar bill into the Rabbit Head. How is that done?
Where can I buy those Rabbit Head car air fresheners?
What is the origin of the famous Playboy Rabbit Head?
Designed by Art Paul, the magazine's first art director, the Rabbit Head has appeared on the cover of every issue of the magazine since the second. Why a rabbit? Hef once explained, "I selected a rabbit as the symbol for the magazine because of the humorous sexual connotation, and because he offered an image that was frisky and playful. I put him in a tuxedo to add the idea of sophistication. There was another editorial consideration, too. Since both The New Yorker and Esquire use men as their symbols, I felt the rabbit would be distinctive; and the notion of a rabbit dressed up in formal evening attire struck me as charming, amusing and right." Added Art Paul, "If I had any idea how important that little Rabbit was going to be, I probably would have redrawn him a dozen times to make certain I was doing him justice, and I suppose none of those versions would have turned out as well as the original. As it was, I did one drawing and that was it. I probably spent all of half an hour on it." The Rabbit was so well known that in 1959 a New York reader was able to send Playboy a letter with the Rabbit Head as the only address.
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Why is a Rabbit Head always hidden on the cover?
The tradition began in the Sixties as a lighthearted way to challenge readers.
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What should I do if I can't find the Rabbit Head on the cover?
Because Playboy was receiving so many calls from stymied readers, the editors decided in 1976 to begin providing clues to its whereabouts on the contents page of each issue.
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I've heard you can fold a dollar bill into the Rabbit Head. How is that done?
We first shared the buck rabbit with readers in our December 1979 issue. It was created by Bill Caruba, author of The Magic of Folding Money. If you're less interested in folding money than in making it, move on; we can't guarantee our legal-tender lapin will multiply like you know what.
1. Begin with a crisp dollar bill. Moisten your fingers for optimum grip and go to work. Place the bill before you, Washington's face up. Bringing the top down, toward you, fold the bill in half. Then fold the corners up along dotted lines A-A and B-B.
2. Next, fold the corners up along dotted lines A-C and B-C. Note that while the drawing shows C as a point, you should leave about a quarter-inch gap between folds.
3. Now flip the bill over and rotate it to a vertical position with the straight edge on the left. Turn the first ear down as shown. Make an accordionlike fold along lines E-E and F-F, bringing the upper fold backward and the lower fold forward so that fold F-F lies just under the R in DOLLAR.
4. Fold the lower point of the bill behind and upward so that it just takes the edge off the E at the bottom of the bill and forms the right ear
5. Shape the rabbit head by tucking in the corners and the protrusion at the base of the forward ear (G) (below). Adjust the left ear to desired size by pushing it down or over slightly. The corner of the N in ONE forms the rabbit's eye.
Ta-Da! The Buck Rabbit
Drawings by Joe Wierzbicki. The Magic of Folding Money is copyright © D. Robbins & Co., 70 Washington St., Brooklyn, New York 11201. If you can't find a copy at your local magic shop, write D. Robbins & Co. for a list of mail-order dealers.
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Where can I buy those Rabbit Head car airfresheners?
The Rabbit Head air fresheners are no longer made, although if you search long enough, you may find one in the forgotten corner of a local auto parts store. Fortunately there are many other products available from the Playboy Store -- from T-shirts to playing cards to cuff links (the first item we ever offered) -- emblazoned with the Rabbit Head.
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