Free Preview: Playmate of the Month November 1989 - Reneé Tenison
Last year had its bad news and good news for Reneé Tenison. First came the downer: Just before she was to appear in the 1988 Miss Idaho USA beauty pageant, she broke out with "the worst acne I've ever had. Before I went on stage, I knew I wouldn't win." And she was right. She didn't. But then came the upper: Her boyfriend, bodybuilder Dale Parkinson, who was the 1983 Mr. Idaho, had sent photos of Reneé to us for our 35th Anniversary Playmate Hunt, and the day after the Miss Idaho USA pageant, she received a call from Playboy inviting her to Chicago to pose for our centerfold. By the time she arrived, her skin was clear and Reneé was, as you can see, in top form. Reneé, who grew up in Melba, Idaho, is special for many reasons. First, she's a twin, and her sister Rosie is every bit as beautiful as Reneé. And then Reneé's parents' marriage is interracial -- one of the first such in the state of Idaho, which is not known for its black population. "My mom, who is white, and my dad, who is black, met each other in the Fifties, and they had to go to Nevada to get married, because no one would marry them in Idaho. When they came back to Melba [population approximately 300], they couldn't even go to the grocery together. I really admire them for staying together. There aren't many blacks in Idaho, maybe three thousand out of a population of more than a million." We wondered if Reneé didn't sometimes feel isolated. "Well, I'd rather say I felt special. Being different was an advantage...
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