Debbie Gibson Had the ‘Highest Clothing Budget’ for a Naked Playboy Photo Shoot

​​Debbie Gibson first got a call from Playboy magazine about doing a nude pictorial just after turning 18 years old, an offer she politely declined. Sixteen years later, she finally agreed to strip down after baring her soul in a variety of musicals.

Still, the decision to undress in the risqué magazine in 2005 was one Gibson thought through thoroughly, the “Foolish Beat” singer, 54, says in her upcoming memoir, Eternally Electric: The Message In My Music, out Sept. 9. She notes that she cleared the shoot with her sisters so her “nieces and nephews wouldn’t be scarred for life by Aunt Deborah’s naked photos.”

Gibson, then 34, saw the pictorial in a classy, peekaboo way and even had a clothing budget. During the shoot, she was told, “This is the highest clothing budget we’ve ever had for a naked photo shoot!” 

Gibson’s mom was also on hand as both her mother and manager. 

She writes in the memoir: Though unorthodox to have one’s mother at a Playboy shoot, we had such a deep professional understanding of each other that she knew, once I committed to doing something, it was her job to support me 100 percent. My inner circle also made sure my body angles were flattering, my cheeks — all of them — were flushed and perky, and my facial expressions were authentic and strong. All in all, I had an absolute blast, and it shows.

The “Only In My Dreams” songstress was pleased with her experience and the images, but the magazine’s founder, Hugh Hefner, failed to see the images in the same light and didn’t put her on the cover, as she was led to suspect. Instead, the magazine opted for a clothed Paris Hilton. The teaser on the cover read: “Teen Queen Debbie Gibson Nude.” 

After Hef and his people decided I didn’t show enough, they exploited a loophole in the contract. I’d been led to believe that I would definitely be the cover girl; I hadn’t waited sixteen years to do something this provocative, only to be relegated to the inner pages. But alas, the March 2005 issue had me on the inside of a pullout cover to fulfill their legal obligation. They felt readers would have been disappointed if I was on the cover but wasn’t doing the most explicit kind of pictorial. 

Hugh Hefner later admitted he regretted that move, as featuring me prominently would have boosted sales. Celebrities known for other things showing anything at all was worth the price of the magazine, and those parameters were loosened. Once again, guinea pig/pioneer. Still, I’m so proud of that theatrical, elegant, classy, sexy photo shoot that I did on my terms.

Gibson released a song called “Naked” about the experience. 

Eternally Electric by Debbie Gibson hits shelves on Sept. 9 and is available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.