Susan Denberg

Born in Bad Polzin, Germany and raised in Klagenfurt, Austria, Susan Denberg is a European gem and a chorus girl who’s worked in London, England and Las Vegas. “By the time I was eighteen, I'd had it with the provincial ways of Klagenfurt; so I kissed Momma, Poppa and my two kid brothers—Ulrich and Reinhard—goodbye and leaded West like your Horace Greeley advised all young people to do,” says the green-eyed beauty in her deep, sultry accent. “My first stop was England, where my childhood ballet lessons and the fact that I was a blonde combined to help me land a job in the chorus line of the Bluebells of London. When the group went on tour, I went with them as far as the Las Vegas run at the Stardust, then decided to stay on in the States and have a go at every young girl's dream: a movie career.” Leaving the glitz and glam of the Vegas Strip behind, the sexy Austrian moved to Los Angeles where sunshine, the beach and opportunities in Hollywood awaited. Her all-natural body, honey-blonde hair and busty figure were exactly what most casting directors wanted, but they all asked that she soften her heavy Teutonic accent which has been an uphill battle. “If the studio heads think I have an accent now, they should have heard me murder the language when I first hit town,” says the European who takes voice and diction lessons in Beverly Hills. “I still haven’t learned to think in English as much as I should, so, it takes me twice as long to memorize my lines, because I always wind up translating them into German first.” Landing the role as Ruta, the promiscuous German parlor maid in the cinematic version of Norman Mailer's best-selling novel An American Dream, our Miss August 1966 was excited to finally be on the big screen. “Like me, Ruta is a Teutonic import with a weakness for strong-willed men,” says our Playmate of the Month. “Of course, the fact that I speak with a German accent certainly didn't hurt my chances of being cast for the part.” With or without a heavy accent, Playboy was pleased to photograph Susan Denberg in her all-natural splendor, but the studios have continued to demand changes from our perfect Miss August 1966. Warner Bros. even held a contest where the public was asked to submit a new name for Susan and the winner would walk away with $500 cash prize, but the entries weren’t good enough for her. “Some of the names submitted were pretty far out,” she says of the over 5000 suggestions. “But, the funniest entry of them all was Norma Mailer.” Continuing to act under her name, Susan went on to appear on Star Trek and in the horror film Frankenstein Created Woman in 1967, but that would be her very last film. Her Austrian accent was considered to be too strong from the studio and was dubbed over before the movie’s release date. Susan packed up her belongings and went back home to Austria before the Seventies came rolling in. Although she’s much happier living in Europe, there are some Californian perks that she misses. “I like dancing, sunbathing, attending car races, relaxing and swimming at the beach,” she says. “All Nordic women are secretly in love with the sun.” It isn’t a secret that Playboy will always love Susan Denberg—heavy accent and all.