Mary Eileen Chesterton (December 20, 1949 – October 3, 1979), known professionally as Claudia Jennings, was an American actress and model. Jennings was ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' magazine's

Playmate of the Month A Playmate is a female model featured in the centerfold/gatefold of ''Playboy'' magazine as Playmate of the Month (PMOTM). The PMOTM's pictorial includes nude photographs and a centerfold poster, along with a pictorial biography and the "Playm ...

for November 1969, later becoming

Playmate of the Year This is a list of models who were chosen as a Playboy Playmate of the Year for the American edition of ''Playboy'' magazine. List of Playmates of the Year *1953: Marilyn Monroe *1954: *1955: *1956: *1957: Lisa Winters *1958: *1959: *1960: ...

for 1970. She subsequently pursued a career in acting, becoming known as the "Queen of the

B movies A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second half of a double feature, ...

".'B' movie queen dies in crash
Chicago Tribune, October 4, 1979 She died in an automobile accident at age 29 in 1979.

Career

Mary Eileen Chesterton (known as "Mimi" to friends and family) was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1949, later moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and then

Richmond, Indiana Richmond () is a city in eastern Wayne County, Indiana, United States. Bordering the state of Ohio, it is the county seat of Wayne County. In the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 35,720. It is the principal c ...

. When her family moved from Richmond to

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

, as a result of her father becoming the advertising director with Skilsaw, she transferred at the start of her

sophomore year In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In ...

Evanston Township High School Evanston Township High School (ETHS) (District 202) is a public high school in Evanston, Illinois. The campus is located in a northern suburb of Chicago along the Lake Michigan shore. ETHS was established in 1883 and serves the city of Evanston a ...

(ETHS) where she graduated in 1968. She was featured in a silent, plotless movie titled after her

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

which was shot on

Super 8 film Super 8 mm film is a motion-picture film format released in 1965 by Eastman Kodak as an improvement over the older "Double" or "Regular" 8 mm home movie format. The formal name for Super 8 is 8-mm Type S, distinguishing it from the ...

by fellow ETHS classmate

Todd McCarthy Todd McCarthy (born February 16, 1950) is an American film critic and author. He wrote for '' Variety'' for 31 years as its chief film critic until 2010. In October of that year, he joined ''The Hollywood Reporter'', where he subsequently served ...

. She worked as a receptionist at ''Playboy'' and then posed for the magazine in 1969. She adopted the name Claudia Jennings because she didn't want to embarrass her family and that she thought "Mimi" sounded too girlish. Her original pictorial was photographed by

Pompeo Posar Pompeo Posar (; February 21, 1921 – April 5, 2004) was a ''Playboy'' magazine staff photographer who photographed many centerfold features and accompanying pictures of women featured as playmate of the month. Notably, he was responsible for th ...

. She was Playmate of the Year in 1970, and was awarded a pink

Mercury Capri Capri (later Mercury Capri) is a Nameplate (automotive), nameplate marketed by the Mercury (automobile), Lincoln-Mercury division of Ford Motor Company over three generations between 1970 and 1994. From 1970 to 1978, the Capri was a sport compact ...

. After her appearances in ''Playboy'', Jennings became an actress in exploitation movies and in television. In 1973, she had a guest appearance on ''

The Brady Bunch ''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired five seasons from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family of six children, with three boys and three gir ...

'' episode titled "Adios, Johnny Bravo". Jennings auditioned for the role as

Kate Jackson Lucy Kate Jackson (born October 29, 1948), known professionally as Kate Jackson, is an American actress and television producer, known for her television roles as Sabrina Duncan in the series ''Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1979) and Amanda King i ...

's replacement on the hit television show ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts for ABC. It originally aired from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, airing for five seasons consisting of 115 episodes. It was produ ...

'', but the role was awarded to

Shelley Hack Shelley Marie Hack (born July 6, 1947) is an American actress, model, producer, and political activist. She is best known as the face of Revlon's Charlie perfume from the mid-1970s until the early 1980s, and for her role as Tiffany Welles in ...

Death

On October 3, 1979, Jennings died in an automobile collision on the Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu, California. She was 29. Jennings was featured in a 2000 episode of ''

E! True Hollywood Story ''E! True Hollywood Story'' is an American television documentary series on E!. Overview ''E! True Hollywood Story'' originally started as a series of specials beginning on March 29, 1996, but evolved into a weekly biographical documentary ...

'' in which several of her friends and acquaintances were interviewed. The episode was made without the cooperation of her family, who considered the show too "tabloid" in style.Albert Williams
But She Was A Cheerleader

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. The ''Reader'' has been ...

, September 21, 2000

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Claudia 1949 births 1979 deaths American film actresses Road incident deaths in California American television actresses Actresses from Evanston, Illinois Actresses from Milwaukee Evanston Township High School alumni 1960s Playboy Playmates Playboy Playmates of the Year Actresses from Saint Paul, Minnesota 20th-century American actresses