Impeachment: American Crime Story delves into the infamous political sex scandal of 1998 concerning Bill Clinton. Paula Jones, who brought the case into the limelight, plays a key role in the series.
Paula Jones’ sexual harassment lawsuit led to President Clinton’s impeachment. After the scandal occurred she was left hunting for a job after becoming practically unemployable.
Many women in the spotlight were offered extortionate amounts of money by magazine’s such as Playboy and Penthouse, did Paula Jones accept one of these paychecks?
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DID PAULA JONES POSE FOR PENTHOUSE?
Yes, Paula Jones posed in the December issue of Penthouse magazine in 2000. The spread was shot in California during the Democratic National Convention and raised much controversy.
Appearing on CNN`s “Larry King Live,” she said her financial obligations as a single mother were a sole reason for doing the shoot. Calling the shoot a “once-in-a-lifetime thing”, … “it was a point in time in my life that I needed to pay taxes. I`m a single mother now and need to support my two little boys. I need to send them to college.”
When asked why she did the photoshoot she told Larry King in the interview.“I am an adult woman and made the choice to do so,” Jones who was then 34, told King, “I thought it was the best thing to do for me and my children.”
When it was rumoured that she would feature in a nude spread for Penthouse magazine, her former adviser Susan Carpenter-McMillan spoke out on how Paula was against posing nude, stating she was: “completely, vehemently opposed to posing in the nude.
“If it’s true. … It’s the worst thing she could have done. I don’t think anyone will approve of it.”
DID PAULA MENTION THE SCANDAL IN PENTHOUSE?
Paula had gained prominence in the media after she accused Bill Clinton of sexual harassment whilst he was governor of Arkansas and she was a state employee.
When asked about the scandal in the Penthouse interview she said: “I’m glad it’s over with, that’s for sure,” Paula told Joe Conason in the 2000 Penthouse interview. “And I wish it could have been over with a lot sooner. I’m not looking for fame or fortune or anything like that.”
PENTHOUSE PHOTOSHOOT IN ACS’ IMPEACHMENT
Monica Lewinsky was the producer of the FX show Impeachment: American Crime Story. Someone who lived out the experience first-hand has overseen the whole production. She has even spoken out about the Penthouse photoshoot scene which has been reproduced in the series.
Lewinsky revealed that she was on set when Ashford recreated Paula Jones’ infamous Penthouse photoshoot.
“It was a very moving scene,” Monica Lewinsky recalled. “As I was watching that episode, I realized at some point after 1998, all of us were offered millions to pose for Penthouse and Playboy. Because I came from an upper-middle-class family, I was able to say no. It was an eye-opening moment for me. Sometimes, there are sex-positive decisions that are made. That’s not this. Someone was worried about paying the rent, so this was their only option.”
WHERE IS SHE NOW?
In 2021, Paula is a supporter of Donald Trump and attended a Trump rally in 2016. She even appeared in a news conference for him alongside Juanita Broaddrick, Kathy Shelton, and Kathleen Willey; who are also victims of sexual assault.
Paula wanted to turn her personal story into a memoir but said that no publishing house would pick it up.