Playboy December 2005

COVER STORY We could never say good-bye to Marilyn Monroe, nor would we want to. More than 50 years after her appearance on our debut issue's cover, the screen goddess returns in a photograph taken by Bert Stern during her last session. This month we look at the mystery surrounding her final hours. Our Rabbit, a gentleman who prefers blondes, is right on the mark. FEATURES 76 THE STRANGE, STILL MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF MARILYN MONROE Few deaths are as mysterious as Marilyn Monroe's. Was it suicide? Murder? In a special report we examine the evidence—including uncensored transcripts of tapes Monroe recorded for her psychiatrist—to get closer to an answer. By Lisa Depaulo 84 THE TICKET MASTERS Four days before the Super Bowl two brokers hustle choice seats for the big game with even bigger stakes—a gamble that could make or lose them as much as $80,000 in one week. By Jonathan Littman 96 PARTY OF THE YEAR! Angelina and Jen squabble, Tom jumps on the couch, and Martha flashes some ankle. What a crowd! What a party! Illustration by Bill Nelson 102 LOLITA 50 YEARS LATER Vladimir Nabokov's controversial masterpiece Lolita was published 50 years ago. Thirteen authors and artists explain why the novel still resonates. 120 PLAYBOY'S HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE Forget frankincense and myrrh. True wise men bear such gifts as a Ferrari laptop, a Ducati Sport1000 or even a Playboy Super Bowl–weekend party package. 134 2005 MUSIC POLL We put the opinions of critics on mute and let you define the soundtrack of the year: Franz Ferdinand, Amerie, the Ying Yang Twins and more. 140 NOTHING BUT NET With our annual preview of the college hoops season and picks for the top 25 teams, March Madness should be much less maddening. By David Kaplan FICTION 72 A CHRISTMAS STORY: THREE QUARTERS OF THE WAY TO HELL Two down-and-out singers rediscover the meaning of Christmas when they record a set of holiday jingles. By T.C. Boyle 144 MY FATHER'S WAR Scott Turow shares an excerpt from his new novel, Ordinary Heroes, about a Christmas spent on the front lines of World War II. He then reflects on his father's own experience in combat and how that affected their relationship. By Scott Turow THE PLAYBOY FORUM 53 STAND AND FIRE A new law in Florida expands a person's right to use lethal force in self-defense. Will this cut crime or invite gunfights at Disney World? By Pat Jordan 20Q 98 AL PACINO The acting icon talks about the legacy of Tony Montana, the fundamental problem with The Godfather Part Ill and whether he's made a good movie since Dog Day Afternoon. By Lawrence Grobel INTERVIEW 61 PIERCE BROSNAN The former James Bond discusses life after 007, how the dark comedy Matador let him reinvent himself and how hardship changes you. By Stephen Rebello PICTORIALS 38 SEX IN CINEMA 2005 From Wedding Crashers to Where the Truth Lies, flesh for fantasy abounded on-screen. 106 PLAYMATE: CHRISTINE SMITH In the spirit of the season, this future veterinarian unwraps herself for all you merry gentlemen. 148 RACHEL GOES TO BAND CAMP Rachel Veltri plays a sexy counselor in American Pie Presents Band Camp. Here she's out of uniform. NOTES AND NEWS 15 DREAM A LITTLE DREAM A posse of Playmates, as well as such celebrity partygoers as Dita Von Teese and Bai Ling, slinks into loungewear for Hef's Midsummer Night's Dream party. 127 CENTERFOLDS ON SEX: LANI TODD Miss December 2002 on private sex tapes and how Massive Attack aids her motion of love. 201 PLAYMATE NEWS With a new DVD plus TV shows and books, Jenny McCarthy is the queen of all media; artist Jeff Koons makes a masterpiece with the help of 1999 PMOY Heather Kozar. DEPARTMENTS 5 PLAYBILL 19 DEAR PLAYBOY 73 AFTER HOURS 45 MANTRACK 51 THE PLAYBOY ADVISOR 118 PARTY JOKES 164 WHERE AND HOW TO BUY 205 ON THE SCENE 206 GRAPEVINE 208 POTPOURRI FASHION 128 DRESS GRAY Gray suits are no longer stodgy office-only wear. They go with anything, especially Playmate Colleen Marie. By Joseph de Acetis REVIEWS 31 MOVIES Peter Jackson attempts the definitive King Kong; Ziyi Zhang learns the skills to bend men's wills in Memoirs of a Geisha. 34 DVDS Go ape over three new editions of the original King Kong; Kate Winslet is charmed out of her clothes in Hideous Kinky 38 MUSIC The Dirty South lives on Big Boi's new label; new-wave pioneers Depeche Mode and Echo & the Bunnymen still impress. 40 GAMES The most impressive new Xbox 360 games include Quake 4 and Condemned; have a brain-eating blast with Stubbs the Zombie. 42 BOOKS America on the Ropes is a pictorial history of the Johnson-Jeffries fight; the world's most beautiful women are in The Playmate Book: Six Decades of Centerfolds.