Backstage at The Price Is Right: Memoirs of A Barker Beauty (6 page)

Chapter 9

The Break Up

A
fter all of the dressing room drama, it was time to have a little birthday celebration for one of the producers following the last show. We always enjoyed overindulging in the champagne and delicious hors d’oeuvres, especially when we were off for a week and could sleep in the next day. We all assembled in Barker’s dressing room. Nancy Burnet was there. She and I spoke casually and shared a friendly hug. We all mingled for a while, drinking champagne and engaging in a little idle chatter. Holly was over in the corner, talking with Nancy most of the evening. After almost an hour had passed, it was time to cut the cake. Holly and Nancy were still engrossed in heavy conversation but managed to break away long enough to sing “Happy Birthday.” Afterwards, the people began slowly filing out, headed for home.

Dian called me at about three o’clock the next day, enraged and in tears. “I just hung up from talking with Barker, and he abruptly and rudely ended our relationship. He said that somehow Nancy found out about us and she demanded that we end it immediately.”

“Wow! Did he say how Nancy found out? Who told her?” I inquired.

“No. He wouldn’t tell me, but there’s more. He also said that the rumors about me dating or sleeping with Smokey and living with Tim were confirmed. And he went through the roof. I’ve never heard Barker that upset and nasty. He really hurt my feelings and refused to allow me to defend myself. He pretty much hung up in my face!”

I asked Dian, “Why would he be so upset about anybody that you’ve been involved with in the past?”

“For some reason, he always had the idea that if he was involved with someone who had ever had sexual relations with a black man that he might contract some sort of communicable disease just because they’re black,” she said.

I had to bite my tongue and take a deep breath after hearing about his racist assumption. Dian was fully aware of Barker’s negative views of African-Americans, which she had tried to share with me during numerous conversations, but I never wanted to believe it.

Even though both Smokey and Tim were very decent, honorable, successful, and highly-respected individuals at the top of their fields, clearly, from Barker’s perspective, they were simply Mandingo bucks, who had defiled his perception of Dian’s white purity. Barker couldn’t stomach the concept, imagery, or probably, the trepidation of comparison.
Whenever he had confronted her about the rumors, she’d denied them. She had asked me never to mention her past relations with them to anyone, especially Barker. She knew Barker would be furious if he found out about her past involvement with her men of color. Evidently, I was not the only person in whom Dian had confided. She liked to share too much, with too many people on the set, who she thought were her close friends.

“Now, that sounds like something you would have told Barker. Only a few people knew about those guys, and I don’t know why you would tell him something like that. Nobody else would,” Dian said angrily

“Hold up, honey. I would never tell Barker anything like that,” I retorted.

Dian continued chewing me out before I could get a word in edgewise. She was extremely upset and in tears. She never saw it coming
;
it was so abrupt and cold. She was hurt and had no recourse. When she finally took a deep breath and a whimper, I took the opportunity to defend myself from her unjustifiable accusation. She listened long enough to realize that I was not the culprit. The more we talked, the angrier and more vindictive she became. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

It turns out that Holly was the snitch that had revealed the truth about Barker and Dian’s relationship to Nancy and she had also confirmed Dian’s association with Smokey and Tim. Holly said that she’d done it after the meeting in Barker’s room following the dressing room incident because Dian had gone back to Barker and demanded that Holly and Janice be fired, and that really pissed Holly off.

When Nancy confronted Barker about the relationship between him and Dian, she presented him with an ultimatum before their American Humane Association lawsuit had been settled. If he didn’t end their close, personal relationship immediately, she would withdraw her support from him and his attorneys in the pending AHA lawsuit, in which they were both named. Barker admitted to Nancy that he and Dian had nothing more than a sexual relationship for a little over a year—which Dian had initiated—and gladly agreed to call it quits.

In a later interview when asked why he and Dian parted ways, Barker suggested that he broke the relationship off with Dian to avoid possible problems on the show.

When we got back to work the following week, things began to change. There was an eerie feeling in the Green Room during the production meeting. People were whispering and carrying on a little differently. Dian was so gloomy and distraught that she couldn’t display an ounce of happiness all day. She was clearly hurt by the breakup. There was no doubt that she genuinely had deep feelings for Barker
.
She had once told me that she wouldn’t mind becoming Mrs. Barker one day. I’m not certain about how many people were aware of the breakup when the workday began
,
but by the end of the day
,
everyone knew.

The show had been very interactive with the models, which allowed the viewers to capture glimpses of our personalities. Barker would sporadically intermingle with his Beauties and the contestants, prompting us to verbally respond to his jokes and/or make comments while we were on stage presenting a prize or if there was a double overbid by both contestants at the end of the show during the final showcase. This was the perfect way to kill time before the show ended and the music and credits started to roll. Barker would often assemble his Beauties in front of one of the doors and ask a few personal questions to which he thought our fans might like to know the answers. We enjoyed having this special time to express ourselves, letting the audience and fans get a better idea about who we were individually. However, all of that, and a lot more, ceased after Barker broke off the relationship between him and Dian.

Barker distanced himself from the rest of the models, barely speaking or making eye contact at times. He had gone into a very protective mode. The executive producers and staff made it clear to everyone that if anyone had anything to say to Barker, they were to go through them first. He was not the same happy camper anymore. He became standoffish with all of the models and grumpy with the staff and crew. I think we all missed Dian’s visits to Barker’s dressing room more than he did.

The Barker Beauties were silenced on air for a long time after the breakup. For almost four years, we didn’t say a word
—
until the 25
th
Anniversary Special.

Chapter 10

Six Degrees of Separation

F
rigyes Karinthy’s theory of six degrees of separation reasons that anyone on the planet can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries. In short, “It’s a small world after all.”

When Dian shared with me her involvement with country singer/song writer Kenny Rogers, I had ardently commented, “I know Kenny.”

Her demeanor shifted dramatically as she stopped short and asked, “How do you know Kenny?”

“Would you believe that we first met back in 1974? It was at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel and Casino when The First Edition
(
before they were known as Kenny Rogers and the First Edition
)
was performing in the casino lounge. I was with The Love Machine
,
and we were also performing in the Hilton lounge during the same time. Kenny and the guys were intrigued by our performances and would come out of their dressing rooms between their shows to catch our act. We’d hang out after our shows for some late night snacks and drinks in the casino during our four-week engagement, and ultimately, we all became good friends. And, in 1987, I came in contact with Kenny again at the American Music Awards. He was co-hosting that year with Dolly Parton. I was a trophy model on the AMAs for nearly seven years and worked backstage as well as on stage
,
so I had full access to all the stars, honey.”

I continued to gloat. “Kenny was still riding high off the success of his mega hit single “Lady,” written by our mutual friend Lionel Richie. Lionel was in attendance at the AMAs that year and joined forces to share the stage with Kenny and Dolly.”

“And how do you know Lionel Richie?” Dian interrupted.

“When Lionel was with The Commodores, they made their Los Angeles debut at our home base
,
Maverick’s Flat
,
back in the early seventies when they were young and green, fresh off the bus from Tuskegee, Alabama. The Love Machine girls and I used to love to watch them practice in one of the rehearsal rooms at Maverick’s. They were incredibly talented back then. They, in turn, were overjoyed and mesmerized to be able to watch us when we rehearsed and performed at the club. The Love Machine and the Commodores crossed paths for many years while we traveled and toured the same circuits throughout Europe, especially when we were in St. Troupe’, France … ooh la la! Girl, we would party-hardy long into the night. We remained good friends throughout the years and were so proud of the guys and all of their many successful mega hit records. After all, who do you think inspired them to write, ‘Brick House’?”

I went on tell Dian, “When Kenny first came on the set for rehearsal, I approached him and said, ‘Hi, Kenny. Would you believe we have history together in Las Vegas?’ He was a little taken aback and hesitated for a moment and looked a little perplexed. He probably thought that something provocative had happened in a hotel room while he was in a drunken stupor and didn’t remember
that
night. Before he had a chance to comment, I reassured him, ‘No, no, it was nothing like
that
.
Remember The Love Machine at the Las Vegas Hilton lounge back in 1974?’”

It had been well over thirteen years since Kenny and I had first met, so I had to refresh his memory. Back during that time, there weren’t any black female entertainers kicking butt on stage with seven scantily clad beautiful ladies. We had acquired rave reviews and had everyone coming back for more.

There was a short silence before Kenny had any recall, but when he did, a cheerful smile came over his face as he proceeded to give me a big, warm teddy bear hug. We weren’t able to talk too long because we both had to be on stage at our prospective places for rehearsal. Before we parted ways, Kenny told me that he had always been obsessed with photography, and it had become an occupation. He asked, “Would you be interested in doing a photo shoot with me?”

Without hesitation I replied, “I would love to do a photo session with you.”

We exchanged numbers and promised we would be in touch to make the photo session happen. A few weeks after the American Music Awards
,
my phone rang, and much to my surprise, it was Kenny
—
not his agent, not a manager, but Kenny, himself. We set the date for the following week at his photography studio.

When I first entered his studio, I was awestruck with the photos that adorned his studio walls. He told me how he started out with photography and about his fascination with shooting landscapes during his travels all over the world
,
but especially in the United States. He had just recently begun shooting portraits over the last few years and was excited about his most recent masterpiece: a book entitled,
Your Friends and Mine
, a collection of eighty celebrity portraits. Elizabeth Taylor graced the front cover. As I looked through this incredible coffee table style book of famous celebrities, it was hard to believe and somewhat surreal that I was actually going to be among the company of these greats and perhaps find a place on Kenny’s wall of fame.
Well, a girl can dream, can’t she?

I was a bit nervous starting out on the shoot, but Kenny made me feel comfortable as he instructed me to think about pleasantries in my life to help achieve a certain look that he was trying to capture for his latest project.

After I shared this with Dian, she had a stunned look on her face. I don’t think she believed a word I was saying. She made it a point to get Kenny on the phone for a face-off while I was in her dressing room. She asked him if he knew who The Love Machine was and if he knew Kathleen Bradley. He replied favorably, “Of course.” She put me on the phone and Kenny and I talked for a while about the good old days in Vegas and briefly about his photography and the photo shoot we did. I suppose he and I were talking too long, as Dian aggressively motioned for me to say goodbye and hand her the phone.

“First, I have to ask,” said Dian. “Have you and Kenny ever been intimate?”

“Heavens no,” I replied.

“Okay, then I presume I can share this information with you about me and Kenny’s relationship. But you can never say anything to anyone, not even your husband.”

“Cross my heart.”

Dian swore me to secrecy about her relationship with Kenny because he was married and neither one of them needed any scandals. She told me that they had a lot of phone sex and that he liked recording their explicit conversations, so he could listen to her voice any time he wanted.

“Kenny likes to fantasize and make up kinky stories or scenarios. I love doing it too; it actually makes me hot,” Dian said.

“Do you get off and masturbate?” I asked her.

“Heck yeah; that’s half the fun,” she replied. “Kenny is very kinky, and he says things like, ‘I love your body
;
it really turns me on
.
I want you to keep working out and keep that perfect, luscious body hot.’ He calls me day and night, no matter where he is. He especially gets off while he’s on the road in his hotel room,” she explained. “I swear he wakes up with a hard-on and goes to bed with one too. He claims he can’t sleep until we have our lustful phone conversations and he’s had his nightly orgasm.” Dian giggled. “He said he really gets turned on in the morning when he turns on the TV and sees me on the show.

He asked me to come join him in Las Vegas and wants to have a threesome with one of his other gal-pals, but I told him that I was kind of nervous and needed to think about it because I have never been with another woman.”

“It sounds intriguing. What the hell
;
go for it, girl. You only live once,” I said.

“We’ll see what happens. I told him I would think about the Vegas trip and might consider doing it only for him.”

Dian was excited and gearing up for her first
Playboy
issue, due out in December of 1991. Like many of her predecessors who were famous Hollywood starlets, Hugh Hefner and his staff had approached Dian for numerous years to do a spread and be featured on the front cover of
Playboy Magazine
. Why not? Janice was Playmate of the Month for May 1971. Janice only showed her breasts
—
very small breasts at that time, before implants—and she didn’t expose her lower body until a later issue.

Dian’s issue was beautifully shot in classic
Playboy
style. The photos illustrated more of a tease
—
no pubic hairs
—
but total nudity. In my opinion, it was tastefully done; although, it was a bit too risqué for
The Price Is Right’s
wholesome, all-American family audience.

Dian had prepared Barker and Goodson for her upcoming
Playboy
pictorial. They weren’t pleased about it, but they allowed her to do it. The CBS executives were not happy at all. Dian was proud of her
Playboy
spread and was autographing more magazines faster than you could shake a stick
—
especially backstage with the crew. There were mixed feelings from the cast and staff
—
as well as the viewers
—
about Dian’s nude appearance in
Playboy
. It sparked a lot of controversy. Yet,
TPIR
ratings continued to climb, thanks to Dian. Barker and Goodson didn’t stay angry too long, but they remained concerned about
TPIR’s
pristine image. Sex sells!

During her
Playboy
interview, there was mention of Dian’s relationship with Kenny Rogers: “The tabloids have linked singer, Kenny Rogers, who happens to be married, and you as close friends. Does this statement hold any merit?”

“Kenny is a very cool guy. We’re pals, but we are not lovers,” Dian said in an effort to put the rumor to rest. “His wife, Marianne, is a wonderful woman. I hope that story doesn’t hurt her.”

Shortly after Dian’s
Playboy
issue hit the stands, Mark Goodson’s office prepared and hand delivered a letter on the set to each of the Barker Beauties, stating that we were not permitted to pose nude in
Playboy Magazine
or any other magazines of that nature. And if we chose to do so, there would be harsh consequences.