Missy Cleveland

Luscious petite blonde knockout Missy Cleveland was born Amanda Hodges Cleveland on December 25, 1959 in Jackson, Mississippi. Cleveland was the daughter of Becky and Sam Hodges and had two sisters and three brothers. Missy was a contestant in the Little Miss Mississippi Pageant at age 10. She attended both Provine High School and McClure Academy in Mississippi. Cleveland was the Playmate of the Month in the April, 1979 issue of "Playboy;" she was discovered by "Playboy" through the magazine's 25th Anniversary Great Playmate Hunt (she was encouraged to enter this contest by her mother). Missy did small parts in a handful of movies in the early 80s; she was especially memorable as the college coed taking a shower in the tacky slasher picture that's shown at the very start of Brian De Palma's superior thriller "Blow Out." Cleveland worked for the Playboy modeling agency in Los Angeles in the 80s. She moved to both Florida and Canada before eventually settling in her native Mississippi, where she worked as a property manager in the Jackson area. Missy was a longtime member of the Van Winkle Baptist Church. Missy Cleveland died in her home in Yazoo City, Mississippi at the tragically young age of 41 from an adverse reaction to prescription medication on August 14, 2001.