Richard Strell was horrified when he read the caption in Collector Magazine claiming that the Pin-up Queen Bettie Page was feeding zebras in Africa. The authority on Bettie Page knew that the photo shoot shown on page 9 of the February issue was actually taken in Florida. ”I had to Google it to find out that you were partially right,” he announced at the Long Beach Antique Market. The photos were taken by Bunny Yeager at Africa U.S.A. a wildlife park in Boca Raton, Florida. The Jungle Bettie photographs from this shoot are among her most celebrated. Among them were nude shots with a pair of cheetahs named Moja and Mbili. The leopard skin patterned Jungle Girl outfit she wore was made, along with much of her lingerie, by Bettie herself. After Bunny Yeager sent shots of Bettie to Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, he featured the pin-up as the January 1955 Playmate of the Month, making her the centerfold model for the two-year-old Playboy magazine.
