Behind the Viral Search: Did Fender Ever Release an Uncensored Bunny Graphic Guitar?
By James H. Sterling
To understand where the myth originated, one must return to the golden era of the Fender Custom Shop. Under the leadership of founders Michael Stevens and John Page in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Custom Shop was actively experimenting with high-concept promotional guitars, non-traditional materials, and airbrushed guitar finishes. In 1993, Fender entered an official licensing partnership with Playboy Enterprises to celebrate the magazine's 40th anniversary.
Fender commissioned renowned automotive and guitar airbrush artist Pamelina Hovnatanian, professionally known as Pamelina H., to paint a strictly limited run of 175 Stratocasters. Her assignment centered on rendering Marilyn Monroe as she appeared in the magazine’s inaugural 1953 issue, set against a backdrop of red velvet. Pamelina's artwork was sensual and deeply faithful to classic mid-century pinup photography, but it remained firmly within the boundaries of artistic taste. Monroe was depicted draped across velvet, accented with the famous tuxedo-bow rabbit head inlay on the neck and pickguard.
The instrument was an immediate sensation among high-end collectors. It shipped with a custom leather gig bag, an embroidered commemorative jacket, and an official Certificate of Authenticity signed by Page. Because the guitar celebrated a publication famous for nude pictorials, collectors who had never inspected the instrument in person assumed the finish was far more explicit than it actually was. Decades of word-of-mouth retelling stripped away the nuance, morphing a tasteful Marilyn Monroe tribute into rumors of a lost "nude bunny" Custom Shop guitar.
James Sterling reports on renewable energy developments, climate policy, ecological conservation, and green tech innovations around the globe.
