Shannon Lee Tweed Simmons (born March 10, 1957) is a Canadian actress and model. One of the most successful actresses of mainstream erotica, she is identified with the genre of the

erotic thriller The erotic thriller is a film subgenre defined as a thriller with a thematic basis in illicit romance or erotic fantasy. Though exact definitions of the erotic thriller can vary, it is generally agreed "bodily danger and pleasure must remain in ...

. Tweed has appeared in more than 60 films and in several television series. She was named ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

''s Playmate of the Year in 1982. Tweed is also known for '' Gene Simmons Family Jewels'', a

reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, r ...

TV show that portrayed the life of her family from 2006 until 2012. She is married to

Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; he, חיים ויץ, ; born August 25, 1949) is an Israeli-American musician. Also known by his stage persona The Demon, he is the bassist and co-lead singer of Kiss, the hard rock band he co-founded with Paul ...

, bassist and co-lead singer of the band

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

; Tweed and Simmons have two children, Nicholas Adam Tweed-Simmons and Sophie Alexandra Tweed-Simmons.

Early life

Tweed was born on March 10, 1957, in St. John's,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. She is the daughter of Donald Keith Tweed, a

mink Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera ''Neogale'' and '' Mustela'' and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": the A ...

rancher, and Louise (Wall) Tweed, and was raised on a mink ranch in Whitbourne. She is one of seven children and has three sisters, including actress Tracy Tweed. After Donald Tweed fell into a coma after a car crash, Louise moved with her children to her mother's home in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, and studied nursing while the family survived on welfare. Shannon had breast enhancement surgery at the age of 20, and subsequently became involved in beauty pageants.

Career

In 1978, Tweed was the third runner-up in the Miss Ottawa event and won the Miss Canada talent competition for her singing. After the Canadian wish-fulfilment TV show ''

Thrill of a Lifetime ''Thrill of a Lifetime'' is a television reality series (before that term was coined) created by Sidney M. Cohen (who also directed many of the episodes) and Willie Stein. It was telecast from 1981 to 1988 in Canada on the CTV network. ''Thril ...

'' arranged for her to pose for ''

'' magazine, Tweed was chosen to be the

Playmate of the Month A Playmate is a female model featured in the centerfold/gatefold of ''Playboy'' magazine as Playmate of the Month (PMOTM). The PMOTM's pictorial includes nude photographs and a centerfold poster, along with a pictorial biography and the "Playm ...

for the November 1981 issue, and eventually the Playmate of the Year for 1982. Tweed and her sister Tracy appeared together in a ''Playboy'' spread. Tweed primarily acted in

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s and in television series such as the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

comedy '' 1st and Ten'' and the prime-time soap opera ''

Falcon Crest ''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Channing family in the California ...

'', She also appeared in an episode of '' The Dukes of Hazzard'' as well as '' Married... with Children''. In 1985, she landed a year-long role on ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

'' as

Savannah Wilder A list of notable characters from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'' that significantly impacted storylines and debuted between January 1, 1980, and the end of 1989, in order of first appearance. DJ Craig Donald Craig Jr., known as "DJ" a ...

. Tweed has appeared as a

guest Guest or The Guest may refer to: * A person who is given hospitality * Guest (surname), people with the surname ''Guest'' * USS ''Guest'' (DD-472), U.S. Navy ''Fletcher''-class destroyer 1942–1946 * Guest appearance, guest actor, guest star, e ...

on '' Frasier''. She has also lent her voice to the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

cartoon ''

SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...

'' in the episode " 20,000 Patties Under the Sea", which also featured Gene Simmons as a guest. The first major

theatrical film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

in which Tweed appeared was the horror film ''

Of Unknown Origin ''Of Unknown Origin'' is a 1983 Canadian psychological horror film directed by George P. Cosmatos. Based on the 1979 novel ''The Visitor'' by Chauncey Parker, it stars Peter Weller as a mild-mannered Manhattan banker, who becomes increasingly ob ...

'' (1983). Since then, Tweed has appeared in more than 60 films, including '' Detroit Rock City'', produced by Simmons, in 1999. Tweed and her sister Tracy co-starred in the film ''Night Eyes 3.'' She is known as one of the most successful actresses of mainstream erotica. '' Vanity Fair'' has described Tweed as "one of home video's most rented erotic thriller goddesses". Tweed was featured along with her family on the reality TV show '' Gene Simmons Family Jewels'' from 2006 until 2012. One of the highlights of the series was Simmons' proposal to her and their subsequent marriage at the

Beverly Hills Hotel The Beverly Hills Hotel, also called the Beverly Hills Hotel and Bungalows, is located on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California, Beverly Hills, California. One of the world's best-known hotels, it is closely associated with Cinema of the ...

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Bev ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. In 2010, an episode of the series was taped in Tweed's former hometown of Saskatoon. During the visit, she was presented with an honorary street sign denoting the (nonexistent) "Tweed Lane". Tourism Saskatoon subsequently requested Saskatoon City Council approve the naming of a real Tweed Lane in her honour. The Council approved the request, and the street is located in the neighbourhood of Rosewood. Tweed is the narrator of the reality TV show ''Ex-Wives of Rock''.

Personal life

Tweed resided at the Playboy Mansion for approximately 14 months as ''

'' founder

Hugh Hefner Hugh Marston Hefner (April 9, 1926 – September 27, 2017) was an American magazine publisher. He was the founder and editor-in-chief of ''Playboy'' magazine, a publication with revealing photographs and articles which provoked charges of obsc ...

's partner. The relationship coincided with her Playmate appearances and with being named 1982 Playmate of the Year. The Mansion was the location of her first meeting with her future husband, musician Gene Simmons. Tweed has been in a relationship with Simmons since 1983. In a 2011 interview, Simmons said, "I need Shannon in my life. Not just because of love and family but because she holds me accountable." After 28 years together, the couple wed in an outdoor evening ceremony on the crystal lawn of the

on October 1, 2011.

Filmography

Films

Television

References

External links

*
AskMen.com: Shannon Tweed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tweed, Shannon 1957 births Actresses from Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Participants in American reality television series People from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador People from Whitbourne, Newfoundland and Labrador 1980s Playboy Playmates Playboy Playmates of the Year Living people People from Newfoundland (island)