Celebrity
With a new memoir and a Netflix documentary, Anderson is finally telling her story, her way.
Pamela Anderson has worn many masks.
[I lived] alongside this cartoon-y image that I co-created, but I was not an innocent bystander.
I fed it, too I fed the monster, Anderson tells Bustle.
As long as I could do some good with it, then it all made sense to me.
Now 55, Andersons finally letting the mask slip.
These days, Anderson spends most of her time immersed in her own romantic, cottage core fantasy.
(I was sustainable and vegan before it was fashionable, she says.)
You talk a lot about the sexual assault you endured as a child in your book and documentary.
How did writing this book and doing this documentary help you heal?
A lot of us harbor this anger inside because we don’t think about it.
A lot of times, we need to get that anger out.
It would be good to address those things within ourselves.
[The world] would be a much better place.
Women’s bodies were especially scrutinized during the time that you were coming up.
You dealt with every major male media host asking inappropriate questions that you had to laugh off or deflect.
Yeah, I’ve spent a lifetime kind of laughing things off and smiling through it.
Yeah, I get it.
It was awkward, but it’s nice that times have changed.
What were some of the most invasive questions that you’ve had to field?
There were so many.
That it was just part of the way to get through it, to make amends.
People were asking me specific things about my breasts, about sex, sexual stories.
I said, “Show you what?”
He goes, “Well, I just seen it in the magazine.
Show me your boobs.”
I’m trying to get out of the elevator, thinking, This is getting really scary.
I didn’t realize what I was getting into.
A lot of really strange things like that happened.
Somehow, I got through it all safely, and I’m still here.
Well, I don’t think there’s as many secrets these days.
Everything’s so saturated, everybody’s famous, everyone has Instagram.
The novelty isn’t the same.
People [are] embracing their bodies, embracing their sexuality.
Since the #MeToo movement, people are more vocal about the abuse they’ve experienced in their lives.
There’s more of a camaraderie among women and feminism.
This is just how men are.
We learn all that from our mother.
What was it like for you to watch Tonya Harding or Britney Spears' stories being revisited?
I saw the Tonya Harding movie.
I didn’t see anything to do with the Britney Spears stuff.
I think people are fascinated by the 90s.
We were all just trying to be such individuals and not like anybody else.
More people are blending into each other these days.
It’s not just generational, it’s not just an era.
Stories about one person, I have always found fascinating.
I read a lot of biographies about women from the past.
I love looking at documentaries.
I love Elizabeth Taylor or Marilyn Monroe.
It’s scary, because when you do tell your story, you have to involve other people.
When you are alive, you deal with other people in your life.
It’s all these things going through your head: Should I say that?
I don’t want to say that.
I don’t want to upset anybody.
I don’t want anyone to feel hurt.
I was really thinking, I just need to tell it.
Those things that I feel scared to tell are the things I need to tell.
What do you think about how young women on TikTok have reclaimed the term bimbo?
I’ve never been on TikTok.
I wouldn’t even know what TikTok does.
It can be empowering, but it also is a dangerous playground.
As we get older, we change the way we view ourselves.
It’s hard to parent children right now on these apps.
I think it’s causing a lot of social distress and anguish over body image.
I’m 55 years old and that’sokay.
I don’t need a filter.
I’m not saying I’m any different.
That’s very cool.
It’s very punk.
I think it’s really wild to be able to just be yourself.
If you could do fame all over again, how would you approach it differently?
Well, I don’t think fame is really something to aspire to.
Why would you want to be famous?
Do you want to be a poet, a writer, an actor, a musician?
Along with that comes fame.
I don’t think pursuing fame alone is ever gratifying.
It was never my goal.
I was just living and experiencing it in real-time, doing the best I can.
I don’t know if I would do it any differently.
You obviously weren’t a fan of the Hulu seriesPam & Tommy,in which Lily James played you.
Do you have someone in mind you wish would play you on screen one day?
No, I don’t.
I have nothing against Lily James.
I actually invited her to the premiere of the documentary.
At the end of the documentary, you come to this realization that you should perhaps be alone.
Is that still a priority for you?
I think the capacity to be in love is the capacity to be alone.
You never make somebody else responsible for your happiness.
If they come and go, you’re still the same person.
That’s what I’ve been working on.
I live such a romantic life.
I still have flowers, candles and rose petals in my bathtub, and I really look after myself.
I’m living the most romantic part of my life now.
It’s really bizarre… because we can just do that.
My kids are grown, beautiful and getting on with their lives.
I’m with my dogs, and I can walk around in my silk pajamas and pick flowers.
It’s really fun, it feels like success.
I tell my kids all the time, money is not success.
That’s just a symptom ofsomesuccess.
I don’t think anyone that’s really, really wealthy is usually interesting.
The people that work really hard are the sexiest.
Look, nature is free.
I just walked in Central Park.
That didn’t cost anything.
It’s something that I think is a perspective.
We’re all wealthy when we’re healthy and happy.
Youve been married quite a few times throughout your life.
Are there any of your marriages you regret?
I’ve learned from everybody in my life, and Ive got to keep trying.
I got married quickly in some cases, but I think with my heart, not my head.
In the end, life is just what happens.
Even though you’re enjoying this time alone, would you ever get married again?
I don’t say no too much.
I always have this thought that something really great is around the corner.
That’s the kind of love I like.
I like this really romantic, meant-to-be stuff.
That’s what will happen or not.
If it doesn’t, it’s okay, too.
Just be safe, protect yourself, be wise, and be careful who you surround yourself with.
We share our souls with anybody we let in our intimate lives.
I think it’s important to be cautious of that.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
