>>5079962>>5085173I disagree, I think this
>>5079994 is closer to the truth.
Playboy was (for a time) the only place a women could pose nude without completely losing her reputation or being seen as a complete whore. So if you posed for Penthouse, you were on the slippery slope; if you posed for Hustler you were probably a street walker; but if you posed for playboy, you suddenly started getting acting roles. Meanwhile, for a long time (especially in the 70's and 80's, playboy attracted already famous actresses who chose that magazine for their first (and often only) nude pictures.
That sort of setup creates a form of artificial selection; where playboy wound up getting it's pick of all the best looking women; who would obviously jump at a chance to pose there instead of other magazines.
(also mentioning that Playboy probably had the best photographers; the kind of old-school types who would spend 30 minutes preparing for a single photograph; while using special old-style large-format cameras).