The truth about Gloria Steinem's time as a Bunny

Gloria Steinem's 11-day undercover stint as a Bunny in Playboy's New York City club was the subject of a bombshell essay that changed her career. The impacts of her exposé absolutely impacted the Bunnies working across clubs - from the pay discrepancies, mandatory gynecological exams, and regular harassment from customers. However, a lot of the women working alongside Gloria, while she was posing as "Bunny Marie," had mixed feelings on her essay, as their experiences at the clubs may not have aligned with the cruel workplace described in the essays. Kathryn Lee Young (Scott), author of The Bunny Years, collects stories from women with very different memories of the clubs - including the author herself, who worked alongside her as Bunny Kay. Later, this piece inspired a 1984 made-for-TV film starring Kirstie Alley as Gloria (and I am reviewing it!). We're overviewing the complicated legacy of this exposé - its immediate reception, the changes Bunnies experienced as a result, the contradictory tales from other Bunnies, and Gloria Steinem's own regret about her time undercover at the NYC Playboy Club.

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Time stamps:

00:00 Intro

00:53 Gloria goes undercover

02:16 The bombshells from "A Bunny's Tale"

06:01 Disappointing earnings

07:26 Workplace harassment

08:32 Subpoenaed and making changes

09:11 Revisiting in 1980s (and my thoughts)

12:34 "All women are bunnies."

13:16 Reactions from "real" Bunnies + The Bunny Years