Introduction
It isn’t rare for former models to become actors, and this is how Kristine DeBell started her film career. This beautiful former Playboy model became more known as the mother of many family film characters, rather than for her nude photos. Who is Kristine DeBell, and how much has she earned from her prominent roles?
Early life and Education
Kristine DeBell was born on 10 December 1954, in Chatham, New York State, USA. She was raised on a small self-sufficient family farm, and had a rather simple childhood but as the eldest of six children.
The names of her parents aren’t disclosed, nor the name of the high school she attended, but she studied singing while also taking ballet classes. When she was only 14 years old, DeBell started modeling clothes for fashion brand Macy’s. She was also interested in acting from a very young age, and was a part of her high school drama classes. While she was in her freshman year of high school, she landed a role in the musical “The Sound of Music” portraying Martha. She tried to reprise her role the following summer when Mac-Haydn Theatre opened in Chatham, but the producers thought her voice sounded too mature for the part, so they gave her a smaller but more fitting role of the naughty postulate.
This was the beginning of her tour with The Mac-Haydn Theatre, and she remained a part of the cast for four years.
DeBell later enrolled at Berkeley College in New York, and joined the field of Fashion Merchandising, but dropped out after her first year to pursue her modeling career.
Career in Modeling
DeBell began by working as a fashion model for Ford Models Agency, an international modeling agency located in New York City. While working for them, she appeared in many magazines and did many fashion shows. In April 1976, she appeared on the cover of the famous erotic magazine “Playboy”, and her photographs were taken by a big name in the pornography scene, Suze Randall.
In August of the same year, DeBell was seen in Playboy’s classic pictorial entitled “200 Motels, or How I Spent My Summer Vacation”, taken by photographer Helmut Newton. 11 of original prints from the set were offered when Butterfields held the auction of Playboy archives in 2002, and sold for an impressive $21,075! Another three from the same set were auctioned in December 2003 at an event held by Christie’s, and sold for an even larger amount of $26,290.
Acting Career
DeBell’s modeling career helped her to move into acting – her film debut was portraying Alice in an erotic musical version of “Alice in Wonderland” that premiered in 1976. During the ‘70s, she mostly appeared in TV series and films, such as “Police Woman”, “Deadman’s Curve”, “Katie: Portrait of a Centerfold” and “Eight is Enough”.
She also had several film roles, one of the most prominent being in the comedy movie “Meatballs”, in which she appeared next to Bill Murray.
In the first half of the ‘80s, DeBell landed several prominent movie roles, such as Fiona in “Lifepod”, Nancy McCauley in “Tag: The Assassination Game” and Nancy, Jackie Chan’s girlfriend, in “Battle Creek Brawl”, an action-comedy also known under the name “The Big Brawl”. In 1982 she portrayed Toni Blasdell in the TV movie “Life of the Party: The Story of Beatrice”. Next year she appeared in two episodes of “Oh Madeline”, a TV series about a woman who tries to change her mundane life.
During the late ‘80s, DeBell slowed down her acting career.
She could be seen in several commercials, as well as in the 1986 movie “Club Life” in which she portrayed Fern. In 1990 she got the role of Katy Lynn O’Toole in the short film “America Confidential”, before going on what turned out to be a 20-year long hiatus from the world of entertainment.
DeBell was finally back on TV in 2012, when she portrayed the mother of the main character in “The Great Halloween Puppy Adventure”, a Netflix exclusive TV film about a boy who turned his mother’s boyfriend into a dog. She also did some voice acting for “1313: Night of the Widow”. In 2013, she was in several big-screen films, including “An Easter Bunny Puppy” and “A Talking Pony!?”, and portrayed three different characters in the 2013 short film “Beyond Sunset and Sunrise”.
In 2014, DeBell starred in the horror movie “Three Wicked Witches”, in the role of Lana, one of the evil witches. The next year, she co-starred next to Ron Becks in the action film “Hunter”, and also portrayed Roberta in “Samurai Cop 2: Deadly Vengeance”. In 2017, she could be seen in the TV movie “The Wrong Man”, as well as in “Death Game” and “Holy Terror”. She portrayed Mrs. Demarco in the thriller “The Wrong Friend” in 2018, and the next year she had a small role in “Love and Debt”.
In late 2020, DeBell is set to appear in the Robert McAtee drama “Merrily”, where she will portray a character named Cynthia.
Controversy
Her “Playboy” cover photo caused a lot of controversy at the time. Despite being 22 years old at the time of her photos being taken, the critics disliked her youthful appearance and the fact that she posed with several stuffed animals while naked. They went so far as to say that the photo was promoting child pornography. This didn’t stop Playboy from asking DeBell to pose once again for their pictorial “200 Motels, or How I Spent My Summer Vacation”.
Personal Life
DeBell was in a short relationship with famous American producer, Bill Osco, but the couple broke up due to personal differences.
This is the only public relationship DeBell has had, and since her breakup, she hasn’t been seen in public with anyone else. She is residing in New York, close to the town she grew up in. DeBell is active on Facebook and Instagram, but doesn’t use other social media.
Net Worth
DeBell has earned her little fortune while being a model, and acting in over 50 TV and film titles. As of April 2020, her net worth has been estimated at around $5 million.
Physical characteristics
DeBell has a height of 5ft 6ins (1.68 m) and keeps her weight a secret, but she has a slim figure with vital statistics of 34-26-35. She is considered to be a beautiful woman, with deep blue eyes and light brown to blonde hair.