Jean Bell was one of the first of Playboy

Playboy

Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. 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. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...

magazine's African American Playmates of the Month.
When she appeared in the October 1969 issue of Playboy, Bell was only the second African American woman to grace the centerfold

Centerfold

The centerfold of a magazine refers to a gatefolded spread, usually a portrait such as a pin-up or a nude, inserted in the middle of the publication, or to the model featured in the portrait...

 (the first was Jennifer Jackson

Jennifer Jackson (model)

Jennifer Jackson is an American model who was chosen as Playboy magazine's Playmate of the month for the March 1965 issue. She was the first Black Playmate of the Month and was photographed by Pompeo Posar....

, in March 1965). Her centerfold was photographed by Don Klumpp. A few months later, Bell became the first black person to appear on the magazine's cover.