MY PAP PICS: CARMEN ELECTRA: 'I wanted to make out with Paris

Sunday Mirror, Mar 27, 2005 by Words: Ian Woodward.

Wearing that swimsuit

I love this photo because I actually look like a lifeguard in it. I joined Baywatch in 1997, playing Lani McKenzie, after Pamela Anderson left the series. It gave me worldwide exposure, which was awesome - my life was never the same again. I'm carrying my red rescue float and running along the surf of Malibu Beach during a scene where I save someone. That sexy red costume has become a modern icon. As soon as I got my own Baywatch swimsuit, I was so proud I got it framed. Now it takes pride of place on a wall in my husband's (former Jane's Addiction and Red Hot Chilli Peppers guitarist Dave Navarro) office. It brings back happy memories of working with David Hasselhoff and the gang.

Me and Dirty Den

This makes me laugh because it looks as if Dennis Hopper is tickling my stomach and taking my breath away. But it's just a trick of the camera and nothing untoward is going on. Dennis and I were co- hosting the Taurus World Stunt Awards in Hollywood last May, and my dishevelled appearance is due to a stunt we'd just done - we'd supposedly jumped out of a plane, to the accompaniment of explosions, flashing fire effects and all kind of crazy things, and landed on the stage. Here, we're pretending to be relieved we'd made it safe and sound. I've always admired Dennis, and I found him to be very kind and handsome.

Girl-on-girl action

Oh, this is me holding Brittany Murphy in my arms. I had a guest spot in her 2003 movie, Uptown Girls, where she plays this fun- loving party girl called Molly Gunn. This photo was taken on the set in New York during filming. I'm absolutely in love with Brittany - she's awesome, the sweetest, cutest girl - and I just had the urge to pick her up when the stills cameraman appeared. Years ago, we'd worked together on the cartoon series, King Of The Hill, and we'd sung as a duo on stage. When she asked me to do a cameo with her in Uptown Girls, I was there in a heartbeat.

A taste of Paris

Owen Wilson, Amy Smart and I won the Best Kiss award at last year's MTV Movie Awards for our raunchy threesome romp in Starsky & Hutch. But when I went up on stage to accept the award from Paris Hilton, there was no one to kiss because Amy and Owen couldn't be there, and I told the audience I should try to reproduce my steamy scene somehow. So rapper Snoop Dogg - that's him smirking at the back - stood up, and I kissed him first. Then Paris and I kissed each other. I first met her in Cancun, Mexico, for MTV's Spring Break, and I love her very much. Photos of our smooch appeared in papers around the world next day, but I was really disappointed because I thought Paris and I were really going to make out and it ended up being very innocent. She's a good kisser though.

Exposing his love

My husband Dave is baring his nipple ring on our arrival at last year's Grammy Awards. It was five days after Janet Jackson bared her breast at the Superbowl game, and Dave was poking fun at that. I thought, My God, he's such a ham! I'm actually looking at my initials, which he had tattooed on his chest a year after we met. I was at home in LA when he knocked on the door - when I opened it, he showed me the tattoo. It was so sweet and romantic that I cried. We had a traditional wedding in California in November 2003, with Sharon Osbourne as my chief bridesmaid. He's the best thing to ever happen to me.

Naked on TV

I've done three shoots for Playboy magazine, and when the last one was published, I appeared on The Late Show With David Letterman, when Bruce Willis was filling in for him. Bruce had already poked fun at Mike Tyson's tattoo and now it was my turn - he started showing the audience my naked photos. Here I'm trying to grab the magazine from him. But I'm actually very proud of my association with Playboy. It was the first big thing that happened to me and it launched me into acting. It was my dream to become a sex symbol and, thanks to Playboy, I became one. Don't print that - it sounds so uncool.

My mini mistake

I still feel embarrassed when I think about what was going on here. I was handing out an award at a ceremony in California and the winner couldn't be there, so they asked Verne Troyer, Mini-Me in the Austin Powers movies, to accept it on their behalf. When Verne came up on the stage - I don't know why, it was just a spontaneous thing - I picked him up and held him in my arms. Then he tried to kiss me and you can see by my expression I don't want him to. I wasn't expecting it. He didn't like me picking him up - in fact, he was really mad about it. I'd met him before and he'd always been very sweet, so I sent him flowers and an apology. He wrote back, 'Thank you for the flowers - that was very thoughtful of you and much appreciated.' But I learnt a lesson from what I'd done that day.

Getting physical

I like this shot from the making of my striptease aerobics video, because it shows the process of getting into shape can be both sexy and fun. Growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio, where you eat everything fried and dipped in butter, I know what it's like to have a body that's out of control, weight-wise. I've tried every diet under the sun, starving and bingeing, you name it, and nothing worked. And then I discovered exercise and plain old common sense, and I've never looked back. I hate my stomach, but I'm not going to beat myself up about it - it's all part of being a woman. I even like guys who have a little bit of belly - I think that's really cute.