Kendra Wilkinson: Growing Up, 'I Saw Myself as a Boy'

By Nicki Gostin Posted Jul 7th 2010 12:25PM

Kendra Wilkinson Saw Herself as a Boy Growing Up

Hot off the heels of a sex tape released against her will, E! reality star and former Playboy bunny Kendra Wilkinson is back in control of her story. Kendra's new book, 'Sliding Into Home,' is a bracingly honest memoir that has her opening up about her wild teenage years, the Playboy mansion stint as one of Hef's girlfriends, and her secret romance and eventual marriage to NFL star Hank Baskett. Here, she chats with PopEater on the occasion of her tell-all's release.

Hank Jr. is so cute!
Thank you. He's seven months old. He's doing his belly time. It's so funny, we put all his toys in front of him -- he has so many toys -- but he goes right for my Blackberry. He doesn't even care about the toys; he wants shiny remotes and phones.

Your book is very honest.
Yeah it definitely is -- that's what I planned on doing from the start. This is for the people who follow me and want to get to know me more. I had a true Hollywood story and a lot of people were touched by it. I wanted to go a little deeper than that and go into more detail.

The whole thing with the Playboy mansion was a little creepy -- you were Hef's "girlfriend" and he's old enough to be your grandfather. Don't you think it was weird?
No. That's Hugh Hefner, and I had a choice, and I made it. I was 18 at the time and I was a free-spirited, fun girl. Five years down the line, when I moved out, that's when I finally realized who Hugh Hefner really is. Hef is one of the greatest people I've ever met in my life. He's one of my mentors. Yeah, his lifestyle is having a couple of girlfriends, but you know what? He's an honest person. He doesn't live his life in a lie. Men cheat on their wives. He's a person who says I'm not going to cheat on anyone. I'm going to let these women know and make a decision.

You had a curfew, though. That was weird.
Yeah the curfew thing was kind of weird, I agree. I'd just graduated high school and going right from that to a nine o'clock curfew wasn't the best thing. It was a little hard on me.

You had some wild teen years with drugs. How are you going to make sure Hank Jr. doesn't go down the same path?
I'm a very strong person. He has two great loving people raising him. He has nothing but love around him. We're going to guide him in the best way we can. The biggest thing is communication, it's learning from home. Life shouldn't be all by the book -- you need to go off course. When the time comes to discuss this stuff, then the time comes. You can't plan it or go by the book.

Feel lucky you came out of it in one piece?
For sure. You know that wasn't for me. Your childhood makes you who you are in the future. That's why they say children are your future. You've got to make sure children have a chance to be kids and go play. When they're out there playing forts, they have those memories. When you're doing stupid stuff like drugs like me, I was remembering my own childhood and I was saying, "What am I doing right now? Here I am destroying all my youth, all my fun, the person I should be right now. Here I am killing myself. This is not me right now. Here I am doing drugs and I could be playing soccer, which I love to do."

And you played softball, which has a tradition for being sort of...
Of course -- I grew up playing with lesbians. I still play softball; I play third base and center field. I was always the person who made fun of cheerleaders because I hated the girly girls. I was never a girly girl. I always looked in the mirror and saw a boy. That's what made me think, "Am I lesbian?" But I came to find out I wasn't. I was curious at a young age.

http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=878123&pid=878122&uts=1278438760

http://www.popeater.com/mm_track/popeater/tv/?s_channel=us.tvpop&s_account=aolpopeater,aolsvc&omni=1&ke=1

http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf

Kendra Wilkinson Snapshots

Kendra Wilkinson appears during a Fourth of July weekend celebration at the Moorea Beach Club at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino July 3 in Las Vegas. More photos >>

Getty Images for MGM Resorts Int

Getty Images North America

Kendra Wilkinson Snapshots

©BAUER-GRIFFIN.COM Kendra Wilkinson and husband Hank Baskett prepare to depart from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) NON-EXCLUSIVE July 05, 2010 Job: 100705P6 Los Angeles, California www.bauergriffin.com www.bauergriffinonline.com

Kendra Wilkinson Snapshots

You haven't seen your dad in years, correct?
I heard through the grapevine that he wants to talk to me.

Doesn't it bug you he wants to talk now that you're famous?
Yeah, it hurts me. I've been with my show producer for seven years and he's like, "It'd make a great episode if your dad came back and you two reconciled and made up." I was like, "That's not funny." That would make me think that after all these years, he would not show up on my doorstep, but then he's going to show up for a TV camera. That's not going to happen, I'm sorry.

Have you nixed story ideas?
Yeah, I'm just as much a producer. My ideas are mostly what you see. It's really cool to see my idea on TV. It makes me think that I could possibly have a career as a producer behind the cameras rather than in front. That's my plan.

So you're saying in ten years you hope to be producing a Steven Spielberg movie.
[Laughs] I'd be interning. I'd love to learn.

See Kendra's visit to 'The Today Show'

Follow Us on Twitter Friend Us on Facebook

Tags: Kendra Wilkinson

Comments

(18)

Wednesday 07 July

By GingerRoot

Vote down Vote up Report this

Guess there's hope for Shiloh after all.

By WORLDCUP

Low Ranked Vote down Vote up Report this

Life is so lonely. Are you looking for w ealthy men and sexy women for relationship or marriage?
Maybe you want to check out ==== We althy Social(co /m) ====. It's the largest and best club for seeking CEOs, athletes, doctors, lawyers, investors, entrepreneurs, beauty queens, fitness models, and Hollywood celebrities. It also features certified milliona ire and verified beautiful women. What’s the most important is: you dont have to be a milliona ire, but you can meet one. I believe you will success there since thousands of singles, include me, have found true love there ;-) I believe you will success there since thousands of singles have found true love there. dsagfwqsf

By ashley

High Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

holy hell kendra i really used to like u but now jump off the publicity horse and take care of your son, be a good wife and mother dont air your business everytime you think it will make you some money grow up!! you only became famous cause you slept with hugh

By Brad

Holy hell Ashley. Stay in school until you learn that sentences start with a capital and end with a period.

By joan

I absolutely Love Kendra and hope her book does really well. her little guy Hank Jr is just the cutest baby. Out of all of the Girls Next Door she is my favorite one.
Kendra YOU GO GIRL. Hope your show was picked-up for another season.

By mstrunn400

Joan, why in God's name would you like or even watch this bimbo, who has absolutely no talent and like Kate is seeking any and all publicity that she can? Why would you or anyone else put this trolip on a pedestal? The show is terrible unless you like watching her smoke cigars and attempt to cook while twirling her hair constantly, she cannot put a full sentance together but can try and sell workout videos showing her shake her booty, which she has had much practice at, it's people like you Joan that keep
talentless people like Kendra and Kate around, I'm sure you can find someone better to watch.

By gobluespartyon

Mstrunn400 you're a loser that needs to get a life and all your claims are lies. Kendra is very entertaining and is funny as well so it isn't a terrible show as you have claim either so your wrong.

By Nico Toscani

Did she see herself as a skank ho who would prostitute herself to an octogenarian? No? Just as a stripper then I guess...

Your a loser that needs to get a life since your judgemental and a troll. Kendra is no shank or ho or prostitute as you have claim which is a lie you should grow up Nico. What a moron & idiot you are.

Does anybody else hear a mosquito buzzing?

Sunday 11 July

That most be you Nico you're always wrong about everything and know what your talking about. Your The Mosquito Nico buzzing.

By themeeker

I think we've had more than enough of this boring loser. She can disappear now.

This was a very good interview popeater with Kendra. I think the book is going to be pretty good and I'm glad that she wanted to open up about her life to her fans.

By acemakr

gobluespartyon,
If this is your mentor or your idol you have taken a new low, This bimbo is successful from people just like yourself, dumb as a box of rocks!!!

gobluespartyon gives the mentally handicapped a bad name.

Thursday 08 July

By darrell

if she is your idea of a good celebrity than more power to you.

You give the mentally handicapped a bad name Nico not me. Your a dumb of the box of rocks acemakr not me. Kendra isn't a bimbo as you have claim.

By treneegrier

Only a Neanderthal man would address any woman as a "ho".

Page 1 of 1