Shannon Tweed — Biography

Shannon Tweed has built a career appearing in and headlining numerous erotic thriller films for mainstream audiences. Her younger sibling Tracy Tweed also found success working as an actress and model. Shannon Tweed, born Shannon Lee Tweed on March 10, 1957 in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, is a retired model and actress. The Canadian television program Thrill of a Lifetime orchestrated an opportunity for her to be photographed by Hugh Hefner for Playboy magazine, leading to her selection as the Playmate of the Month for November 1981 and subsequently as the Playmate of the Year in 1982. Following this period, Tweed concentrated her efforts on television work including the HBO comedy 1st and Ten, the nighttime drama series Falcon Crest, various guest roles on Frasier, and lower-budget films. She also made an appearance on The Dukes of Hazzard during its seventh and final season. During 1985, Tweed secured a position on the daytime drama Days of our Lives, portraying the character Savannah Wilder, a role she maintained through 1987. After a short-lived romantic involvement with Hugh Hefner that overlapped with her Playmate tenure and year award, Tweed has resided with Gene Simmons, the bassist and frontman of rock band KISS, beginning in 1985. The couple has had two children together: Nicholas, born January 22, 1989, and Sophie, born July 7, 1992. The family presently participates in a reality show broadcast on A&E called Gene Simmons Family Jewels. Her younger sister Tracy, born May 10, 1965, is also an actress. The sisters have appeared together in the film Night Eyes 3, posed together for a nude feature in Playboy, and Tracy makes periodic guest appearances on Family Jewels. As of December 2023, Tweed maintains 196,000 followers on Instagram.