Holly Madison says her IVF journey with Hugh Hefner wasn’t shown on The Girls Next Door because she didn’t want it seen.
“I didn’t really think about including it just because, even when I did go on to have kids, I’m always the one who doesn’t want to tell anyone I’m pregnant until after the three-month mark,” Madison told Entertainment Tonight. “I just want to be safe.”
She continued, “I didn’t want all that scrutiny on something that may or may not work.”
It ultimately didn’t work — and neither did her relationship with Hefner, who was 54 years her senior and already a dad of four. After seven years of being in an open relationship — and being Hef’s “No. 1 Girl” — Madison and Hef split in 2008. Madison went on to have two children with now ex-husband Pasquale Rotella. Hefner married Crystal Harris, but died in 2017 at age 91.
“Obviously looking back I’m so glad it didn’t work ’cause I went on to have the kids of my dreams,” Madison said of Rainbow, 9, and Forest, 6. (Madison said last year that their conception problems with Hefner were “because of him. I was healthy. He was just too old.”)
Fellow Girls Next Door star Bridget Marquardt told ET that while on the E! show, which ran from 2005 to 2009, she underwent egg retrieval. She did want to include it in the show, but was told no.
Madison and Marquardt spoke to the outlet to promote their new podcast, Girls Next Level. They revisit their Playboy sanctioned reality show breaking down what was real and what was fake.
Earlier this week on the podcast, Madison and Marquardt talked about group sex with Hefner in the Playboy mansion.
“Everybody wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible,” Madison said. “None of the females were into it, like sorry to burst the bubble.”
Madison continued, “I can’t explain to you guys how embarrassing that whole routine was, especially as we got later down the road when there would be, like, a lot of conflict with the other girls. You’re literally sitting there naked having sex in front of a group of people who hate you and talk s*** about you while you’re having sex and you can hear it. It was just, like, hell.”
And as if that’s not enough, she also revealed that “Everybody used to call [Hefner] ‘Daddy’ in the bedroom” during group sex, adding, “which is so gross.”
