Born on July 1, 1967, in Ladysmith, British Columbia, Pamela Anderson was Canada’s first centennial baby. Her childhood was filled with trauma—molested by a babysitter, abused by her father, and a witness to domestic violence. By her teens, she’d endured multiple assaults and heartbreaks.

Spotted on a jumbotron at a football game, she was scouted by a beer company, which led to a Playboy shoot and TV fame on Home Improvement and Baywatch. Her whirlwind marriage to rocker Tommy Lee in 1995 led to two sons—and a stolen honeymoon tape that deeply impacted her life.

After divorcing Lee, Anderson experienced more failed marriages but remained devoted to her children. She reclaimed her story with her memoir Love, Pamela and a Netflix documentary.

Now living peacefully in her hometown, she tends to her garden, writes, and embraces a natural, makeup-free life. Once a symbol of glamor, she now finds power in simplicity and solitude, saying, “I live a more romantic life alone than I did in relationships.”