The following short interview was conducted by frequent PLAYBOY contributor John Hughes, who has known Cheryl Tiegs for three years. He reports: "We talked in the morning in her suite in New York's Sherry-Netherland. Cheryl had just showered and was fresh, bright and scrubbed. She sat hunched over, with her elbows on her knees, gestured frequently with her hands, smiled a great deal and answered most of my questions quickly and impulsively. I found her to be a warm, intelligent woman who is so beautiful that I'm sure she could stop an elephant's heart at 30 paces."

Q 1

PLAYBOY: On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your looks?

Cheryl Tiegs: Compared with everybody else in the world, I'd have to say ten. People would kill me if I said an eight or a six or a two. By my own standards--oh, eight or nine. My ears stick out, but I hide that.

Q 2

PLAYBOY: If it were 1943, would you want your likeness on the nose of a B-17?

Cheryl Tiegs: Yes, yes. Because it would have given them something to dream of. And I like my image and so, therefore, I would like for them to dream of me. Part of my popularity is that I'm a real person, and I really don't have a cold exterior, I have a warmth. So I think that people want an image to look up to that is real, that is not untouchable.

Q 3

PLAYBOY: There's an old myth that beautiful girls have ugly girls for best friends. Do you?

Cheryl Tiegs: No, I have beautiful best friends. One is a model, one's in the fashion business. I like beauty, but beauty doesn't have to be physical beauty. I don't just have pretty girls as friends, but I don't have ugly people as friends.

Q 4

PLAYBOY: What was your first modeling job?

Cheryl Tiegs: I tried out for little beauty pageants and never won. My best friend, who was prettier and more charming than I, was always winning.

Q 5

PLAYBOY: Do you wear protective gear when you perform hazardous household chores?

Cheryl Tiegs: I've never done a household chore in my life.