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Kelly Marie Monaco (born May 23, 1976) is an American model, actress, reality television contestant and winner of Dancing with the Stars in Season 1. Since 2003, she has played the character of Sam McCall on General Hospital.

Modeling

In April 1997, Monaco became the Playboy Playmate of the Month. Throughout her tenure with Playboy in the 1990s, Monaco was also featured in many Playboy Special Edition publications.

Monaco made numerous cover appearances in other magazines such as FHM and Maxim. Along with her Maxim feature in 2005,² the magazine also awarded her 13th place on their annual Hot 100 List in May 2006.³

Acting

Monaco's first television role was on the nighttime drama Baywatch from 1997 to 1998. In addition to playing the role of Susan on the show, Monaco also was Carmen Electra's body double at times, as Electra could not swim^{citation needed}. Monaco also had minor roles in the late 1990s films BASEketball, Idle Hands, and Mumford.

Monaco had two roles on the supernatural television soap opera Port Charles: Olivia “Livvie” Locke Morley (1999–2003) and Tess Ramsey (2002–2003). When that program ended, she joined the cast of soap opera General Hospital as Samantha “Sam” McCall in September 2003.

In 2003, Monaco was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role on Port Charles. In 2006, Monaco was again nominated for a Daytime Emmy, this time for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Sam McCall on General Hospital. In 2006, Monaco also co-hosted the 33rd Annual Daytime Emmys, with Dancing with the Stars host Tom Bergeron.

In March 2009, Monaco was chosen by Donald Trump and Paula Shugart to be one of the judges for the 2009 Miss USA pageant.

Dancing

Monaco and partner Alec Mazo on Season 1 of the American edition of Dancing With The Stars.

Monaco was a cast member, and the season winner, on the ABC reality television series Dancing with the Stars, during its first season in 2005. Among the events that she experienced prior to her victory were a disappointing first episode in which she received unvarnished criticism from judge Bruno Tonioli, and a near-wardrobe malfunction in which the skimpy strap on her dress during a Latin dance number came apart.⁴

In February 2009, Monaco expanded her dancing résumé with Peepshow, a burlesque act directed by Tony Award-winning director Jerry Mitchell that plays at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Monaco starred as Bo Peep, a precocious character who discovers her sexuality throughout the show.⁵ Monaco starred alongside British pop diva and fellow Dancing with the Stars contestant Mel B, aka Scary Spice. Both Monaco and Mel B left the show in late June 2009.

Monaco is also good friends with General Hospital co-star Kimberly McCullough and has recently taken up Bhangra dancing lessons with her. Bhangra is a traditional Indian dance.⁶

Personal life

Monaco is a fan of extreme sports, and participated in the all-women's Hi-Tec Racing Series, which consisted of 12 miles of off-road running, 3–4 miles of kayaking and 12–15 miles of mountain biking, interspersed with a Marine-style obstacle course. Monaco's team came in second.⁴

On April 25, 2009, Monaco's apartment at the Planet Hollywood Hotel was ransacked by burglars. It is unclear what was taken⁷. On Sept. 8, 2009, Merrill Wetter was sentenced to 12 to 30 months in jail after pleading guilty with no contest after being caught by surveillance tape. Wetter is to pay Monaco a reported $5,000 restitution, a $25 court fee as well as $150 DNA Fee.⁸ Wetter had broken into Monaco’s penthouse while Monaco was in the bedroom and had hidden behind the bed at the time of robbery in April 2009.

Humanitarian work

Monaco and several other daytime celebrities such as Susan Lucci and Anthony Geary traveled to Kenya, Africa as a part of the Feed the Children program on July 13, 2009. Monaco, along with Geary, Lucci and the other stars, documented their journey with their own video cameras as they aided the Feed the Children founders Larry and Frances Jones in delivering food and items to the needy and accompanying them on visits to local schools, as well as an abandoned baby center built by Feed the Children. Monaco was recently on the streets of Kibera, playing with some young orphaned boys and teaching them how to say "hello" in English. Monaco and the other stars will be staying in Africa for 10 days with the Feed the Children organization.

Part of the footage will be shown during the 36th Annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards, as part of a segment titled "Daytime Gives Back." The documentary is intended to give the American public with an up-close and personal look at Kenya and its wonderful people and to raise awareness of the desperate situation faced by Africa’s poor.⁹

On October 24, 2009, Monaco took part in another volunteer day of service, the iParticipate campaign. She along with several other of her General Hospital co-stars, such as Lisa Lo Cicero, Kimberly McCullough, Leslie Charleson and more all volunteered to help beautify a local school in Los Angeles.¹⁰

Kelly Monaco is good friends with Kimberly McCullough, Laura Wright, and Jason Thompson.

TV work

• Baywatch (1997-1998)
• Late Last Night (1999)
• Port Charles (1999-2003)
• The Man Show (2000)
• Hard Copy (2000)
• Spin City (2001)
• General Hospital (October 1, 2003-present) as Sam McCall
• Dancing with the Stars (2005) as Herself
• Punk'd (2005)
• Miss USA Pageant (2009)

Filmography

• BASEketball (1998)
• Idle Hands (1999)
• Mumford (1999)

Notes

External links

• Kelly Monaco at the Internet Movie Database
• Kelly Monaco at Playboy.com