Bridget Christina Marquardt is an American television personality, model, paranormal investigator and actress, known for her role on the reality television series “The Girls Next Door,” which depicted her life as one of Playboy Magazine publisher Hugh Hefner’s girlfriend. Take a look below for 25 more fun and fascinating facts about Bridget Marquardt.

1. Although not a Playboy Playmate, she has appeared in nude pictorials with her “Girls Next Door” co-stars and fellow Hefner girlfriends Holly Madison and Kendra Wilkinson.

2. Bridget Marquardt, born Bridget Christina Sandmeier, was born in Tillamook, Oregon.

3. Shortly after her birth, Marquardt’s mother moved the family back to California, where Marquardt was raised.

4. Her parents divorced when Marquardt was in the fifth grade.

5. Her mother remarried, and Marquardt and her younger brother Edward moved to their stepfather’s ranch, where they later gained a half-sister, Anastasia.

6. Marquardt attended Galt High School for her freshman and sophomore years and then transferred to Lodi High School, from which she graduated in 1990.

7. Marquardt graduated from San Joaquin Delta College with an associate degree.

8. She matriculated to California State University, Sacramento and graduated in 1998 with a B.A. in communications and an emphasis on public relations.

9. In 2001, she earned her Master’s Degree in Communications from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California.

10. She later took a graduate level course in broadcast journalism through UCLA Extension, which was depicted on the first season of “The Girls Next Door,” most notably when she had to be absent from her first Playboy shoot in order to take her final exam.

11. On the advice of friends who suggested she pose for Playboy Magazine, Marquardt sent a letter to Playboy, inquiring how to become a Playmate, before enrolling at San Joaquin Delta College.

12. In 1998, aged 25, she entered Playboy’s Millennium Playmate search.

13. In 2001, Marquardt moved to Los Angeles, California and did local modeling jobs and small acting roles.

14. After unsuccessfully testing twice for Playboy, she was invited to the Playboy Mansion and soon became a regular there.

15. In October 2002, after more than a year of visiting the Mansion, she was invited to move in and become one of Hefner’s girlfriends.

16. In April 2010, Marquardt announced plans for her own reality show.

17. The pilot was to begin shooting in April and would cover her life after leaving the Playboy Mansion, and on her current relationships.

18. In March 2011, she announced via Twitter that E! had decided to not pick up her reality show but stated that she was looking forward to other opportunities.

19. In 2012, she worked as a contributor to Yahoo’s Animal Nation series, writing articles and shooting related short documentary pieces.

20. Bridget is a paranormal investigator and in early 2019 she started the podcast GHOST MAGNET with Bridget Marquardt.

21. In the September 17, 2007 issue of Star Magazine, Marquardt stated that she was married, but separated and had been living in the Playboy mansion since October 2002.

22. According to the interview, her husband supported her move to Los Angeles, that they remained friends, and that they were in the process of divorcing.

23. On September 25, 2008, Bridget told E! News, “I married my best friend when I was 23, but when I realized I wanted to move to LA to follow my dreams, we separated and eventually divorced.”

24. In a December 2008 interview, Marquardt stated that she was single, and in early January 2009, it was reported that Marquardt had moved out of the Playboy Mansion to “become her own person.”

25. In late 2008, Marquardt began dating director Nicholas Carpenter, son of original Mercury astronaut Scott Carpenter. They live together in a house Marquardt purchased in Sherman Oaks. The pair became engaged in the fall of 2015.