Karen McDougal

Karen McDougal (born March 23, 1971) is an American model and actress. She is known for her appearances in Playboy magazine as Playmate of the Month for December 1997 and Playmate of the Year in 1998, and for her alleged 10-month to year-long affair with Donald Trump before he became president. In 2001, the readers of Playboy voted McDougal the runner-up of "The sexiest Playmate of the 1990s."

McDougal taught pre-kindergarten before winning a swimwear competition that launched her career as a glamour, promotional, and swimsuit model. Since her appearances in Playboy, she extended her career into a wide variety of appearances in mainstream media, including other magazine modeling, television commercials, and minor acting, with mixed success. She has been a successful fitness model, with multiple magazine appearances, including as the first female cover figure on Men's Fitness magazine. She also starred in The Arena, a 2001 direct-to-video film, and inspired the creation of a fantasy art statuette and a doll.

McDougal is a fitness enthusiast, having studied ballet in her youth and engaged in high school sports. She is also an avid motorcycle and car collector. Since her Playmate days, she has maintained a largely private social life. The revelation of an affair with Donald Trump from 2006 to 2007, and its subsequent coverup, put her into national headlines before and after the 2016 United States presidential election.