Las Vegas Weekly

September 8, 2010 · 9:28 AM

Photos: Winner of Planet Hollywood bikini contest is crowned

By Robin Leach

The finals of Planet Hollywood's Pleasure Pool Bikini Contest on Sept. 4, 2010.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

Her bikini was so brief that it may have cost new Las Vegas resident Samantha Harris victory at the finals of the Planet Hollywood Pleasure Pool swimsuit contest. The former Hawaiian Tropic beauty pageant winner who has worked at Wet Republic as a cocktail model server had been tipped to win in a showdown against a former Miss Teen USA.

However, in a last-minute surprise, the big $5,000 win went to Las Vegas beauty Jackie Savitt in an orange and green bikini. She wowed the fun-loving crowd, working it better than all the other contestants. Courtney Orlando of San Jose, Calif., placed second in an orange and brown bikini, with a group of 14 girls in her bachelorette party cheering her on in the weekly bikini contest.

The judges, who included hypnotist Anthony Cools, dancers from Chippendales at The Rio and our own Las Vegas Weekly colleague April Corbin, were simply stunned by Samantha’s barely-there skimpy bikini, which consisted solely of three tiny red hearts that she’d designed and made herself. Even celebrity DJ Skribble almost missed a beat on his wheels of steel and Captain Morgan stopped pouring his rum samples for a second. (As April reports, the crowd booed the judges’ placement of the winners!)

“She won the previous week’s contest with a scandalous swimsuit, but that was modest compared to this one. It really just only covered three very strategic body parts to stay within the law,” our spywitness reported. “If she’d been less exposed with a little more of a traditional bikini, she would probably have won because she definitely had the winning body and looks.

“In fact, six of the previous winners just didn’t have it this time around. It was sort of strange, but the judges and the crowd went with the more friendly girls who worked it. One girl showed the fact that she thought her presence would be enough, and it cost her!”

Our thanks to contributing photographer Tom Donoghue, who has toiled hard under the summer sun and in the blistering heat while photographing the weekly contests. Now with these final shots in place, he can rest up -- and look forward to it all over again next year. It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it!

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

Share This