Karla JoMusacchia, later known as Karla Conway, was born on July 5, 1946, in Pasadena, California, to a family that would soon relocate to Malibu, where she would spend her formative years.
Growing up in the picturesque coastal town, Karla developed a passion for surfing and went on to graduate from Canoga Park High School. Her life was about to take a dramatic turn, as she was discovered by Playboy magazine on the beach in Malibu in 1965.
This chance encounter led to a modeling career, with Karla appearing as a dancer in the promotional video for "Sea Cruise" by the Hondells. Her big break came when she was selected as the Playmate of the Month in the April 1966 issue of Playboy, making her one of the shortest women to pose for the magazine at just 4'11".
Karla married poet Jon Woodjack and gave birth to a son, Aaron, on January 25, 1967, in London, England. The young family soon returned to California, where Karla continued to pursue her modeling career, appearing in a small role in the car racing film "Fireball 500" and the low-budget science fiction film "Space Thing".
In 1968, Karla traveled to Denver, Colorado, where she worked as a Bunny at the Playboy Club in Aspen. She would go on to work at Playboy Clubs in Denver, Jamaica, and Los Angeles, before moving to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, in 1970 to help her father with his beachfront restaurant.
Karla would spend several years in Central America before settling down in Hawaii in 1978. It was during this time that she began to focus on her artistic pursuits, adopting the pseudonym Sachi and developing a successful career as a sculptor and painter.
Tragedy struck in 1987 when Karla's only son, Aaron, passed away. Despite this setback, Karla continued to create art, producing a sculpture of Playboy founder and editor Hugh Hefner, as well as paintings of famous rock stars.
Her artwork has been collected by a range of notable figures, including Al Gore and his wife Tipper, Michael Richards, Oprah Winfrey, and Yoko Ono, as well as corporations such as MCA Records and the Ritz Carlton Hotels. Today, Karla Conway lives in Holualoa, Hawaii, where she continues to create and inspire.
