Natasha Yi was born March 25, 1979 in a cottage near Boston, Massachusetts. The middle of three daughters in a conservative Korean family, it was clear from the start that she would one day end up in the limelight. As a child she would sing along to her heroes (Madonna, Janet Jackson and Paula Abdul), lip syncing into pretend microphones and generally playing the role of the performer. When Natasha was in her mid-teens, her family moved to Denver, Colorado. There she attended middle school and high school, a friendly girl whose childhood showiness had dwindled with adolescence. Midway through her senior year, that all changed one day at a McDonald's restaurant in Denver, where a Play..boy scout spotted her enjoying some french fries. she's a natural At the scout's request, Natasha came to an audition and posed a bit, but she ceased when she was (surprisingly) asked to remove her clothes. Having grown up in a conservative household that didn't exactly have a lot of nudie mags on the coffee table, Natasha never realized that the magazine featured women in the buff. Depending on whom you ask, she may or may not have removed her top before she grew too timid to continue, and left. That might have been the end of it if it weren't for the persistence of the good folks over at Hugh Hefner's magazine. They called her back after the audition, and asked if she'd like to come observe -- and not necessarily pose for -- a shooting session with ace Play..boy photographer Bo Hitchcock. Natasha, being a good sport, went to the session, and found herself liking the theme and content of the material: Play..boy's Natural Beauties. Concerning this session she once said, "I liked the idea of being presented as being natural and representing my culture as a beautiful, natural model." She also liked Mr. Hitchcock's professionalism, and ended up contributing her services, thus beginning a great career. newsstand darling One of her earlier sessions for Play..boy was for a newsstand special, Book of Lingerie, and it was remarkable enough to earn her a spot on the magazine's list of Top 20 lingerie models in 2000. From there the work kept coming, especially with Hefner's empire. She did more newsstand specials, like Asian Beauties, Sexy Celebrities and Wet & Wild. She was chosen as Play..boy's 2001 "Sexy Girl Next Door," and became the first Asian ever to appear on the cover of Lowrider magazine. she's got the curves After moving to California, Natasha discovered an interesting application for her talents in the automotive import scene, which spices up special-interest car shows and magazines with hot models. On a whim, she signed up as the prime model for the 2001 "Hot Import Nights," a touring auto show, and from there, gained cover shots on many import magazines. In 2002, she became the official spokesmodel for "Import Revolution," another touring event. What will she do next? Well, she has already made forays into a new medium: Hollywood. She had a small role in Rush Hour 2 with Jackie Chan, as one of the sexy masseurs, and had a bit part The Scorpion King with The Rock.