We told you that Bethenny Frankel was going to prove that she'd rather go naked than wear fur … and yesterday, we made it a reality.

The Real Housewives of New York City star stripped down on a rooftop in (surprise!) New York City.

The ad isn't ready yet, of course, but we couldn't resist giving you a small preview:

We worked with a top-notch team on this campaign, including celebrity photographer Joseph Cultice at Weiss Artists, stylist Cannon at Judy Casey, makeup artist extraordinaire Ingeborg at Workgroup, and fantastic hairstylist Stacey Weinstein at Loft 26.

The ad will be released this fall, so stay tuned!

Posted by Amanda Schinke

Sex sells, but if you think it's only ladies who bare all to bring attention to the plight of animals—think again. Feast your eyes on some of the sexy male celebrities who've spiced up PETA's campaigns by stripping, and then name your favorite in the comments section below.

Grab some ice water, because it's about to get very hot.

Am I allowed to admit that Jamie Bamber's ad is my favorite? Which one is yours?

• Fans of bear bare skin were left seeing stars (and not much else), thanks to Battlestar Galactica's Jamie Bamber, who took it off for bears killed for their fur.
• Vroom, vroom! Motocross rider Carey Hart sported his tattoos—and not much else—in our anti-fur ad.
• Steve-O's "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ad is how I learned that "Your Name" is inked on Steve-O's butt.
• Owain Yeoman's pro-vegetarian ad is sure to drive any girl "mental."
• Adult film star Ron Jeremy's enormous … um … fan base grew even bigger after he appeared in a provocative PETA spay-and-neuter ad.
• Pulses everywhere pounded when The Young and the Restless star Kristoff St. John exposed his sexy skin in our "Be Comfortable in Your Own Skin" ad.
• Forget oysters! Everyone knows that a sense of humor is a better cruelty-free aphrodisiac. Case in point: comedian David Cross, bare-assed in our "Wear Your Own Fur" ad.
• Neon hair never looked so hot as it did on former basketball champion Dennis Rodman, who scored a slam-dunk with his "Think Ink, Not Mink" ad.
• Bad-boy rock superstar Tommy Lee is looking very good in our "Ink, Not Mink" ad.
• Are you ready for some hardcore action? Agnostic Front and Disasters frontman Roger Miret's Kentuck Fried Cruelty ad should fix you right up.

You're welcome.

Posted by Karin Bennett

Our favorite naked vegan has written a new book, The Kind Diet, which comes out in October. The book is all about living a vegan lifestyle, and Alicia had some great things to say to Health about the benefits of eating cruelty-free:

daemonstv / CC

"You can hear your needs and desires more clearly. You're just more juicy—there's just this lightness that happens."

"Once you're informed, then you can be really gentle and kind to yourself, by giving yourself all the gifts life has to offer—like mental clarity and vitality—all while making the planet better."

"It's weird to be 32 now and feel and look younger. What saved me was my love of animals. Right after I first made the switch to a plant-based diet, people were literally telling me, 'What have you done? You're sparkling.'"

I think I'm going to print myself a T-shirt. It'll either read, "Sparkling, Juicy Vegan" or "Juicy Like Alicia." Decisions, decisions …

Posted by Amanda Schinke

OK, she's not really naked in the interview below, but I did see her naked on the subway. And so can you! Proving that she's oh-so-comfortable in her own skin, the stunning star of Big Momma's House and Are We There Yet? recently bared it all on the subway for PETA's latest "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ad. And let me tell you: Nia Long + subway + naked = one of PETA's sexiest ads to date. What made the alluring actress get onboard our anti-fur campaign? Well, let's let Nia tell you for herself in this PETA Files exclusive interview:

Posted by Amy Elizabeth

allday.msnbc.msn / CC

Now that we've gotten a sneak peak, it's pretty obvious to us where that butt belongs: starring in one of our iconic "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ads. So, while Ricky (and his bum) have the spotlight, we've asked him to consider joining others like Steve-O and fellow Olympic swimmer Amanda Beard, who have gotten naked to help the animals who are skinned alive for fashion.

I have a feeling that Ricky is going to like the idea of adding "champion for animals" to his growing list of accomplishments, but feel free to leave a comment and let him know you want to see that booty in full glory. If he agrees, we'll be sure to post pictures for all you ladies.

Posted by Liz Graffeo

Sculptor Antony Gormley has launched a new artistic endeavor, the One & Other project, in London. He's recruited 2,400 "living sculptures" to stand atop the famous "Fourth Plinth" in Trafalgar Square. Each person gets an hour on the 8-meter-high plinth (which is usually used to display artwork) to do whatever he or she would like—and one lucky PETA Europe supporter was granted a place!

Natalie Simpson sparkled as a sultry mermaid who asked people to go vegetarian.

We're so proud of Natalie for daring to show a little skin in order to save the skins scales of other thinking, feeling beings. If you want to be like Natalie and stand up for animals, take our Pledge to Be Veg for 30 Days and give a fish-friendly diet a try.

Posted by Liz Graffeo

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) held its annual convention in Seattle this weekend and—despite public outcry—allowed attendees to participate in a dead-fish toss.

I don't know about y'all, but when I'm looking for an "outrageously fun" time, I go dancing. I don't throw around corpses. So to remind the AVMA that sea kittens feel pain just as dogs and cats do—and to provide a memorable image of the suffering that the AVMA willingly supports—we held a stunning demonstration in front of the conference for all attendees and Seattleites to see:

Our eye-catching display reminded people that the AVMA was responsible for suffocating sea kittens.

Is it just me, or did the guy in the middle kind of luck out with the seating arrangement?

Weekend shoppers and media personnel spent much of their time admiring these "dead fish."

In the words of PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman, "The AVMA is a trade group that often sides with animal abusers, not with animals. People expect more from the very people who are charged with helping and protecting animals."

Hopefully the attention-grabbing demonstration armed people with some future lifesaving knowledge.

Posted by Christine Doré

banbloodsports / CC

It turns out that bombed bull abusers are scaling back their bar tabs. This means fewer euros for merchants during this year's Running of the Bulls. In the past, these businesses have cashed in on the annual torment and killing of hapless, hopeless bulls. But this year, the global recession means that local businesses won't be making as much of a profit from the misery of the bulls.

Not only that, but according to NPR, polls show that most Spaniards have no interest in bullfighting. In Catalonia alone, nearly 200,000 people have signed a petition asking the regional parliament to ban this barbaric "ritual."

While this is hopefully the beginning of the end for an industry that should have died off with the Spanish Empire, you can save money and animals by doing more than simply tightening your belt. Sign up to take that belt—and the rest of your clothes—off altogether as a member of PETA's Action Team. It won't cost a dime, but the potential to raise awareness is priceless.

Posted by Shawna Flavell

Dancing With the Stars—not only a staple of my DVR schedule but also a place to find some serious PETA reppin'. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba and celeb dancers Holly Madison and Steve-O have all starred in some intensely sexy ads for PETA, and even though our faves have already been kicked off, the cast has stepped it up a notch with this fantastic spoof of our "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ad series. Check it out … it's almost funnier than the time Steve Wozniak attempted "The Worm":

Posted by Christine Doré

Spoiler alert: If you haven't watched the series finale of Battlestar Galactica, do not read any further. Simply look at the photos below, then leave a comment telling us which public service announcement is your fave, Tricia "Six" Helfer's or Jamie "Lee Adama" Bamber's.

So the greatest show in the history of the universe, Battlestar Galatica, has come to an end, and now I have no idea what the frak I'm going to do with my Friday nights. (Wait, did someone just whisper Dollhouse into my ear?)

I loved that an underlying theme of the series was mankind's failure to learn from our mistakes and that it was our worst traits that led directly to our unraveling again and again. That leads me to lovely Tricia Helfer's character, Six, and the character everyone loves to hate, Gaius. Isn't it ironic that a version of the Six Cylon and Gaius would end up being angels (naughty, naughty angels) who would start the cataclysmic events that would end humankind? I think someone here at PETA anticipated that Tricia's character would turn out to be an angel; after all, we did ask her to star in our first-ever "Angel for Animals" ad in behalf of felines long before the finale was in sight.

The finale, while amazing, left me with mixed feelings. I was so excited to watch it, but at the same time, I was sad that the show had come to an end. I admit that I expected more … um … well, more carnage. I was positive that all the humans were actually Cylons, and I was convinced that more of the prominent cast members would die. And I kept thinking that the Cylons had one last sinister plot up their sleeve. Or that they were going to blow up the Galactica and kill everyone. I'm so glad I was wrong!

I would have been devastated if they had killed off my favorite characters, like Helo (did someone mention Dollhouse again?) and Lee "Apollo" Adama (aka Jamie Bamber), who, by the way, looked amazing in the last few episodes (and is by far the cuter of the two Adama boys), but not as good, of course, as when he took it all off to speak up for bears who are killed for their fur in the super-hot "Bare Skin, Not Bear Skin" ad. Oh, Jamie. And I love that, like every episode before, they kept us guessing. Well done, BSG writers!

As pretty as Tricia's ad is, Jamie's is still my favorite. Sigh. Check out their ads below and then tell us which one is your favorite. The reader with the most convincing response will win a copy of the ad of their choice.

You can enter the contest by posting a comment before April 13, 2009. We'll contact the winner on April 14, 2009. By commenting, you are agreeing to the contest terms and conditions and our privacy policy.

Thanks for some awesome television, BSG. I miss you already.

Posted by Patricia Trostle

P.S. I have to say that I think the high point of the finale for me was when Chief strangled Tory for shooting Cally out the airlock. I actually yelled out, "Yes! Finally!" It made my night.

Considering that Tiger Woods' life is essentially a media circus, we hope that the superstar golfer can relate to the plight of his namesakes in the circus. That's why we've written a letter to Tiger asking him to tee up for one of our ever-popular naked tiger demos. We're hoping that Mr. Woods will show his true stripes by stripping down to his skivvies and painting his body with orange and black stripes—something like the (awesome) photo illustration below:

We think Tiger would look great in body paint.

Quite a change from the traditional polo shirt and Nike cap, but, hey, we can dream, can't we?

Posted by Alisa Mullins

With Watchmen hitting theaters recently, comics are having yet another moment in the pop-culture sun. And if you're a fan of the indies, you probably know Bluewater Comics. You may have read their "sequels" to some of your fave Hollywood mythology films—like The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, Clash of the Titans, and Jason and the Argonauts—or you might be more familiar with their monthly books, such as 10th Muse. But I bet you didn't know that the people behind Bluewater are huge PETA supporters. Although, based on how awesome they are, I'm sure it's not exactly a shock.

Our friends at Bluewater have just created the latest ad in PETA's "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" series, featuring four of their biggest stars—Emma Sonnet from 10th Muse, Diana Moore of JudoGirl, Scarlet of VSS: Nemesis Rising, and Isis from the Legend of Isis—posing au naturel to protest the cruel fur industry. Check out the ad below:

Why are the lovely ladies of Bluewater taking it up (er, off?) with the fur industry? Animals on fur farms spend their entire lives in cramped, filthy cages and are killed by neck-breaking, head-stomping, or anal or vaginal electrocution.

Who's the next comic book character you want to see in an ad for PETA? Let me know by posting a comment below. Personally, I'm voting for my man Hellboy (I just finished Darkness Calls and it was great!).

Posted by Dan Shannon

First, they brought us The Miracle Beer Diet (a weight-loss fad sweeping college campuses across the country). Now, the folks at Liv Films—the evil geniuses behind some of the hottest and most hilarious videos ever to hit YouTube—are back with what I consider their masterpiece: "Go Naked or Wear Fur?"

Inspired by our popular Jenna Jameson ad, this hilarious short features Mona Gillen (the hot half of the husband-and-wife team behind Liv Films) battling Totally Traci (don't ask, just watch) as Mona tries to prove to PETA why we should let her flash her flesh for a "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ad. Mmmm, let's see: She's hot, she's vegan, she loves animals, she likes to get naked, and she's pleading to work with us. Yeah, we think she has what it takes. As Mona requests in her video, we did get in touch with her and her hubby Jed (the writer/director) and are looking forward to working together on future projects. So keep an eye out for that. Until then, here are a couple of things that you can do to keep busy:

A. Get your read on with the recently released second edition of Jed Gillen's book Obligate Carnivore: Cats, Dogs & What It Really Means to Be Vegan.

B. Get your watch on with "Go Naked or Wear Fur?":

Posted by Amy Elizabeth

Whether he's fighting for justice on TV or in the real world, one thing's for sure: Jamie Bamber is a hottie with a heart! Can't get enough of Apollo? We're giving away a Battlestar Galactica DVD to one lucky commenter! To enter the contest, post a comment below and let us know what you hate most about fur.

You can enter the contest by posting a comment before March 11, 2009. We'll contact the winner on March 12, 2009. By commenting, you are agreeing to the contest terms and conditions and our privacy policy.

Oh, and speaking of sexy Battlestar Galactica cast members … let's not forget the gorgeous "Angel for Animals" ad that Tricia Helfer—or Six, to BSG fans—did on behalf of her feline friends. She's the hottest "toaster" in any universe.

Posted by Lianne Turner

As the Midwest's snowy winter drags on, PETA beauties have been heating things up. They recently flocked to a KFC in Champaign, Illinois, to tell customers the "naked" truth about how cold-hearted KFC abuses chickens. After hearing the gruesome details, I think it's safe to say that many would-be customers were seriously thinking about flying north to one of the KFCs in Canada that sell the delicious faux chicken sandwich.

Check out these pictures of the demonstration and tell us what you think:

Posted by Liz Graffeo

NBC may have stopped us from delivering an educational sex talk to Super Bowl viewers, but they can't stop us from taking the veggie love on the road with a Katy Perry–inspired "bed-in." Our lingerie-clad beauties hit the streets to show the public that vegetarians make better lovers, and these ladies do kiss and tell.

Eating meat has been linked to all kinds of health problems. Let's just say that if you still eat meat, Cupid's arrow might not fly quite so straight this Valentine's Day.

Want to impress your special someone? You could start off with a weekend getaway followed by a box of delicious (aphrodisiac) chocolates, and then move on to a sexy vegetarian V-Day meal. (Don't forget to comment and thank me later.)

Here are some other pictures from our recent "Fur Out, Love In" demos in Santa Fe:

Posted by Lianne Turner

All across our great nation, bikini-clad PETA members have been out in full force, snatching media attention and educating the public about cruelty to animals. If only math classes used such brilliant strategies, we'd all be calculus whizzes!

From the International Putrid … excuse me, Poultry Expo in Atlanta to the slushy streets of Flint, Michigan, our bevy of beauties shared the facts with fascinated passersby. Take a peek at the action:

These ladies took up positions in their battery cages outside the International Poultry Expo to remind people that chicks suffer in the egg industry.

Our fierce "bunnies" braved freezing flurries in Flint to get out the fur-free message.

In South Carolina, this painted lady told circusgoers that wild animals don't belong behind bars.

The reception for our pro-chicken "chicks" was anything but chilly in Tucson, Arizona.

Impressive work, ladies! You braved the cold to help our voiceless friends. From my warm office, I raise my soy hot cocoa to you.

Posted by Missy Lane

Apparently, NBC has something against girls who love their veggies. After we submitted our proposed Super Bowl ad, which features a comely crop of models demonstrating their fondness for fresh produce, NBC nixed the ad, saying it "depicts a level of sexuality exceeding our standards." No joke, this is straight from NBC—so stop fondling your fruit salad right now and read the list of shots NBC requested we cut before they’d reconsider:

• licking pumpkin


• touching her breast with her hand while eating broccoli


• pumpkin from behind between legs


• rubbing pelvic region with pumpkin


• screwing herself with broccoli (fuzzy)


• asparagus on her lap appearing as if it is ready to be inserted into vagina


• licking eggplant


• rubbing asparagus on breast

Wow, that list even made us blush! You can read the full NSFW letter from NBC here and then watch the video out to see what the controversy is all about.

OK, I'll admit, it's not the Jonas Brothers eating apple pie, but it sure does drive home the fact that vegetarians make better lovers. And I'm pretty sure that most Super Bowl fans would find the ad a lot more appealing than the impotence and other not-so-sexy effects that a steady stream of chicken wings and burgers can have on their love lives.

Why so grouchy NBC? Sounds like someone’s not getting enough um…vegetables. I’m thinking network execs could really benefit from a broccoli booty call.

That said, what do you think about our sexy Super Bowl ad? Do you agree with NBC's decision to reject it?

Posted by Amy Elizabeth

PETA's Lettuce Ladies are on the road again! And this time they're kicking America's poor eating habits to the compost heap.

The lettuce-clad ladies are hittin' the streets to greet folks with delicious and free Tofurky sandwiches. Their goal: to get people to turn over a new leaf and go vegetarian for the new year. Check out these photos from the road:

Lettuce Lady and satisfied Tofurky customer in Iowa

Lettuce Ladies adored by the masses in Nebraska

The Lettuce Ladies don't have to be the only sexy veggies roaming the streets. If you make PETA's 30-Day "Pledge to Be Veg" before the end of the month, we will donate money to a program that plants fruit trees! Now, you can help yourself, the environment, animals, and the hungry just by making one simple change to your diet. That's a pretty sweet deal.

Posted by Jennifer Cierlitsky

I am super-excited to reveal to you our brand new "Rather Go Naked" ad, starring none other than gorgeous reality TV star Khloe Kardashian!

If you've ever watched Keeping Up With the Kardashians—and who hasn't?—you've probably noticed that Khloe can be the most outspoken of the Kardashian clan. She's never afraid to tell it like it is, and that's why we're so proud to have her speak up about fur. As you may have guessed, she's so against fur that she'd rather go naked!

There was a live unveiling of Khloe's ad in L.A., and Khloe has invited all her local fans to came out and support her. Check out the photos and video from the unveiling here:

You can also enter to win your very own copy of Season 1 of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. So go, enter, and enjoy the new ad!

Posted by Amanda Schinke

Like pretty much everyone else on the planet, we at PETA have a YouTube account. Unlike (most) other accounts, we use ours to broadcast and share PETA's funny and provocative ads and public service announcements. Turns out that some of our ads may have been a little too hot for TV YouTube.

After uploading our "Sexy Celebs" video—which features some of our best, hottest, and "nakedest" celebrity ads—we found that, within the week, the video had been rejected and our account temporarily suspended. Oops! Sorry, YouTube! We knew that PETA's ads are often too hot for TV—but we didn't know that you would object to a little friendly side-boob too!

Though YouTube might not be too happy with our video (maybe we'll work on one using burkas soon), we're still more than happy to show it to you if you promise to pass it on. Behold—a video you won't find anywhere else!

It's not just side-boob that YouTube has recently banned. They have also banned other videos of ours in the past, including our (actually pretty tame) "When I Grow Up" video and footage from our Turkey Farm Investigation. Give them a look and judge for yourself! Do you think YouTube was right to ban these videos?

Posted by Sean Conner

Smokin'-hot Filipina model Alicia Mayer is teaming up with PETA Asia-Pacific once again. This time, the FHM cover girl stars in not one but two super-sexy new ads.

Posing in plastic wrap, Alicia says, "No one wants to be treated like a piece of meat." The stunning actor knows that the easiest way to end cruelty to animals is to go vegetarian.

Alicia pulls off Saran Wrap better than Kathy Bates in Fried Green Tomatoes.

In her second ad, Alicia holds a limp banana next to a tagline that not-so-subtly points out the connection between meat-eating and impotence. Alicia will likely make many men think twice about their meat addictions!

No one wants a limp banana!

Alicia Mayer has got what it takes: a killer body and compassion for animals. Want to follow Alicia's lead? Pledge to go veg for 30 days!

A few months ago, we shared photos from the Times Square launch of our "Clean Your Conscience" shower campaign. The campaign highlights that it takes 5,000 gallons of water to produce just 1 pound of meat.

I wanted to let you know that we definitely didn't stop the campaign following the NYC demo. In recent months, we've taken the shower, our soapy ladies, and the message that producing 1 pound of meat uses roughly the same amount of water as six months' worth of showers to Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, Rochester, and more. In each city, we've gotten loads of media and spectator attention, meaning that thousands upon thousands of people have learned that if they care about the environment, they should go vegetarian today.

Here are some of the highlights from the tour:

If we haven't hit your city yet, don't worry. The tour—and the message that "1 Lb. of Meat = 6 Months of Showers"—is still going strong. Next up, our now squeaky-clean ladies will be showering in Columbus and Pittsburgh.

Posted by Carrie Ann Harris

Gossip gurus are all worked up over recent rumors that PETA supporter Jenna Jameson is pregnant. Jenna recently stripped down to her birthday suit and slipped beneath the sheets (again, which you can win!) to appear in our new animal birth control ad.

Jenna definitely knows a thing or two about birth control—and she understands the necessity of birth control for animals too. Why is it so important? She says:

Until dogs and cats can go on the pill or wear condoms, we need to help them practice safe sex—by spaying and neutering. Millions of homeless animals are turned in to shelters every year because there simply aren't enough good homes for them all. The answer is as easy as ABC: Animal Birth Control, which means get your Fido of Fluffy fixed!

Jenna can decide for herself whether or not she has the time, love, patience, money, and desire to have a baby—animals cannot.

You can comment until August 29, 2008, to win Jenna's autographed sheets (how hot is that?). We will contact the winner on September 3, 2008. Be sure to read the contest terms and conditions and PETA's privacy policy before you comment—you're acknowledging that you have read and agree to both by leaving a comment.

View behind-the-scenes footage of the photo shoot here.

Amanda Beard, the incredibly gorgeous U.S. swimmer, has posed naked for a brand-new anti-fur ad, just as the Olympics are about to kick-off in Beijing.

The Olympic gold medalist unveiled the stunning "Be Comfortable in Your Own Skin" ad just hours after Beijing officials stopped her from holding a news conference, reportedly for "safety" reasons. Hmm, what’s so dangerous about a naked lady?! So the swimmer simply moved her location and revealed the stunning ad to a swarm of reporters and TV cameras elsewhere.

Given that Beijing is hosting the Summer Olympic Games this year and the horrific conditions that have been documented on Chinese fur farms, now is a great time to remind folks that animals grow fur to protect themselves from the elements, not to cover 100-lb. fashionistas from paparazzi camera flashes.

The ad shows that she's comfortable in her own skin and doesn't need to steal anyone else's. During the shoot Amanda sat down with us and explained: "I'd much rather go naked than ever put a dead animal on my body." Well said, Amanda!

You can get on board by signing our pledge to go fur-free pledge.

Photos from Amanda's unveiling in Beijing:

Photo Credit: Patrick Alleyn

Earlier today, I brought you an image of a giant dinosaur attacking DC to help end animal testing. I’m no mind-reader, but I’m fairly confident that the following, word for word, is exactly what went on inside your heads when you saw that picture:

“This is the greatest thing that I have ever seen. Ever. It will be literally impossible for Jack to top this in a subsequent PETA Files entry.”

Well, you were wrong, people. You were wrong. Because, difficult as it may be for you to imagine, there is one thing that's even better than a giant dino rampaging through our Nation’s capital. And we pulled it off yesterday afternoon in Times Square: The first-ever girl/girl shower demonstration. The purpose of the demo was to remind passersby and the media—just in time for Earth Day—that if they’re worried about the environmental devastation caused by wasting water, they should cut it off at the source … by going vegetarian. Just to spell this point out, it takes 5,000 gallons of water to produce just one pound of meat. Which is roughly equivalent to about a full year’s worth of showers (depending on how clean of a person you are).

Now that you’ve patiently sat through the math lesson, here are some pics of two girls and a naked cowboy in a shower. Yup, the naked cowboy himself (who is normally very territorial about his space in Times Square) was gracious enough to hop in with these kickass activists, telling reporters that he was doing it “for the animals — like me.” Glorious.

With a bit of help from celebrity photographer Christopher Ameruoso, Girls Next Door star Holly Madison has created a downloadable video for the iPhone based on her amazing Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur ads. Proceeds from the video will go to benefit PETA’s anti-fur campaign. If you’re lucky enough to have an iPhone, and you want to make it even more beautiful by putting Holly Madison in it, you can download the PSA here. Thank you, Holly!

Greetings from peta2!

Being the wild youth that we are over at peta2, since Jack is away we thought we'd take this opportunity to, well, bum rush the blog and tell you what's going on in our neck of the woods. And there's a lot.

Right now we're in the midst of a SuicideGirls blitz. More than 40 nearly nude SuicideGirls—45 to be exact—stripped down to their tats and piercings to star in a series of provocative new "Ink, Not Mink" and "I'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" anti-fur ads for peta2. The SuicideGirls for those of you not in the know, are members of a 1,500-strong all-female online pin-up community.

The ads, which are a bit risqué for some of peta2's younger visitors, are being released throughout the month on peta2's MySpace page where you'll be able to read blogs from some of the SuicideGirls who took part in the campaign.

We launched the super sexy ads at a big bash at The Roxy in LA on Valentine's Night, where there was standing room only. Nicole, who has been tirelessly working on this campaign since October, had this to say about the party, "We were thrilled to see that so many people came out to party with peta2 and the SuicideGirls to support such a great cause! And the ads turned out beautifully!"

Check out some of the pix of the event.

Vegan beauty Annalise Braakensiek was recently asked by Cleo magazine to offer a signed photo up for auction to raise money for her favorite charity … which just happens to be our friends over at PETA Asia Pacific. The stunning image that Annalise is donating on PETA AP’s behalf was published in Cleo magazine with a blurb about why animal rights issues are so important to her. If you’re a fan (and who the hell wouldn’t be, after seeing this pic?), you can bid for the photo on e-bay until February 8. Happy auctioning!

Seems like there’s been quite a bit of naked going on lately, especially with all the work that went into putting together this year’s glorious State of the Union Undress, but these images—from a recent anti-fur demonstration in Barcelona—are way too good to pass up. Dozens of activists gathered to draw attention to the cruelty of the fur industry on Monday, and the results are just incredibly compelling.

Check out the photo gallery here.

And there’s a nice piece about the event here.

Now I know why my friends Allie and Virginia came into the office this morning a slightly different color than normal (respectively, a sort of off-yellow and a nice olive green). Pics from this beautiful demonstration in Times Square have been circulating around the ol' blogosphere today—the girls were outside the M&Ms World store to let passersby know that Mars Candy performs cruel tests on animals. In violation of its own written policy, the candy company is currently funding a study at UC San Francisco in which rats are force-fed by having plastic tubes shoved down their throats, then cut open and killed. In addition to our boycott of the company, PETA is filing a legal complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over Mars' false statement.

Anyway, enough of the depressing stuff for now. Check out the great pics below, and if you feel like helping out with our campaign, I’ve also posted the code for our anti-Mars Web banner for anyone who wants to put it on their site. You can learn more about the campaign here.

<a href="http://www.marscandykills.com"><img border="0" alt="xmas_mnm.gif" src="http://blog.peta.org/archives/xmas_mnm.gif" width="405" height="105" /></a>

Blogs that have covered this story

Faded Youth
Celebrity Mound
All that’s Fab
Jonathan Jaxson

Australian supermodel Imogen Bailey has helped us with numerous campaigns over the years, speaking out on issues as diverse as the fur industry, rodeos, and elephants in captivity. And she’s just launched a whole new website devoted to educating people about animal rights and giving animal-lovers a forum to discuss the issues. So I wanted to give it a quick shout out: You can check out Imogen Bailey’s ImForAnimals here. But before you go, have a look at this stunning ad she made to let people know about the cruelty behind rodeos. You’re a star, Imogen.

Alright people, fun’s over. You had your day with Joel talking about soy nog and “smiles”. Now it’s time to get back to work. Today we will be going over the finer points of whether a coherent liberationist ethic can be constructed from strictly utilitarian arguments (or whether some sort of deontological consequentialism is necessary to round out the debate), and throughout next week, I will be doing a series on recent addenda to the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act. There will be a quiz on Friday to make sure everyone takes it all in.

Now, here’s a picture of the serious work I was doing yesterday while Joel was goofing off back at the office. We spent the afternoon outside the British Embassy in DC to remind the British Ministry of Defense that the “world is watching” while they continue to needlessly slaughter black bears for their ceremonial hats. Apparently this required that we remove all of our clothes and paint our naked bodies like flags. Hey, I just do what I’m told. The demonstration was a blast—we met some great activists, some friendly photographers, and some very bewildered passersby, and I think the pictures came out really well. Check em out.

A bunch of flags

I’m going to be in DC tomorrow, standing naked outside the British embassy painted like a British flag along with PETA members from seven other nations who will be reminding Britain that the “world is watching” while the nation condones the cruel slaughter of black bears for the Queen’s Guards’ silly ceremonial hats. Embarrassing as all this is for me, the real purpose of this post is to say that the PETA Files will be in the capable hands of my good friend Joel Bartlett during my absence tomorrow, so please treat him nice and try to bear with him if he goes off on long tangents about Star Trek or Buffy the Vampire Slayer (as he occasionally has a tendency to do).

And yes—I have a weird job. Wish me luck!

Joel Bartlett

This beautiful, beautiful e-card starring Christina Applegate got leaked last week, and it’s been all over the blogosphere already. The Samantha Who? star posed nude to help remind people to stay away from fur and fur-trim during the holiday season. Check it out—it"s gorgeous.

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I know. I know. Steve-O would rather go naked than do just about anything. But it’s still cool that wearing fur makes that very long list. In fact, Steve-O feels so strongly that killing animals for their fur is just plain wrong that he jumped—literally—at the chance to star in these new ads.

While Steve-O is famous for putting himself in all sorts of painful situations, he’s totally clear about what he thinks of hurting animals. "Abuse yourself all you want," he says, "just leave animals out of it. Don't wear fur." Check out what else Steve-O had to say in this video from the photo shoot.

PETA's Senior Vice President Lisa Lange was on The O'Reilly Factor last night to talk about two of our latest ads, a sexy veggie testimonial starring Alicia Silverstone and a racy new promo for our Animal Birth Control (ABC) Campaign featuring burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese. The question at issue was whether these ads were somehow offensive. O'Reilly himself was very fair and balanced about the whole thing, and even made some positive comments about the animal protection movement, and Lisa did a great job of explaining why she believes that there's nothing wrong with a beautiful woman using sex appeal to make a point.

In fact, the only person who came out of the show looking bad was that Queen of Prudes, Fox News' Kirsten Powers, who was so scandalized by the super-sexy Dita Von Teese ad that she could barely string together a coherent sentence. Powers' blustering aside, I do think O'Reilly's question is an important one, and it's something we take very seriously at PETA. The way I see it, both Alicia's veggie PSA and Dita Von Teese's ABC ad are tasteful, professional, and, honestly, stunning, each in their own way. They do what ads are supposed to do—they grab your attention and they generate discussion about the issue.

Anyway, I'd love to hear what people think about this tactic. It won't mean that we're going to stop running sexy ads for our different campaigns to help animals (I'm busy working away on the script for next year's "State of the Union Undress" right now), but a little bit of healthy debate never hurt nobody. Except Kirsten Powers.

See Also

Politics of Power and PETA
A Photo Gallery of PETA's Naked Campaigns
Animal Rights Uncompromised: PETA's Tactics

OK, so essentially everyone in the developed world has at least heard of PETA’s “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign. At least everyone with access to a TV, computer, radio or newspaper. And, to be honest, we’re quite proud of the campaign’s success.

Other Viewing Options

It’s pretty clear we’re all about getting naked for a good cause, so I was thrilled to hear about UK-based Lush Cosmetics’ new “naked” marketing campaign. And since the company is as animal-friendly as they come, I love it even more.

TreeHugger/Creative Commons

Last night, PETA's Lisa Lange made an appearance on The O'Reilly Factor to talk about the "racy" alternative to Pamplona's hideous Running of the Bulls. The story brought tons of new people to the Running of the Nudes website last night to see what all the fuss was about, just in time to see all the amazing new pictures that’ve been put up there.

You can click the image above to check out the updated site, and if you let me know what you think of the new pics, or of the Running of the Nudes concept in general, I'll pick one commenter to win one of the highly coveted Running of the Nudes novelty pens, starring a naked (depending on which way up you hold the pen) Annamarie Lytle.

Just as an FYI, while all comments are welcome, if you leave a rant about Running of the Nudes being a shameful display of skin that's corrupting our nation's youth, I will assume that means you don't want a nudie pen.

P.S. I just got word from those laugh-a-minute party animals up in our Legal Department that if you want to be entered to win the pen it means you’re down with our terms and conditions.

The Running of the Nudes took place today in Pamplona, and, well, wow. This is the sixth year that PETA Europe has been organizing this fun alternative to Pamplona’s archaic bull run, and the thing just keeps getting bigger and bigger. I’ll be posting more news and pictures from the event as they come in, but here are the first shots from today’s naked “Human Race.”

I’m pretty excited about this one, as it’s the first time PETA is dipping its toe into Second Life. On July 12, we’re teaming up with cruelty-free designer Stella McCartney to co-host an event on a specially created island in the virtual world. Visitors to the island—which is inspired by the English countryside, with stables, picnic tables, and a Linda McCartney veggie burger stand—will be able to show support for PETA in virtual terms. All visitors will receive a bunch of cool anti-fur gear for their Second Life character to wear; you can donate money in Linden dollars, the community's currency, which PETA will be able to exchange for real U.S. dollars, and you’ll be able to dress your character in a sweet T-shirt with the slogan "I'd rather be pixilated than wear fur."

And check this out; there are real-world prizes to be won as well. We’re holding a competition on the island from July 12 - July 19 for a new PETA slogan based around the iconic tag line, "I'd rather go naked than wear fur." Prizes include two tickets to McCartney's spring 2008 show in Paris, one of the designer's Appaloosa bags and her entire Care skin care line.

For those of you already on Second Life, I’d be glad to email you when the island goes live. Just send me an email so I have your address.

Check out the gaggle of nearly naked PETA members who converged on the Spanish Embassy in Washington D.C. yesterday in a warm up for PETA UK’s sixth annual Running of the Nudes in Pamplona, Spain, to protest the cruelty of the Running of the Bulls. OK, so I guess this demo is more like the Running of the Almost Nudes since they were all rocking underwear, but still . . .

Of course in the real Running of the Nudes, most of those participants roll buck naked, save for running shoes and the red scarves that are traditionally worn during the bull run. And lots of body hair. Come on, it is in Europe after all.

Here’s the video from last year’s event.

Attention: Only watch this video if you are over 18 and if seeing naked people protesting cruelty to animals is legal where you live (the lawyers made me say that).

Click here if you want to get in on this year’s run in July.

You know what I’m saying? Seriously, it just makes me happy to be alive. Her name is Annamarie, the place is Fresno, and there was evidently a bit of a traffic jam for a while. As Annamarie puts it, "I’ll gladly bare some of my skin if it will help save animals’ skins. With all the luxurious alternatives available, there’s absolutely no excuse to wear animal skins."

And finally, in the interest of fairness, here are some boys too.

What do you do when you have more naked activists than life-size, cellophane-wrapped meat trays? Double up. At least that was how they handled it at Princeton University yesterday, to striking effect. The demonstration, which was a joint protest organized by PETA and the Princeton Animal Welfare Society to draw attention to the suffering of animals used by the meat industry, got two different front page stories in the Daily Princetonian, including this one, about a follow-up presentation given by Dan Mathews to explain in a bit more detail why PETA does these kinds of demonstration instead of just putting on a suit and tie and pointing out the various inadequacies in the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act. (The short answer, by the way, is that we do both, but people don't always show up for the latter presentation.) Anyway, here are some pics:

I've posted a couple of pictures in the past with some of the lovely ladies of PETA getting nekkid to help animals, so I figured it was high time I published a few pics of the dudes. This photo’s from a Tax Day demonstration conducted by PETA Campaigner Mike Brazell in Philadelphia to let people know that donating fur coats to PETA is tax-deductible. Mike quickly recognized that, while this is an important and useful piece of information, it doesn't exactly grab the attention like some of PETA's campaigns—so he did what any resourceful campaigner is trained to do in a difficult situation and removed his clothing. Nice work, Mike! Here are the results:

These particular photos reminded me of one of my favorite stories about my friend Matt Rice. PETA had sent out a press release about a demonstration that was going to take place in Corpus Christi, which went something like this:

"Nearly naked and covered head to toe in tiger body paint, one of PETA's beautiful "Tiger Ladies" will be in a cage in Corpus Christi this Friday to protest the cruel treatment of animals in the circus"

The press release did the trick, and a ton of media promised to come out and report on the event, which was all well and good until Matt got a call from the "Tiger Lady" at the last minute to say she couldn't make it. Fortunately, nothing fazes Matt Rice. Here's how he handled the crisis:

Rawr! Matt, you're a hero.

If for some reason you're still starving for pics of scantily clad PETA dudes, you can check out our old Broccoli Boys website here. That'll cure you for sure.

OK, I’m a little embarrassed to say it, but yeah, I saw this movie. Maybe it was the fact that I grew up with General Lee Hot Wheels cars, or that good ol' Willie Nelson plays Uncle Jessie in the movie. OK, it was neither of those things. It was because I thought Jessica Simpson looked hot in the previews . . . What can I say?

Anyway, I just found these shots of a naked anti-fur protest scene that was edited from the movie. Damn, I wish that would have made it into the final cut . . . for the animal rights message only, of course.

Now a brief note of caution: the ever so protective and well-meaning legal eagles upstairs want me to warn you that the pictures linked above show a bit of skin, and that if you’re not 18 and you look at them, your eyes will melt and your brain will explode, among other things.

Former PETA intern Ashley just sent along these great pictures from her "All Animals Have the Same Parts" pro-vegetarian demonstration yesterday for PETA’s Asia Pacific affiliate.

It seems like the whole thing went over pretty damn well. The photographers in particular look really pleased with themselves for some reason. Anyway, I just wanted to give a shout-out to Ashley, who's always willing to go that extra mile to help animals (e.g., "Hey Ashley, would you mind going to Thailand, getting naked, and painting yourself like cuts of meat to point out the absurdity of treating any living being like an object? Great, thanks."). Ashley—you're amazing. Check out the pics:

The thing about the truth is that it just never gets old, especially when there's nudity involved. The truth about the chicks raised for KFC is that they're horrifically abused and often scalded alive. The infinitely more palatable truth about these two chicks, who happen to be colleagues of mine, is that they don't have any clothes on. The hope is that the one truth will make the other truth easier to process, and, based on the reactions of some folks in KFC's hometown of Lousiville where this protest took place, it's working like a charm. Be careful not to get the two truths mixed up though—there's absolutely no good reason for boycotting naked chicks.

There are 19 more photos where that came from in The Louisville Courier Journal. The photographer just couldn't stop for some reason ...

Nothing says "Stop the bloody seal hunt" like a pile of dead, naked seal people outside your front door. We're hoping that the Canadian Prime Minister got that message loud and clear last week when these brave souls stripped off, covered themselves in fake blood, and held a “die-in” outside his office to symbolize the bloody seal-killing that happens every year on the ice floes off Newfoundland. Canada, I really do love you guys: the hockey, the maple syrup, the kickass national anthem—all that great stuff—but WTF with the baby-seal bludgeoning? Seriously: worst idea for a national tradition ever.

I’ve gotten a lot of emails since I posted the Young Guns entry asking to see more of the ads that were submitted. We’re going to eventually post them all online, but until then, you just have to trust me when I say that there’s a reason we don’t show you everything that gets sent to us.

Enough said . . . ? Thought so.

At PETA, we've always subscribed to the notion that if you have something really important to say that not everyone wants to hear, you just have to persevere until your message is heard. If that doesn't work—which, honestly, it often just doesn't—you take all your clothes off. And, just in time for this year's State of the Union Address, that's exactly what one brave PETA member has done. We're calling it PETA's State of the Union Undress, and we're hoping very, very, very much that President Bush doesn't do the same thing at the actual State of the Union on Tuesday. Check it out:

KFC employees who are used to seeing PETA's crippled chicken hobbling across the street or watching Colonel Sanders burned in effigy in front of their restaurants are in for a pleasant surprise: The KFC Campaign is finally going naked, with our brand-new "Naked Truth" demonstrations. The bad news for the company is, unfortunately, that the "naked truth" about KFC is that it's gross and unethical and abusive and, seriously, don't even think about eating there. Even if there are attractive naked girls outside. Our first Naked Truth protest was immediately picked up by the Associated Press, proving, once again, that taking your clothes off really is a great way to help chickens on factory farms—though that line never works for me for some reason.

More pics after the jump.

PETA has never been one to let clothes get in the way of a good protest, and this Holiday season is no exception. In Philadelphia this Wednesday, a few lovely PETA ladies let the folks over at Burberry know that they'd rather go naked than wear fur. For anyone who is particularly literal-minded, I should point out that there are countless great alternatives to fur other than Christmas hats, high heels, and your birthday suit, but if you really want people to listen to what you're saying, I highly recommend it as a wardrobe choice.

P.S. If you're planning on doing any last-minute shopping, may I suggest giving Burberry the cold shoulder this Christmas? It'll be good for them in the long run, and fur-bearing animals will be much obliged.

Meggan, a PETA activist in California, just sent in some great ads she made for peta2.com. This one changed my world a little bit.

The fine people of Britain weigh in on naked protests for animals.