WARNING: The following contains SPOILERS for Pam & Tommy.
Pam & Tommy episode 6 focused entirely on Pamela’s deposition by Penthouse’s lawyer while also showing flashbacks of the events that led her to work for Playboy – but was she really discovered at a football game in Vancouver? The Hulu show reached its third to last episode, getting to the heart of the matter by showing how the public behaved differently towards Tommy Lee (Sebastian Stan) compared to Pamela Anderson (Lily James) after the tape spread. The episode showed yet another layer of double standards, embodied by how the Penthouse’s lawyer led Pamela’s deposition and the fact she was the only one asked to be there.
Pam & Tommy episode 6 also told the story of how Pamela started her modeling career in Canada. In the episode, Pamela could be seen being picked up by chance by the cameras looking for “gorgeous fans” and broadcasted on the Jumbotron. Right after that, a marketing executive approached her and asked Pamela if she had ever considered a modeling career. Pamela’s decision to call the executive eventually led her to a job at Playboy, which then led her to stardom.
While Pamela Anderson did appear on the Jumbotron during a football game in August 1989 wearing a t-shirt of the company sponsoring the beer at the game, Pam & Tommy portrayed the event as if it happened by chance. In reality, not only did Pamela’s photographer boyfriend at the time encourage her to accept the offer, but he even helped her pursue the company. Before Pamela even appeared on the Jumbotron at the football game, he had photographed her with the same t-shirt and promoted her to the company that ended up employing her.
Pam & Tommy went on to show Pamela unsure about calling the executive when at work in a restaurant. In reality, Anderson worked as a fitness instructor at the time and had already appeared as an extra on films and TV shows shot in the Vancouver area. While the Hulu show changed minor details about the event but kept the Jumbotron appearance true to fact, Anderson actively tried to launch her career, having a proactive approach instead of just being discovered as a potential model by luck as Pam & Tommy showed.
Anderson’s eager approach manifested in having some pictures taken by even another photographer to send them to the company that, in the end, employed her. The poster that Pam & Tommy showed of her being a Blue Zone Girl was initially created by her boyfriend and suggested to the company by him in reality, before the company decided to shoot an official version of it with Pamela as a model. Although mostly truthful, Pam & Tommy episode 6 painted a picture of a Pamela that had a job handed to her by luck, while in reality, Anderson actively worked to make it in the industry.
Pam & Tommy releases new episodes every Wednesday on Hulu.