Kelly Monaco was born in Philadelphia on May 23, 1976, and raised in the Poconos, a mountainous region of Pennsylvania. She got her start by posing for Playboy, and the April 1997 Playmate of the Month appeared in several of the magazine's Playmate videos as well. Shortly after her first spread for the mag, she ironically landed a role on Baywatch, after having been a lifeguard as a teen. While on the show she also appeared in several videos for Playboy and had minor roles in the films Baseketball, Idle Hands and Mumford. In 1999 she left prime-time TV for a supporting role on the soap opera Port Charles. Monaco was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for her work on the show in 2003. Later that year she left, joining the cast of General Hospital. During the summer of 2005, she competed against several other celebrities such as John O'Hurley, Rachel Hunter and Evander Holyfield on the show Dancing With The Stars and became the show's overall winner. 
