Sharon Cintron, Miss May 1963

At First Glance, May Playmate Sharon Cintron would appear to be a rather perplexing young lady. As a denizen of Hollywood, California, a city not noted for lack of ambition on the part of its comelier citizens, she is thoroughly bored by the thought of a movie career, intends instead to become a hair stylist. Further, in a community much given to artistic temperaments and casual sophistication, she has never been known to affect worldliness in either manner or speech. And in the midst of a sensual land where women set great store by physical beauty, she appears refreshingly unimpressed by her own lush looks. At second glance, however (in Sharon's case, glances become habit forming), certain elemental truths begin to come clear: far from being a puzzle, she is instead that rarity in tinselland: a pretty girl who is uncomplicated and straightforward. "I want to be a hair stylist," she says, explaining with disarming directness, "because I like styling hair. And the money is good. Why try to be a starlet and starve?" A girl who gives no perceptible indications of imminent starvation (her 110 pounds are arranged in a healthy 36-23-36 configuration), Sharon is currently employed as a receptionist in a law office, from which occupation she hopes to save sufficient funds to finance her stint at hair-styling school. Born 18 winters ago in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, Miss Cintron trekked to California as a little girl when her mother decided on a change of scene, from the Jersey flatlands to the Golden State's pleasant hills. Sharon was schooled at Hollywood High where she developed an interest in psychology and the disarming philosophy that one should have fun and exercise to the fullest one's capacity to enjoy life. For Sharon, no small part of that enjoyment evolves from the boy-girl camaraderie of dating. "Because my father divorced my mother when I was very young, I never even knew him," she says. "So maybe I'm compensating with masculine company now. In any case, I know I like the sense of protection that comes from having a male around. I'm attracted to guys who are understanding and sympathetic – and I have a special weakness for anyone nice enough to laugh at my jokes. But I can't bear kiss-and-tell types; probably this is because I'm too trusting and am disappointed by minor betrayals." Since graduation, Sharon has continued to study applied psychology at UCLA night school, a course she calls "fascinating, sort of do-it-yourself psychoanalysis. But I don't take it too seriously. I'm too much of a nut on romance to believe that human behavior can be equated with Pavlov and his dogs. I'd rather believe in love at first sight than instinctual motor responses. Besides psychology, I'm interested in art and in yoga. Good painting has always flipped me. I like portraits best, probably because I like people. The yoga bit is recent. I haven't achieved spiritual well-being from it yet – just a sore neck. But I'm still game." Continuing to catalog the pleasures that brighten her spirits, Sharon says, "I love all foods, but most especially Japanese dishes. I go wild over sashimi – that's raw fish, but never mind, it has a lovely taste. Like a lot of my friends, I get my outdoor kicks from horseback riding and swimming. I have a thing about fixing old furniture. I like classical Spanish music, Charles Laughton movies and simple, tailored clothes. And dancing the cha-cha. And the sound of rain on windows." When asked what she wants most from life, she quietly replies, "Love. Money is nice, of course – but it can't hold hands." Miss May lives in her mother's home and sleeps in a cozy room full of antique furniture, with a color combination of white, beige and blue, an oasis which she has infused with a high degree of femininity. Attractive as the room is, the sine qua non of its interior decoration is provided only when Sharon herself is in residence – as may be witnessed on the accompanying gatefold, where our winsomely lovely Playmate thoughtfully nibbles an apple and, in the process, looks tempting enough to lure not only Adam but all his heirs as well.