Anna Nicole Smith's sister contacted Playboy boss Hugh Hefner and asked him to give up his burial plot alongside Marilyn Monroe for her dead sibling. The tycoon, who hopes to be buried next to the movie icon at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles when he dies, admits he was floored by the strange request from Donna Hogan, which came days after the death of 1993's Playmate of the Year.

He reveals, "The sister asked if it was possible to be buried there, which I though was out of the blue."

Hefner declined the odd offer, but not out of disrespect for Anna Nicole, who he admits he liked a lot. In a new interview with news show Extra, the Playboy publisher says, “She was magic in front of the camera... She was a most unusual model, big in every sense of the word."

But Hefner admits he wasn't surprised when he heard about her death in a Florida hotel room: "It was a tragedy waiting to happen."

Playboy pays tribute to its former Playmate in the new issue of the magazine, which features classic nudes of Anna Nicole and recollections from those who worked with her on the classic photo shoots.

- Hugh Hefner Pictures
- Anna Nicole Smith Gallery
- Marilyn Monroe Photos

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)