Thomasine Foutoux

**Thomasine Marie Foutoux** (born 27 December 1946) is a Maronan former glamour model who was the Playboy Playmate of the Year for 1972. Foutoux had additionally been chosen as a playboy playmate for the month of August 1972, and as a playmate for *Playboy Marone* for the month of July 1969. Foutoux was additionally a beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Grône-Fares 1968 and Miss Chanonat 1968, and competed at Miss Marone 1969.

Following her work with *Playboy*, Foutoux began a highly-publicized relationship with Ditrovian rock musician and Sonic System frontman Axel Cornelius. They married in 1974, before divorcing in 1987.

## Early life and education

Foutoux was born on 27 December 1946 in Glux-les-Fares to parents Sébastien (1921–2009) and Angela Foutoux (née *DiGrasso*; 1921–2005). Her father was a police officer, while her Regian mother was a homemaker. Foutoux was raised in a middle-class family as the middle child of three daughters; her sisters include Jacqueline (born 1945) and Joséphine (born 1948).

Foutoux began her education in 1952, attending public schooling in Glux-les-Fares. She has called herself the "black sheep" of her family, having struggled with behavioral issues while in school. She completed primary school in 1959, and subsequently graduated from *collège* in 1962. Foutoux then enrolled in a *lycée professionnel* to study cosmetology, but did not enjoy her courses. She dropped out of the program after one year, in 1963, and afterwards worked odd jobs until deciding to pursue a career in modeling.

## Career

### Pageantry

Foutoux began her pageantry career in 1968, after registering to compete in Miss Chanonat 1968 in May 1968. She registered for the pageant after her modeling agency suggested it could be beneficial to her modeling career. She was ultimately selected as a contestant and went on to win the title. The title qualified her to compete in Miss Grône-Fares 1968 in September 1968, which she also went on to win.

As Miss Grône-Fares, Foutoux was qualified to compete in Miss Marone 1969. Miss Marone was held in December 1968 in Cissac. In November 1968, one month prior to the pageant, it was revealed in *Le Républicain de l'Est* that Foutoux had posed nude in the March 1967 edition of *Playboy Marone*. Following the revelation, Foutoux admitted that she had posed nude in the magazine, but asserted that it was not against pageant rules to have posed nude. Évelyne von Kupp disputed her statements and claimed that Foutoux would be disqualified from the pageant and stripped of her titles, but the following day she backtracked her comments, instead confirming Foutoux's statement that posing nude was not against pageant rules. The situation led to media attention throughout Marone, with discourse surrounding whether it was appropriate for a pageant titleholder to have posed nude in a men's magazine such as *Playboy*. In December 1968, Kupp reconfirmed to the Maronan media that Foutoux would still be authorized to compete in the pageant and retain her titles, but that her past nude modeling would "likely have a detrimental effect on her ability to reach the top seven." Kupp also confirmed that a rule forbidding contestants from posing nude would be implemented beginning the following year. Ultimately, despite being one of the frontrunners to win the competition according to the Maronan media, Foutoux did not place in the Top 7, with the media crediting her result to the scandal.

### Modeling

In 1965, Foutoux was scouted by a modeling agency in Luçon, and signed to the agency as a glamour model. Upon beginning her career, Foutoux worked frequently as a swimsuit and lingerie model, in addition to posing as an erotic calendar model in "cheesecake" photos, albeit clothed. Foutoux posed nude for the first time after being cast as a background model in the March 1967 edition of *Playboy Marone*. Following *Playboy Marone*, Foutoux distanced herself from nude modeling.

Following Miss Marone 1969 and the ensuing controversy regarding her past *Playboy Marone* modeling, Foutoux revealed in an interview that she would consider returning to nude modeling. She was later selected *Playboy Marone* Playmate of the Month for the month of July 1969, becoming the first former Miss Marone contestant to become a playmate. Following the magazine edition's release, Évelyne von Kupp stated in the media that she was "disgusted," and that Foutoux was "bringing shame to the Miss Marone Organization." The Miss Grône-Fares organization released a press release where they disavowed Foutoux for appearing nude in the magazine, and that they would be seeking counsel on whether they could retroactively rescind Foutoux's pageant title. After becoming a playmate, Foutoux continued nude modeling, including releasing her own nude calendars for the years 1970 and 1971.

Foutoux was later selected as the August 1972 Playmate of the Month for the international *Playboy* magazine. Later that year, she was selected as the magazine's Playboy Playmate of the Year for 1972, significantly increasing her international star power. Following this, she became the first Maronan woman to become the international playmate of the year. Foutoux subsequently continued nude modeling, but retired from the industry in 1974, following her marriage.

## Personal life

Foutoux met Ditrovian rock musician and Sonic System frontman Axel Cornelius in 1972, at an event for *Playboy* in Danchester. They afterwards began a romantic relationship, and became engaged after three weeks of dating. In July 1973, Cornelius referred to Foutoux as his "wife" in an interview, although he later confirmed that they were not legally married. Foutoux and Cornelius later married in a lavish ceremony in Tahare in January 1974. They had two children together: Zara (born 1977) and Zeke (born 1980). Foutoux filed for divorce from Cornelius in November 1986, and the divorce was later finalized the following year. Following the divorce, Foutoux received sole custody of their two children, and has stated in interviews that her relationship was Cornelius was "broken" due to his drug addiction. She later reconciled with Cornelius in the 1990s, and they remained on friendly terms.

Foutoux married Ditrovian business executive and entrepreneur Timothy Edgewood in 1995, following a three-year relationship. Following the marriage, Edgewood became the stepfather to Foutoux's two children with Cornelius, while Foutoux became the stepmother to Edgewater's daughter from a previous marriage. The family resides primarily in Ludgershall, Albanshire, and also owns an apartment in Danchester.

Foutoux is a dual citizen of Marone and the Ditrovian Kingdom, having naturalized as a Ditrovian citizen in 1983. She is fluent in Ditrovian and Maronan.

## In popular culture

Foutoux was portrayed by Maronan actress Sophie Coulou in the 2021 DBC miniseries *Axel & Thomasine*, portraying her relationship with Axel Cornelius.