Traci Bingham Reveals She Still Rocks Her IconicBaywatchSwimsuits: ‘I Wear Them for Halloween’ (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Traci Bingham on the set of ‘Baywatch’ in 1996.Photo:Steve Granitz/WireImage

Steve Granitz/WireImage

Traci Bingham’s iconic red swimsuit is still in her closet and she’s been known to put it on for certain special occasions — especially Halloween.Speaking exclusively to PEOPLE at theAfter Baywatch: Moment in the Sunpremiere in Los Angeles back in August, theBaywatchalum, 56, revealed that she still has her red lifeguard one-piece from her time on the show.“I do still have my one-piece,” she revealed, adding that she even framed the iconic swimsuit. “I think I was the first one to frame it, and I stole a few, and I didn’t just snag the red ones. I snagged the black ones too.“Because she has more than one saved from her years on the NBC lifeguard drama, Bingham told PEOPLE she feels comfortable putting them on as a Halloween costume, for photo shoots and more.“I try them on. I wear them for Halloween. I wear them for friends. I wear them for photo shoots,” she said.Traci Bingham in ‘Baywatch.'.Baywatch Co/Kobal/Shutterstock"Sometimes I wear them for — we don’t have those days when you feel like you’ve eaten too much and well, you probably, you look amazing, or you’ve gained or you lost weight. That’s kind of my gauge that I wear to show whether I need to lose or gain weight,” Bingham joked. “If it fits, great. If it doesn’t, then I’m in trouble. But who’s going to be that size small forever?“Bingham appeared onBaywatchfrom 1996 to 1998, starring in seasons 7 and 8 as the kind-hearted Jordan Tate, best friend toDonna D’Errico’s character Donna Marco.Elsewhere in her conversation with PEOPLE, the actress reminisced about her big break — when she landed the role of Jordan back in the ’90s.“It was a very long-winded, grueling process, but I did it,” she recalled of the audition process. “And when I booked it, I was in a room with all the producers, directors, writers, stylists — it was just crazy. And I was so nervous.“When Bingham later received the call telling her the good news that she had been cast, it was an emotional moment for her. “I cried and then I screamed, and then I called my family, and then the mayor wanted to have a Traci Bingham parade,” she added.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Bingham attends the premiere of ABC News Studios docuseries ‘After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun.'.Michael Tullberg/Getty"It was just this really big thing,” Bingham continued. “I knew at that point that I had made it, and I’d done something great being the youngest of seven children. It was very exciting for my family. It was a dream come true.“For Bingham, becoming the first woman of color to sport an iconic redBaywatchbathing suit and appear as a main character in the hit series was one of her proudest moments.“It was considered an all-white show, and you didn’t see people of color on that show. I mean, there was one other male, a person of color, but as far as a woman wearing that swimsuit, there wasn’t any,” she recalled.“The NAACP, I had heard, came down onBaywatchthat there weren’t any females of color on the show, lifeguards. And so they made changes,” Bingham continued. “It was a big movement and I’m just honored that I was able to be that person and to make that change.“After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun— the four-part docuseries that features interviews with Bingham,Pamela Anderson,Nicole Eggert,Carmen Electra,Jeremy JacksonandDavid Hasselhoff— is streaming on Hulu now.

Traci Bingham’s iconic red swimsuit is still in her closet and she’s been known to put it on for certain special occasions — especially Halloween.

Speaking exclusively to PEOPLE at theAfter Baywatch: Moment in the Sunpremiere in Los Angeles back in August, theBaywatchalum, 56, revealed that she still has her red lifeguard one-piece from her time on the show.

“I do still have my one-piece,” she revealed, adding that she even framed the iconic swimsuit. “I think I was the first one to frame it, and I stole a few, and I didn’t just snag the red ones. I snagged the black ones too.”

Because she has more than one saved from her years on the NBC lifeguard drama, Bingham told PEOPLE she feels comfortable putting them on as a Halloween costume, for photo shoots and more.“I try them on. I wear them for Halloween. I wear them for friends. I wear them for photo shoots,” she said.

Traci Bingham in ‘Baywatch.'.Baywatch Co/Kobal/Shutterstock

Baywatch Co/Kobal/Shutterstock

“Sometimes I wear them for — we don’t have those days when you feel like you’ve eaten too much and well, you probably, you look amazing, or you’ve gained or you lost weight. That’s kind of my gauge that I wear to show whether I need to lose or gain weight,” Bingham joked. “If it fits, great. If it doesn’t, then I’m in trouble. But who’s going to be that size small forever?”

Bingham appeared onBaywatchfrom 1996 to 1998, starring in seasons 7 and 8 as the kind-hearted Jordan Tate, best friend toDonna D’Errico’s character Donna Marco.

Elsewhere in her conversation with PEOPLE, the actress reminisced about her big break — when she landed the role of Jordan back in the ’90s.

“It was a very long-winded, grueling process, but I did it,” she recalled of the audition process. “And when I booked it, I was in a room with all the producers, directors, writers, stylists — it was just crazy. And I was so nervous.”

When Bingham later received the call telling her the good news that she had been cast, it was an emotional moment for her. “I cried and then I screamed, and then I called my family, and then the mayor wanted to have a Traci Bingham parade,” she added.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Bingham attends the premiere of ABC News Studios docuseries ‘After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun.'.Michael Tullberg/Getty

Michael Tullberg/Getty

“It was just this really big thing,” Bingham continued. “I knew at that point that I had made it, and I’d done something great being the youngest of seven children. It was very exciting for my family. It was a dream come true.”

For Bingham, becoming the first woman of color to sport an iconic redBaywatchbathing suit and appear as a main character in the hit series was one of her proudest moments.

“It was considered an all-white show, and you didn’t see people of color on that show. I mean, there was one other male, a person of color, but as far as a woman wearing that swimsuit, there wasn’t any,” she recalled.

“The NAACP, I had heard, came down onBaywatchthat there weren’t any females of color on the show, lifeguards. And so they made changes,” Bingham continued. “It was a big movement and I’m just honored that I was able to be that person and to make that change.”

After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun— the four-part docuseries that features interviews with Bingham,Pamela Anderson,Nicole Eggert,Carmen Electra,Jeremy JacksonandDavid Hasselhoff— is streaming on Hulu now.

source: people.com