After 22 years in show business, Pamela Anderson has grown accustomed to drawing double-takes. The Ladysmith-born bombshell prompted more during a whirlwind visit the other day. None sparked more hilarity than the looks she got from Jason Burkart and Mike Hanus on an elevator they shared at Parkside Victoria Resort and Spa.

Despite their platinum-blonde wigs and French-maid outfits, the two men in drag were no match for the stunning Anderson. Still, she couldn't resist flirting with Burkart after sashaying into the elevator. "You're Frederick!" she exclaimed, referring to the burly, bushy-haired actor's character - a male stripper - in Jackhammer. "You're the Saskatchewan peel-off champion, '94-'97!" she continued, before beseeching him to call her.
The encounter was typical of the zaniness that fuels Hanus's indie comedy about the exploits of outrageous characters in the male-stripping world. Burkart was tickled by the idea of Anderson flirting with him.
"This is for all the 300-pound guys out there," he said with a smile. Asked if he'd fend off her advances in real life, he laughed. "No. Don't be ridiculous."Anderson, 44, exceeded the wildest dreams of Hanus and Jackhammer producer McKinley Hlady by agreeing to appear in their film. But the former Baywatch star says she was flattered to be asked to play herself in the Telefilm Canada-supported movie. "It's easier than playing someone else, and it's fun to be supportive of such a funny film," said the actress, whose screen credits include Barb Wire, Scary Movie 3, Blonde and Blonder and the mockumentary Borat.
It's been a busman's holiday for the former Playboy Playmate, but she doesn't mind. Before facing the cameras here, she went shopping for a sandbox to give her best friend's son for his third birthday. The friends also had their nails done at Deco de Monde and relaxed at the Strathcona Hotel's Rooftop Surfclub.
"I love coming home and working at home," she said, over coffee in a penthouse suite. An hour later, the mother of two would be on her way to her hometown of Ladysmith, where she's hoping to revive plans for a previously stalled waterfront residential development, which she insists should be environmentally sensitive.
"I don't want to take down all the trees," says the Hollywood icon, who learned to swim on Transfer Beach. "My mom and dad want [the development] to happen, which is important to me."Anderson, who has properties in Malibu, said she'd like to move back to the Island. "The L.A. thing has been really difficult. I feel like I'm done with it," she said, adding Tofino is her ultimate destination. "I love it there. I need to surf and my kids need to surf. We need that surfing culture, so as long as we have Malibu and Tofino, I'm good."
Meanwhile, Anderson has plenty on her plate, including her purchase of the racing-car firm Downforce1. "Fast cars, fast women, they go together," she said with a laugh. "I just like being anywhere that men are."
The well-known vegan and animal-rights activist said she plans to emblazon the logos for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and hopefully the charity Cool Earth on the side of her racing car: an Aston Martin Vantage V-8 GT2 slated to compete in the European Le Mans series.
Anderson is also a vocal opponent of the Keystone pipeline. On her Facebook page last week, she posted a link to Cetaceans of the Great Bear Rainforest, Victoria filmmaker Simon Game's animated short that visualizes the impact of supertankers on whales if the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline project is green-lit.
In addition to appearing on the Australian Big Brother, the Argentinian Dancing with the Stars last year and other shows, she has recently gravitated to the stage - as the Genie in the pantomime Aladdin in Wimbledon and Liverpool.
She's tentatively scheduled to play Roxie Hart in the Broadway production of Chicago next year. Another project is a documentary on activism with Nanaimo filmmaker Paul Manly, said Anderson, who is famously unafraid to speak her mind. The U.S. presidential election is no exception.
"I support Obama for sure," she said. "I find it very strange how the Republicans think he's a socialist because he wants to give Americans health care like we have here. Everyone all over the world gets it, but a lot of Americans still don't - the propaganda in the news is very hard to control."