For a moment it seemed Kristina Elliott would provide an upbeat ending to a twisted tale. Everyone knows how the story began: In 1993 John Wayne Bobbitt, a 27-year-old ex-Marine, became notorious when his wife, Lorena, cut off his penis and tossed it into a field. America's unkindest cut inspired words such as Bobbittry and Bobbittized, as well as Bobbitt jokes (It's a good thing they found John's Johnson, since it would look weird on a milk carton) and even a novelty gift, a "penis protector," which John endorsed. Afterward he began a much publicized romance with Kristina, 21, a buxom blonde who was a topless dancer when she met John. They planned a July 4 wedding. Happy ending? It looked that way at the time, but then every Bobbitt story seems to be a two-parter. Last summer, the lovebirds made news by squabbling often, sometimes so heatedly that police intervened. John told radio host Howard Stern that he suspected Kristina of faking love so she could share in his notoriety. She accused her fiancé of shoving her into a wall in a fit of drunken anger. But for the time being, the wedding was still on. Kristina swore she loved him, surgically fixed penis and all. (John told us, with a sly smile, "All systems are go.") Then came August, when all systems stopped. The latest battle ended their cohabitation in the luxury apartment they shared in Las Vegas; John served a 15-day jail term for physically abusing Kristina. After many stops and starts, their relationship may finally be over. And now, for the first time, Kristina tells the story of her love-hate affair with John. (In another exclusive interview with Playboy before his incarceration, John confirmed much of her story.) "The night we met," she says, "John was doing radio interviews from the Olympic Garden, where I was a dancer. It's the best topless place on the Strip. I saw him and thought he was cute—I still think he's cute. That night he gave me his autograph with a note that read, You're very beautiful. I hope we can share orgasms someday." Soon they did exactly that. Make no mistake, says Kristina—John isn't joking when he says his sexual systems are go. "He's fully functional, and even aggressive, sexually. I wouldn't say violent, but definitely aggressive, like he wants to keep proving his manhood," she says. It wasn't sex that ruined their romance. The trouble, she says, was his drinking. "John is fine when he's sober, he's nice. But he is bad when he gets drunk." Her description lends credence to Lorena Bobbitt's claim that she was physically abused by John. "He really scared me," Kristina says. But unlike Lorena she didn't reach for a knife. "I don't hate John. I just think there is something in him that makes him act the wrong way." And John has a new demon, she says: He believes that he must prove to the world that he is more than half a man. "That's why he was so forceful in bed. I think it's why he's making a porno movie now, which breaks my heart. He thinks he can prove he's a man with this film, but it seems like a sad way to do it." Instead, she suggests, John should have been content to prove himself to her, and let the world find another tabloid story to exploit. (His agent confirms his role in John Wayne Bobbitt Uncut, slated for a fall release.) "Too bad," says Kristina. "If only he'd call and apologize." For now, she plans to study acting. "Maybe someday I'll get Pamela Anderson's Baywatch job!" And why not? As Kristina can attest, stranger things have happened.
