Hugh Hefner
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| Hugh Hefner | |
 Hefner in 2007.
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| Born | Hugh Marston Hefner April 9, 1926 Chicago, Illinois, United States |
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| Known for | Being Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises, & Editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine |
| Spouse(s) | Mildred Williams (m. 1949–1959) (divorced) Kimberley Conrad (m. 1989–present) (separated) |
| Children | Christie Hefner (born 1952) David Hefner (born 1955) Marston Hefner (born 1990) Cooper Hefner (born 1991) |
| Website Official website |
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Hugh Marston Hefner (born April 9, 1926), sometimes known simply as Hef, is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.[1]
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[edit] Early life
Hefner was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1926, the eldest of two sons born to Grace Caroline (née Swanson) (1895-1997) and Glenn Lucius Hefner (1896-1976). He went to Sayre Elementary School and Steinmetz High School, then served in the U.S. Army. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.[2]
Working as a copywriter for Esquire, he left in January 1952 after being denied a $5 raise. In 1953, he lent his furniture for $600 and raised $8,000 from 45 investors - including $1,000 from his mother ("Not because she believed in the venture," he told E! in 2006. "But because she believed in her son") - to launch Playboy, which was initially going to be called Stag Party. The undated first issue, published in December 1953, featured Marilyn Monroe from her 1949 nude calendar shoot. Hefner, who never met Monroe, owns the crypt next to hers. [3]
[edit] Private life
Hefner married Northwestern University student Mildred Williams in 1949. They had two children, Christie (born November 8, 1952) and David (born August 30, 1955).[4] Before the wedding, Mildred confessed that she had had an affair while he was away in the Army; he called the admission "the most devastating moment of my life." A 2006 E! True Hollywood Story profile of Hefner revealed that Mildred allowed him to sleep with other women, out of guilt for her infidelity and in the hopes that it would preserve their marriage. They divorced in 1959.
Hefner remade himself as a sophisticated bon vivant and man about town, a lifestyle he promoted in his magazine and two TV shows he hosted, Playboy's Penthouse (1959–1960) and Playboy After Dark (1969–1970). He admitted to being "'involved' with maybe eleven out of twelve months' worth of Playmates" during these years.[5] Donna Michelle, Marilyn Cole, Lillian Müller, Patti McGuire, Shannon Tweed, Brande Roderick, Barbi Benton, Karen Christy, Sondra Theodore, and Carrie Leigh - who filed a $35 million alimony suit against him - were a few of his many partners. In 1971, he acknowledged that he experimented in bisexuality.[6]
In 1989, he married Playmate of the Year Kimberley Conrad and had two sons, Marston (born April 9, 1990) and Cooper (born September 1, 1991). The E! True Hollywood Story profile noted that the notorious Playboy Mansion had been transformed into a family-friendly homestead. After he separated from Conrad in 1999, however, Hefner began to move an ever-changing coterie of very young women into the Mansion, dating up to seven girls at once; among them, Brande Roderick, Izabella St. James, Tina Marie Jordan, Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt, and Kendra Wilkinson. The reality television series The Girls Next Door depicted the lives of Madison, Wilkinson and Marquardt at the Playboy Mansion. [7]
He is currently[when?] dating 19-year-old identical twin models Karissa and Kristina Shannon,[8] along with third girlfriend Crystal Harris.[9]
Hef is in talks about making a film about his life; production may start later in 2009.[10]
[edit] Politics and philanthropy
Hefner has espoused a liberal/libertarian stance. On June 4, 1963, he was arrested for selling obscene literature after an issue of Playboy featuring nude shots of Jayne Mansfield was released. A jury was unable to reach a verdict. His former secretary, Bobbie Arnstein, was found dead in a Chicago hotel room after an overdose of drugs in January 1975. Hefner called a press conference to allege that she had been driven to suicide by narcotics agents and federal officers. Hefner further claimed the Government was out to get him because of Playboy's philosophy and its advocacy of more liberal drug laws.[11][12][opinion needs balancing]
The Hugh Hefner First Amendment Award was created by Christie Hefner "to honor individuals who have made significant contributions in the vital effort to protect and enhance First Amendment rights for Americans."
He has donated and raised money for the Democratic Party.[13]
Hefner donated $100,000 to the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts to create a course called "Censorship in Cinema", and $2 million to endow a Chair for the study of American film.[14]
Hefner also contributes to charities outside the sphere of politics and publishing, throwing fundraiser events for Much Love Animal Rescue, as well as Generation Rescue,[15] an autism research organization supported by Jenny McCarthy.
Hefner is an atheist. In an interview published in the January 2000 issue of Playboy, he said, "It's perfectly clear to me that religion is a myth. It's something we have invented to explain the inexplicable."[16]
[edit] References
- ^ Playboy Enterprises Inc. Corporate Officers
- ^ HUGH M. HEFNER, Playboy Enterprises. Accessed January 2, 2009.
- ^ Westwood Village Memorial Cemetery
- ^ Playboy Time Line.
- ^ Acocella, Joan. "The Girls Next Door." New Yorker, March 20, 2006
- ^ "Faces of the Week." BBC News. May 26, 2006
- ^ http://www.buddytv.com/articles/the-girls-next-door/a-new-boy-for-former-girl-next-26275.aspx
- ^ Party's over for Playboy king Hugh Hefner The Age October 18, 2008. Accessed October 30, 2008
- ^ "Meet Playboy founder Hugh Hefner's other girlfriend, Crystal Harris."
- ^ "Hef Ready for the big screen?". BuddyTV. January 16, 2009. http://www.buddytv.com/articles/the-girls-next-door/the-girls-next-door-hef-ready-25741.aspx. Retrieved on 2009-01-17.
- ^ David Cotner (2008-10-02). "The life and times of an alpha male". Book Review. LA Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/oct/02/entertainment/et-book2. Retrieved on 2009-01-17.
- ^ Roger Ebert (October 23, 1992). "Hugh Hefner: Once upon a time". LA Times. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19921023/REVIEWS/210230302/1023. Retrieved on 2009-01-17.
- ^ Tapper, Jake. "Hef in a Huff." Salon.com, August 11, 2000
- ^ Hefner Gives $2M to USC Film School, Associated Press, November 16, 2007.
- ^ "Hugh Hefner & Jenny McCarthy Fund Autism Research". Celebrity Halo. October 2008. http://celebrityhalo.blogspot.com/2008/10/hugh-hefner-jenny-mccarthy-fund-autism.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-29.
- ^ http://www.celebatheists.com/index.php?title=Hugh_Hefner
[edit] Further reading
- Watts, Steven (2008). Mr. Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-69059-7.
- Miller, Russell (1985). Bunny: The Real Story of Playboy. London: Corgi. ISBN 0-03-063748-1.
- St. James, Izabella (2006). Bunny Tales: Behind Closed Doors at the Playboy Mansion. Philadelphia: Running Press. ISBN 0-762-42739-6
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hugh Hefner |
- Profile of Hefner from Playboy Enterprises corporate site
- Hugh M. Hefner at the Internet Movie Database
- Hugh Hefner: The Ultimate Lifestyle Entrepreneur (About.com Entrepreneurs
- "Brilliant Careers: Hugh Hefner" (Salon.com, December 28, 1999)
- World Wrestling Entertainment interviews Hugh Hefner (March 14, 2007)
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