Hugh Hefner (1926

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Biography

Hugh Marston Hefner was an American magazine publisher and businessman. He was the founder and editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine, a publication with revealing photographs and articles. Hefner extended the Playboy brand into a world network of Playboy Clubs. He also resided in luxury mansions where Playboy Playmates shared his wild partying life, fueling media interest.

Timeline

The story of Hugh Hefner, told in moments.

1953 Life

Publishes the first issue of Playboy from his kitchen table. He borrowed $8,000 from friends and family. The centerfold is a nude calendar photo of Marilyn Monroe he bought for $500. He didn't put a date on the cover because he wasn't sure there'd be a second issue. It sold 54,000 copies.

Borrowing $8,000 and buying a Monroe photo for $500. Were you gambling? No date on the first cover. Did you think it would last?

1960 Life

Opens the first Playboy Club in Chicago. Cocktail waitresses in bunny ears serve drinks to members. The magazine publishes fiction by Nabokov, Updike, and Ray Bradbury. Hefner positions it as a lifestyle brand, not just a girlie mag.

Nabokov and Bradbury in a girlie mag. Was the fiction always the point? Bunny ears and cocktails. Was the Club a fantasy or a business model?

1971 Event

Moves into the Playboy Mansion in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. The property has 29 rooms, a zoo license, and a grotto. He'll live there in silk pajamas and a captain's hat for the next 46 years.

46 years in silk pajamas at the Mansion. Was that a life or a performance? A grotto, 29 rooms, and a zoo license. Was any of it real?

2017 Death

Dies at the Playboy Mansion. He is 91. Buried next to Marilyn Monroe at Westwood Village Memorial Park. He'd bought the crypt in 1992 for $75,000.

Buried next to Marilyn Monroe. Did you buy that crypt for the symbolism? Ninety-one years old. Did you get the warmth you wanted?

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