The founder of one of the most exclusive men’s magazines of all time ruled an empire worth tens of millions of dollars in his silk pajamas and luxurious robe, surrounded by attractive young women on his Playboy estate. Although seasoned, Hefner’s lifestyle successfully defied his age, with numerous men all over the world envying his title as the king of eroticism and his career built by mixing business with pleasure.

Hugh Marston Hefner was born on April 9, 1926 in Chicago, as the elder son of Grace and Glenn Hefner. He was raised in a conservative family that lived a modest existence, but not in poverty. Hefner’s father was an accountant, so Hugh and his younger brother Keith were raised mostly by their unemployed mother. Hefner was a shy and introverted child, and since his parents were strict, they expected discipline from the brothers, and alcohol, cigarettes, and even going to the cinema were strictly forbidden. Hugh was not an especially distinguished student, apart from being excellent at drawing. During high school, however, he became interested in journalism and started editing the school newspaper. Back then, few could have guessed that one day Hefner would enjoy the company of numerous blonde beauties on his estate worth more than 50 million dollars. One of his biographers wrote that Hefner didn’t notice the difference between boys and girls until he was 16 years old, which was when he also became aware of how pleasant that difference was. Only then did he get over his shyness and start going out with girls.

Some biographers claim that Hefner’s mother played an important role in his early sexual maturation because, when the time came, she bought her sons the most explicit book about sex she could find in Chicago. This reading material helped Hefner delve into theory before applying it in practice, which, as he confessed, he had his first encounter with when he was 22. Even though he was not particularly interested in school, Hefner’s high IQ of 152 served as a guarantee that his potential would eventually see the light of day. During high school Hugh took up writing, animation and drawing. He continued his creative work when he voluntarily joined the Army in 1944. There he spent two years as a clerk, and since he had a lot of free time on his hands, he drew caricatures, which he sent to various papers.

However, his wish to become a caricaturist did not come true. Hefner continued his education at the University of Illinois, graduating by the end of the 1940s in Creative Writing and Art. Upon graduating from university, he started writing humorous texts for the Daily Ilinois, followed by something quite similar to today’s Playboy – a student magazine called Shaft. After graduating in 1949, Hugh decided to marry his school friend Mildred Williams, whom he was in a long-term relationship with. However, soon after the wedding, his wife admitted to having had affairs while he had been in the army. Hefner said that was “the most devastating moment of his life”. Despite this, however, the couple decided not to divorce but to keep their marriage liberal without many rules, so Hef, with Mildred’s approval, started having affairs as well. After ten years of marriage and two children, daughter Christie Ann and son David Paul, they finally divorced in 1959, after which he went on to live his life to the fullest.

In the early fifties, young and ambitious, with a freshly acquired degree and newly married, Hefner set out on his journey to the top working as a copywriter for Esquire magazine, where he stayed until 1953, when he quit after being denied a $5 raise.

He was not satisfied with the jobs he had had up to that point, so he became increasingly interested in starting his own magazine. He thought that there was one segment on the huge American magazine market where he could find success, and that segment was erotica. He began to study the success rate of men’s magazines and concluded that a magazine could be successful if it was made according to the highest professional standards, as well as targeted towards educated, urban and ambitious young men. In line with that, sex would have to occupy a significant portion of the magazine, not only as the subject of articles, but also in the form of nude photographs of women, not dirty or vulgar, but rather artistic. Shortly after, he rented an office and started working on the magazine, funded by capital of $9000 from his mother, while he gathered the rest of the money from relatives, friends and some businessmen willing to invest in his project.

The first issue of Playboy, which was supposed to be called Stag Party, but wasn’t, due to an already existing magazine with a similar title, was published in December 1953. The front page of the first – cult – issue featured a nude photograph of Marilyn Monroe, taken during her big breakthrough in the acting world. Since the reactions of readers and the public to this sort of magazine could not have been predicted, the first issue was neither dated nor credited. Later on, talking about how risky it had been to put naked women in a magazine, Hefner jokingly said that it was so risky that he didn’t even put his own name on the first issue.

The first issue of Playboy, printed in 70 thousand copies, became an instant hit, selling 54 thousand copies. Hefner covered the expenses and earned enough for the second issue, which appeared in January 1954, with the name of the publisher, the release date, and a note announcing that it was a monthly magazine, along with an invitation to subscribe. The ice had been broken and a magazine that, by the end of the 1950s, would become a trendsetter and founder of new cultural, moral and sexual values and practices with a circulation of 4.5 million copies was born, with some of the world’s most beautiful women such as Pamela Anderson, Charlize Theron, Sharon Stone, Kim Basinger, Cindy Crawford etc. posing naked or semi-naked.

The 1950s and 1960s were the golden era of the Playboy empire. The unparalleled success of the magazine initiated a wave of openings of private clubs known for their hostesses dressed in bunny costumes, while Hefner was opening modeling agencies, producing movies, publishing books and music records, and was even hosting two TV shows where he discussed his ideas and opinions. Rich and famous, Hef was living like a rock star, while his numerous relationships with girls who were photographed for the magazine and the stories about the wild parties in his Mansion never failed and still never fail to amuse the world.

Hefner created a myth about his life and business empire, often by publishing stories about himself, as well as the different elements of that newly created myth – the girls he lived with at the Playboy Mansion in Chicago, his apartment, and the famous round bed where he spent most of his time with his girlfriends. He lived for years with a few beauties whose photographs were published on the centerfold of Playboy, changing his lovers every couple of years. Once one of them was no longer young, a new girl from the centerfold would catch his eye, and he would later promote her to Playmate of the Year in an attempt to help her make an independent career. As time went on, those relationships became more and more absurd because of the increasing age difference.

However, at the age of 59 Hefner suffered a mild stroke. Upon his recovery, he decided to slow down, skip wild all-night parties and put his daughter Christie in charge of the empire.

In 1989, he decided to get married again, this time to Playboy Bunny Kimberley Conrad, with whom he had two sons – Marston Glenn and Cooper Bradford. However, the two separated in 1998. Hefner claimed that, just like his ex-wife, Kimberley frequently cheated on him, which is why their marriage had ended. After their separation, Kimberley and their two sons moved into a house next door to Hugh’s Mansion so that he could be close to his children despite everything. Even though the couple separated during the late nineties, they did not file for divorce until 2010.

In the twelve years he spent between two marriages, Hefner had fun with plenty of women, and even dated twin sisters. “How many women? How could I possibly know? Over a thousand, I'm sure. There were chunks of my life when I was married, and when I was married I never cheated. But I made up for it when I wasn't married,” said Hefner in an interview for Esquire magazine. Although he was over 80 years old at the time, Hugh recorded a reality show with his girlfriends called The Girls Next Door, also known as The Girls of the Playboy Mansion, between 2005 and 2010. During that time, he was living at the Mansion with his three girlfriends – Kendra Wilkinson, Bridget Marquardt and Holly Madison, who, unlike most of his girlfriends who were hungry for fame, fun and luxury, actually developed feelings for him, but whose love remained unrequited.

However, in 2011, Hef surprised everyone by announcing his third marriage with a 60 years younger blonde, Playboy Bunny Crystal Harris (27), who burst into tears upon receiving the engagement ring from him. According to Hefner, that was the happiest Christmas of his life. Although, as he claimed, he had not been planning on getting married again, he realized that he could be a good husband, but also that he would never find a better wife for himself than Crystal.

“I can be loyal and faithful. Monogamy is possible, although I don’t think it’s natural,” said the founder of Playboy, who blames his strict upbringing that lacked affection for the way he was with women.

“I believe that the need for romantic relationships later in life stems from a lack of love. I grew up in a household that didn’t offer many hugs, and my brother and I knew that we were lacking love,” Hefner explained. He announced in July 2011 that his engagement with Crystal was off – because of infidelity, as they both claimed. Shortly after, they patched things up and on December 31, 2012, on New Year’s Eve, the couple got married at Hefner’s Mansion in Los Angeles, surrounded by their closest friends and family. Among the guests was Hugh’s brother Keith, who was also his best man. Although the age gap between them was huge, they didn’t consider it important and lived like the difference didn’t exist. Many would think that money is what motivated Crystal to marry him, but sources claim that she is not even included in Hefner’s will.

“Because of my unconventional lifestyle and the magazine that allowed me to get to know many beautiful women quite well, I’ve never considered settling down with just one of them. Speaking from experience, I can say that living with three women is easier than living with one. However, Crystal is very special and that’s that. I believe I’ll spend the rest of my life with her,” said the famous playboy.

Either because of who he was and what he did, along with the luxury, glamour, and grandeur he offered, or the hunger for fame and success, some of the world’s most beautiful women, full of ambition and thrill, came on their own, posed for photographs, stayed, enjoyed themselves, tried to advance their careers, and finally – once time stopped working in their favor – left Hefner. Considering everything he did and faced, it may be concluded that Hugh Hefner was a man who lived his life to the fullest, without a guilty conscience.

Hugh Hefner, the founder and owner of the famous Playboy magazine, died in September 2017 at the age of 91 in Los Angeles.

Source: www.espreso.rs