American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story (2017–…): Season 1, Episode 10 - My Way - full transcript
With Playboy on the brink of bankruptcy, Hefner sacrifices friends and leans on family to secure the brand's future.
Hugh Hefner invites you
toPlayboy's roller disco
and pajama party!
The 1970s had been
a whirlwind.
By the end of the decade,
Playboy operated
over 30 properties
in six countries
across the world.
And with the center
of thePlayboy empire
now in Los Angeles,
we were throwing
more parties than ever.
As we moved into
the 1980s, there was
even more excitement
to look forward to.
Space ShuttleColumbia
became the first mission
of the long-awaited
space shuttle program.
And liftoff.
And the world
of television
was forever changed
with the introduction
of MTV.
As forPlayboy,
after a rough patch
in the '70s,
when circulation
numbers were down
and ad revenues declined,
we still had
a steady readership
of 4.5 million people
each month.
Our first London Playboy
Club was so popular
that we'd opened four more
casinos across England.
Playboy's gambling
turnover in this country
amounts,
in the past five years,
to something
over £660 million,
a great proportion
ofPlayboy's profits.
And no one was
enjoying our success
more than the man
running our UK operation,
Victor Lownes.
What's you're salary now?
Oh, about £300,000 a year.
It's quite high.
After a decade in England,
Victor even had his own 42-room mansion that he shared
with Playmate-turned-
girlfriend Marilyn Cole,
and the two were
fitting right in
with London's
high society.
Victor Lownes has
a lot of charisma.
He was riding horses
with Prince Charles
and going on foxhunts
with the English aristocracy.
With his casinos
outperforming
longtime British
gambling companies,
it seemed like nothing
could stop Victor
and the UK operation's
success.
Yes, it's a very
profitable operation.
I've had many days
here when we've won
as much money as we've
paid for the place.
But we were
about to find out
that being
the biggest game in town
also made you
the biggest target.
For nearly 15 years,
thePlayboy operation
in England
achieved
unparalleled success...
...but all that changed
on February 20th, 1981.
Playboy are accused of
violating the gaming laws.
Police raided
its Park Lane offices.
The description by the
Westminster magistrates,
Playboy is not
fit and proper
to run
a casino operation.
The London police staged
a simultaneous raid
on all of our casinos.
Turns out, our success
was not sitting well
with some of
our competitors.
They began making claims
of illegal operations
at our London club,
prompting charges
that we'd violated a number
of English gaming laws.
Our staff
was interrogated,
boxes of files
were seized,
all in an effort to dig up
dirt on our operations.
Other casinos
were under scrutiny
and eventually,
so was Playboy.
Playboywas accused ofsome improprieties.
It's questionable whether
that was actually happening.
Lownes claimed they were not.
Lownes had always
wanted his clubs
to be a model of integrity.
Today is not the end of
Playboy, but it could well be
the beginning of the end.
The casinos were raided.
Employees questioned.
Files seized.
When did this happen?
Yesterday.
I don't understand.
Well, I don't have
specifics yet,
but from what I'm hearing,
the allegations are serious,
like enough to lose us
our gaming licenses.
What?
Holy shit.
Exactly.
No. There is no way
Victor is involved
in anything illegal.
Hef, I appreciate
your loyalty,
but until
we have the facts...
What did he say?
I haven't heard from him.
A friend of mine from
The London Timescalled me.
Apparently, it's all
over the newspapers.
The first thing he should
have done was call me,
but King Victor
answers to no one,
and now we have a goddamn
shit storm on our hands.
He will answer to me.
Forget the phone.
Get him here. Now.
My pleasure.
Because of the structure
of the British oversight
and to some extent
because Victor liked to
keep information
close to the vest,
the American executives
were less aware
of the details of the business
than they might have liked.
I'd given Vic
a lot of freedom
to run
the London operation
and I'd always
trusted his decisions,
but with the London casino
responsible for
85% of our profits,
we needed to resolve
this issue
as quickly as possible,
especially with a whole
new gambling operation
starting up
in Atlantic City.
Ethel, there's something out there in the water.
Harry, there's
nothing out there.
Then what's rising out of the sea, huh?
Oh, that!
That's the new Playboy
Hotel and Casino.
What?
Oh, Harry, it's
the dawn of a new era
for the Playboy
Hotel and Casino,
with their fantastic,
new salon privé.
They wait on you
hand and foot.
Ethel, why is it rising out of the sea?
Oh, Harry,
it's show business.
The new, very civilized,
Playboy Hotel and Casino.
Atlantic City is already
a new gambling mecca,
America's new Las Vegas.
Three years earlier,
Victor had
begun construction
on a state-of-the-art
casino in Atlantic City.
Despite the legal wrangle
in London,
the Playboy Club is alive
and profitable
in Atlantic City.
We had invested $30
million in the project,
and after obtaining a
temporary operating permit,
the Playboy
Hotel and Casino
was open for business
while we awaited
final approval from
the gaming commission.
Atlantic City
was a great opportunity
to import Playboy style
and glamour
into the casino business,
which is something
that they had
successfully been able
to accomplish in London.
That was a formula
for success.
With so much riding
on our new casino
in Atlantic City,
I needed
to feel confident
that the situation
in London
was under control.
Vic, I'm so sorry
to keep you waiting.
Oh, no problem, buddy.
Where's Daniels?
Getting the noose
ready somewhere?
This isn't about
your issues with Derick.
I don't have issues
with Derick.
I have an issue.
He wants my job.
He is the president
of the company.
And I answer
to the real boss.
Okay, then.
Answer to me.
Tell me what the hell
is going on.
Nothing.
Nothing.
That's not gonna
cut it, Victor.
Well, nothing
of consequence.
I would call
losing the licenses
a pretty stiff
consequence.
We are not gonna
lose the licenses.
That is not
what Derick says.
Fuck Daniels.
He doesn't know
the first thing
about what happened, Hef.
Okay,
those raids were staged
based on evidence
provided by
a crooked competitor's
paid informants.
Look, it's a speed bump,
and when we're past it,
it's not just gonna be
business as usual.
It'll be bigger business.
In fact, I already
have my eye
on two new locations.
Okay, okay. Let's worry
about the licenses
before we
discuss expansion.
Hey, you can worry about
the licenses if you want,
but there
is nothing there.
We've been through
a lot together, Vic.
Yeah, we have.
Don't let this thing
be the last.
I promise you it won't.
Derick Daniels had never
gotten along with Victor.
They always clashed heads,
and it was often said
it was a wonderful thing
that an ocean separated them.
It was a definite
clash of personalities
but also vying
for the attention of Hef.
It didn't matter whether
or not I believed Vic.
The problems in London
were under his watch,
and now the entire
company was at risk.
For Daniels, there was
only one solution.
Derick wanted to fire Victor
and Hef had a problem with it.
And then, we were told
by our British attorney
that if Victor
were terminated,
we may well
keep our license.
This was a moment of
truth for the company.
Our profits were coming
from the UK.
Hefner had
a fiduciary responsibility
as the CEO of the company
to not only
protect the shareholders
but his investment
and the future of the company.
Victor and I had been close
friends for over 30 years
and there were few people
I respected more,
but with the future of the
London casino on the line,
I had no choice but to make
one of the hardest
decisions of my career.
Yes. Can you put me through
to Derick Daniels, please?
Victor! A pleasure
to see you, as always.
Likewise.
Especially unannounced.
This is my club.
It's the company's club.
And I run the company.
Really?
I'm sure Hef would be
very keen to hear that.
Oh, Hef sent me.
We'd like you
to step down.
Step down?
Mm-hmm.
This will send a message
to the gaming commission
that we are serious about
cleaning up corruption.
There is no corruption,
which I will prove
at the hearing.
But if you fire me, you're
basically admitting to it.
The decision has been made.
I knew we had trouble.
First trouble we'd had
in 15 years of
operation in England,
and I was prepared to
do battle with them.
Unfortunately, I think
they stampeded Hefner
into panicking
when we ran into
difficulties in England
and made it a first
order of business
to, uh, terminate me.
Playboyin London,that was Victor's baby.
It was all
very, very dramatic,
and Victor was devastated
in every which way,
and he was devastated
for Playboy.
After the police raid,
he was suddenly
and unexpectedly fired by
his American headquarters.
Victor Lownes, now
the interested spectator,
has not been asked
to give evidence.
The sacking of you by
the men from Chicago...
Yes.
...would seem to be
a rather clumsy way
of saying to the gaming
board and the law...
Yes.
...we are now clean again.
We've got rid of
the number one culprit.
Give us a chance.
Do you think that's
the strategy?
If I were the number one saint,
it'd still be the strategy, yes.
I mean, uh, regardless...
And I do feel that I did nothing wrong
during my administration.
For Victor to be fired
from Playboy,
it was the biggest
personal tragedy
as well as business tragedy
for both Hef and Victor.
Looking back now,
I wish I'd handled
things differently.
Victor and I had been
through so much together
and I didn't
even say goodbye.
But what made it
even worse
is that it was
all for nothing.
The licensing magistrates,
four women and a man,
issued their verdict.
Very simply,
they said thatPlayboy
was not fit and proper
to hold a gaming license
and that the clubs had been
used for unlawful purposes.
The London Playboy Club
was still denied
its gambling license.
What Hugh Hefner
and Derrick Daniels,
I don't think,
grasped was,
Victor Lownes actually
was still seen
with a lot of prestige
and still had
a big influence
in the UK gaming industry
and still knew
what he was doing.
He understood what
was going on in the UK
much more than anyone,
and so, by getting rid of him,
you're essentially removing
an asset from your company
and an asset that very well
might have been able
to guide Playboy
through the investigation
without having to
lose its casino licenses.
With the loss of
our gambling license,
we had to sell off
all of our London assets,
taking a huge
financial hit,
but it turned out,
we had even more problems
in Atlantic City.
The applicant failed
the test that each of us
is required to pass in
the conduct of our affairs.
This applicant
has not met its burden
to establish by clear
and convincing evidence
its qualifications
to hold a casino license.
Investigators
had looked through
all ofPlayboy's
past business operations
and dug up mistakes
we'd made in the past.
The Casino Control Commission
comes out with a report
detailing all these issues
with Playboy'spermanent
casino application.
The vote went against
Hefner because of his part
in bribing
New York officials
to obtain a liquor
license 20 years ago.
They go back 20-plus years.
They look at anything
and everything
connected to Hugh Hefner
and the fact that
the British Gaming Board
has just decided to yank
Playboy'scasino licenses,
so Playboyloses its bid
for a permanent license
by a three-to-two vote.
LicensingPlayboy,
with its history,
would signal the abandonment
of virtually
all licensing criteria
requiring ethical restraint.
If the unethical practices
and illegal acts
of corporations
are not checked,
the future of a kind,
free casino industry
in Atlantic City
would be in jeopardy.
The verdict was a major
blow to our business,
but I knew I had to
put on a brave face
to maintain
our reputation.
We are a sound,
broadly-based company,
and we'll
not only survive,
but we'll do very well
with or without gaming.
But after losing both the
London casino operations
and now the investment
in Atlantic City,
the future of the company
was in jeopardy.
I know things look
very dark right now,
but this is fixable.
Is it?
Yeah, of course.
But you had to
think about it.
Oh, come on, Hef.
We just lost
almost $200 million.
Yes, yes, I'm well
aware how much money...
How does that not put us
on the brink of extinction?
WithPlayboy's reputation
at an all-time low,
I knew we needed
to make a major change
at the company if we were
going to get back on track,
and it was clear that
Daniels wasn't cutting it,
so I decided it was time to
put someone else in charge.
A couple of people
in the news tonight.
Playboy Enterprises
has a new president.
She's not
a former centerfold.
She's Christie Hefner.
Christie, pretty enough to be a centerfold herself,
will bring a new image and new zest toPlayboy.
A moment of truth came
that things were not working
well with Derick Daniels.
Hefner said, well,
so now what am I gonna do?
We both agreed that Christie
would be an appropriate CEO.
She says she must
now makePlayboy
a clearly focused
communications company
instead of a corporation
that is broadly based...
and I'm sure
she intended no pun.
Christie was
my oldest child
with my first wife,
Millie.
I hadn't been around much
when she was growing up,
but after she graduated
summa cum laude
from Brandeis University
in 1974,
Christie came
to work atPlayboy
in an entry-level position.
I only saw my father
occasionally
when I was growing up.
I think that what allowed
us to get much closer
was when I went to work
in the company,
and the outgrowth
of that has been
we're actually now
very close.
I joined the company not
really expecting to stay
more than a year or two,
but I did get interested
in the variety of businesses
and the challenges
and the people
that it attracted,
and as I stayed and worked
in different parts of the
company and learned more,
I found it
more and more intriguing.
Christie was
extremely bright.
She had a natural knack
for organizational efforts.
Christie may have
been my daughter,
but she quickly carved
a path all on her own
within the company.
Christie really
earned for herself
a reputation
as a very level-headed,
smart businesswoman.
Her lifestyle and her image
has been very different
than her father's.
And by 1982,
she had proven
that she was
more than capable
of taking over the reigns
of Playboy Enterprises.
I would like to introduce
another Playboy executive
who happens to be a woman,
one of whom I'm rather proud
because she's
also my daughter,
but I would be
very proud of her
if she weren't my daughter,
Christie Hefner.
My being named president
actually was well received,
and I think that was because
I'd been in the company
for seven years.
People had seen me,
seen my work ethic,
seen how I handled myself.
Plus, I think the fact
that I was Christie Hefner,
I think people
believed that I cared
and that I cared
about the long term.
There is a bright and shining
star in the Hefner family
that's on the ascendency.
An articulate,
committed young woman.
And we are
going to be hearing
a great deal from her
in the years to come.
Christie,
we thank you very much
for all that you're doing.
But while there was no
better person for the job,
Christie was inheriting
a difficult situation.
They're calling it
the end of an era,
the victim of
changing times.
Playboy has closed down
its big city clubs
in Los Angeles,
Chicago, and New York.
Going into the middle
of the decade,
we were on
the edge of bankruptcy.
Playboy has lost millions
of dollars in recent years,
much of it because of the clubs.
Joe, that's the end of the "tail."
Oh-ho-ho. Very good, Bob.
With the company
in crisis,
Christie dove
right into work.
When I took over
as president,
my goal was
to save the company.
The first order of business
was to stop the bleeding
and so we sold
the businesses
that we didn't think
we could make successes of,
like the book business
and the record business
and the resorts.
Her efforts cut costs
by $8 million per year.
Despite these measures,
Playboy Enterprises still
lost $17.5 million in 1983.
Christie recognized that
if we wanted to survive,
we'd have to make
some bigger moves.
The world was consuming
media in new ways,
and we needed to adapt
to changing times.
VCRs were in almost every
home across the country
and over 30 million people
had started paying for
premium cable stations
tailored
to their interests.
Christie saw the chance
to offer them
a whole new
Playboy experience.
The Playboy Channel.
When you start
talking aboutPlayboy
in combination
with pay television,
people's eyes light up,
because it's about
the hottest news in the
business going right now.
Cable TV created
the opportunity
for destination viewing
and a great way of expanding
the brand to women
because the majority of
viewing was done by couples.
Just the man
I was looking for.
Cable television was one
of these great steps
toward transforming
and liberating
the dissemination
of information,
and what this allowed for,
you know, Hugh Hefner
was now to
have his own channel
that he doesn't have to
kind of filter himself
and his message
or his information,
and this is, of course,
a way to make
a tremendous amount
of money.
Hiya, Hef!
Airing between 8 p.m.
and 6 a.m. Eastern time,
the Playboy TV Network
became the country's
leading channel
for adult entertainment,
and as the channel grew
to more than 800,000
paying subscribers,
it gave us a much needed
boost in revenue.
With the channel
proving to be a success,
Christie turned
to the magazine,
taking inspiration
fromPlayboy's
very first issue.
As there were more and more
magazines proliferated
from the time
when Playboystarted,
it became
increasingly important
to be able to
distinguish yourself
on the newsstand to attract
the interest of the buyer,
and one clear way to do that
was through celebrities.
Women like Vanna White
graced the covers and
helped us increase sales.
But in 1984, we were
offered exclusive rights
to nude photos
of one celebrity
who was sure
to cause controversy.
A year earlier,
20-year-old Vanessa
Williams had been crowned
the first African-American
Miss America,
but it didn't take long
for someone
from her past to surface,
looking to cash in
on her celebrity.
Years ago, she'd posed
nude, but was told
the photos would only
be used in silhouette.
Now the photographer
was shopping around
the full images.
Vanessa Williams' pictures
were offered to the magazine,
and there
wasn't any question
that there would be
strong commercial appeal
in this beautiful young
woman who was the first
African-American
Miss America,
but it was also
quite obvious
that these were not pictures
that she had intended
to have published.
We knew that ifPlayboy
ran those photos,
she'd be forced
to give up her crown.
It was not a difficult
decision to make,
that if we ran those
pictures, we would destroy
the career of the first
black Miss America,
and that was the opposite
of the kind of statement
we wanted to make.
Playboy rejected
the photos.
You don't think
he would have sold
a lot of Playboymagazines?
Most certainly!
Very much could've
brought those photographs
and put them in a magazine.
What kind of man would
want to give a young woman
that kind of pain?
But our longtime rival,
Penthouse,
published the photos in
their September 1984 issue,
and Williams
was forced to resign.
Potential harm
to the pageant
and the deep division that
a bitter fight may cause
has convinced me
that I must relinquish
my title as Miss America.
It became the highest selling
Penthouse issue ever,
and for the first time
in history,
Penthouse sales beat ours
by nearly
one million copies.
But that success
was short-lived,
and soonPlayboy
was once again
outsellingPenthouse.
Although we had been
through many struggles
over the past few years,
we never wavered
in our commitment
to covering issues
that other publications
thought were
too controversial.
And, in the mid '80s,
that issue was AIDS.
Scientists at the National
Centers for Disease Control
in Atlanta today released
the results of a study
which shows that
the lifestyle
of some male homosexuals
has triggered an epidemic.
A strange, lethal,
sexually transmitted
disease with no cure.
It first appeared
in the gay community
of New York City
and spread quickly.
When AIDS starts off, at
least in the American mindset
and in the media
as a gay disease
but suddenly then winds up
also affecting
straight people...
The sexual revolution is
sex without consequences.
Now, suddenly, the
consequences can be deadly,
and this has
a tremendous effect
on my generation
that grew up in the 1980s
that suddenly,
wait a second,
this is something we need
to be anxious about.
Money for AIDS,
not for war!
But the government
and the national press
largely ignored the crisis,
believing the subject
was too controversial.
The federal role must be
to give educators
accurate information
about the disease.
Now, how that
information is used
must be up to schools
and parents, not government.
But I was determined
to make surePlayboy
addressed the issue
head on.
When the AIDS epidemic
started,
and then-President Reagan
wouldn't even say the word,
Playboyplayed,I think, an important role
in educating people
about how the disease
was transmitted
and wasn't transmitted.
Playboy ran dozens
of articles
addressing
the AIDS crisis,
along with interviews
and any other formats
we could think of
to spread awareness.
When AIDS came along, it came
with the frightening thought
that everybody who engaged
in sex with a stranger
was going to get AIDS.
That was full of mythology.
I wrote a short
editorial about AIDS.
We dealt with AIDS as
scientifically as we could.
Over the past
three decades,
Playboy had
covered a wide range
of controversial topics,
and I was always proud
of the work we did,
but I was getting tired.
Christie had been at
the helm for six years
and proven she could
run the company.
After 35 years,
I decided, at age 62,
that I needed to step
back and settle down.
Though I'd shared my life
with many incredible
women over the years,
I'd sworn that I would
never marry again.
That is, until I
met Kimberley Conrad.
Kimberley Conrad came to us
as a potential Playmate
from a photographer
in Vancouver.
Kimberley played
hard to get, actually.
She was very attractive
and a lot of fun.
I met Kimberley
when she posed
for our January 1988
Playmate of the month.
I had met many of our
Playmates in the past,
but there was something
special about Kimberley.
I felt an immediate sense
of ease with her.
Hello.
This was our best
Christmas ever.
It was.
It didn't take either
of us long to realize
that we were madly in love.
By February of that year,
Kimberley had moved
into the mansion.
From there,
things moved quickly.
Kimberly was named
Playmate of the Year
in June of 1989...
Having been in,
over the years,
a number of
romantic relationships,
this is different.
...and became Kimberly
Hefner in July.
This is probably as good a moment as any
to thank all of you for sharing with us
a rather unique evening.
One that you thought
you'd never see.
I think that meeting Kimberley
is very much a matter
of having met
the right person
in the right place
at the right time.
I was ready for that
kind of relationship,
and she had the values
that I was looking for,
and she came to me
at a time
in which I was
looking for a safe harbor
after some very stormy seas.
Getting married was
only the beginning.
Wait, I'm right here!
Be careful!
Don't drop it.
Look! Look!
I think somebody's
on his nap time.
Within a year,
our happy family expanded
when our son Marston
was born.
Where are you going, little guy?
And the year after that,
his brother, Cooper.
Hefner was not
really a parent
to his two children he had
with his first wife, Millie,
because he was busy
with his business,
with starting the magazine.
The two boys
he had with Kimberley
were doted on by Hefner.
In their very early years,
they spent a lot of time
at the mansion,
playing with the animals
and Hefner.
You're such a big guy.
When my brother and I came
along, my dad was older.
I think he, in his head,
wanted to try being a parent,
so, I mean,
I saw him every single day.
He was much more hands on
in the sense
of being a father.
You ready to go?
Almost overnight,
the mansion went
from the world's most
famous bachelor pad
to an island of
domestic tranquility.
With my first marriage,
I knew I hadn't always
been the best husband
or father,
but having
this second chance
gave me
a new lease on life.
It was truly one of
my happiest times.
Not until the baby was born
did I really realize
what an impact it could
have on my own life.
It should've been that
way the first time,
but, of course,
I just wasn't there,
emotionally or mentally.
And I think it's wonderful
to have the chance
to do it all right
the second time.
I was busy trying
to play catch up
with my other two children
after they were grown.
This time,
I don't want to miss
all the wonderful part
in between.
But sadly, that
happiness did not last.
Over time, it became clear
that Kimberley and I
weren't as compatible as I
had originally believed.
Our marriage came to an end
after nine years.
In the end, the most
important thing
was the boys.
Although it hadn't worked
out with me and Kimberley,
I wanted my sons near me.
He bought a house
next door to the mansion,
and Kimberley and the boys
grew up in that house.
This is to our new house.
Hopefully the neighbors won't complain about our music.
Hefner wanted it that close
so that he could be
with the boys.
He and Kimberley had
a reasonable relationship
before the actual divorce
and even now.
It wasn't easy at first,
but I soon realized
I still had
a lot of life to live.
After years
of being settled down,
Mr. Playboy was back.
Once again,
the mansion became
the party destination
for Hollywood's
A-list celebrities.
You know
how to do it, Hugh!
And, of course,
the most beautiful
women in the world.
Before I knew it,
in 2003,
Playboy had reached
another milestone...
...our 50th anniversary.
I could not have imagined,
on any kind of level,
the impact
the magazine would have,
how it would change
my life.
Who could have imagined it?
But the early 2000s
brought something we could
have never expected...
...the Internet.
The rise of the Internet
destroys the business
model of Playboy.
There is no way that you
can sell printed material
or even a channel
when you have to compete
with free video,
open access, and any
kind of porn you want.
But while we
couldn't compete
with what was online,
there was one new trend
that was a perfect fit
forPlayboy.
Welcome to the Playboy Mansion.
And with reality TV
being all the rage,
I knew it could be
the perfect way
to movePlayboy
into the 21st century.
I invited the world
into the Playboy Mansion
every week
as the Playmates and I
just went about
living our lives.
You look cute. Do you have boob glue on?
No.
You don't?
It was called
The Girls Next Door.
Initially with The Girls Next Door,
there was kind of
the belief that this
was going to draw
more of a male audience.
Is anybody going
skinny-dipping?
The truth is, it actually
attracted a predominantly
female audience.
This is the original
vibrating, rotating bed
from the Chicago Mansion,
you know.
Really? Does it still work?
People loved the girls.
There was something relatable
about each of them.
It lasted six seasons
and introducedPlayboy
to a whole new generation,
and it became one of
the most successful shows
in the history
of E! Network,
with over 2 million
viewers at its peak.
Then, something
unexpected happened.
In the final season
of the show,
I was introduced
to Crystal Harris.
She was our December 2009
Playmate of the Month
and we quickly fell
in love.
Ladies and gentlemen,
may I introduce
for the first time,
Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Hefner.
And after years of dating,
we were married
on December 31st, 2012.
Hef is a very romantic guy.
He adores Crystal
and they have a very,
very happy marriage,
and he is probably
more of a husband now
than he was
earlier in his life,
because he has more time
to spend with his wife
than he did with
the other two women.
My relationship
with Crystal
couldn't be more perfect,
and I'm happier today
that I've ever been.
She really is
my one true love.
It's been over six decades
since I started a magazine
at my kitchen table,
and in the years since,
Playboy has expanded
beyond my wildest dreams.
Our updated London casino,
which opened in 2011,
is one of
the most successful
private club casinos
in the world,
and our branded products
brought in $1.5 billion
in 2016.
To this day,Playboy
is the third-most
recognizable brand
in the world,
after only Apple
and Coca-Cola.
I never
could have imagined
that the conversations
I started in 1953
would continue to this day.
Looking back on my life,
I see so many things.
What do you think
of this?
Hefner is one of the
most underrated forces
in American life in the
second half of the 20th century.
Hefner changed the way
everybody thinks about sex.
Congratulations,
Mr. Playboy.
He took us
from '50s innocence
to '60s curiosity
to '70s revolution.
He created the sexual
revolution, in my opinion,
and should have
all the credit for that.
Cheers! To the Playboy Club!
To the Playboy Club!
When most people hear
the name "Hugh Hefner,"
they think of the
magazine, the pictures,
and....and ooh-ee.
Well, Hugh Hefner
was a real, authentic,
First Amendment devotee.
To him, it really was about
the freedom of expression.
Police yesterday
carted two tons of
obscene magazines,
films, and photographs
to the city incinerator
and burned them.
I am not a big fan
of censorship,
and I'm glad I was born
after the people who came
before me, like Hugh Hefner.
A lot of these people
have got a lot of arrows.
Now, I've gotten some,
but not the way they did.
We stand on
each other's shoulders.
It wasn't that his attitudes
or point of view on sex
were revolutionary.
It was his ability
to deliver the message
as well as promote
a conversation about it
that was really
revolutionary.
The magazine and the company
just became the messenger of,
these are conversations
we should be having
and these are topics we should
be thinking about a lot more.
He didn't introduce
the world to sex.
He just allowed it
to step out of the closet.
Yes, yes.
Straight down the lens.
Perfect.
I think he was confident
of what he had done,
how he had lived,
what he believed.
He's remarkably able to
weather very difficult times
because of that.
I think part of what
my pursuit of happiness
has been all about
has been an attempt
to walk a different road.
There is no fantasy that
I have not lived out.
If I were gonna
rewrite my life
from beginning to end,
I might change
a few punctuation marks,
but the things
that mattered
could hardly have
worked out any better.
toPlayboy's roller disco
and pajama party!
The 1970s had been
a whirlwind.
By the end of the decade,
Playboy operated
over 30 properties
in six countries
across the world.
And with the center
of thePlayboy empire
now in Los Angeles,
we were throwing
more parties than ever.
As we moved into
the 1980s, there was
even more excitement
to look forward to.
Space ShuttleColumbia
became the first mission
of the long-awaited
space shuttle program.
And liftoff.
And the world
of television
was forever changed
with the introduction
of MTV.
As forPlayboy,
after a rough patch
in the '70s,
when circulation
numbers were down
and ad revenues declined,
we still had
a steady readership
of 4.5 million people
each month.
Our first London Playboy
Club was so popular
that we'd opened four more
casinos across England.
Playboy's gambling
turnover in this country
amounts,
in the past five years,
to something
over £660 million,
a great proportion
ofPlayboy's profits.
And no one was
enjoying our success
more than the man
running our UK operation,
Victor Lownes.
What's you're salary now?
Oh, about £300,000 a year.
It's quite high.
After a decade in England,
Victor even had his own 42-room mansion that he shared
with Playmate-turned-
girlfriend Marilyn Cole,
and the two were
fitting right in
with London's
high society.
Victor Lownes has
a lot of charisma.
He was riding horses
with Prince Charles
and going on foxhunts
with the English aristocracy.
With his casinos
outperforming
longtime British
gambling companies,
it seemed like nothing
could stop Victor
and the UK operation's
success.
Yes, it's a very
profitable operation.
I've had many days
here when we've won
as much money as we've
paid for the place.
But we were
about to find out
that being
the biggest game in town
also made you
the biggest target.
For nearly 15 years,
thePlayboy operation
in England
achieved
unparalleled success...
...but all that changed
on February 20th, 1981.
Playboy are accused of
violating the gaming laws.
Police raided
its Park Lane offices.
The description by the
Westminster magistrates,
Playboy is not
fit and proper
to run
a casino operation.
The London police staged
a simultaneous raid
on all of our casinos.
Turns out, our success
was not sitting well
with some of
our competitors.
They began making claims
of illegal operations
at our London club,
prompting charges
that we'd violated a number
of English gaming laws.
Our staff
was interrogated,
boxes of files
were seized,
all in an effort to dig up
dirt on our operations.
Other casinos
were under scrutiny
and eventually,
so was Playboy.
Playboywas accused ofsome improprieties.
It's questionable whether
that was actually happening.
Lownes claimed they were not.
Lownes had always
wanted his clubs
to be a model of integrity.
Today is not the end of
Playboy, but it could well be
the beginning of the end.
The casinos were raided.
Employees questioned.
Files seized.
When did this happen?
Yesterday.
I don't understand.
Well, I don't have
specifics yet,
but from what I'm hearing,
the allegations are serious,
like enough to lose us
our gaming licenses.
What?
Holy shit.
Exactly.
No. There is no way
Victor is involved
in anything illegal.
Hef, I appreciate
your loyalty,
but until
we have the facts...
What did he say?
I haven't heard from him.
A friend of mine from
The London Timescalled me.
Apparently, it's all
over the newspapers.
The first thing he should
have done was call me,
but King Victor
answers to no one,
and now we have a goddamn
shit storm on our hands.
He will answer to me.
Forget the phone.
Get him here. Now.
My pleasure.
Because of the structure
of the British oversight
and to some extent
because Victor liked to
keep information
close to the vest,
the American executives
were less aware
of the details of the business
than they might have liked.
I'd given Vic
a lot of freedom
to run
the London operation
and I'd always
trusted his decisions,
but with the London casino
responsible for
85% of our profits,
we needed to resolve
this issue
as quickly as possible,
especially with a whole
new gambling operation
starting up
in Atlantic City.
Ethel, there's something out there in the water.
Harry, there's
nothing out there.
Then what's rising out of the sea, huh?
Oh, that!
That's the new Playboy
Hotel and Casino.
What?
Oh, Harry, it's
the dawn of a new era
for the Playboy
Hotel and Casino,
with their fantastic,
new salon privé.
They wait on you
hand and foot.
Ethel, why is it rising out of the sea?
Oh, Harry,
it's show business.
The new, very civilized,
Playboy Hotel and Casino.
Atlantic City is already
a new gambling mecca,
America's new Las Vegas.
Three years earlier,
Victor had
begun construction
on a state-of-the-art
casino in Atlantic City.
Despite the legal wrangle
in London,
the Playboy Club is alive
and profitable
in Atlantic City.
We had invested $30
million in the project,
and after obtaining a
temporary operating permit,
the Playboy
Hotel and Casino
was open for business
while we awaited
final approval from
the gaming commission.
Atlantic City
was a great opportunity
to import Playboy style
and glamour
into the casino business,
which is something
that they had
successfully been able
to accomplish in London.
That was a formula
for success.
With so much riding
on our new casino
in Atlantic City,
I needed
to feel confident
that the situation
in London
was under control.
Vic, I'm so sorry
to keep you waiting.
Oh, no problem, buddy.
Where's Daniels?
Getting the noose
ready somewhere?
This isn't about
your issues with Derick.
I don't have issues
with Derick.
I have an issue.
He wants my job.
He is the president
of the company.
And I answer
to the real boss.
Okay, then.
Answer to me.
Tell me what the hell
is going on.
Nothing.
Nothing.
That's not gonna
cut it, Victor.
Well, nothing
of consequence.
I would call
losing the licenses
a pretty stiff
consequence.
We are not gonna
lose the licenses.
That is not
what Derick says.
Fuck Daniels.
He doesn't know
the first thing
about what happened, Hef.
Okay,
those raids were staged
based on evidence
provided by
a crooked competitor's
paid informants.
Look, it's a speed bump,
and when we're past it,
it's not just gonna be
business as usual.
It'll be bigger business.
In fact, I already
have my eye
on two new locations.
Okay, okay. Let's worry
about the licenses
before we
discuss expansion.
Hey, you can worry about
the licenses if you want,
but there
is nothing there.
We've been through
a lot together, Vic.
Yeah, we have.
Don't let this thing
be the last.
I promise you it won't.
Derick Daniels had never
gotten along with Victor.
They always clashed heads,
and it was often said
it was a wonderful thing
that an ocean separated them.
It was a definite
clash of personalities
but also vying
for the attention of Hef.
It didn't matter whether
or not I believed Vic.
The problems in London
were under his watch,
and now the entire
company was at risk.
For Daniels, there was
only one solution.
Derick wanted to fire Victor
and Hef had a problem with it.
And then, we were told
by our British attorney
that if Victor
were terminated,
we may well
keep our license.
This was a moment of
truth for the company.
Our profits were coming
from the UK.
Hefner had
a fiduciary responsibility
as the CEO of the company
to not only
protect the shareholders
but his investment
and the future of the company.
Victor and I had been close
friends for over 30 years
and there were few people
I respected more,
but with the future of the
London casino on the line,
I had no choice but to make
one of the hardest
decisions of my career.
Yes. Can you put me through
to Derick Daniels, please?
Victor! A pleasure
to see you, as always.
Likewise.
Especially unannounced.
This is my club.
It's the company's club.
And I run the company.
Really?
I'm sure Hef would be
very keen to hear that.
Oh, Hef sent me.
We'd like you
to step down.
Step down?
Mm-hmm.
This will send a message
to the gaming commission
that we are serious about
cleaning up corruption.
There is no corruption,
which I will prove
at the hearing.
But if you fire me, you're
basically admitting to it.
The decision has been made.
I knew we had trouble.
First trouble we'd had
in 15 years of
operation in England,
and I was prepared to
do battle with them.
Unfortunately, I think
they stampeded Hefner
into panicking
when we ran into
difficulties in England
and made it a first
order of business
to, uh, terminate me.
Playboyin London,that was Victor's baby.
It was all
very, very dramatic,
and Victor was devastated
in every which way,
and he was devastated
for Playboy.
After the police raid,
he was suddenly
and unexpectedly fired by
his American headquarters.
Victor Lownes, now
the interested spectator,
has not been asked
to give evidence.
The sacking of you by
the men from Chicago...
Yes.
...would seem to be
a rather clumsy way
of saying to the gaming
board and the law...
Yes.
...we are now clean again.
We've got rid of
the number one culprit.
Give us a chance.
Do you think that's
the strategy?
If I were the number one saint,
it'd still be the strategy, yes.
I mean, uh, regardless...
And I do feel that I did nothing wrong
during my administration.
For Victor to be fired
from Playboy,
it was the biggest
personal tragedy
as well as business tragedy
for both Hef and Victor.
Looking back now,
I wish I'd handled
things differently.
Victor and I had been
through so much together
and I didn't
even say goodbye.
But what made it
even worse
is that it was
all for nothing.
The licensing magistrates,
four women and a man,
issued their verdict.
Very simply,
they said thatPlayboy
was not fit and proper
to hold a gaming license
and that the clubs had been
used for unlawful purposes.
The London Playboy Club
was still denied
its gambling license.
What Hugh Hefner
and Derrick Daniels,
I don't think,
grasped was,
Victor Lownes actually
was still seen
with a lot of prestige
and still had
a big influence
in the UK gaming industry
and still knew
what he was doing.
He understood what
was going on in the UK
much more than anyone,
and so, by getting rid of him,
you're essentially removing
an asset from your company
and an asset that very well
might have been able
to guide Playboy
through the investigation
without having to
lose its casino licenses.
With the loss of
our gambling license,
we had to sell off
all of our London assets,
taking a huge
financial hit,
but it turned out,
we had even more problems
in Atlantic City.
The applicant failed
the test that each of us
is required to pass in
the conduct of our affairs.
This applicant
has not met its burden
to establish by clear
and convincing evidence
its qualifications
to hold a casino license.
Investigators
had looked through
all ofPlayboy's
past business operations
and dug up mistakes
we'd made in the past.
The Casino Control Commission
comes out with a report
detailing all these issues
with Playboy'spermanent
casino application.
The vote went against
Hefner because of his part
in bribing
New York officials
to obtain a liquor
license 20 years ago.
They go back 20-plus years.
They look at anything
and everything
connected to Hugh Hefner
and the fact that
the British Gaming Board
has just decided to yank
Playboy'scasino licenses,
so Playboyloses its bid
for a permanent license
by a three-to-two vote.
LicensingPlayboy,
with its history,
would signal the abandonment
of virtually
all licensing criteria
requiring ethical restraint.
If the unethical practices
and illegal acts
of corporations
are not checked,
the future of a kind,
free casino industry
in Atlantic City
would be in jeopardy.
The verdict was a major
blow to our business,
but I knew I had to
put on a brave face
to maintain
our reputation.
We are a sound,
broadly-based company,
and we'll
not only survive,
but we'll do very well
with or without gaming.
But after losing both the
London casino operations
and now the investment
in Atlantic City,
the future of the company
was in jeopardy.
I know things look
very dark right now,
but this is fixable.
Is it?
Yeah, of course.
But you had to
think about it.
Oh, come on, Hef.
We just lost
almost $200 million.
Yes, yes, I'm well
aware how much money...
How does that not put us
on the brink of extinction?
WithPlayboy's reputation
at an all-time low,
I knew we needed
to make a major change
at the company if we were
going to get back on track,
and it was clear that
Daniels wasn't cutting it,
so I decided it was time to
put someone else in charge.
A couple of people
in the news tonight.
Playboy Enterprises
has a new president.
She's not
a former centerfold.
She's Christie Hefner.
Christie, pretty enough to be a centerfold herself,
will bring a new image and new zest toPlayboy.
A moment of truth came
that things were not working
well with Derick Daniels.
Hefner said, well,
so now what am I gonna do?
We both agreed that Christie
would be an appropriate CEO.
She says she must
now makePlayboy
a clearly focused
communications company
instead of a corporation
that is broadly based...
and I'm sure
she intended no pun.
Christie was
my oldest child
with my first wife,
Millie.
I hadn't been around much
when she was growing up,
but after she graduated
summa cum laude
from Brandeis University
in 1974,
Christie came
to work atPlayboy
in an entry-level position.
I only saw my father
occasionally
when I was growing up.
I think that what allowed
us to get much closer
was when I went to work
in the company,
and the outgrowth
of that has been
we're actually now
very close.
I joined the company not
really expecting to stay
more than a year or two,
but I did get interested
in the variety of businesses
and the challenges
and the people
that it attracted,
and as I stayed and worked
in different parts of the
company and learned more,
I found it
more and more intriguing.
Christie was
extremely bright.
She had a natural knack
for organizational efforts.
Christie may have
been my daughter,
but she quickly carved
a path all on her own
within the company.
Christie really
earned for herself
a reputation
as a very level-headed,
smart businesswoman.
Her lifestyle and her image
has been very different
than her father's.
And by 1982,
she had proven
that she was
more than capable
of taking over the reigns
of Playboy Enterprises.
I would like to introduce
another Playboy executive
who happens to be a woman,
one of whom I'm rather proud
because she's
also my daughter,
but I would be
very proud of her
if she weren't my daughter,
Christie Hefner.
My being named president
actually was well received,
and I think that was because
I'd been in the company
for seven years.
People had seen me,
seen my work ethic,
seen how I handled myself.
Plus, I think the fact
that I was Christie Hefner,
I think people
believed that I cared
and that I cared
about the long term.
There is a bright and shining
star in the Hefner family
that's on the ascendency.
An articulate,
committed young woman.
And we are
going to be hearing
a great deal from her
in the years to come.
Christie,
we thank you very much
for all that you're doing.
But while there was no
better person for the job,
Christie was inheriting
a difficult situation.
They're calling it
the end of an era,
the victim of
changing times.
Playboy has closed down
its big city clubs
in Los Angeles,
Chicago, and New York.
Going into the middle
of the decade,
we were on
the edge of bankruptcy.
Playboy has lost millions
of dollars in recent years,
much of it because of the clubs.
Joe, that's the end of the "tail."
Oh-ho-ho. Very good, Bob.
With the company
in crisis,
Christie dove
right into work.
When I took over
as president,
my goal was
to save the company.
The first order of business
was to stop the bleeding
and so we sold
the businesses
that we didn't think
we could make successes of,
like the book business
and the record business
and the resorts.
Her efforts cut costs
by $8 million per year.
Despite these measures,
Playboy Enterprises still
lost $17.5 million in 1983.
Christie recognized that
if we wanted to survive,
we'd have to make
some bigger moves.
The world was consuming
media in new ways,
and we needed to adapt
to changing times.
VCRs were in almost every
home across the country
and over 30 million people
had started paying for
premium cable stations
tailored
to their interests.
Christie saw the chance
to offer them
a whole new
Playboy experience.
The Playboy Channel.
When you start
talking aboutPlayboy
in combination
with pay television,
people's eyes light up,
because it's about
the hottest news in the
business going right now.
Cable TV created
the opportunity
for destination viewing
and a great way of expanding
the brand to women
because the majority of
viewing was done by couples.
Just the man
I was looking for.
Cable television was one
of these great steps
toward transforming
and liberating
the dissemination
of information,
and what this allowed for,
you know, Hugh Hefner
was now to
have his own channel
that he doesn't have to
kind of filter himself
and his message
or his information,
and this is, of course,
a way to make
a tremendous amount
of money.
Hiya, Hef!
Airing between 8 p.m.
and 6 a.m. Eastern time,
the Playboy TV Network
became the country's
leading channel
for adult entertainment,
and as the channel grew
to more than 800,000
paying subscribers,
it gave us a much needed
boost in revenue.
With the channel
proving to be a success,
Christie turned
to the magazine,
taking inspiration
fromPlayboy's
very first issue.
As there were more and more
magazines proliferated
from the time
when Playboystarted,
it became
increasingly important
to be able to
distinguish yourself
on the newsstand to attract
the interest of the buyer,
and one clear way to do that
was through celebrities.
Women like Vanna White
graced the covers and
helped us increase sales.
But in 1984, we were
offered exclusive rights
to nude photos
of one celebrity
who was sure
to cause controversy.
A year earlier,
20-year-old Vanessa
Williams had been crowned
the first African-American
Miss America,
but it didn't take long
for someone
from her past to surface,
looking to cash in
on her celebrity.
Years ago, she'd posed
nude, but was told
the photos would only
be used in silhouette.
Now the photographer
was shopping around
the full images.
Vanessa Williams' pictures
were offered to the magazine,
and there
wasn't any question
that there would be
strong commercial appeal
in this beautiful young
woman who was the first
African-American
Miss America,
but it was also
quite obvious
that these were not pictures
that she had intended
to have published.
We knew that ifPlayboy
ran those photos,
she'd be forced
to give up her crown.
It was not a difficult
decision to make,
that if we ran those
pictures, we would destroy
the career of the first
black Miss America,
and that was the opposite
of the kind of statement
we wanted to make.
Playboy rejected
the photos.
You don't think
he would have sold
a lot of Playboymagazines?
Most certainly!
Very much could've
brought those photographs
and put them in a magazine.
What kind of man would
want to give a young woman
that kind of pain?
But our longtime rival,
Penthouse,
published the photos in
their September 1984 issue,
and Williams
was forced to resign.
Potential harm
to the pageant
and the deep division that
a bitter fight may cause
has convinced me
that I must relinquish
my title as Miss America.
It became the highest selling
Penthouse issue ever,
and for the first time
in history,
Penthouse sales beat ours
by nearly
one million copies.
But that success
was short-lived,
and soonPlayboy
was once again
outsellingPenthouse.
Although we had been
through many struggles
over the past few years,
we never wavered
in our commitment
to covering issues
that other publications
thought were
too controversial.
And, in the mid '80s,
that issue was AIDS.
Scientists at the National
Centers for Disease Control
in Atlanta today released
the results of a study
which shows that
the lifestyle
of some male homosexuals
has triggered an epidemic.
A strange, lethal,
sexually transmitted
disease with no cure.
It first appeared
in the gay community
of New York City
and spread quickly.
When AIDS starts off, at
least in the American mindset
and in the media
as a gay disease
but suddenly then winds up
also affecting
straight people...
The sexual revolution is
sex without consequences.
Now, suddenly, the
consequences can be deadly,
and this has
a tremendous effect
on my generation
that grew up in the 1980s
that suddenly,
wait a second,
this is something we need
to be anxious about.
Money for AIDS,
not for war!
But the government
and the national press
largely ignored the crisis,
believing the subject
was too controversial.
The federal role must be
to give educators
accurate information
about the disease.
Now, how that
information is used
must be up to schools
and parents, not government.
But I was determined
to make surePlayboy
addressed the issue
head on.
When the AIDS epidemic
started,
and then-President Reagan
wouldn't even say the word,
Playboyplayed,I think, an important role
in educating people
about how the disease
was transmitted
and wasn't transmitted.
Playboy ran dozens
of articles
addressing
the AIDS crisis,
along with interviews
and any other formats
we could think of
to spread awareness.
When AIDS came along, it came
with the frightening thought
that everybody who engaged
in sex with a stranger
was going to get AIDS.
That was full of mythology.
I wrote a short
editorial about AIDS.
We dealt with AIDS as
scientifically as we could.
Over the past
three decades,
Playboy had
covered a wide range
of controversial topics,
and I was always proud
of the work we did,
but I was getting tired.
Christie had been at
the helm for six years
and proven she could
run the company.
After 35 years,
I decided, at age 62,
that I needed to step
back and settle down.
Though I'd shared my life
with many incredible
women over the years,
I'd sworn that I would
never marry again.
That is, until I
met Kimberley Conrad.
Kimberley Conrad came to us
as a potential Playmate
from a photographer
in Vancouver.
Kimberley played
hard to get, actually.
She was very attractive
and a lot of fun.
I met Kimberley
when she posed
for our January 1988
Playmate of the month.
I had met many of our
Playmates in the past,
but there was something
special about Kimberley.
I felt an immediate sense
of ease with her.
Hello.
This was our best
Christmas ever.
It was.
It didn't take either
of us long to realize
that we were madly in love.
By February of that year,
Kimberley had moved
into the mansion.
From there,
things moved quickly.
Kimberly was named
Playmate of the Year
in June of 1989...
Having been in,
over the years,
a number of
romantic relationships,
this is different.
...and became Kimberly
Hefner in July.
This is probably as good a moment as any
to thank all of you for sharing with us
a rather unique evening.
One that you thought
you'd never see.
I think that meeting Kimberley
is very much a matter
of having met
the right person
in the right place
at the right time.
I was ready for that
kind of relationship,
and she had the values
that I was looking for,
and she came to me
at a time
in which I was
looking for a safe harbor
after some very stormy seas.
Getting married was
only the beginning.
Wait, I'm right here!
Be careful!
Don't drop it.
Look! Look!
I think somebody's
on his nap time.
Within a year,
our happy family expanded
when our son Marston
was born.
Where are you going, little guy?
And the year after that,
his brother, Cooper.
Hefner was not
really a parent
to his two children he had
with his first wife, Millie,
because he was busy
with his business,
with starting the magazine.
The two boys
he had with Kimberley
were doted on by Hefner.
In their very early years,
they spent a lot of time
at the mansion,
playing with the animals
and Hefner.
You're such a big guy.
When my brother and I came
along, my dad was older.
I think he, in his head,
wanted to try being a parent,
so, I mean,
I saw him every single day.
He was much more hands on
in the sense
of being a father.
You ready to go?
Almost overnight,
the mansion went
from the world's most
famous bachelor pad
to an island of
domestic tranquility.
With my first marriage,
I knew I hadn't always
been the best husband
or father,
but having
this second chance
gave me
a new lease on life.
It was truly one of
my happiest times.
Not until the baby was born
did I really realize
what an impact it could
have on my own life.
It should've been that
way the first time,
but, of course,
I just wasn't there,
emotionally or mentally.
And I think it's wonderful
to have the chance
to do it all right
the second time.
I was busy trying
to play catch up
with my other two children
after they were grown.
This time,
I don't want to miss
all the wonderful part
in between.
But sadly, that
happiness did not last.
Over time, it became clear
that Kimberley and I
weren't as compatible as I
had originally believed.
Our marriage came to an end
after nine years.
In the end, the most
important thing
was the boys.
Although it hadn't worked
out with me and Kimberley,
I wanted my sons near me.
He bought a house
next door to the mansion,
and Kimberley and the boys
grew up in that house.
This is to our new house.
Hopefully the neighbors won't complain about our music.
Hefner wanted it that close
so that he could be
with the boys.
He and Kimberley had
a reasonable relationship
before the actual divorce
and even now.
It wasn't easy at first,
but I soon realized
I still had
a lot of life to live.
After years
of being settled down,
Mr. Playboy was back.
Once again,
the mansion became
the party destination
for Hollywood's
A-list celebrities.
You know
how to do it, Hugh!
And, of course,
the most beautiful
women in the world.
Before I knew it,
in 2003,
Playboy had reached
another milestone...
...our 50th anniversary.
I could not have imagined,
on any kind of level,
the impact
the magazine would have,
how it would change
my life.
Who could have imagined it?
But the early 2000s
brought something we could
have never expected...
...the Internet.
The rise of the Internet
destroys the business
model of Playboy.
There is no way that you
can sell printed material
or even a channel
when you have to compete
with free video,
open access, and any
kind of porn you want.
But while we
couldn't compete
with what was online,
there was one new trend
that was a perfect fit
forPlayboy.
Welcome to the Playboy Mansion.
And with reality TV
being all the rage,
I knew it could be
the perfect way
to movePlayboy
into the 21st century.
I invited the world
into the Playboy Mansion
every week
as the Playmates and I
just went about
living our lives.
You look cute. Do you have boob glue on?
No.
You don't?
It was called
The Girls Next Door.
Initially with The Girls Next Door,
there was kind of
the belief that this
was going to draw
more of a male audience.
Is anybody going
skinny-dipping?
The truth is, it actually
attracted a predominantly
female audience.
This is the original
vibrating, rotating bed
from the Chicago Mansion,
you know.
Really? Does it still work?
People loved the girls.
There was something relatable
about each of them.
It lasted six seasons
and introducedPlayboy
to a whole new generation,
and it became one of
the most successful shows
in the history
of E! Network,
with over 2 million
viewers at its peak.
Then, something
unexpected happened.
In the final season
of the show,
I was introduced
to Crystal Harris.
She was our December 2009
Playmate of the Month
and we quickly fell
in love.
Ladies and gentlemen,
may I introduce
for the first time,
Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Hefner.
And after years of dating,
we were married
on December 31st, 2012.
Hef is a very romantic guy.
He adores Crystal
and they have a very,
very happy marriage,
and he is probably
more of a husband now
than he was
earlier in his life,
because he has more time
to spend with his wife
than he did with
the other two women.
My relationship
with Crystal
couldn't be more perfect,
and I'm happier today
that I've ever been.
She really is
my one true love.
It's been over six decades
since I started a magazine
at my kitchen table,
and in the years since,
Playboy has expanded
beyond my wildest dreams.
Our updated London casino,
which opened in 2011,
is one of
the most successful
private club casinos
in the world,
and our branded products
brought in $1.5 billion
in 2016.
To this day,Playboy
is the third-most
recognizable brand
in the world,
after only Apple
and Coca-Cola.
I never
could have imagined
that the conversations
I started in 1953
would continue to this day.
Looking back on my life,
I see so many things.
What do you think
of this?
Hefner is one of the
most underrated forces
in American life in the
second half of the 20th century.
Hefner changed the way
everybody thinks about sex.
Congratulations,
Mr. Playboy.
He took us
from '50s innocence
to '60s curiosity
to '70s revolution.
He created the sexual
revolution, in my opinion,
and should have
all the credit for that.
Cheers! To the Playboy Club!
To the Playboy Club!
When most people hear
the name "Hugh Hefner,"
they think of the
magazine, the pictures,
and....and ooh-ee.
Well, Hugh Hefner
was a real, authentic,
First Amendment devotee.
To him, it really was about
the freedom of expression.
Police yesterday
carted two tons of
obscene magazines,
films, and photographs
to the city incinerator
and burned them.
I am not a big fan
of censorship,
and I'm glad I was born
after the people who came
before me, like Hugh Hefner.
A lot of these people
have got a lot of arrows.
Now, I've gotten some,
but not the way they did.
We stand on
each other's shoulders.
It wasn't that his attitudes
or point of view on sex
were revolutionary.
It was his ability
to deliver the message
as well as promote
a conversation about it
that was really
revolutionary.
The magazine and the company
just became the messenger of,
these are conversations
we should be having
and these are topics we should
be thinking about a lot more.
He didn't introduce
the world to sex.
He just allowed it
to step out of the closet.
Yes, yes.
Straight down the lens.
Perfect.
I think he was confident
of what he had done,
how he had lived,
what he believed.
He's remarkably able to
weather very difficult times
because of that.
I think part of what
my pursuit of happiness
has been all about
has been an attempt
to walk a different road.
There is no fantasy that
I have not lived out.
If I were gonna
rewrite my life
from beginning to end,
I might change
a few punctuation marks,
but the things
that mattered
could hardly have
worked out any better.