Hugh Hefner the founder of Playboy is dead. The media baron dies at the age of 91 of natural causes.Hefner, who was born in Chicago in 1926 to Methodist parents, served in the US army in the second world war, graduated from the University of Illinois and worked as a copywriter for Esquire before launching Playboy magazine in December 1953. The first issue, produced from his kitchen and financed with $8,000 from investors, sold more than 50,000 copies.
The magazine’s “progressive” approach to sexuality made it a controversial publication, albeit wildly popular, and during the course of Hefner’s lifetime the Playboy brand expanded to include film and print media products, clothing, fragrances, jewellery and accessories and more, all marked with its distinctive “bunny” logo. At the time of Hefner’s death, the magazine itself was published in more than 20 countries, with Playboy Enterprises claiming over $1bn in annual sales from its trademarked assets.
-The Guardian UK