Hefner

Hefner is a surname. The most widely known bearer is Hugh Marston Hefner (1926–2017), an American magazine publisher who founded Playboy in 1953.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Hefner attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In 1953, he launched Playboy after using $8,000 of his own money to publish the inaugural issue, which featured Marilyn Monroe from a nude calendar photo. The issue sold 50,000 copies and established Playboy as a major publishing brand.

Over the following decades, Hefner built Playboy Enterprises into a media and lifestyle company, expanding into magazines, television, clubs, licensing, and various consumer products. The Playboy brand became a widely recognized symbol of liberal attitudes toward sex and celebrity interviews, while also generating ongoing debate over representation and gender.

Hefner died on September 27, 2017, at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles, California, at age 91. His influence on publishing and popular culture is often noted for advancing discussions of sexuality, libertarian values, and media entrepreneurship, even as critics pointed to concerns about objectification and the business practices surrounding the brand.