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Tag: Hugh Hefner

  • Hugh Hefner’s widow alleges his foundation kept thousands of sexual photos – National | Globalnews.ca

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    Crystal Hefner, the widow of the late Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner, is working to keep thousands of intimate images in his scrapbooks and journals private.

    Crystal, 39, filed regulatory complaints with the attorneys general of California and Illinois, alleging that the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation mishandled sensitive private documents. According to Crystal, the materials include scrapbooks containing explicit images of women. She also alleges that some of the images are of underage girls.

    Crystal, who is being represented by high-profile lawyer Gloria Allred, said that the images did not appear in Playboy magazines.

    Allred said Crystal was removed as the chief executive officer of the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation after she voiced concerns over publishing the private scrapbooks and diary.


    Click to play video: '5 facts you may not know about Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner'


    5 facts you may not know about Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner


    “My focus is on how Hugh Hefner’s personal scrapbooks chronicle private moments that took place behind closed doors,” Crystal said during a press conference on Feb. 17.

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    “There are serious and unresolved concerns about the scope of what these books contain. The materials span decades, beginning in the 1960s, and may include images of girls who were underage at the time and could not consent to how their images would be retained or controlled.”


    Crystal Hefner (L), widow of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, and attorney Gloria Allred hold a press conference to announce steps they’re taking to protect sexual images and information about women in Hefner’s personal scrapbooks and diary in Los Angeles on Feb. 17, 2026.

    Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty Images

    Crystal claimed that many of the scrapbooks “may also contain images of women who did not consent to their images being taken in the first place.”

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    “The scrapbooks include nude images, images taken before and after sexual activity, and other deeply intimate moments. They contain intimate material involving women who are now mothers, grandmothers, professionals and private citizens who have spent decades building their lives with no idea these images were still being hoarded,” she continued.

    “I believe they include women, and possibly girls, who never agreed to lifelong private possession of their naked images, and who have no transparency into where their photos are, how they are being stored, or what will happen to them next.”

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    She said that she is “deeply worried about these images getting out” due to “artificial intelligence, deepfakes, digital scanning, online marketplaces and data breaches.”

    “A single security failure could devastate thousands of lives,” she added.


    “This is not about money. I am seeking dignity, safety and the destruction of non-consensual intimate materials so that exploitation does not continue under the banner of philanthropy. Thousands of women may be affected. This is a civil rights issue. Women’s bodies are not property, not history, and not collectibles. And no organization should be allowed to claim the language of civil rights while denying women their most basic one: the right to control their own bodies and images,” Crystal concluded.

    Allred alleged the foundation has in its possession “3,000 personal scrapbooks containing thousands of nude images of women as well as Hefner’s diary, containing highly personal information regarding his sexual exploits, including names of women he slept with, notes describing the sex acts that they performed and in some instances even information tracking women’s menstrual cycles.”

    Allred said that they are asking the attorneys general to “initiate a prompt and thorough investigation of the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation’s actions.”

    “Crystal is especially concerned that these scrapbooks could contain images of minor girls. Moreover, Crystal is also concerned that some of the images in the scrapbooks may have been taken without the informed consent of the adult women depicted, such as while they were intoxicated,” Allred added.

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    Click to play video: 'The legacy of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner'


    The legacy of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner


    The Hugh M. Hefner Foundation was established in 1964 “to embolden those who rebelled against outdated viewpoints and pushed forward new ones,” according to its website.

    However, now the non-profit organization says that it “supports and funds today’s pioneers, defending civil rights and liberties, with special emphasis on First Amendment rights and rational sex and drug policies.”

    The foundation has not made any comments regarding Crystal and Allred’s claims as of this writing.

    Hugh Hefner died of natural causes on Sept. 27, 2017, at the age of 91. He helped usher in the 1960s sexual revolution with his groundbreaking magazine, around which he built a multi-million-dollar business empire.


    Click to play video: 'Hugh Hefner dead at 91'


    Hugh Hefner dead at 91


    He began his career working as a copywriter for Esquire before founding Playboy in 1953 with the help of several investors, including his mother, who loaned him $1,000, according to a New York Times profile.

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    Hefner was married three times — in 1949, 1989 and most recently in 2012 to Crystal.

    Crystal opened up days after the death of her late husband, saying, “I haven’t been able to bring myself to write most people back to thank them for their condolences.”

    “I am heartbroken. I am still in disbelief,” she added.

    Crystal called her late husband “an American hero” and “a pioneer.”

    “A kind and humble soul who opened up his life and home to the world. I felt how much he loved me. I loved him so much. I am so grateful. He gave me life. He gave me direction. He taught me kindness. I will feel eternally grateful to have been by his side, holding his hand, and telling him how much I love him,” she said.

    — With files from Global News

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    © 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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    Katie Scott

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  • Kendra Wilkinson Says She Was Hospitalized Due To Trauma From Her Playboy Days

    Kendra Wilkinson Says She Was Hospitalized Due To Trauma From Her Playboy Days

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    Kendra Wilkinson is opening up about how a mental health emergency is helping her unpack unresolved trauma.

    In a People exclusive published Tuesday, the former Playboy playmate and reality star told the magazine that in September of last year she had a panic attack so severe that her ex-husband and former NFL player, Hank Baskett, rushed her to the emergency room.

    Wilkinson, now 38, said that when the attack occurred she “didn’t know what was going on in my head and my body or why I was crying.”

    “I was dying of depression,” she told People. “I was hitting the end of my life, and I went into psychosis. I felt like I wasn’t strong enough to live anymore.”

    Wilkinson said that just a week after her initial panic attack, she returned to the emergency room. Soon after her second hospitalization, she began outpatient therapy three times a week at UCLA. It was there that she learned that her panic attacks and depression were due in part to her 2019 divorce from Baskett — but more largely stemmed from her time living with Hugh Hefner in his notorious Playboy mansion.

    “Playboy really messed my whole life up,” Wilkinson said.

    “It’s not easy to look back at my 20s. I’ve had to face my demons,” she added.

    From left: Kendra Wilkinson, Bridget Marquardt, Hugh Hefner and Holly Madison in 2006.

    Laurence Cottrell via Getty Images

    Wilkinson moved into Hefner’s mansion when she was 18 years old and he was 60 years her senior. Wilkinson — along with fellow former playmates Holly Madison and Bridget Marquardt — eventually acted as Hefner’s three main girlfriends. Their polygamous arrangement was the basis of the reality show “The Girls Next Door” that aired from 2005 to 2010, and it was clear from the series that Hefner had complete control over his much younger girlfriend’s appearances and lives.

    Wilkinson implied to People that she was not emotionally prepared to handle this kind of situation, and told the magazine that just three years prior to moving in she was “on drugs” and “had a lot of issues.”

    “I really got into deep regret [after moving in],” Wilkinson said. “I struggled with depression before and at the mansion. I drank a lot. I was there for the partying, OK, let’s just be real. I was not there for Hugh Hefner to be my boyfriend.”

    Wilkinson has also previously stated that she wasn’t even aware that she was expected to sleep with Hefner when she moved into the mansion.

    “I didn’t know that sex was involved because I knew nothing about Playboy. I just graduated high school,” Wilkinson said in a 2014 episode of “I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!” according to ABC. “[But then] he’s like, ‘Do you wanna come upstairs?’ [and I said], ‘Sure, let’s have fun.’”

    Being overtly sexualized at such a young age wasn’t the only demoralizing thing Wilkinson had to endure during her time with Hefner — who died in 2017 at the age of 91. The late Playboy magazine founder was notoriously particular about his partners’ physical appearance and preferred blondes with large breasts — spurring many women in Hefner’s orbit to undergo plastic surgery. Wilkinson said that Hefner’s very specific aesthetics ate away at her self esteem.

    Wilkinson seems to be reckoning with the same issues that Madison, who dated Hefner at the same time, has been more forthright about publicly addressing for years.
    Wilkinson seems to be reckoning with the same issues that Madison, who dated Hefner at the same time, has been more forthright about publicly addressing for years.

    Jon Kopaloff via Getty Images

    “I hated my boobs, my body, my face. I got to that point where I started hating myself,” she says.

    Thanks to regular therapy, Wilkinson now questions why she even put herself into that situation.

    “Why did I have sex with Hugh Hefner at that age? Why did I do that?” Wilkinson told People. “Why did I go to the mansion in the first place? Why did I get big boobs? Why am I a sex symbol? Why did I bleach blonde my hair? Why did I do this to myself? Why did I?”

    Wilkinson seems to be reckoning with the same issues that Holly Madison, who dated Hefner at the same time, has been more forthright about publicly addressing for years. Madison has been open about the abusive nature of her relationship with Hefner on her podcast, “Girls Next Level.” In 2015, Madison published her memoir, “Down the Rabbit Hole: Curious Adventures and Cautionary Tales of a Former Playboy,” which was critical of her relationship with the Playboy founder. At the time of the memoir’s publication, Wilkinson was still a staunch defender of Hefner, and wrote off Madison as a bitter ex-girlfriend and her book as petty “revenge.”

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  • Borscht Belt comedian Freddie Roman dies at age 85

    Borscht Belt comedian Freddie Roman dies at age 85

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    Comedian Freddie Roman, the former dean of The Friars Club and a staple of the Catskills comedy scene, has died. He was 85.

    Roman died Saturday afternoon at Bethesda Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida, his booking agent and friend Alison Chaplin said Sunday. His daughter told the entertainment trade Deadline that he suffered a heart attack that morning.

    Roman made his name performing at hotels and resorts in the Catskill Mountains, also referred to as the Borscht Belt for the largely Jewish crowd that vacationed there and the comics such as Mel Brooks and Don Rickles who entertained them. He later performed at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and Bally’s Grand in Atlantic City, and he roasted the likes of Rob Reiner, Chevy Chase, Jerry Stiller and Hugh Hefner. He also conceived of “Catskills on Broadway,” where he and his friends Dick Capri, Marilyn Michaels and Mal Z. Lawrence brought their nostalgia-tinged, Catskills-flavored standup to New York. He also appeared in various television shows and films over the years, including “Red Oaks” on Amazon.

    “A great loss to the world of comedy,” Paul Reiser wrote on Twitter. “He was such a huge supporter & mentor when I was starting out. A GREAT comic, the ultimate pro with the biggest heart. I will miss our phone calls and his big, beauty laugh.”

    Born Fred Kirschenbaum on May 28, 1937 in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in Jamaica, Queens, Roman got a taste for stand-up comedy early thanks to his family. His uncle and grandfather owned the Crystal Spring Hotel in the Catskills, where Roman started emceeing at age 15.

    In “Catskills on Broadway,” Roman commented about everything from his childhood in Queens to his “retirement life” in Florida.

    “I took a cholesterol test,” Roman quipped. “My number came back 911.”

    The New York Times, in its review of the show in 1991, wrote, “Catskill resorts may be fighting the recession, but Catskill comedy has not lost its flair.”

    The show, he’d later say, changed his life. It went to Broadway and then toured around the country, and Roman would continue performing for years to come. He was also made Dean of the New York City Friars Club, where he mentored many aspiring comedians and infused the private club with young talent.

    One of those young comedians was Jeffrey Ross, who said of Roman in 2003 that, “When I was becoming a member, there weren’t many of us who were younger. … But Freddie would always come over and spend time with me and my friends and be real lovable.”

    Capri, in the same interview, said Roman was the perfect comedy ambassador.

    “He’s the social director of the world,” Capri said. “And he loves every second of it.”

    The stint lasted a bit longer than he expected. Roman joked of his tenure that, “Eleven years ago I became president for two years. I’m like the Fidel Castro of comedians. I’m president for life.” In 2014, he was succeeded by Larry King.

    But, he told Atlantic City Weekly in 2011, the greatest job he ever had was opening for Frank Sinatra, when his regular opening comedian Tom Dreesen wasn’t available. Roman learned about the opportunity on a layover in Chicago, left the plane and boarded another for Philadelphia to make the show in Atlantic City with just a few hours to spare.

    He left the stage to see Sinatra laughing. The singer even called him back for another bow.

    “Frank hugged me, and I saw my wife and daughter and they were crying,” Roman said. “It was unbelievable. … Nothing ever topped working with Sinatra.”

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  • Borscht Belt comedian Freddie Roman dies at age 85

    Borscht Belt comedian Freddie Roman dies at age 85

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    Comedian Freddie Roman, the former dean of The Friars Club and a staple of the Catskills comedy scene, has died. He was 85.

    Roman died Saturday afternoon at Bethesda Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida, his booking agent and friend Alison Chaplin said Sunday. His daughter told the entertainment trade Deadline that he suffered a heart attack that morning.

    Roman made his name performing at hotels and resorts in the Catskill Mountains, also referred to as the Borscht Belt for the largely Jewish crowd that vacationed there and the comics such as Mel Brooks and Don Rickles who entertained them. He later performed at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and Bally’s Grand in Atlantic City, and he roasted the likes of Rob Reiner, Chevy Chase, Jerry Stiller and Hugh Hefner. He also conceived of “Catskills on Broadway,” where he and his friends Dick Capri, Marilyn Michaels and Mal Z. Lawrence brought their nostalgia-tinged, Catskills-flavored standup to New York. He also appeared in various television shows and films over the years, including “Red Oaks” on Amazon.

    “A great loss to the world of comedy,” Paul Reiser wrote on Twitter. “He was such a huge supporter & mentor when I was starting out. A GREAT comic, the ultimate pro with the biggest heart. I will miss our phone calls and his big, beauty laugh.”

    Born Fred Kirschenbaum on May 28, 1937 in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in Jamaica, Queens, Roman got a taste for stand-up comedy early thanks to his family. His uncle and grandfather owned the Crystal Spring Hotel in the Catskills, where Roman started emceeing at age 15.

    In “Catskills on Broadway,” Roman commented about everything from his childhood in Queens to his “retirement life” in Florida.

    “I took a cholesterol test,” Roman quipped. “My number came back 911.”

    The New York Times, in its review of the show in 1991, wrote, “Catskill resorts may be fighting the recession, but Catskill comedy has not lost its flair.”

    The show, he’d later say, changed his life. It went to Broadway and then toured around the country, and Roman would continue performing for years to come. He was also made Dean of the New York City Friars Club, where he mentored many aspiring comedians and infused the private club with young talent.

    One of those young comedians was Jeffrey Ross, who said of Roman in 2003 that, “When I was becoming a member, there weren’t many of us who were younger. … But Freddie would always come over and spend time with me and my friends and be real lovable.”

    Capri, in the same interview, said Roman was the perfect comedy ambassador.

    “He’s the social director of the world,” Capri said. “And he loves every second of it.”

    The stint lasted a bit longer than he expected. Roman joked of his tenure that, “Eleven years ago I became president for two years. I’m like the Fidel Castro of comedians. I’m president for life.” In 2014, he was succeeded by Larry King.

    But, he told Atlantic City Weekly in 2011, the greatest job he ever had was opening for Frank Sinatra, when his regular opening comedian Tom Dreesen wasn’t available. Roman learned about the opportunity on a layover in Chicago, left the plane and boarded another for Philadelphia to make the show in Atlantic City with just a few hours to spare.

    He left the stage to see Sinatra laughing. The singer even called him back for another bow.

    “Frank hugged me, and I saw my wife and daughter and they were crying,” Roman said. “It was unbelievable. … Nothing ever topped working with Sinatra.”

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  • What Happened to Chippendales? Founders, Murders and More

    What Happened to Chippendales? Founders, Murders and More

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    Whether you’ve been to a live show or you’re more familiar with Chris Farley’s SNL rendition, the all-male strip club Chippendales has been a household name for decades.


    Photo by Denise Truscello/WireImage

    The brand is known as the first strip joint to cater to female desires with its signature shows featuring buff men in cuffs and bow ties – sans shirts.

    Founder Somen “Steve” Banerjee opened the strip club for the first time in Los Angeles in 1979, and the brand is still “thriving” today, reps told Entrepreneur, with its permanent Las Vegas show and a world-touring dance troupe.

    The brand has attracted the likes of Hollywood, with Magic Mike pulling inspiration from the iconic show, and some stars have even participated in the live performance, including Jersey Shore’s Vinny Guadagnino.

    However, things were a lot less glamorous for Banerjee and the club behind the scenes, with several murders, arson, and other crimes connected to the club.

    Hulu is set to unpack the dark and twisted history behind Chippendales with its new series, “Welcome to Chippendales,” premiering on November 22, with new weekly episodes through Jan. 3, 2023.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DchtacgVLbQ

    How Did Chippendales Start And Who Are the Founders?

    Chippendales was the brainchild of Somen “Steve” Banerjee, who is being portrayed by Kumail Nanjiani in the Hulu series. Originally from India, Banerjee immigrated to the United States and worked as a gas station attendant before finding entrepreneurship, according to Entertainment Tonight.

    Banerjee owned two gas stations and eventually opened a nightclub called Destiny II in 1975 with his partner Bruce Nahin, according to LA Magazine. Nahin and his father bought 10% of the club to help Banerjee’s cash flow, but he segued to filmmaking in 1987, Nahin said in an interview with The Drill.

    After trying magic shows and other entertainment to bring customers in, nightclub promoter and regular Paul Snider suggested an all-male strip club.

    In 1980, they changed the name of the club to “Chippendales” — after the British furniture brand — for a “classier” vibe, and Chippendales as we know it was born.

    In the early days of Chippendales, Snider and his wife, Playboy‘s 1980 Playmate of the Year, Dorothy Stratten, were instrumental in shaping the club’s look. In fact, Stratten coined the dancers’ iconic “cuffs and collars uniform” and even got Hugh Hefner on board.

    Banerjee was seen as the brains behind the operation, and he brought on producer Nick De Noia to choreograph the live shows in 1981. Although the pair helped shape the iconic brand into what it is today, they consistently butted heads.

    De Noia took credit for creating Chippendales’ signature choreography and expanding to a New York location in 1983, per LA Magazine.

    The duo’s contentious relationship led them to part ways after three years in business together.

    De Noia was able to negotiate the rights to take Chippendales on tour with a signed cocktail napkin contract in 1984, per The U.S. Sun. But when the tour proved to be a success, generating $80,000 in profits a week, Banerjee was displeased and fought to regain the rights to the traveling show. He was unsuccessful.

    What Are the Chippendales Murders?

    The first tragedy to hit Chippendales occurred shortly after Dorothy Stratten negotiated the deal with Playboy and was honored with Playmate of the Year. Hugh Hefner had taken a liking to Stratten, and although Stratten’s husband, Paul Snider, had helped connect the two and launch Stratten’s career, Hefner did what he could to push Snider out. In 1980, Snider murdered Stratten and committed suicide thereafter.

    Meanwhile, De Noia’s tour was booming, but because the napkin contract gave De Noia the rights to the tour, Banerjee wasn’t entitled to any of the profits, to his dismay.

    On April 7, 1987, De Noia was murdered by a hired gunman. Following a long FBI investigation, Banerjee was arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of De Noia and conspiracy to commit murders of two competitive dancers in 1993.

    Banerjee was also connected to three arson attempts aimed at the brand’s competition.

    While Banerjee was facing 26 years in prison after taking a plea bargain and pleading guilty, he took his life while awaiting his sentencing in 1994 in his jail cell.

    Image credit: Courtesy of Chippendales

    Who Owns Chippendales Now and How Much Is it Worth?

    Despite the chaos that plagued Chippendales in its early days, the brand is still alive and well.

    However, the original Chippendales club in Los Angeles closed shortly after losing its liquor license in 1988 and after several other lawsuits and violations.

    After Banerjee pleaded guilty, the Chippendales brand went to his wife, Irene, during their divorce.

    According to The U.S. Sun, she sold the brand for $2.5 million.

    Since then, Chippendales has been in the hands of several people. A 2013 report from The New Yorker says former boy band manager Lou Pearlman purchased the brand in the ’90s before going to prison for fraud.

    According to a representative from the brand, “a private equity of owners” has been at the helm since 2000, they told Entrepreneur in a request for comment.

    Chippendales’ closed its New York location shortly after September 11, 2001, per The New Yorker, but it found a second life after managing partner Kevin Denberg got a bus and took the dancers on tour, traveling around the country until they landed in Las Vegas.

    Chippendales laid roots in Las Vegas in 2002 and its show and tour are still “thriving” today. Katerina Tabakhov currently serves as the production’s director of operations, the brand rep shared, while Denberg is no longer involved in the day-to-day operation.

    “The Chippendales are STILL performing to sold-out houses at our home at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas (for over 20 years), as well as our domestic and international tours,” the brand confirmed to Entrepreneur.

    The Sin City show is complete with its $10 million custom complex, and tickets range from $49.95 to $149.95.

    Or you can catch the Chippendales on tour, which hits six continents and over 25 countries, according to the brand’s website.

    Today, the brand generates between $5 million and $25 million in annual revenue, according to Signal Hire.

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    Sam Silverman

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