The Playboy and all his toys
Rhea Dangwal
Pop culture constantly stuns me in the way it eulogises male protagonists, whose entire character arc is based on the dehumanisation of women as mere objects he can so competently ‘pick-up’. One who constantly ‘rolls in ladies’ who he rarely has regard or respect for. These characters most often are dysfunctional, narcissistic, obtuse, cannot for a second of their existence care about listening to the woman they are with and are certainly not legen… wait for it… dary.
Oh god.
Anyway, the alpha and omega god king of this trope, Hugh Hefner, passed away last week and like blinded chauvinist disciples, bland Mcdonalds McChicken patties worth of human men-types came forward with their cries of how much of a legend he was.
Some of them even went ahead to proclaim the lore that it was indeed he, who was the lone vanguard supreme in “spearheading” the female sexual liberation movement by starting the PlayBoy Franchise in 1953; which is honestly the most basic example of misogyny mouths getting a nice little opportunity to pop-aganda their narrative away from ACTUAL FEMINIST MOVEMENTS.
A cis-het male friend of mine actually explained to me the concept of the ‘coolness’ currency; to have high regard for Hugh Hefner because it makes you feel like an alpha-masculine through association (?)
Let’s get this straight. Hugh Hefner did not invent naked women, he simply put a nice leather jacket and a Rolex on an already disgusting industry that catered to the sexual tastes of cis-het ‘gentlemen’. In reality, he was just a rich old pervert.
So, while the internet is flooding in a copy paste of how “Hugh Hefner was a legend, I want his life” let me stop you right here with my two cents about everyone’s dudebae supreme.
Strike 1
Hugh purchased the crypt next to Marilyn’s burial site in 1992, to ‘spend eternity with her’. But this had nothing to do with a possible romantic connection between them. In fact, they weren’t even friends.
Before Marilyn was the big star that we know her as, she led a difficult life. She married at 16 years old to escape the foster care system. A few years later, while trying to break into modelling and acting, she posed for some nude calendar photos to earn some food money. She was paid $50 to take her clothes off and smile.
She reportedly used a fake name to try and distance herself from the photos.
Hugh reportedly bought the pictures from a third party and published her nudes on the cover of his first Playboy edition, without her consent. Marilyn even mentioned in her book later, that “I never even received a thank-you from all those who made millions off a nude Marilyn photograph. I even had to buy a copy of the magazine to see myself in it.”
The wickets keep falling on the same pitch
Marilyn did not necessarily raise too much of a concern after her photos were published so guess what, he pulled the same card with Madonna and Vanna White, without any regard for their consent, or how it could affect their personal and professional lives and relationships.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIbevEEysCo
The Bunny-coop
Apart from the trademarked Bunny symbol, the other most recognisable feature of the empire is the Playboy Mansion: the big house where he let all the ‘bunnies’/’playmates’ live in, with him. Many past bunnies have come forward with claims that in this mansion, Hugh would host huge parties inviting several celebrities and use it as a place to ultimately pimp women out against their will.
Hugh was also reportedly very close to Bill Cosby, now infamous for the rape allegations against him. Some of Bill’s victims have come forward to say that Hugh actually introduced them to Bill at these parties, he was even sued by one because, the night she was raped by Bill, Hugh had insisted on her meeting Bill and hanging out with him.
Several past bunnies came forward to even mention claims of underage girls being brought to the mansion.
Beginning young
Jennifer Saginor, whose dad was Hugh’s live-in personal doctor for 40 years, claimed that “I grew up believing it was normal for older men to be with young girls.” Jennifer added: “A lot of men at the Playboy parties were into teenage girls. These girls were often drugged. As well as Quaaludes — which were flown in direct from a manufacturer in Switzerland — they were given endless shots of Demerol and Halcion.” (sic)
“The mansion was a place where many females, often unwittingly, were sexually abused and treated like objects, not people. Some of them became addicted and ended up more like inmates than Playmates.”
The streak of pedophilia that Playboy is a part of is not hidden.
On two separate occasions, Hugh organized for nude photographs for his magazine of young Brook Shields (10 years old) and Eva Ionesco (11 years old). Eva even sued her mother as a grown up for putting her through the torment of having underage nudes taken of her.
Dorothy Stratten was a PlayBoy Bunny who was on top of her ranks before being murdered by her boyfriend at age 20. Before her death, she had come out to say she was molested by Hugh Hefner when she was underaged, and after her passing her team made it clear to Hugh that she was ashamed of posing for playboy and being in pornography, to which he responded by releasing unseen tapes of her right after she passed away.
Holly Want A Cracker?
Holly Madison wrote an entire book in 2015 talking about her experiences as a Bunny and also as she dated Hugh. She spoke about how the conditions in the mansion were gruesome, the women were pitted against each other, their meals were monitored, they weren’t allowed outside where Hugh did not approve, and the worst of them all, he would use money, blackmail and coercion to initiate orgies and other sexual acts with the women. After she went into depression because of her situation there and decided to opt out, Hugh reportedly threatened her and tried to bribe her with $3 mil to stay and keep shut.
This is only the visible tip of the iceberg of an industry that Hugh led. With an entire spectrum of debauchery that coloured Hugh’s life, it’s interesting to see how a culture of disregard for women still upholds him as the patron saint of the ‘cool life.’
I guess it turns out though, the only currency you’re making in reverence of Hugh Hefner, is Blood money.
About our writer: Rhea Dangwal is a Desi feminist and writer at large, annihilating misogyny and chicken nuggets with equal vengeance. DM her a high five here: @rheadangs
