Hugh Hefner | Biography, Facts, & Playboy - Britannica

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External Websites

• CNN US - Hugh Hefner Fast Facts
• PBS - American Experience - Hugh Hefner
• BBC - Evil Genius with Russell Kane - Hugh Hefner
• NPR - Hugh Hefner on a Life Less Ordinary
• Official Site of Hugh M. Hefner Foundation
• Free Speech Center at Middle Tennessee State University - Hugh Hefner
• ABC Religion and Ethics - The House that Hef Built: Hugh Hefner's Dark Legacy
• The Washington Post - Hugh Hefner: How Playboy grew out of his puritanical childhood
• Fresh Air Archive - Hugh Hefner on Early 'Playboy' and Changing America's Values

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• Hugh Hefner - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Hugh Hefner American publisher and entrepreneur Ask Anything Homework Help Also known as: Hugh Marston Hefner Written and fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors Last updated Dec. 9, 2025 •History Britannica AI Ask Anything Homework Help Table of Contents Table of Contents Ask Anything

Hugh Hefner (born April 9, 1926, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.—died September 27, 2017, Los Angeles, California) was an American magazine publisher and entrepreneur who founded (1953) Playboy magazine.

Quick Facts In full: Hugh Marston Hefner (Show more) Born: April 9, 1926, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. (Show more) Died: September 27, 2017, Los Angeles, California (aged 91) (Show more) Founder: “Playboy” (Show more) On the Web: BBC - Evil Genius with Russell Kane - Hugh Hefner (Dec. 09, 2025) (Show more) See all related content

After serving in the U.S. Army (1944–46), Hefner attended the University of Illinois, graduating in 1949. Four years later he created the men’s magazine Playboy. Its intellectually respectable articles and forthright philosophy of hedonism made Playboy a major influence on the sexual revolution of the 1960s. Hefner later expanded his enterprise into nightclubs and other entertainment media.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.