Strengths and weaknesses of Hugh Hefner
“The major civilizing force in the world is not religion, it is sex." ~ Hugh Hefner
Before talking about the legacy of one of the XXth century's Big Cats it is necessary to know that Mr. Hugh Hefner considered himself a philosopher. He even had his own "Mein Kampf" - "The Playboy Philosophy". In 2022 this text won't raise any eyebrows, maybe because no "International Jewry" managed to prevent the materialization of depicted ideas. It is ahead of its time but behind ours since the victory proved to be short-lived. It is very legalistic and practical, cares a great deal about the US laws and musings of Christian pastors. The ideological part feels like a normie sex-positive secular liberal worldview, what was considered to be center-left mainstream before the Great Awokening. I found it a difficult read due to its lack of edginess, the kind which was more in character for two of Hefner’s major competitors - Bob Guccione and Larry Flynt. While Hefner defends Roman Empire and argues against the ascetic myth that it fell due to excessive fornication, he couples the words "pagan superstition" together when he wants to criticize the antisexual turns of Medieval Christianity and Victorian Age. No genuine polytheist would do that sort of casual disrespect of his own faith, so any considerations about his possible mystic beliefs, which are often in vogue among the fans of Dostoyevsky from Alabama, die outright. What we have here is a skilled salesman and editor at worst… Or Roger Moore's overtly cautious version of James Bond at best.
Hefner was never a nudity fundamentalist, being lured into showing people the pussy by Guccione's "Penthouse". Had that not happened, his "bunnies" could forever remain hardly discernible from beauty pageant contestants. Still, even his nudity was carefully tuned to align with the tastes of the average American redneck during each decade. I for one always preferred the style of "Vogue" to the style of "Playboy" in everything except the quantity of nudity. Jocks called me gay for this way before radfems began calling me sexist for this, with both agreeing I shouldn't be allowed to choose. To their dismay, I wanted sophisticated tenderness since before puberty, while"Playboy" insisted on barn cowgirls as a regular additive for occasional interesting decisions.
While the impact of magazine as a platform for thinkers was felt mostly among the "I buy it for the texts" minority, the impact of photos and their artistic character was felt by a large majority of heterosexual men and women. Let's remember how it was during each decade.
The 50s "Playboy" was actually not that far from "Vogue", placing heavy emphasis on exquisite femininity, extravagance, and romantic emotions. Knowing the business model, we can only assume that these things were still in demand by the average rednecks back then. Difficult to believe, I know. Although Marilyn Monroe's red background photoshoot is more famous and Hefner spent a fortune to assure he will be buried in the mausoleum next to hers after death, this Grace Kelly lookalike is more representative of the decade in my opinion. Also, as aforementioned Hitchcock explained not hiring Monroe for the lead role in “Vertigo”, everything with Monroe's visage in it becomes about Monroe.
Ten years later we find ourselves in a hippie drug den, which looks exactly like a set from the substance-promoting movies written by Jack Nicholson: "Psych-Out" and "The Trip". He and Peter Fonda made a significant contribution to the destruction of aristocratic undertones of the 50s. "Thank you", lads, for killing off "Grace Kelly". In the eyes of "just give peace a chance" junkies, however, this looked like a relatable upgrade, so the circulation grew further.
The 70s were to some extent counterrevolution against the 60s. Romanticism returned in a darker, more explicit setting. "Easy riders" were gunned down, together with an easy approach. Marijuana was discarded in favor of proto-heroin chic. This is when "Playboy" was most profitable, most influential, and yet... least original than ever, before or after. Whatever provocative and attention-worthy ideas they had now were influenced by competitors. Nudity and casino/beach resort ventures by italoamericani Guccione, tone by the Germans Helmut Newton and Chris von Wangenheim, the morality of texts by the French leftist intelligentsia. Hippies created fertile soil for the temporary European cultural occupation of America.
This is when unfashionably WASP-y Hefner had his only attempt to produce a serious movie. Unjustly bashed Guccione's "Caligula" was a condensed set of his (and to a lesser extent Gore Vidal's, who only wanted more homosexuality) political stances and an attempt to normalize hardcore sex scenes in mainstream cinematography. Hefner instead chose to finance Shakespearean "Macbeth" with not-yet-exiled Roman Polanski in charge of production. While a decent 7/10 movie in itself, what was supposed to be its message in this context is anyone's guess.
Sartre died in 1980, New York v. Ferber US Supreme Court case happened in 1982, the chances for another preteen playmate like Eva Ionesco appearing nude on the cover of another "Der Spiegel" issue lessened dramatically. Father of modern pro-Trump QAnon movement, Satanic panic phenomenon began. "Playboy" was forced to prove that they're definitely not pedophiles, thus the breasts of models grew bigger and bigger through this decade, reaching their peak in the form of Anna Nicole Smith in 1993. Stylistically the retro nostalgia remained, and lewdness coexisted with intricate mystical surroundings. Art deco shoots outnumbered "Miami Vice" style shoots and often the only two things connecting a picture to the outside world were hairdos and lingerie.
Kurt Cobain dispelled the retro charm against the will of Reaganites, C.C. Catch imitators, and Michael Jackson in the 90s. Being contemporary became more important so the big titties found themselves in the penthouses with more relatable furniture. That was the time when John Casablancas made it big with his concept of supermodels, concept which totally outcompeted Hefner's playmates among female audiences and created a niche of fans among men. The superiority of playmates in mainstream sexuality was put into question for the first time since "Vogue"-"Playboy" aesthetic split in the 60s. Supermodels lasted longer than any previous decade-long trends and only died as a trend when Leslie Wexner sold "Victoria's Secret" to body-positive feminists to the applause of bipartisan post-woke consensus. Most supermodels did appear in "Playboy", only the old fox Hef never put as much money into the promotion of these shoots as he did into the promotion of his own girls, conscious that the concept is not advantageous to his brand.
It is possible that the brand died on 9/11. The 00s will see the rise and fall of lad mags of "FHM"/"Maxim" variety but the relevance of "Playboy" in post-traumatic America and Western world was never the same. Property owners blame the Internet but I guess you need certain minimal levels of spiritual youth among the general society for such content to be in major demand. "Pornhub" and "OnlyFans" users from 2022 look for entirely different things than what jack-of-all-trades-but-inventor-of-none Hugh Hefner offered. They don't want any fairy tales, they don’t chase penthouse princesses, they will own nothing and be happy.