Playboy founder Hugh Hefner has died, aged 91.
The publishing mogul passed away from natural causes at his Playboy Mansion home in Los Angeles on Wednesday (27Sep17).
Hugh’s son Cooper, who is Playboy Enterprises’ chief creative officer, paid tribute to his father in a statement which reads: “My father lived an exceptional and impactful life as a media and cultural pioneer and a leading voice behind some of the most significant social and cultural movements of our time in advocating free speech, civil rights and sexual freedom.
“He defined a lifestyle and ethos that lie at the heart of the Playboy brand, one of the most recognizable and enduring in history.”
The news of Hefner’s death emerges 10 months after he dismissed rumors suggesting he had died in December (16).
The businessman launched Playboy magazine in 1953 and was instrumental in helping to fuel the “sexual revolution” of the 1960s and 1970s.
Publication editors briefly ditched its naked photo spreads in 2016, before deciding to bring female nudity back earlier this year (17).
