Although advocating women′s sexual freedom and their liberation from traditional family constraints, the publisher became a whipping boy for feminists who viewed him as a prophet for a new kind of male domination. Circulation peaked in the swinging '70s (as did an ugly drug controversy); the'80s were less kind, as the brand seemed dated. Gilt The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in.

Los Angeles Times Gorgeous young women in revealing poses; extravagant mansion parties packed with celebrities; a hot–tub grotto, elegant smoking jackets, and round rotating beds; the hedonistic pursuit of uninhibited sex. If we're to believe this book, it's the Truth about Hugh Hefner--and, by proxy, about American life since the 1950s.He also succeeds in identifying and exploring raging personal paradoxes—hedonist and workaholic, libertine and romantic, provocateur and traditionalist—while resisting the urge to attempt reconciliation.

The Horatio-Alger-with-a-libido case he makes--where else but in America could a repressed midwestern boy rise, and fall into so many sacks, while creating and brand-managing a multimedia empire? He also succeeds in identifying and exploring raging personal paradoxes--hedonist and workaholic, libertine and romantic, provocateur and traditionalist--while resisting the urge to attempt reconciliation. The publisher played a crucial role in the sexual revolution that upended traditional notions of behavior and expectation regarding sex.By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. He shows Hefner's personal dichotomies—the pleasure seeker and the workaholic, the consort of countless Playmates and the genuine romantic, the family man and the Gatsby-like host of lavish parties at his Chicago and Los Angeles mansions who enjoys well-publicized affairs with numerous Playmates, the fan of life's simple pleasures who hobnobs with the Hollywood elite. This fascinating portrait illustrates four ways in which Hefner and Playboy stood at the center of several cultural upheavals that remade the postwar United States.

Clocking in at over 500 pages, this is not a gossip book but a well–documented biography written with access to Hefner′s over 1800 scrapbooks, the company archives, and interviews.Hefner became one of the most hated and envied celebrities in America, dating a long list of his magazine's beauties and always standing just barely on the wrong side of decency and moral uprightness. Steven Watts’ biography presents a more complex personality lurking behind the pipe and smoking jacket, and Ray Porter’s courtly manner suggests indignation, and near envy, over Hefner’s excesses. They were also reviewed in scholarly journals such as the Journal of American History and American Quarterly.