“My mother loaned me $1000. The first issue came out at the end of 1953. I knew I needed something original. I had a photographer shoot a 3D feature for the first issue and learned it would cost too much money. When the 3D thing turned out to be too expensive, at that same moment I came across the photos of Marilyn Monroe.”

American magazine publisher and businessman

Hugh Marston Hefner was an American magazine publisher and businessman. He founded Playboy and served as its editor-in-chief, building a media brand that became closely associated with sexual imagery, journalism, fiction, and high-profile interviews. He expanded Playboy into a network of clubs and made himself a public figure through his lifestyle, which drew attention for its parties and the company he kept at his homes. His name remained tied to a media empire that mixed entertainment, celebrity access, and controversy.