Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Tribune News Service
Tribune News Service
National
David Matthews

The FBI just released its Hugh Hefner file � here's what it says

The FBI released the file it maintained on Playboy founder and editor-in-chief Hugh Hefner two years after the legendary publisher passed away _ and it's revealing.

The bureau interviewed Hefner in the late 1950s and 1960s over what is described as "obscene material."

The file also contains a memo written to then-Director J. Edgar Hoover in which the agent in charge pitches putting Hefner and his photographer Edward Oppman under surveillance to see if either was transporting "pornographic images" across state lines.

However, the investigation didn't turn up any crimes.

"Persons interviewed advised that Hefner too clever to violate Federal or local laws," the bureau's investigation concluded.

Hefner was later arrested in Chicago for publishing "obscene and suggestive" photos of Jayne Mansfield, but won a jury trial.

The file also contains news clippings from a case where Hefner won the right to mail Playboy to subscribers without breaking the law.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.