DBWI: Looking Back at the Hugh Hefner Presidency

I had the chance to recently visit the Hugh Hefner Presidential Library at the University of Chicago. With the festivities leading up to Christmas, I was not surprised to see so many visitors.

Without a doubt, Hefner's Presidency (1977-1985) was very controversial. With the scandals of the previous administration, Hefner was a breath of fresh air with his one term in office as Governor of Illinois (1973-1977). His popularity with all factions of the Democratic Party plus his working relationship with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley enabled him to wrap of his party's nomination and win his first term in a landslide.

In his autobiography, Hefner admitted that he was this close to starting his own magazine over a career in politics. Fortunately, magazine publishing's loss was America's gain. The pentmates living at the Penthouse Mansion are also fortunate. :)

Personally, I think Hefner publishing magazines is totally ASB.

OOC: I hope this thread does not get banished to the graveyard that is "Shared Worlds". So, please keep your comments on topic.
 
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I remember Elvis Presley singing the national anthem at his inauguration!

Gosh, that was a beautiful performance. I cried, I admit it.
 
To be honest, Hefner really got lucky that year. To have Spiro Agnew, pretty much the biggest buffoon we've ever had in office, as his opponent was a stroke of luck. In any other year, a hardcore social libertarian like Hefner would have gotten torn apart by the socially conservative white working-class voters that voted for Nixon.

That being said, Hefner was quite a success as President, for such a political novice. He managed to get some decent legislation through, like decriminalizing homosexuality and scaling back Nixon's drug war. He also did the right thing by leaving economic policy mostly to the professionals, Paul Volker was probably the best Fed Chairman and Treasury Secretary ever. His foreign policy record, on the other hand... Losing Iran to that nutcase Khomeini was bad, but supporting Saddam Hussein in the subsequent war was worse. When that second sun went up over Kermanshah in '93, I blamed it on Hef. There's a reason Ayatollah Khalkhali is in power in Iran, and slowly turning it into an Islamic version of 1984.

All and all though, he was a solid President.
 
One thing I know about Hefner. Shuttle-C which only really got off the ground following Atlantis's Disintegration at T+118s - the day before George H W Bush (1985-1993) assumed the Presidency. A really bad way to end his term of office - and for him to start his term of office.

Still, at least we got a Space Station that lived up to the hype, if way over-budget. And heavy-lift.
 
Hefner had an unusual presidency, I dare say he would have stood no chance whatsoever without the spectacular collapse of the Republican party under the Nixon and Agnew administrations. He represented a rarity in electoral politics in that he was both a politician and a public intellectual. Hefner could speak comfortably about art, music, or literature moments before making a persuasive argument on public policy. As far as presidents go, his closest comparison would probably be Jefferson.

As governor of Illinois he achieved the difficult balancing act of winning over the blue collars in Peoria while continuing to build upon (with Daley’s close “help”) Chicago’s reputation as a world class cultural and economic center. But he helped keep the money flowing into Chicago, and the factories operating in Cicero. I mean here was this Snowbelt governor who was friends with some of the biggest names in American cultural life, what other politician could in the span of an afternoon assemble and host a private dinner party with Norman Mailer, Jack Nicholson, Robert Redford, and Ansel Adams. Hefner was in short, the exact opposite of Agnew and the insular reactionary America that he represented.

As president he was particularly apt at deflating the propaganda of the Eastern Bloc. They criticized Hefner for embodying the decadent nature of capitalist America. The problem was, most of the world aspired for the kind of lifestyle Hefner represented. American films filled theaters from Tokyo to Bonn, and fortunes were made through the smuggling of American records and jeans behind the iron curtain. His public visit to Yugoslavia was a foreign policy triumph, which is widely credited for Tito’s moves towards economic and political liberalization.
 
It's all well and good to rehash the Hefner Presidency, but that's not what this thread's about, I don't think.

I don't think that magazine publishing's ASB - Hefner, as you mention, did consider it. At the time (1950s-1960s), it was a very profitable business; there probably was room for another magazine among Colliers and Life and the rest. Given the many talented writers among Hefner's circle of friends, he could probably have staffed his mag from them alone. Mailer, Updike, Talese, Redford, Plimpton...
 
To be honest, Hefner really got lucky that year. To have Spiro Agnew, pretty much the biggest buffoon we've ever had in office, as his opponent was a stroke of luck. In any other year, a hardcore social libertarian like Hefner would have gotten torn apart by the socially conservative white working-class voters that voted for Nixon.

You're assuming he would have run the same campaign. Behind the scenes, Hefner was quite brilliant with people; he knew what made them tick, and he had so much personal charisma that he could play anyone like a fiddle. His work writing for an army newspaper and his short stint copywriting for esquire before he signed on to help Daley's campaign gave him valuable experience in using the pen to influence the masses; his friendship with Daley gave him the political savvy he needed to make powerful connections and beat out rivals. With those skills and his affinity for speaking, it's no wonder he won by such a wide margin. Had a stronger republican candidate run, he would have definitely have stuck to a more moderate platform; he just used his practically-guaranteed election to sneak in a few good words about his more controversial stances to try and make the American public more agreeable. I remember that right before he was elected, there was allegedly a brief surge in polyamorous relationships, but I can't remember if that turned out to be conservative scaremongering.
The way he avoided a media scandal with those pentmates of his was pretty brilliant; he knew that if it was an open secret the media would lose interest in the story, particularly since he wasn't married at the time. When election season came up and his opponents pressed the issue, the damage was bad but not fatal; he bounced back by announcing his engagement to his favorite pentmate and then downplaying it in favor of actual issues.
 
I don't think that magazine publishing's ASB - Hefner, as you mention, did consider it. At the time (1950s-1960s), it was a very profitable business; there probably was room for another magazine among Colliers and Life and the rest. Given the many talented writers among Hefner's circle of friends, he could probably have staffed his mag from them alone. Mailer, Updike, Talese, Redford, Plimpton...

I wonder if he might have ended up working with Hunter S. Thompson;)

Thompson famously hated Hefner when covering him in Fear and Loathing 76. Thompson never forgave him for Hefner's relationship with Daley and his role in the aftermath of the Chicago riots.


"Hefner represents a despicable sort of lazy liberalism, one that hopes a fresh coat of paint and reupholstering is all that’s needed to cover-up the ravenous mutant termites eating their way through the party’s timbers. The thought that a slick haircut and glib remark will make the world forget who gleefully polished the blood of the Chicago PD’s nightsticks after beating a proud group of freaks, students, martyrs and patriots to an all American pulp. But for a nation raped and battered by Nixon, he’ll do. Jackboots and red meat are out of style, time for this years model of Cadillac even though the same rotten gears are grinding beneath the engine hood" Thompson, Hunter. Fear and Loathing 76. Random House, 1977.
 
Looking at the other side of the WI, who ends up taking Hefner's place in Illinois, and later in the White House?
 
Looking at the other side of the WI, who ends up taking Hefner's place in Illinois, and later in the White House?

In '76? No idea, the field was pretty weak. After Mo Udall refused to run and Jerry Brown was killed in that horrible car accident, I can't really think of anyone. Probably Jimmy Carter. It was pretty early in his career though, he only had one term as Governor and he was not popular on the left of the party. He was a decent VP pick for Hefner, being a Southerner and all, but I don't think he was ready to be President. His actions during the Iran crisis made that very clear.

Maybe Scoop Jackson? He was pretty uninspiring, and kind of a let-down for the left of the party as well. He probably would have been a better VP pick than Carter, he knew his foreign policy, he wouldn't have let a screw-up like Iran happen. Those poor people in the embassy...
 
In '76? No idea, the field was pretty weak. After Mo Udall refused to run and Jerry Brown was killed in that horrible car accident, I can't really think of anyone. Probably Jimmy Carter. It was pretty early in his career though, he only had one term as Governor and he was not popular on the left of the party. He was a decent VP pick for Hefner, being a Southerner and all, but I don't think he was ready to be President. His actions during the Iran crisis made that very clear.

No idea about Illinois politics, but nationally there is always Ted Kennedy. However 76' was probably a year in which his boozing and womanizing couldn't be overlooked by the party's base. The American public seemed determined to rejected any establishment candidate and the moral majority was a reactionary viper nipping at the heels of both parties.
 
What about Edmund Muskie? I know he bombed out of the primaries in 1972 but he did have an early lead, and without Hefner the 1976 Democratic field is so weak that Muskie could decide to try again.
 
Looked into the Illinois race a bit - Hefner beat out some guy named Dan Walker in the primary, and incumbent governor Richard Ogilvie in the general. Not sure Walker could've gotten elected anyway, though - he doesn't seem to have been an especially good candidate.
Maybe Paul Simon (the Senator, not the singer) could've run?

OOC: Yeah, it is, though the title doesn't reflect it - the DBWI is "What if Hugh Hefner went into magazine publishing rather than politics?"
 
"Hefner represents a despicable sort of lazy liberalism, one that hopes a fresh coat of paint and reupholstering is all that’s needed to cover-up the ravenous mutant termites eating their way through the party’s timbers. The thought that a slick haircut and glib remark will make the world forget who gleefully polished the blood of the Chicago PD’s nightsticks after beating a proud group of freaks, students, martyrs and patriots to an all American pulp. But for a nation raped and battered by Nixon, he’ll do. Jackboots and red meat are out of style, time for this years model of Cadillac even though the same rotten gears are grinding beneath the engine hood" Thompson, Hunter. Fear and Loathing 76. Random House, 1977.​
I think Thompson grew to like him more after the legalization of Hanabus in 83'.
 
While Hefner represented the best of American liberalism, his Vice-President is often forgotten as being the reason for Hefner's election. Consider that Jimmy Carter's religious and evangelical background helped insure that the "Solid South" would vote for Hugh Hefner. Why do you think Billy Graham led the prayer at the Inauguration in 1977. Say what you will, but at least Carter made the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) possible in 1981...
 
I think Thompson grew to like him more after the legalization of Hanabus in 83'.

A lot of people were against that at its onset with the moral fiber argument, but it ended up creating companies like Caliweed (Oakland, CA), The Kentucky Cannabis Company also known as the K.C.C. (Louisville, KY), Northern Lights (Anchorage, AK), and Rocky Mountain High (Boulder, CO), thus creating jobs and revenue for these communities.

I remember when beer and liquor companies started putting THC oil in their products to sell to the pot market like when Budweiser did it. Their marketing campaign was hilarious but slightly cheesy "Budweiser, now with Buds in our Buds".
 
While Hefner represented the best of American liberalism, his Vice-President is often forgotten as being the reason for Hefner's election. Consider that Jimmy Carter's religious and evangelical background helped insure that the "Solid South" would vote for Hugh Hefner. Why do you think Billy Graham led the prayer at the Inauguration in 1977. Say what you will, but at least Carter made the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) possible in 1981...
Yeah I liked Carter shame he lost the primary to Dukakis.
 
Yeah I liked Carter shame he lost the primary to Dukakis.

Yeah... Not a fan of either. Carter was responsible for many of the foreign policy failings of the Hefner administration, and didn't have all that much going for him in politics otherwise. He has done some great charity work since, but he wasn't a good Vice-President.

Dukakis on the other hand... That fighter jet picture says it all :p
 
[Jimmy Carter] was a decent VP pick for Hefner, being a Southerner and all, but I don't think he was ready to be President. His actions during the Iran crisis made that very clear.

[Scoop Jackson] probably would have been a better VP pick than Carter, he knew his foreign policy, he wouldn't have let a screw-up like Iran happen. Those poor people in the embassy...

Yes, those Canadians and their staff Iranian nationals paid a very heavy price when Carter acted as go-between between Henry Kissinger and Canadian PM Pierre Trudeau to get the Shah admitted to their country for asylum with some side trips into the US for medical care. What really made it a debacle was that JC and HK managed to spirit the Iranian Royals into Montreal two days early and Rupert Murdoch's Toronto Globe and Mail spilled the beans, precipitating the Canadian Embassy Hostage Crisis before its staff could be spirited away into the US, UK, French, German and Swiss Embassies and out of the country. :mad:

US - Canadian relations still haven't recovered from that scandal. And the Canadians elected a hard-right PM. Had Carter been President, I daresay Ronald Reagan would have been elected President in 1980. He would have been a disaster, considering one of his more benign campaign pledges was to singe the edges of US Government documents to make them look old and neat...
 
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