American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story on Amazon Prime [View all]

This is a very sympathetic documentary of the man and the magazine he created: Playboy.

I have to admit that I didn't know much about him except for the image he created of himself. But his is a real American success story: he was a man with an idea and his success is totally self-made. He started the magazine in his apartment in Chicago.

I've never read or even looked at a copy of Playboy. So I didn't realize that Hefner was very progressive on the issue of civil rights, and that he did interviews with a lot of intelligent and interesting people. He had black performers in his clubs in the sixties and had connections with many important civil rights leaders.

He did play a part in the so-called sexual revolution of the sixties, though probably not as much as he thinks. And his commitment to living out a 'playboy' lifestyle made him blind to his failures as a husband and father. I don't think he ever understood that women are more than just the fantasy objects of men. He surrounded himself with beautiful, younger women all his life. And in doing so he was intentionally being a role model for men of what it means to be successful and sophisticated. Women are trophies.

The show is a mix of clips from Hefner, his associates, and his daughter Christie - and acting out some important scenes of his life.

Recommended.