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Crystal Hefner says she “felt trapped” in marriage to late Playboy founder Hugh Hefner
More than six years after the death of Hugh Hefner and her departure from the Playboy Mansion, Crystal Hefner is opening up about her marriage and her life inside the controversial home.
In her new memoir “Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy and Finding Myself,” Hefner writes about how she nearly lost her identity when she moved into the mansion and later married Hugh Hefner, the founder of Playboy. Playboy did not respond to CBS’ multiple requests for comment.
Hefner said she lived at the mansion for nearly a decade, but it never felt like home: There were nightly curfews, complex power dynamics, and models like her had to conform to specific body standards, sometimes through plastic surgery. It’s a time of her life that Hefner said she looks back on with regret.
“I think Playboy itself, when Hef started the brand, I think he wanted it to be all about freedom and expression, and when I was at the mansion, I feel I completely lost myself to what was expected of me,” Hefner said. “There was nothing free about it. I felt trapped.”
Hefner was just 21 when she first visited the mansion, and she said she was “young and impressionable.” Hugh Hefner picked her out of a crowd her first night visiting, and soon, she was moving in.
“Being at the mansion was very hard. It was very traumatic, looking back, and as I go through therapy after I left, your value was skin-deep, so you had to make sure you looked perfect at all time, or at least perfect to what Hef’s standards were,” Hefner said, using a nickname to refer to her late husband.
In 2012, she married Hugh Hefner. Hefner was 26 years old, and Hugh Hefner was 86. She was his third wife. Hefner said she wasn’t in love with her late husband, but did care for him and wanted the best for him as he aged.
“I don’t think it was love,” Hefner said. “I did care for him. He was getting older and I know he wanted to protect his image and just to be the man that he was to the public … I felt sorry for him, in a way, and felt that he really needed me, because at a certain point, I didn’t need him for anything. I was good on my own. I had money. I had all these things. And I remember telling my mom ‘He needs me.’ So I stayed.”
Being married to Hugh Hefner, she said, involved “completely losing” herself to someone else. It was a cost she “didn’t fully realize” until later on, Hefner said.
“I just made myself Hef’s mirror, and that was my job,” Hefner said.
Now 37, Hefner has a healthier relationship with herself, and says “life is good now.”
“I finally have freedom,” Hefner said. “I have recent love in my life. It feels very healthy and I’m happy and I’m finally finding myself, who I am and what I enjoy.”
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Kamala Harris will speak with “60 Minutes” tomorrow. Here’s what to know for the interview.
Voters will get the chance to hear from Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday as she presents her case for why she should be president in a “60 Minutes” election special.
For decades, “60 Minutes” has featured both Republican and Democratic nominees for presidents, but this year, former President Donald Trump backed out after previously indicating he would be on the show. Correspondent Scott Pelley, who’d been set to interview Trump, will instead travel to Arizona’s Maricopa County, home to more than 60% of Arizona’s voters and a critical battleground in a key swing state.
One thing is certain about the election; with the U.S. deeply involved in both the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, whoever wins on Nov. 5 will become a wartime president.
What Harris will discuss
Israel’s war started one year ago after Hamas launched a surprise terror attack and correspondent Bill Whitaker will discuss the ongoing war with Harris.
Harris will also discuss the economy, immigration, her record as vice president and the differences between herself and Trump.
Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz will also appear.
Whitaker joined the Democratic ticket on the campaign trail this week to gain insight into their platform’s priorities and values, and what the candidates believe voters should know.
Why Trump pulled out of the “60 Minutes” interview
Leading up to the candidate hour, Trump, through campaign spokespeople, was the first candidate to accept the “60 Minutes” request to be interviewed for the special, according to CBS News. It had been agreed that both candidates would receive equal time during the broadcast.
Trump last sat down with 60 Minutes in 2020. He walked out during the interview with Lesley Stahl. Trump referenced the incident on Tuesday night at a Milwaukee press conference when asked about his decision not to participate in the Oct. 7 “60 Minutes” election special.
“Well, right now, I went to – they came to me and would like me to do an interview, but first I want to get an apology, because the last time I did an interview with them, if you remember, they challenged me on the computer,” Trump said. “They said the ‘laptop from hell’ was from Russia, and I said it wasn’t from Russia. It was from Hunter, and I never got an apology, so I’m sort of waiting. I’d love to do ’60 Minutes.’ I do everything.”
The Republican nominee for president emphasized that he felt he was owed an apology from “60 Minutes.”
“Let’s see if they do it. I wouldn’t mind doing 60,” Trump continued. “I’ve done ’60 Minutes’ a lot.”
In a statement on Tuesday, Trump campaign communications director Steven Cheung said that Trump’s team had not agreed to an interview.
“Fake News,” Cheung said in a post on X. “60 Minutes begged for an interview, even after they were caught lying about Hunter Biden’s laptop back in 2020. There were initial discussions, but nothing was ever scheduled or locked in. They also insisted on doing live fact checking, which is unprecedented.”
Previous Trump, Harris appearances on 60 Minutes
Trump previously sat down with “60 Minutes'” Mike Wallace in 1985, Pelley in 2015 and Lesley Stahl twice in 2016, first in July of that year and then again in November of 2016. He also spoke with Stahl again in 2018 and 2020.
Harris previously sat down with Whitaker last year. She also was interviewed by Norah O’Donnell, “CBS Evening News” anchor and “60 Minutes” contributing correspondent, in 2020.
How to watch the “60 Minutes” election special
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