Hugh Hefner is calling the shots on his hefty inheritance fortune from beyond the grave, and we’d expect nothing less from the late, great Playboy mogul.
Upon his death, Hugh Hefner was worth $43 million (£32 million), after he’d dedicated his 91 years to the Playboy enterprise.
Now, that money has a condition, if his family hope to inherit the small fortune Hef built from scratch, growing to include the eponymous magazine, TV, films, a website, nightclubs and even a clothing line.
According to legal documents obtained by Entertainment Tonight, Hefner’s four children, Christie, David, Marston and Cooper must not take illegal drugs or become dependent on alcohol in order to access the money he left to them.
The legalese also applies to the Hef’s widow, Crystal Hefner.
The lengthy legal document states:
Mandatory distributions to the beneficiary and the beneficiary’s withdrawal rights … will be suspended if:…the trustees reasonably believe that a beneficiary of any trust routinely or frequently uses or consumes any illegal substance so as to be physically or psychologically dependent upon that substance…
…or is clinically dependent upon the use or consumption of alcohol or any other legal drug or chemical substance that is not prescribed by a board certified medical doctor or psychiatrist in a current program of treatment supervised by such doctor or psychiatrist…
The suspension will apply if those in charge of Hef’s trust ‘reasonably believe’ that a family member’s ability to care for themselves or their finances is affected by such a condition.
The document even states that lawyers can request drug tests if they suspect any of Hef’s family are on drugs.
However, if any family member breaches the terms of the inheritance, they may be able to regain access to their entitlement if tests show they have been clean for 12 months.
The Playboy impresario died on September 27 at the age of 91 from cardiac arrest. According to Hefner’s death certificate, secondary causes included respiratory failure, septicaemia and drug-resistant E. Coli.
The E. Coli was listed as being from an ‘undetermined etiology’, meaning the origin of the highly dangerous bacteria could not be confirmed.
After his death, tributes flooded the world wide web from women he’d worked with, many of whom were ‘honoured’ to have graced the pages of Playboy.
Kim Kardashian West and Paris Hilton led the tributes to the Playboy mogul who helped launch them into the spotlight.
Carmen Electra, Jenna Dewan Tatum, Larry King, Gene Simmons and Dan Bilzerian, as well as former Playboy models such as Jenny McCarthy, Heidi Montag, LaToya Jackson and Linda Pelas all paid their tributes, crediting Hef as an inspiration and great businessman.
A source close to Hefner’s family told ET:
Hef hadn’t been doing well for the last year. [His death] wasn’t shocking to the family. Everyone is obviously sad, but they feel he lived a very fulfilling and long life.
Hef was buried in LA’s Westwood Village Memorial Park next to Marilyn Monroe, who featured in the first Playboy centrefold in 1953. RIP to a publishing legend.
A former emo kid who talks too much about 8Chan meme culture, the Kardashian Klan, and how her smartphone is probably killing her. Francesca is a Cardiff University Journalism Masters grad who has done words for BBC, ELLE, The Debrief, DAZED, an art magazine you’ve never heard of and a feminist zine which never went to print.