The FBI closely monitored Playboy founder Hugh Hefner for years according to FBI files that were released to the public this week, two years after his death.
The 58-page document chronicle's the numerous "obscene matters" that defined the iconic publisher's career through a series of interviews, summaries and newspaper clippings. At issue was the "obscene material" published within the pages of Playboy.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Hefner found himself the subject of investigation after the FBI alleged he was breaching obscenity laws by transporting "pornographic images" across state lines, Fox News reported.
He was questioned about "obscene material" but stringently denied being involved in any "obscene” matters. One agent wrote a memo to the then-director requesting that Hefner be placed under surveillance but he was cleared of any criminal allegations. In 1963, Hefner made headlines again when police arrested him over "obscene and suggestive" photos of actress Jayne Mansfield that were published in "Playboy" but Hefner beat the charges.
In 2001 his name resurfaced when hackers got into his personal email and issued thousands of emails out to customers but aside from that blip, his file contained no other major controversies.
Hefner died of natural causes in 2017 at the Playboy Mansion in West Los Angeles at 91. He guided the Playboy brand for half a century, helping to usher in the freewheeling '60s and making a mark on that decade's significant effect on movies, TV and pop culture.
Hefner had two children with his first wife Mildred Williams, Christie and David. Christie Hefner became head of Playboy Enterprises in 1988 and continues to run the business.
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