Friends And Fans React To The Passing Of Iconic ‘Playboy’ Founder Hugh Hefner At 91

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With the death of Hugh Hefner, a complicated discussion is sure to follow. While the Playboy founder created a brand that is almost as iconic today as Coke and Pepsi and led a life that many consider “the dream,” he also courted controversy with his lifestyle, the content he produced, and the empire he helped establish at The Playboy Mansion.

Taking a quick look through the reactions to his passing at 91, you see many different opinions already grabbing hold and spreading in reference to Hefner’s life. To some, he’s a hero that created a brand that helped shape them over the years. To others, he’s a villain that exploited women and used their bodies to make a fortune. And then mixed in are the people willing to look at him as a complicated character in American life that represented some of its best qualities and some of its worst qualities.

There’s sure to be many “hot takes” in the days to come about Hefner’s life and the entertainment juggernaut he created 60 years ago, but the underlying theme is how much influence Hefner had over American life in both a positive and negative way.

For most, Hefner was a hero that lived their wildest fantasies inside his mansion full of beautiful people:

https://twitter.com/OfficialKat/status/913249808667746304

https://twitter.com/michaelhafford/status/913237811410567168

https://twitter.com/FreddyInSpace/status/913249045136764928

https://twitter.com/PLAYERUNKNOWN/status/913247081128538113

https://twitter.com/bradgilmore/status/913243055905484800

Others were quick to point out the complicated, controversial, and negative aspects of Hefner’s life:

https://twitter.com/Randazzoj/status/913252545392345093

https://twitter.com/moorehn/status/913252191208660996

https://twitter.com/rgay/status/913247784240852992

https://twitter.com/freedarko/status/913252110971502592

And while the simple tributes and criticisms are expected, some expanded on the things that Hefner did away from Playboy magazine and his extravagant lifestyle. This includes his role with the civil rights movement, his treatment of social norms, and the various issues he supported over the years:

https://twitter.com/DavidDTSS/status/913241397620301829

https://twitter.com/cmclymer/status/913246613367398400

https://twitter.com/raymondbraun/status/913250732203266049

But as expected, the largest amount of people celebrated Hef’s career and lifestyle by making jokes:

https://twitter.com/Breznican/status/913245596907061248

https://twitter.com/jimpjorps/status/913252720601071618

https://twitter.com/kevinmccauley/status/913252979389628417

https://twitter.com/davidehrlich/status/913250265066852352

https://twitter.com/BuzzfeedChris/status/913248351063236608

https://twitter.com/BobbyBigWheel/status/913242300247142400

https://twitter.com/sung_minkim/status/913240743262568449

Then there’s the select few who decided to use Hefner’s death as a way to continue their chatter about Twitter’s new character limit decision:

https://twitter.com/WillAbeles/status/913246788441788416

The interesting part of this events, both the celebratory and the tragic, is seeing where people seem to travel in their own minds and dump out on Twitter. Hefner’s death certainly brought out a wide array of reactions almost immediately, so it’ll be interesting to see where it goes from here.