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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hef's little black book gives short and sassy glimpse of Hef., September 8, 2005
You have to hand it to Hef. Well into his twilight years he manages to surround himself with beautiful, nubile young women who cater to his every whim.
In "Hef's Little Black Book" little glimpses of Hef's life are shared. We learn that Millie (his first wife) cheated on him, thus opening the door for his dalliances. We discover that the gorgeous Barbie Benton broke up with him when she discovered he was double dipping with another. That movie night is a big time in Hef's life. That black silk pj's make for good outerwear etc.
If you are a diehard Hef fan you may enjoy this book. On the other hand if you want to learn more about the playmates with shocking insights into Hef such as the awful reality that he does NOT use protection read Jill Ann Spaulding's book, "Upstairs".
Overall "Hef's Little Black Book" is indeed all about Hef, and only for those who want nitty gritty details shared by Mr. Hefner about himself.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A little light on a fascinating man, October 9, 2005
This review is from: Hef's Little Black Book (Hardcover)
Hef's Little Black Book isn't some story of Playboy the magazine or the empire, a biog of Hef or anything more than really a kind of puff-piece valentine from Hef to himself. I say from Hef because he's listed as the author, though "and Bill Zehme" presumably did most of the writing, organizing, interviewing, and editing.
However, given its parameters, the book works surprisingly well. Zehme did a similar book - a better one, though - on Sinatra a few years back, and its organization by subject/theme, its adoring fifties-style prose and please-pass-on-your-wisdom-o-master tone which strangely enough worked very well on the Sinatra piece is used again here. It's sort of effective. The book is a mixture of Zehme's narrative in the above voice, quotes from Hefner mixed in, and dozens of excellent photos of all types.
Hef passes on pearls of wisdom regarding women, romance, enjoying life and games, business, sex and the like. The Bed is covered in detail, with blueprints and everything. Much of it is not especially deep or new or earthshattering. I don't know that it really touches on what makes Hef such a fascinating figure or so important a man in 20th century life. But it's not uninteresting to Hefner aficionados.
What is in fact the goods on Hef is that he managed to first define the upscale male fantasy life, and then proceeded to insert himself into the picture and live it, for fifty nonstop years of uncompromising hedonism. In doing so he became a living symbol of the sexual revolution, and in the magazine's Playboy Philosophy he defended and explained his thinking brilliantly. It could not have worked without tremendous charm, business acumen (including the knowledge of when to step down from day-to-day operating control and let more capable managers take over), and self-control exercised over himself, and he surely kept very good people watching his back.
This book doesn't tell that story. If interested, there are many out there that do; I particularily like Russell Miller's Bunny, from back in the troublesome 80s. But this book does have fantastic and rarely seen photos from the 50s, 60s and 70s which make up for a lot, and one does get a faint glimpse of an unusual man.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gross Insensitivity of Hefner's Girl Friends, July 27, 2008
This review is from: Hef's Little Black Book (Hardcover)
In 1974, I purchased Frank Brady's HEFNER (AN UNAUTHORIZED BIOGRAPHY). I was surprised because the author didn't offer any exclusive information - the book included nothing new or unknown. However, the author did report that Hefner was deeply in love and committed to Barbie Benton who he would marry soon. Well, he was wrong about that. Bottom line: There was nothing Brady's "unauthorized" biography that seemed worthy of being deemed unauthorized.
When I was reading HEF'S LITTLE BLACK BOOK, I was once again taken by surprise. There was no new information - everything in the book was well known. Instead of poor writing, I've got to conclude that Hefner has no sexual secrets. Yet, he does write of secret sexual relationships, but he won't share because these concern others. It is not himself he is protecting. Unlike Nixon, Hefner destroyed the tapes by tossing them into the Pacific Ocean. I wonder: Is this disposal contrary to EPA regulations? Can Hefner be fined? Shall we hire the Titanic team to recover the tapes?
One big inference emerged from reading: the Barbie Benton and Karen Christy conflict. Like everything else in this autobiography, this is a well known urban tale. Hefner was sleeping with both of these women with whom he claimed to dearly love. Reading between the lines, the authors suggest that Barbie and Karen were grossly insensitive to Hefner's sexual needs. He needed both of them, but neither could accept sharing him with another woman. Hefner was emotionally devastated, but eventually recovered. Today, Hefner has finally found a girlfriend who is willing to share him with two other women. If Barbie was willing to regularly share him with others, I wonder if they would be married today?
I don't know if this little book was worth the money to read. Nevertheless, I found it to be a hoot.
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