What Hugh Hefner’s death means for future of Playboy magazine

When 91-year-old Hugh Hefner died Wednesday at 91, he left behind a fortune he built from the Playboy brand, his 31-year-old third wife, Crystal Hefner (née Harris), and four children from previous relationships.

But his wife signed an “ironclad” prenuptial agreement before marrying Hefner at the Playboy Mansion on New Year’s Eve in 2012, according to Us Weekly, and the document apparently included a specific provision for her upon his death. TMZ reports the agreement stipulated that the former Playmate of the Month receive a $5 million payment. Hefner also reportedly purchased a 5,900-square-foot house in the Hollywood Hills for her in 2013, a swanky pad with four bedrooms, five bathrooms, and an infinity pool.

When the prenuptial agreement was drafted Hefner’s fortune was estimated at $49 million and had been promised to “his children, the University of Southern California film school, and a variety of charities,” Us Weekly reported.

Current estimates of Hefner’s net worth range from $50 million to $110 million, a figure that the research organization Wealth-X quoted to Business Insider. The Telegraph reports that the publisher’s 70-percent ownership of Playboy was valued at $399 million in 1999 but declined significantly due to dwindling magazine sales.

Hefner has two children, Christie, 64, and David, 62, with his first wife, Mildred Williams. They were married from 1949 to 1959. Christie worked at Playboy for three decades, beginning in 1975, and served as the company’s CEO for 20 years. Hefner also has two sons, Marston, 27, and Cooper, 26, with Kimberly Conrad, a former Playmate of the Year whom Hefner divorced in 2010. Like his older half-sister, Cooper is involved in the family business; he serves as chief creative officer of Playboy Enterprises.