Hefners Sons Defend Against Underage Photo Allegations

Hugh Hefner's family are firing back at shocking allegations made by the late Playboy mogul's widow Crystal Harris, who has accused Hefner of leaving behind thousands of scrapbooks filled with indecent - and potentially illegal - photos. 

Harris with powerhouse attorney Gloria Allred, where she announced that she had filed legal complaints to have her late husband's scrapbooks investigated amid fears that they contained non-consensual photos of naked women and possibly underage girls.

Hefner's youngest sons, Marston, 35, and Cooper, 34, hit back at Harris in a statement to Daily Mail, stressing that they had 'never seen inappropriate images of minors' in Hefner's scrapbooks.

'In response to recent public comments made by Crystal Harris regarding our father, Hugh Hefner, and his scrapbooks, we have personally reviewed these materials extensively over many years, as have numerous historians, filmmakers, and journalists, including those who have both celebrated and critically examined his life’s work,' the siblings said in a statement. 

'Over more than a quarter century of familiarity with these materials, we have never seen inappropriate images of minors, as has been suggested. The scrapbooks document decades of personal, professional, and family history,' they continued. 

'Our father lived much of his life publicly and assembled these materials as a historical record, with the intention that they ultimately be preserved and reviewed in full context, not hidden or concealed. 

'We believe claims of this magnitude should be supported by evidence and precision, not implication without proof. We support the preservation of the scrapbooks in partnership with a university or museum, along with responsible public access consistent with his long-standing wishes.' 

In a bombshell press conference on Tuesday, Harris and her attorney Gloria Allred said that there were approximately 3,000 scrapbooks belonging to the Playboy founder that contain 'naked and sexually explicit images' of women.

Harris fears that some of the women in the images may have been intoxicated at the time they were taken and therefore could not properly consent, and that some females may have been underage.

'It is critical for the public to understand that I am not referring to images that appeared in magazines. My focus is on how Hugh Hefner’s personal scrapbooks chronicle private moments that took place behind closed doors,' Harris said in a statement.

'There are serious and unresolved concerns about the scope of what these books contain. The materials span decades, beginning in the 1960s, and may include images of girls who were underage at the time and could not consent to how their images would be retained or controlled,' she continued.

'They may also contain images of women who did not consent to their images being taken in the first place. The scrapbooks include nude images, images taken before and after sexual activity, and other deeply intimate moments.' 

She added, 'This is not historical documentation. This is the cataloging and objectification of women’s most private details.'

The scrapbooks are said to be held in a storage facility in California, but Harris claims that she was told that some of the scrapbooks 'could be inside a private residence to be scanned and digitized'.

In 2024, Harris published her explosive memoir, Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy And Finding Myself