Cooper Hefner

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Cooper Hefner
Cooper Hefner.jpg
Born
Cooper Bradford Hefner

(1991-09-04) September 4, 1991 (age 30)[1]
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
EducationChapman University[2]
OccupationAirman, United States Air Force
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
​
(m. 2019)​
Children1
Parents
RelativesChristie Hefner (half-sister)
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service/branchUnited States Air Force
Years of service2019–present

Cooper Bradford Hefner (born September 4, 1991) is an American businessman, teacher, author, activist, and reservist in the United States Air Force.[3][4] He has worked as the chief creative officer and chief of global partnerships at Playboy Enterprises, a company founded by his father Hugh Hefner.[5][6] Hefner was also founder and initial chief executive officer of the startup company Hop.[7]

Early life[]

Hefner was born on September 4, 1991, in Los Angeles, California to Hugh Hefner (1926-2017) and Kimberley Conrad.[1][8] He grew up in a mansion adjacent to the Playboy Mansion, which was purchased by his father after his parents separated.[9] Hefner graduated from Ojai Valley School in 2009 and received a bachelor's degree from Chapman University in 2015.[10]

Career[]

Hefner started working for Playboy Enterprises, Inc. when he was in college.[11] In early 2016, Hefner, who was a board observer at the time, left the company due to disagreements with then CEO Scott Flanders about the direction the company was taking.[2] Hefner then began editing, writing and publishing op-eds, which centered on politics, culture and philosophy.[1]

In 2016, Hefner launched the media startup company Hop (Hefner Operations & Productions) focused on content and social events for millennials.[12] Hefner returned to Playboy and was named chief creative officer of the company in July 2016 when Hugh Hefner stepped down from that post.[6][1] In February 2017, Hefner announced nude images would return to the magazine stating that the problem had been the presentation of nude images rather than the nudity itself.[2] Hefner also oversaw the decision to feature Playboy's first transgender playmate in the centerfold for its November issue.[13]

As stated in Forbes, Playboy's earnings for 2017 increased by more than 39% year-over-year following Hefner's return to the company, where he worked to develop strategic and lucrative partnerships to limit expenses at the company.[14] On January 1, 2018, The Wall Street Journal reported the controlling shareholder of Playboy Enterprises, Inc.—private-equity firm Rizvi Traverse—was considering ending the U.S. print edition of Playboy Magazine and quoted Ben Kohn, managing partner at Rizvi, as stating the magazine has lost as much as $7 million annually in recent years.[15] Hefner has been recognized on The Folio: 100 list for 2017 for his contributions to the magazine media industry as well as appearing on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for 2018.[14][16]

In January 2019, Hefner took over as the chief of global partnerships for Playboy Enterprises. In that position, he would focus on revenue and business development over content and media management.[17][18]

On April 12, 2019, Playboy Enterprises CEO Ben Kohn confirmed Hefner would exit his senior role at Playboy to launch a media brand, the , and a digital content platform called .[19] Later, through Instagram and Twitter accounts after having left Playboy, in July 2019 Hefner stated his new digital content platform would be called instead .[20][21]

In December 2019, Hefner halted plans to start a media company and digital content platform, and chose instead to enlist in the United States Air Force.[22] Hefner was previously a member of the California State Military Reserve.[23]

Hefner is a teacher at Chapman University, where he also serves on the board of governors.[24][25]

Hefner considered running for Congress in California's 37th congressional district in 2016.[10] In July 2020, Hefner announced his campaign as a Democrat for the California Senate in 2022, in the state's 30th District.[26]

Personal life[]

In 2015, Hefner became engaged to British actress Scarlett Byrne.[8] On November 4, 2019, Hefner and Byrne announced that they had married. On March 10, 2020, Hefner and his wife Byrne announced they were expecting their first child.[27] On 24 August 2020, Byrne gave birth to their daughter, Betsy Rose Hefner.[28] On 25 November 2021, Byrne and Hefner announced they were expecting twins.[29]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Millington, Alison (September 28, 2017). "The insane life of 26-year-old Cooper Hefner, son of the late Playboy millionaire". Business Insider. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Baum, Gary (August 24, 2017). "The Next Hef: Hugh's 25-Year-Old Son Reveals Plan to Remake Playboy 'For My Generation'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  3. ^ Kari Hamanaka. "Cooper Hefner, Modern Day Playboy".
  4. ^ "Hugh Hefner's Son Steps Down From Media Company, Enlists In Air Force | U.S. Veterans Magazine". December 14, 2019.
  5. ^ Wile, Rob (September 28, 2017). "Meet Cooper Hefner, the 26-Year-Old Heir to the Playboy Empire". Time. Archived from the original on September 29, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Staff writer (September 29, 2017). "High Hefner's youngest son to take over million-dollar Playboy Empire". News Corp Australia Network. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  7. ^ Tavana, Art (July 21, 2016). "Can Cooper Hefner Make Playboy Cool Again? We're About to Find Out". LA Weekly. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  8. ^ a b "Cooper Hefner Engaged to Falling Skies Actress Scarlett Byrne – See Her Massive Ring!". Us Magazine. August 6, 2015.
  9. ^ "Hugh Hefner's son reveals what it was like growing up in the Playboy Mansion". Business Insider. December 26, 2016.
  10. ^ a b Ziv, Stav (September 28, 2017). "Who Is Cooper Hefner? Hugh's Son Doesn't Respect Trump And Is Revamping 'Playboy' For New Generations". Newsweek. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  11. ^ Staff writer (November 29, 2012). "Playboy Founder Hugh Hefner Talks Life and Company". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
  12. ^ "A Speakeasy Night By Hop Media". Red Hot Retro. Archived from the original on January 1, 2018. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  13. ^ Salam, Maya (October 19, 2017). "Playboy to Feature Its First Transgender Playmate". The New York Times. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
  14. ^ a b "Cooper Hefner, 26". Forbes.
  15. ^ Alpert, Lukas I. (January 1, 2018). "Playboy Might Kill Magazine to Focus on 'World of Playboy'". Wall Street Journal – via www.wsj.com.
  16. ^ "The Folio: 100 Awards". Folio Magazine.
  17. ^ "Cooper Hefner takes over as Chief, Global Partnership".
  18. ^ "Meredith Appoints New Chief Strategy Officer | People on the Move". Folio. January 10, 2019.
  19. ^ "Cooper Hefner Exits Playboy Role to Launch Millennial-Focused Website HefPost". The Hollywood Reporter. April 12, 2019.
  20. ^ "Cooper Hefner Marries Girlfriend Scarlett Byrne | Hollywood Reporter". November 4, 2019 – via www.hollywoodreporter.com.
  21. ^ https://igshid.com/media/2081597155225062396
  22. ^ "Hugh Hefner's Son Joins Air Force". Fox News. December 18, 2019.
  23. ^ Millington, Allison. "The insane life of 26-year-old Cooper Hefner, son of the late Playboy millionaire". Business Insider. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  24. ^ Cooper Hefner [@cooperhefner] (November 5, 2018). "twitter.com/cooperhefner/status/1059526172747292672" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  25. ^ Gardner, Chris (March 10, 2020). "Cooper Hefner and Wife Scarlett Expecting First Child". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  26. ^ Alison Kosik. "Cooper Hefner, son of Playboy founder, announces campaign for California Senate". CNN. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
  27. ^ "Hugh Hefner's Son Cooper and Wife Scarlett Byrne Expecting Their First Child". eonline.com. March 10, 2020.
  28. ^ "Hugh Hefner's Son Cooper and Harry Potter Star Scarlett Byrne Welcome Daughter Betsy Rose". People. Meredith Corporation. August 25, 2020.
  29. ^ "Cooper Hefner's Wife Scarlett Byrne Hefner Is Pregnant With Twins". eonline.com. November 25, 2021.

Further reading[]

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