Crystal Hefner, the widow of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, has called for a formal investigation into the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation, alleging it possesses her late husband’s personal scrapbooks and diaries containing highly sensitive material, including explicit images of women and “possibly” underage girls.
Crystal made the announcement on Tuesday at a news conference in Los Angeles alongside prominent women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred, who is representing her in regulatory complaints filed in California and Illinois.
According to Crystal Hefner, the foundation is believed to hold approximately 3,000 personal scrapbooks belonging to Hugh Hefner. She said the materials allegedly contain thousands of nude images documenting sexual activity and private encounters spanning several decades, beginning in the 1960s.
“The materials span decades 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,” Crystal said. “They may also contain images of women who did not consent to their images being taken in the first place.”
Allred further claimed that some of the images may have been captured while women were intoxicated.
“It is critical for the public to understand that I am not referring to images that appeared in magazines,” Crystal added. “My focus is on how Hugh Hefner’s personal scrapbooks chronicled private moments that took place behind closed doors.”
Allred confirmed that complaints have been submitted to the attorneys general in California, where Hugh Hefner lived, and Illinois, where the foundation is headquartered. The filings request an investigation into how the materials are stored, handled, and protected, citing concerns about potential unauthorized access, distribution, or sale.
A spokesperson for the Illinois Attorney General’s Office confirmed receipt of the complaint and said it is currently under review.
Crystal said it remains unclear how the foundation obtained the scrapbooks. She was reportedly told they are stored at a facility in California, though she had previously been informed that some were kept in a private residence for scanning and digitization. She expressed concern that the materials could be vulnerable to theft, sale, or data breaches.
“Crystal did not consent to having her intimate images stored by and accessible to the foundation, and we believe many of the other women and/or girls depicted did not consent either,” Allred said.
Crystal also revealed that she was removed from her roles as chief executive officer and president of the foundation on Monday after refusing to resign.
“The concerns I raised about consent, safety, and security were ignored,” she said. “Though I declined to resign in direct response to my escalating concerns regarding the handling of private photos, I was unilaterally removed.”
The foundation has not responded to multiple requests for comment. On its website, it describes itself as a philanthropic organization supporting civil rights and liberties, with a focus on First Amendment protections and drug policy reform.
No evidence was presented publicly at the news conference to substantiate the allegations.
“This is not about money,” Crystal said. “I am seeking dignity, safety, and the destruction of non-consensual intimate materials so that exploitation does not continue under the banner of philanthropy.
“Thousands of women may be affected. This is a civil rights issue. Women’s bodies are not property, not history, and not collectibles.”
