He was offered the job of Art Director at a fraction of his current salary. One person who was intrigued by Guccione’s vision was Joe Brooks. I said, ‘What’s pornography? Censorship is pornography! Repression is pornography!’ I wasn’t just a businessman rationalizing his business I was a believer!” “People said it was pornography, and I argued with them. Instead, Guccione would use the ideas hinted at in Playboy as a springboard and then push the envelope beyond the point that American censorship might allow. Eisenhower was serving as President, with Vice President Richard M. Nor did he want to publish a magazine that would be tame enough for the conservative climate in America of this period, where a former Army General and hardcore Republican named Dwight D. Beyond this, Guccione had no intention of watering down his concept by trying to make it palatable to a TV audience. But one person who saw it was Guccione, and, as a tip of the hat toward Hefner, or perhaps merely a wink and inside-joke, he decided to use part of the series’ title as the name of his magazine – Penthouse. The series failed to interest sufficient sponsors and clear enough stations across America and abroad to stay on the air, and it ceased production after 44 episodes. The one-hour variety/talk show, recorded at Chicago station WBKB-TV, was made to appear as if it was a party at Hefner’s penthouse apartment, with numerous Playboy Playmates and bunnies in attendance, and celebrity guests such as Lenny Bruce, Nat “King” Cole and Bob Newhart engaging in conversation with Hefner, and then performing – some doing standup comedy, others singing. However, with such radical ideas, Guccione had trouble finding anyone willing to join his cause.īeginning in 1959 and lasting into 1961, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner endeavored to expand his brand into television with the late night syndicated series Playboy’s Penthouse. He began a prolonged period of looking for investors who might believe as he did – in both the possibilities for a more risqué version of Playboy to be published in England, and his desire to challenge western society’s repressive thinking regarding sex. As the Berlin Wall was being constructed, Bob Guccione began thinking of ways to tear down the invisible walls that he felt restricted and limited the evolution of social attitudes and sexual freedoms. Guccione felt that a men’s magazine such as Playboy could be successful in England if it showcased British models. The American magazine Playboy seemed to be doing brisk business in America but was only modestly successful in England, so little so that, while Playboy was into its seventh year of publication, Guccione had not seen a copy until this time. Since he was now working in publishing, he became curious to find out which magazines were selling the best and why. Still hoping to make his living as a painter, Guccione looked for ways to subsidize his dream. His fascination of the Roman Empire would impact his life over the decades to come and, in time, resulted in many of his associates and family referring to him as “The Emperor.” For the time being, with a wife and baby to support, he worked as a traveling artist, drawing portraits and cartoons of tourists, while performing fortune-telling on the side. Gucionne soon found himself greatly inspired by the artwork and history of his ancestors. Having always been interested in art, and with a talent for sketching and painting, he decided to move himself and his bride to Rome, Italy, where Lilyann gave birth to a daughter, Tonina. But Guccione also believed in marriage and family, and, as a result of faith, the law, and personal belief, the couple married.ĭuring the period in which the United States was drafting young men to fight in the Korean War, Guccione was determined to be exempt from the draft due to his marital status. Guccione’s Catholic faith denounced abortion … and the U.S. When Guccione was 21, Lilyann Abrams, his first steady girlfriend, became pregnant.
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