Hugh Hefner's widow Crystal has claimed the late playboy tycoon was secretly addicted to painkillers and Viagra and had an “earthquake stockpile of prescription drugs” in his infamous mansion.
The former playmate, 37, who married the magazine publisher when she was 26 and he was 86 in 2012, said his pill popping was so severe that staff feared he would die of an overdose.
Hugh died in 2017 at the age of 91 from complications of heart failure and septicemia after contracting a deadly strain of E-coli, leaving behind a fortune of $43 million.
In her new memoir, Only Say Good Things, Crystal revealed that Hugh first became addicted to painkillers after being prescribed them for back pain.
He then visited doctors who helped him feed his addiction through monthly refills before staff felt the need to intervene when he began to be less coherent.
Hugh Hefner's widow Crystal, 37, has claimed the late playboy tycoon was secretly addicted to painkillers and Viagra and had an “earthquake stockpile of prescription drugs” in his infamous mansion
The former playmate, who married the magazine publisher when she was 26 and he was 81 in 2012, said his pill violation was so serious that staff feared he would die of an overdose (pictured together in 2014 ).
Writing: “As so many celebrities die from overdoses, from doctors who gave them endless supplies and the people around them.” [Hugh] “I became more careful and the opiates had to be given to him the way he always allowed us to do it – in controlled doses.”
She also claimed Hugh's hearing had been “impaired” due to his excessive use of erectile dysfunction medication.
He wrote that the octogenarian would have preferred to “give up a limb” rather than give up Viagra as he tried to maintain his hard-partying lifestyle.
Viagra and similar impotence drugs have been linked to hundreds of cases of sudden hearing loss worldwide.
Elsewhere in the book, she recalls her future husband giving her marijuana the first night they met, before the couple attended an orgy.
Crystal claimed that she didn't like the taste, which resulted in her just pretending to inhale. She later learned that Hugh's ritual was to “pass the pot” with any new women he slept with.
Web has contacted Hugh Hefner's estate for comment.
Five days before her first wedding, Crystal called off her engagement, only for the couple to later rekindle their romance.
She also claimed Hugh's hearing was “impaired” due to his overuse of erectile dysfunction medication (pictured together in 2011).
He wrote that the octogenarian would have preferred to “give up a limb” rather than give up Viagra as he tried to maintain his hard-partying lifestyle
Elsewhere in the book, she recalled how her future husband gave her marijuana on the first night they met, before the couple attended an orgy (pictured 2011).
The Playboy impresario was previously married to his childhood sweetheart Mildred “Millie” Williams after tying the knot in 1949.
In his E! True Hollywood Story: It was revealed that Millie had allowed the businessman to have extramarital affairs.
According to the show, this was a result of the guilt she felt for being unfaithful while he was in the army between 1944 and 1946.
During their marriage they had two children, Christie and David, before finally separating in 1959.
Hugh married his second wife, Kimberley Conrad, in 1989. During their marriage, the couple had two sons, Marston and Cooper.
The couple separated in 1998 but didn't officially sign divorce papers until 2010.
This comes after Kendra Wilkinson revealed she was “dying of depression” after struggling with “unresolved trauma” from life in the Playboy Mansion.
This comes after Kendra Wilkinson revealed she was “dying of depression” after struggling with “unresolved trauma” from life in the Playboy Mansion
She first rose to fame about two decades ago at the age of 18, when she appeared in Girls Next Door as one of Hugh Hefner's friends (pictured in 2006).
Hugh's former girlfriend, 38, recalled being hospitalized just four months ago after suffering a panic attack.
“I was getting to the end of my life and going into psychosis,” she told People. “I felt like I wasn’t strong enough to live anymore.”
“I was panicking,” she said. “I didn’t know what was going on in my head and body or why I was crying. I had hit rock bottom.'
The reality TV personality revealed that she is now working with a therapist to address her trauma, which she said was due in part to living in the Playboy Mansion many years earlier.
Since her release, she has felt better after receiving antipsychotic medication three times a week and attending outpatient therapy.
It was difficult for her to reflect on that time, she said, explaining that she often questioned her decisions at the time and wondered why she was with Hefner – who was 60 years her senior.
“I was on drugs at the age of 15 and had a lot of problems,” she said of her childhood before moving into the Playboy mansion.
“It's not easy looking back on my 20s,” she told the outlet. “I had to face my demons.”
Of this lifestyle, she admitted, “Playboy really messed up my whole life.”
How many wives did Hugh Hefner have?
The famous media mogul had three wives throughout his life.
Before Playboy came out in 1953, Hugh was already in love with his childhood sweetheart, Mildred “Millie” Williams.
Although the lovebirds were an item during his time in the army between 1944 and 1946, Hugh discovered upon his return to the United States that Millie had been unfaithful.
Despite the infidelity, the couple tied the knot in 1949.
In Hugh Hefner's E! True Hollywood Story: It was revealed that Millie had allowed the businessman to have extramarital affairs.
According to the show, this was a result of the guilt she felt for being unfaithful during his time in the army.
After divorcing his childhood sweetheart, the media mogul married Kimberley Conrad in 1989 (pictured: Kimberly, Hugh and their two sons Marston and Cooper in 1998).
The Playboy founder married his last wife Crystal Hefner, 26, on New Year's Eve 2012 at the age of 86 (pictured 2015).
During their marriage they had two children, Christie and David, before finally separating in 1959.
Hugh married his second wife, Kimberley Conrad, in 1989. During their marriage, the couple had two sons, Marston and Cooper.
The couple separated in 1998 but did not officially sign divorce papers in 2010.
Hugh's last wife was Crystal Hefner, to whom he popped the question in 2010.
Just five days before her first wedding, Crystal called off her engagement.
Hugh Hefner Crystal married on New Year's Eve 2012 at the ages of 86 and 26 respectively.