Hef's rebirth was also fueled by a power that he quickly hailed as
the best thing since, well, there was no parallel! What was fame
and fortune compared to a single pill that could make Hef … young
again?
Vitamin V - the miracle of Viagra - and Hugh Hefner, then in his
72nd year, were made for each other. The force arrived in Hef's
life on his birthday, when his doctor arrived for the party with a
gift-wrapped basket containing "one of the first prescriptions in
L.A."
"Yes, yes!" laughs Hef. "Absolutely! Timing is everything! And, you
know - it apparently does not work for everybody. But it was made
for me."
His sea legs now firmly in place, his confidence restored, it was
time for Hef to leave the
Garden of Eden and return to the Mansion.
"Let the partying begin!" he decreed, and it did - with a
vengeance.
In this new era of the
Playboy Mansion, Gatsby elegance was
forgotten. The lingerie-and-pajama theme was reinstated, and soon,
a great many Playmates would wear only body
paint. Stars like
Courtney Love,
Ben Stiller,
Ben Affleck,
Bill Maher, Kevin Costner,
Jennifer Lopez, and hundreds more streamed into the Mansion, their
dreams and desires best voiced by
Leonardo DiCaprio, who told Hef,
"My fantasy is to be in the Grotto at 2 in the morning," and George
Clooney, who said, "Now that I'm here, I'm never going to leave."
The pictures of a new generation of celebrity revelers were hung
alongside the greats of yesteryear in the gallery of Mansion party
photographs that cover the walls. The Mansion became a
much-sought-after location for movies, film, and TV, hosting
everyone from Politically Incorrect to six bouts of live ESPN
boxing to episodes of shows like Sex and The City.