Hustler Magazine Publisher Leaves His Mark
By: Thomas Davila
Larry Claxton Flynt Jr., better known as the publisher of the sexually charged magazine “Hustler” has died at 78. Flynt was best known for the legal battles that made him an outspoken person for the second amendment and took his cases all the way to the Supreme Court. His legal issues were documented in the 1996 film “The People Versus Larry Flynt" that starred Woody Harrelson. Rolling Stone reports that Flynt’s death was first reported by TMZ and his brother Jimmy Flynt later confirmed the news to The Washington Post. Flynt’s cause of death has not been confirmed.
Flynt worked as a radar operator while he was in the Navy and made a name for himself in the adult entertainment industry by building a small empire of gentlemen’s clubs in the late ‘60s. He took those clubs and turned them into one of most established sex-based brands, transitioning a newsletter about his clubs into what is known today as “Hustler” magazine in 1974. However, his critics would blast the magazine by calling it, “obscene” and “degrading to women”.
Feminists labeled Flint as, “a violent, sadistic pornographer.” He was confined to a gold-plated wheelchair in his later years.
Flynt always prided himself as a “self-made” man that came from humble beginnings.
Larry Flynt was born in Lakeville, KY on Nov. 1, 1942 and grew up in poverty. In his 2004 book, “Sex, Lies, & Politics: The Naked Truth,” Flynt cited his humble beginnings played a roll on his attitude towards sex.
The Hustler magazine made a name for itself when they published provocative photos that the paparazzi had taken of former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis in the ‘70s.
Flynt’s vision for Hustler magazine was that it meant to be no more than an alternative to other adult magazines.
In the ‘80s Hustler magazine was viewed by millions of people throughout the United States. That number has declined significantly today, and is currently viewed by thousands of people
Flynt became paralyzed from the waist down and was confined to a wheelchair after he was shot in the spine by a gunman that was said to be livid over an inter-racial photo-op in 1978. At the time he was fighting charges in Georgia.
In 1983, he was indicted for desecrating the flag after wearing the red, white and blue as a diaper in federal court.
In his later years Flynt became active in politics and offered bounties in exchange for revealing information about politicians including former congressman Bob Livingston and former president Donald Trump. The information about Donald Trump is part of what led to Trumps impeachment.
In 2003, Flynt ran for governor of California in the recall election but was unsuccessful finishing in seventh place.
In 1996 Flynt published his autobiography, “An Unseemly Man: My Life as Pornographer, Pundit and Social Outcast”.
Some people viewed Flynt as a pervert because of his magazine and the way he saw life but in reality he was just a man with a vision as he wanted a better life for himself.