2021 in Review: the death of Hustler editor Larry Flynt

On February 10, 2021, publisher Larry Flynt passed away. His death meant an end of an era. The creator of 'Hustler,' a magazine of adult content more explicit than Playboy's, died from heart failure at the age of 78.

Larry Flynt was a child of a poor family in Kentucky. He recounted in his biography that his father was an alcoholic and that, as a kid, he left for Indiana with his mother. Flynt enlisted in the army at the age of 15, later claiming that he had falsified his papers to pass himself off as an adult. When he returned to civilian life in 1964, he went straight to business and opened his first strip club in Dayton, Ohio.

In the early 1970s Larry Flynt began distributing the 'Hustler Newsletter,' a home-delivered catalog with very explicit adult content. In 1974 he turned it into 'Hustler' magazine. The publication was a success because it offered male readers everything that Playboy did not dare to show. Even though certain stores refused to display the magazine, it went on to sell more than three million copies.

Among 'Hustler's milestones was the release of completely revealing images of Jackie Kennedy Onassis. The photos were taken in Greece by a paparazzi and published by the magazine in 1975. Larry Flynt was not exactly elegant or compassionate towards women, not even to former First Ladies. Early on, feminists accused him of degrading women in 'Hustler'.

In 1978, Larry Flynt was the victim of a violent white supremacist, Joseph Paul Franklin, who tried to assassinate the media boss and left him paralyzed. Flynt spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair and suffered terrible after-effects and pain from the attack. Franklin was sentenced to life in prison for his murder attempt and later executed for other killings, including some twenty crimes against African American and Jewish communities.

Even though he was in the wheelchair, Larry Flynt attended numerous trials against his own magazine. Flynt saw freedom of speech as an absolute right, including the right to offend, and his philosophy resulted in a controversial bending of the rules.

Woody Harrelson famously portrayed Larry Flynt in a movie that discussed the limits of free speech, among other things. Directed by the Milos Forman (also from 'Hair' and 'Amadeus'), the film recounts the trials Flynt suffered for publishing obscenities and offensive content. When summarizing the final battle of the controversial editor, Woody Harrelson more or less says: "If America will protect a scumbag like me, it'll protect all of you - 'cause I'm the worst."

Courtney Love played Althea in the movie. She was Larry Flynt's great love. The editor married five times and had five children, but more than once he confessed his devotion to Althea. She, in turn, had a dangerous taste for toxic excesses that reportedly caused her death. In 1987 Althea's lifeless body was found in a bathtub.

Harry Flynt amassed a lot of money with his magazine and the 'Hustler' clubs he founded throughout the United States. By 2001 he had an estimated personal fortune of 400 million dollars. His empire faced tough competition from the internet (like Playboy), however, and Hustler disappeared as a printed magazine.

Larry Flynt was a rabid Democratic voter. In fact, when Bill Clinton came under political attack because of the Lewinsky affair (concerning his relationship with a female intern in the Oval Office), the publisher offered a reward to anyone who could provide him with material on scandals of any Republican politician of the time.

Larry Flynt had a curious relationship with Ruth Carter, the sister of President Jimmy Carter. She was a religious activist and he the maker of Hustler, but they became friends and he even converted to evangelism. The editor had a period of heightened mysticism, even though he never abandoned his business.

In 2014, Larry Flynt lost one of his daughters. She died in a traffic accident at the age of 47. It was one of the more recent, tragic episodes in his life.

Larry Flynt may have been considered a standard bearer of sexual liberty and free speech a decade or two ago - just like Hugh Hefner, founder of Playboy - but times are changing. In 1996, 'The People vs. Larry Flynt' still portrayed him that way, but nowadays such a movie could turn out different. Growing public resistance against old macho schemes and objectification of women has caused Larry Flynt's work to be re-evaluated.