Hugh Hefner Had 4 Kids with 2 Wives — His Son Marston Was Arrested for Alleged Attack of a Playboy Playmate

Playboy founder Hugh Hefner dated many women throughout his life but only welcomed four children, one of which was arrested on domestic-abuse charges.

Although Hugh Hefner became a celebrity for founding the biggest men's entertainment and lifestyle magazine Playboy in 1953, he was almost as famous for his extraordinary love life.

Hefner spent most of his adult life dating much younger women. He married three times and had four kids with two wives. Here's a look inside Hugh Hefner's longest relationships and his children's lives.

MILDRED WILLIAMS, HUGH HEFNER'S FIRST WIFE

Hefner and Mildred Williams met years before he became a household name. She was his college sweetheart as they began dating at Northwestern University in the early 1940s.

The first challenge in the former couple's relationship came in 1944 when Hefner served in the army. After returning to the States in 1946, Williams confessed she cheated on him.

It was a devastating blow for Hefner. He admitted he "saved" himself for Williams during those two years away, but she came clean about the affair shortly after they had sex.

The Playboy founder described it as the "most devastating" moment of his life. Still, he and Williams tied the knot in 1949. In retrospect, the affair helped shape Hefner's personality in the future.

To lessen her guilt, Williams allowed Hefner to have sex with other women during their marriage, which resulted in his famously promiscuous lifestyle.

Williams believed her strategy would keep them together for long, but they parted ways in 1959. They welcomed two children, Christie and David. More on them later.

[Marston] had been "unstable" throughout their relationship, and it was not their first domestic dispute.

KIMBERLY CONRAD, HUGH HEFNER'S SECOND WIFE

Hefner dated high-profile women and Playboy Playmates for about three decades and didn't settle down. Everything changed with 1989's Playmate of the Year Kimberly Conrad.

Their relationship received backlash because of their 36-year age gap. However, Hefner and Conrad walked down the aisle in 1989. After saying "I Do," the Playboy mansion supposedly became more family-friendly.

Although Hefner and Conrad had two sons, Marston and Cooper, they separated in 1998. Conrad didn't want the divorce for their children's sake, so they legally parted ways in 2010.

CRYSTAL HARRIS, HUGH HEFNER'S WIDOW

Even though Playboy Playmate Crystal Harris was 60 years younger than Hefner, they began dating in 2009. He popped the question in 2010, but Harris broke off their engagement five days before their June 2011 wedding.

The former couple eventually reconciled and married on New Year's Eve in 2012. Harris stood by the Playboy founder's side for five years until he passed away in September 2017. About his death, Harris said:

"He is in the place he was always certain he wanted to spend eternity. He was an American hero. A pioneer. A kind and humble soul who opened his life and home to the world."

HUGH HEFNER'S CHILDREN

Coming back to Hugh Hefner's kids, some have attracted much attention in the last couple of decades. One was even involved in a domestic-abuse case with his Playboy Playmate ex-partner.

Hefner's eldest child is Christie, born in November 1952 in Chicago. She got a bachelor's degree in English and American literature from Brandeis University in 1974 and joined Hefner's company in 1975.

Christie's involvement in Playboy continued over the years: she became President of Playboy Enterprises in 1982 before being promoted to CEO in 1988. In 2008, she wanted to work in charities and NPOs, so she left her position at Playboy.

She has helped raise millions for CORE Chicago, an outpatient facility for AIDS, and has been named one of Forbes's 100 Most Powerful Women in the world several times.

Apart from that, she established the Hugh M. First Amendment Award and delivered talks on criminal justice and drug abuse prevention.

Hefner and Williams's second child is David, born in August 1955. Although he studied film at the University of California Santa, he produced an independent film in 2010 and kept a low profile.

Born in September 1991, Cooper is Hefner and Conrad's youngest son. After graduating from Chapman University in 2015, he launched a media startup called Hop and became Playboy Enterprises CCO for a while.

He enlisted in the Air Force in 2019 and married "Harry Potter" star Scarlett Byrne that November after a four-year engagement. They now have a daughter and are expecting twins.

Their fight started over something "really silly" but quickly escalated and became violent.

MARSTON HEFNER'S PROBLEMS WITH THE LAW

Hefner and Conrad's first son, Marston, has had a different life. He describes himself as a "writer and gamer" and has already released a book about zombies called "Bleed."

When Marston was 18 years old, he pointed out that his childhood was unusual. Occasionally seeing naked people as a 15-year-old teenager was part of growing up as Hugh Hefner's son, so he preferred personality over looks in women.

Still, he was in a long relationship with Playboy Playmate Claire Sinclair. Their relationship made headlines in February 2012 after he was arrested on spousal-abuse charges.

Although they never married, the state law considered Sinclair as Marston's "spouse" because they lived together. The police responded to the domestic-violence call and found Sinclair with minor injuries.

Marston was taken into custody with battery-on-a-spouse charges. After a few hours, he was released on a $20,000 bail. He then admitted he and Sinclair got into an argument but never said he attacked her. Sinclair explained:

"We had just freshly moved into the apartment, and I know Marston was a little stressed out about it."

She added that he had been "unstable" throughout their relationship, and it was not the first domestic dispute between them. However, it was "very shocking."

Their fight started over something "really silly" but quickly escalated and became violent. Marston pleaded no contest but was sentenced to a year in a domestic-violence program and ordered to stay away from Sinclair for three years.