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Disturbing claims of Playboy ‘shadow mansions’

The daughter of Hugh Hefner’s best friend has shared disturbing allegations about what happened to women who just missed out on making it into Playboy.

Former Playboy Bunny recalls her 'mortifying' experience with Hugh Hefner

New disturbing allegations were made against Hugh Hefner and his associates in the latest episode of Secrets of Playboy.

Jennifer Saginor, 51, claimed that Hefner’s friends and associates created “shadow mansions” to reportedly lure young women into sexual abuse, NY Post reports.

Saginor grew up in the Playboy Mansion during its heyday with her father, Dr Mark Saginor – nicknamed Dr Feelgood for his alleged loose use of his prescription pad – who spent 40 years as Hefner’s physician, best friend and alleged lover.

She described the alleged “shadow mansions” as mini-replicas of Hefner’s infamous Holmby Hills home where his inner circle would invite and house women who were “sevens” or “eights” and just missed the cut-off to make it into Playboy.

“By shadow mansion, I mean that these men in Hef’s inner circle would try to emulate what he created in his own empire at the Playboy Mansion,” shared Saginor.

“And they would have smaller versions of the Playboy mansions, which I would refer to as mini-mansions. They would house these young girls who would come to Los Angeles looking for opportunities to become actresses or models.”

Women claim Playboy had a network of ‘shadow mansions’ as small-scale versions of Hefner’s house. Picture: Rich Schmitt/AFP
Women claim Playboy had a network of ‘shadow mansions’ as small-scale versions of Hefner’s house. Picture: Rich Schmitt/AFP

The former Playboy Mansion resident, who was moved in at age 6, said she was relocated to her father’s “shadow house,” where she claims she saw constant predatory behaviour and sexual abuse.

“My father and the inner circle from Playboy created clones of the Playboy Mansion on a smaller scale to sort of lure these young girls in. It was very predatory. These young girls have no idea what’s gonna hit them next,” she claimed.

Fellow Playboy Mansion regular Jackie Hatten alleged the men pushed to get her intoxicated as soon as she walked through the doors.

“The experience I had at the mini-mansion parties is immediately walking in, having all the men glom on to you offering you, you know, lines of coke or a bowl of, you know, ecstasy. If you refuse those, they’re trying to shove Champagne in your face,” Hatten claimed.

Jennifer Saginor grew up in the Playboy Mansion and ‘shadow mansions’ from the age of 6. Picture: A&E
Jennifer Saginor grew up in the Playboy Mansion and ‘shadow mansions’ from the age of 6. Picture: A&E

Saginor recounted being “horrified” by the alleged scenes of sexual abuse she was exposed to, claiming some “girls were clearly drugged and not coherent” and videotaped for blackmail “so they wouldn’t tell anyone or so that they’d sort of fall into this underground system of being available.

“Basically, any powerful, wealthy man in Los Angeles who was on the guest list to attend the mini-mansion parties was given an opportunity to spend time with particular girls,” she claimed.

“‘Spending time with her’ is code for ‘Having sex with her.’ I think many of the girls stayed in the mini-mansion system because they were scared of being blackmailed with videotapes.”

Besides her father, Saginor claimed businessman Bernie Cornfeld was an owner of a “shadow mansion”.

Dr Mark Saginor lived in the Playboy Mansion with Hugh Hefner and a rotating roster of young women before creating his own ‘shadow mansion’. Picture: A&E
Dr Mark Saginor lived in the Playboy Mansion with Hugh Hefner and a rotating roster of young women before creating his own ‘shadow mansion’. Picture: A&E

Playboy photographer Sharmagne Leland-St. John alleged that Cornfeld lured and moved women into his home by claiming to run a “modelling agency”.

“Bernie, he would go prowling at night. He’d go prowling up in the dormitory and be having sex with the girls up there. I realised that the modelling agency apparently fronted for Bernie’s sexual appetite. So, if you moved into the house, you became prey. You became one of his next conquests,” Leland-St. John claimed.

The “shadow houses,” “mini-mansion parties” and their hosts were described as having taken obvious inspiration from the Playboy Mansion and its head honcho.

A former frequent guest at the Playboy Mansion, Rachel Myers, said, “The mini-mansions were similar parties to the Playboy Mansion parties on a lower scale. I would see the same guys at the mini-mansions that I would see at the Playboy Mansion.”

“So I think there was definitely a learned behaviour from the mansion to the mini-mansions. These men got some ideas on how to manipulate women,” Myers claimed.

This article originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Disturbing claims of Playboy ‘shadow mansions’

Original URL: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/disturbing-claims-of-playboy-shadow-mansions/news-story/0fb0860dcea37e756d787682459636d7