Award Winning Director® Academy Brigitte Berman Nominated for 42nd NAACP Image Award

Feb. 10, 2011 - PRLog -- Los Angeles, CA-(February 10, 2011)-Internationally renowned writer, director and producer Brigitte Berman receives a NAACP Image Award nomination for her feature documentary, “Hugh Hefner:  Playboy, Activist and Rebel.”  This arresting and engaging film chronicles Hugh Hefner’s role as a pioneer for civil and human rights as well as the First Amendment.  Although Hefner’s Playboy persona makes for good copy and is often the focus of the media, Berman made a conscious decision to forsake sensationalism for activism.  She spent two years researching and gathering information for an authentic depiction of the “other side” of Hefner.  This is the first NAACP Award nomination for Berman and her first time attending the Awards which will air live on Fox-March 4, 2011.

“To be nominated is a great honor, states Berman.  I’ve been fortunate to have received many prestigious awards over the years, but this recognition by the NAACP of the documentary’s strong focus on civil rights and social justice, is most gratifying.”  

Hefner’s passion for justice is palpable as we watch him fight the Reagan Administration and Illinois government for the First Amendment Right.  The film unveils archival footage of Reverend Jessie Jackson and Hefner sitting side by side, discussing the Civil Rights Movement.  The last article written by Dr. Martin Luther King and edited by his widow Coretta Scott King was featured in the magazine after his untimely death.  On the first anniversary of Dr. King’s death Hefner held a special memorial service in his honor at the Chicago Mansion.

African American historian and author, Alex Haley began his career at Playboy as chief interviewer for the magazine.  His ground breaking interviews with Nazi leader Lincoln Rockwell and human rights activist Malcolm X eventually led to Haley writing “Roots" one of the most revered novels about African American history. In the film we see footage of Haley and Hefner playfully reminiscing about these events and their time working together. The first excerpts of “Roots” were published in Playboy Magazine.

With his television shows and Playboy Clubs, Hefner was instrumental in breaking down the color barriers that existed for many black performers, including Josh White, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Williams, Jim Brown, Sammy Davis Jr., Dick Gregory, in the 1950’s and early 1960’s. During this time these legendary performers were forced to use the service entrance labeled “colored” and were forbidden from performing or fraternizing with whites both onstage and off.  

Hefner continually used his television series as a vehicle for black performers and mixed race groups such as The Gateway Singers and Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, featuring them on national television with popular white entertainers like Tony Bennett and Lenny Bruce. Hefner’s Playboy Club in Chicago was the first to give comedian Dick Gregory a forum to perform to mixed black and white audiences. This opened the door for other black comics like Bill Cosby, Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor

“This compelling documentary – may open your eyes. It chronicles [Hefner’s] battles over censorship, freedom of speech, breaking the color barrier and much, much more,” states Leonard Maltin of The Huffington Post.

As a woman and filmmaker, Berman presents an insightful perspective on Hefner’s commitment to Women’s Rights.  Although his motives may be the subject of debates for years to come, it is a matter of fact that Hefner was actively engaged in women’s rights issues. When the State of Florida brought criminal charges against Shirley W for having an illegal abortion and imprisoned her for fifteen years, Hefner hired special legal counsel to work with her court-appointed attorney. They succeeded in overturning the judgment against her and having the law declared unconstitutional which eventually led to the historical decision in Roe V. Wade.

Michael Rechtshaffen in his article for the Hollywood Reporter, refers to this film as, “a revealing portrayal of a committed individual whose passions extended well beyond the fabled walls of the Playboy Mansion…..the film is at its most potent delineating Hefner’s role in the American civil rights movement, going beyond the pages of his magazine.”

This film takes us on a compelling journey through the last five decades of American culture and history, entertaining us along the way.