Hefner Named in Libel, Slander Suit by Sister of Slain Actress

Playboy magazine founder Hugh Hefner was sued Monday for slander, libel and invasion of privacy by the younger sister of former Playboy centerfold model Dorothy Stratten.

The $5-million lawsuit contends that Hefner and Burl Eldridge, stepfather of the slain actress and model, emotionally damaged 16-year-old Louise Beatrice Hoogstraten with their claims at a press conference earlier this month that the teen-ager was “seduced” by director Peter Bogdanovich when she was 13 years old.

Bogdanovich was Stratten’s “friend and lover” when she was killed by her estranged husband in 1980, the lawsuit alleges. Bogdanovich later wrote a book about Stratten, which laid part of the blame for her death at the age of 20 on Hefner and the Playboy life style.

In an effort to refute those charges, Hefner and Eldridge contended at an April 1 news conference that Louise Hoogstraten was seduced by Bogdanovich shortly after her sister’s death, that Bogdanovich paid for the teen-ager to have cosmetic surgery on her jaw so that she would look more like her deceased sister and that Stratten’s mother, Nelly Schaap, was also seduced by Bogdanovich.

The statements were all false and defamatory, and caused Louise great emotional distress by holding her up to hatred, contempt and ridicule, the lawsuit said.

Louise is now a high school student in Pitt Meadows, British Columbia. The comments were widely reported in the Canadian press, the lawsuit said, and were “extremely upsetting” to the girl and her family.

The suit alleges that Hefner knew his comments were false when he made them, and should be required to pay not less than $5 million in punitive damages because of their severe emotional impact on Louise.

Playboy spokesman Don Rogers said Hefner had no comment on the suit, except to say: “It appears the truth will finally be known.”