Vision Vindicated, Value Verified
In the 1970s, Playboy magazine encountered competition and profits dropped, at the same time gaming profits from the London casino kept rising, making future expansion into gaming very attractive. In the spring of 1972 the Clermont Club in Berkley Square, famous for its high rollers and celebrity clientele, was purchased.
A large rural property a few miles from London was added to the organization in 1972. Stocks House, a 42 room Georgian Mansion located outside Aldbury in Hertfordshire which, coincidentally, had previously been the country home of Mary Augusta Ward. At the time of Lownes' purchase it had been in use as a Catholic girls' school since 1944. As well as being Victor Lownes residence the mansion was used as a training camp for Playboy bunnies and was well known for hosting extravagant parties, including the infamous 1978 25-hour party (to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the founding of Playboy magazine), when guests and Bunny Girls who were given green dots to wear, were allowed upstairs to Stocks' many bedrooms. Guests included Jim Henson and Don Oz (the Muppets,)Barbara Parkin (Peyton Place) and Janine Paule.
In 1973 the Manchester and Portsmouth Casino Clubs were opened. With the gaming license approval for the Victoria Sporting Club in February 1981, Playboy Enterprises became the largest, and, table for table, one of the most profitable gaming operators in the UK. They had three London casinos, two provincial casinos, interests in two others, 72 off track betting parlors, and six bingo parlors. In these casinos they attracted some of the highest of the high rollers and societies’ upper crust.
In 1975 Hefner's penchant for becoming involved in various ventures and then losing interest led to unprofitability in many areas of Playboy. Lownes was brought back to Chicago by Hefner personally as a hatchet man to trim the fat off the corporation. He was given virtually unlimited powers and on the job, Lownes was so dedicated to cutting expenses that he was known within the company as "Attila" or "Jaws".
Read more about this topic: Victor Lownes
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