Founder of the Hustler empire and subject (along with Francisco Goya, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Andy Kaufman) of a biopic directed by Oscar-winning director Milos Foreman, Larry Flynt was born 66 years ago today in impoverished Magoffin County in Kentucky.
Larry Flynt’s life and career are the stuff of legend, most of it recounted in the movie, which stars Woody Harrelson and Courtney Love.
He had his first sexual experience with a chicken.
He became a millionaire overnight when he published nude photos of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
He was converted to Christianity by the President’s sister Ruth Carter Stapleton.
He was shot by a sniper in 1978 and left paralyzed from the waist down.
He spent six months in jail for wearing the American flag as a diaper.
He was sued unsuccessfully by evangelist Jerry Falwell in case that reached the Supreme Court.
He is also a recurring character in Allan MacDonnell’s outrageous memoir Prisoner of X: 30 Years in the Hole at Hustler Magazine.
Happy Birthday, Larry.
