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There’s no love lost between Crystal Hefner and her stepson Marston Hefner. The model was married to Playboy founder Hugh Hefner from December 2012 until his death in September 2017. The couple’s relationship drew headlines because of their 60-year age difference, and Crystal was labeled a gold digger, allegations she denied. However, those close to Hugh disagree.
Crystal Hefner’s Stepson Marston Hefner Calls Her a ‘Manipulator’
Earlier this year, Crystal published her memoir Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy and Finding Myself. The author details her marriage to Hugh, and called him “controlling.”
However, her stepson has a different view of the situation.
Marston appeared on the May 13 episode of the Girls Next Level podcast, hosted by his father’s ex-girlfriends Holly Madison and Bridget Marquardt. The main topic of conversation was Crystal and Marston discussed how she became a “master manipulator” when she moved into the mansion.
When Crystal came in, there started to be tribes. There were people that were on Crystal’s team.
Marston explained that his stepmother became addicted to the control and power.
She liked controlling the guest list. She liked taking girls off and on the guest list depending on how, whatever the whims were at the time…She liked being in that position where you had to go through her or you had to ask her for things.
As Hugh’s health worsened, Marston accused Crystal manipulating health’s mental state to alter his will. After Hugh’s death, he noticed changes to Hugh’s will, which left him, Crystal, and a few other people with more money.
I was looking at that when I was getting the inheritance, and I was like, ‘Why? When he wasn’t here, when he didn’t know what the f*** was up or down half of the time, why would he change his will?’
Holly Madison Agrees With Marston Hefner’s Claims
One person who sides with Marston is Hugh’s ex Madison. The former Girls Next Door star was in a relationship with the Playboy founder from 2001 to 2008.
During the podcast interview with Marston, Madison revealed information she’d heard about Crystal regarding her cancelled 2011 wedding to Hugh. Just days before the big event, Crystal ran off. According to Madison, the reason the bride ran away is because she was asked to sign a prenup.
What I heard years ago was it was because she was unhappy with the prenup. Your dad wanted to give her $2 million in his will and she said, ‘That’s not enough. That’s not enough to buy a house. I’m being taken advantage of. They got in a huge fight over it. Hugh said, ‘I didn’t know I was marrying a gold digger.’
While Crystal has started a successful career as a real estate agent, Marston and Madison feel she should be honest about how being a beneficiary of Hugh helped her.
Be transparent about it. There’s nothing to be ashamed about building an empire from my father who’s helping you out and you build it yourself.
Although Crystal’s tried hard to escape the Playboy life, it still a part of who she is and something she’ll never forget.