Fanatics' fury at Muslim Playgirl

Thesun.co.uk - Sila Sahin has been branded a "whore" and a "western slut" after appearing topless on the cover of the German edition of the men's magazine.

And Islamic fanatics have posted threatening internet messages.

Sila, raised in Germany by conservative Turkish parents, says she fears being "spat at" and "shamed".

Her parents are said to have reacted with "horror" at the 12-page coverage, and her mother has apparently cut off all contact.

Sila, 25 - star of German soap Good Times, Bad Times - claimed the shoot was a reaction to the "slavery" of her youth.

She added: "What I want to say with these photos is, 'Girls, we don't have to live according to the rules imposed upon us'.

"For years I subordinated myself to various societal constraints. The Playboy photo shoot was a total act of liberation."

Threats

But Islamic internet sites are being monitored by the BND - the German intelligence agency - after threats were posted about her "shaming Muslim womanhood" and "prostituting herself for money".

One poster on the Jihad Watch website wrote: "She needs to be very careful..." Another simply said: "She must pay."

A kebab shop owner, asked on German TV what he would do if Sila were his daughter, replied: "I would kill her. I really mean that. That doesn't fit with my culture."

The Islamic Community of Germany has called for a boycott of Sila.

About three million Muslim immigrants live in Germany, which has seen numerous honour killings in recent years by fanatical husbands, fathers and brothers.

In 2009, an asylum seeker was sentenced to life after killing his "too independent" German wife.

One police intelligence officer said of Sila: "I think what she did was either very brave, or very stupid.She will be double-locking her door at night for a long time to come."

Kicking Off the Covers: UFC Octagon girl Arianny Celeste nude Playboy Nov. 2010

Examiner.com - Arianny Celeste, best known as an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Octagon girl, is on the cover of the November 2010 issue of Playboy, on stands this week.

Celeste has been a model most of her life and is no stranger to sexy magazine coverage, but the Playboy spread is her first nude shoot.

Media World: Hugh Hefner is Looking For a Sugar Daddy

Hugh Hefner, America's favorite girl-chasing geezer, may sell the Playboy empire he built more than 50 years ago.

According to the New York Post, Playboy Enterprises Inc. (PLA) is being "quietly" shopped around to private equity firms for about $300 million. That's roughly three times the market capitalization of the Chicago-based company. No wonder the Post is reporting that Apollo Capital Partners and Providence Equity Partners, which have been approached, have yet to make an offer. Perhaps Hefner thinks the company is worth quite a bit more than the investment bankers do.

Hefner still has about a 70 percent ownership interest in Playboy. There are many reasons both emotional and financial that may make him reluctant to sell. After all, Hefner is synonymous with the brand in part because of the swinging lifestyle he leads at the company-owned Playboy Mansion. A new owner of Playboy may sell the Beverly Hills fantasy island to raise cash.

"Hefner, now 83 years old, said recently that one of his biggest regrets was taking Playboy public," the Post said.

It's easy to see why

Shares of Playboy, which have run up a bit lately along with the rest of the market, have plunged nearly 80 percent over the past five years amid declining revenue at the company's flagship magazine. Some investors are taking an interest in the stock, betting that the company would get sold once Hefner joins the great pajama party in the sky.

Playboy retains a tiny vestige of what made it cool. Young male celebrities still will give their firstborn for an invitation to one of Hefner's famous parties. But that doesn't do shareholders much good amid the explosion of free adult content online.

For the quarter ended March 31, the Chicago reported a net loss of $13.7 million, or 41 cents a share, up from $4.2 million. This compares to a net loss in the same period last year of $4.2 million, or 13 cents per share. Revenue declined to $61.6 million from $78.5 million a year before.

Selling Playboy may prove more difficult for Hefner than convincing women young enough to be his great-grandaughters that he is good boyfriend material.