Hugh Hefner's After Dark: Speaking Out in America

In 1959, Hugh Hefner created his Playboy’s Penthouse: an intimate and eclectic variety show. Featuring a diverse range of talent -  Peggy Lord, Pete Seeger, Lenny Bruce, Nina Simone, Ray Charles, to name a few - the show offered a refreshing alternative to the repression and segregation of ‘50s America. Hefner followed in the ‘60s with After Dark, a colorful celebration of counterculture, with guests including Jerry Garcia, Gore Vidal, Sammy Davis Jr. and Michael Wadleigh. Director Brigitte Berman presents Hefner as a civil rights advocate, with excerpts from the shows serving as resounding endorsements of the anti-war, free love and civil rights movements. Interviews include Smokey Robinson, Joan Baez, Tony Bennett, Whoopi Goldberg and Bill Maher. For those who consider Hefner a mere playboy, his role as a civil rights advocate will be a jaw-dropper. (Telluride Film Festival)