[Asia Economy Reporter Nana] Larry Flynt, the founder of the American adult magazine Hustler and a giant in the adult entertainment industry, has died at the age of 78.
The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 10th (local time) that Flynt passed away at his home in Los Angeles (LA), USA. WP stated that his brother Jimmy Flynt confirmed the death but the exact cause has not been disclosed.
During his lifetime, Flynt published the explicit adult magazine Hustler and faced multiple obscenity trials. WP described him as "one of the most notorious producers of obscene materials in the United States and a self-proclaimed 'champion of the First Amendment,'" adding that "he sparked much controversy by being repeatedly sued, prosecuted, or imprisoned for libel."
His story was also made into a film titled "The People vs. Larry Flynt" (1996), which attracted attention.
Born into a poor family in Kentucky, Flynt dropped out of high school and worked at a GM factory before opening the "Hustler Club" in Ohio with his brother in 1968, later founding Hustler magazine.
In 1975, he caused controversy by secretly publishing photos of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, the widow of former President John F. Kennedy, sunbathing nude in Hustler.
In 1979, Flynt was shot by a white supremacist who was displeased with Hustler's content, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair for life. He also dreamed of entering politics, running for California governor and even president.
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