"Playboy" founder Hugh Hefner has been reported dead at age 88 due to natural causes on Sunday, December 28 at around 9 am. The rumor has since spread like wildfire, but both Hefner and his wife, Crystal Hefner, has posted on Twitter falsifying the rumor.
The founder of "Playboy" was reported to have died on December 29, Sunday morning, as reported by a bogus website. According to Hollywood Life, the rumor originated from the website NBCToday.co, saying that Hefner died of natural causes. Hollywood Life says, "Many probably assumed that the link was the actual NBC TODAY site."
Inquisitr reports the fabricated news being shared on Facebook over 159,000 times and receiving 39,000 likes. It has also been shared on Twitter more than 1,800 times.
Following the rumor that has been shared over various social media websites, fans took to Twitter to ask whether Hefner's death was true or not.
Some also expressed their sadness about Hefner's alleged passing, which was cited to have been due to natural causes, The Independent adds.
However, Hefner is proven to be alive and well, Hollywood Life reports. Despite allegedly being dead, Hefner has posted that he has made it to movie night at the Playboy Mansion, tweeting: "Tonight's Mansion movie is "American Sniper.'"
Crystal also posted a photo of Hefner with "the family" on December 29 after Hefner was allegedly already dead. Shortly after the photo, Crystal followed up with a quote that could be intended for the rumor's quick spread. Crystal's Twitter post reads: "A lie can run around the world before the truth has got it's [sic] boots on."
Furthermore, Inquisitr reminds that if Hefner had indeed passed away, "there would be a buzzing frenzy coming from the Playmates, let alone the rest of the media world." Crystal's Twitter has not featured any more recent post saying that she has lost her husband, while Hugh's most recent post is a retweet of a Twitter user talking about his supposed death while still making it to movie night.
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