The life stories of publishing giants Hugh Hefner and Larry Flynt have been well documented over the years, but Penthouse magazine founder Bob Guccione's (pictured above with his son Nick) has not. Beyond the 2013 documentary Filthy Gorgeous, the rise and fall of Penthouse has been relegated to archival news footage. A&E Networks is remedying that with a four-hour, two-night special entitled Secrets of Penthouse. While Penthouse left little secrets within its pages, behind the scenes founder Bob Guccione left a trail of questionable business decisions, exorbitant overspending and fractured relationships with his children. It's the exploration of those relationships, told through two of his children -- Nicholas (Nick) and Nina -- which makes the documentary so compelling.
For Nick (pictured at right), participating in the project was important. "This was something monumental in publication history, as well as cultural history," he shared during an exclusive interview with MediaVillage. "I thought [by] taking part t
"When they say, 'Secrets of Penthouse' it sounds a little salacious, but there are very positive secrets some [people] are not aware of that I'd like to bring to light," he added.
Bob Guccione founded Penthouse in 1969, and with his published admission to go "rabbit hunting" shortly thereafter, he made it a formidable competitor to Playboy. As detailed in the documentary, the magazine became a major success, affording him and his family all the trappings of a lavish New York lifestyle. But at what cost? After bringing his children into the business (when age appropriate), Guccione managed to ostracize them one by one except for his daughter Nina, who would fight to the end to salvage her father's dream of running the business.
Nick Guccione's contribution to the Penthouse empire (before being cut off) was via filmmaking and editing within Penthouse's video division, which he made a huge success before being fired. "Exploring the message of family dynamics [in this] was extremely important to me," he said. "Not only for my family and myself, but for people going forward who are photographers, or artists, who want to capture the beauty of the female, or male, form depending on what your inclination is.
"I'd like to help dispel some of the attitudes of culture and people around erotic entertainment," he continued. "Porn is not a word I use. Porn is a four-letter word and not what we were about. I was always respectful, a gentleman, and professional with the women I worked with and never asked them to do anything they were uncomfortable doing. I love and respect women. Unfortunately, dad got into that towards the end, maybe out of desperation because he was going bankrupt, and times were changing. He also made some bad business decisions."
Two of those bad decisions the documentary explores still resonate with the younger Guccione. The first was his father's decision to make Caligula, the world's first big-budget adult film, for $17M. "I think Caligula was a major money swamp," he recalled of the project. "Honestly, I liked the film, believe it or not. Where did he go wrong? The simple answer is he shouldn't have added [graphic] scenes in a movie with Sir John Gielgud and Helen Mirren. I've been a video editor for 39 years, and I would have shown hints. Trying to mix a porno movie with feature film A-list actors just doesn't work. I would have made it much less graphic."
There's no doubt the public's response to Caligula damaged the Penthouse brand, but that was only the beginning. Thereafter, Guccione decided to expand the limits of Penthouse's pictorials and depicting things (beyond the confines of social acceptance) -- much to the chagrin of his worried kids and advertisers, who jumped ship in droves. "When dad started putting in pictures of girls having intercourse, and more of that 'four-letter-word' stuff, I never appreciated it," Nick recalled. "We'd say, 'Listen, dad. Easy, buddy.' It was frustrating and has haunted me for years.
"Dad tried to appeal to a certain, comparatively minuscule audience," he continued. "But lost millions of potential dollars in income because of his decision. I'll give credit to my sister Nina, and my brother Tony, although [he and I] don't speak anymore as he disappeared, but they said, "Don't do it! You're going to lose too much audience, and advertising dollars. It's not worth it. He wanted to try something different, but maybe should have come up with a whole new magazine."
Twenty years after his association with Penthouse ended -- and 13 years after his father's passing -- Nick (now a father of a 21-year-old son) can look back on those times with a sense of closure, thanks in part to the documentary. He appreciates his unconventional upbringing and is hopeful the secret to parenting he taught himself while "growing up Guccione" is something all parents will adhere to.
"No. 1 is don't ignore your children!" he asserted. "Be a part of their lives and be there for them. I'm always there for my son, so let your children know you love them, you think about them, and will for as long as you're alive and even after. That's so important as a parent."
Today, Nick is close with his sister Nina and brother Bob Jr., although distance prohibits them from getting together as often as they'd like. He also shared that Secrets of Penthouse may not be the closing chapter on the family name "I'm working on a book, and there's talk of a feature film" he revealed in closing. "I've been speaking to [people] at Curious Films and have a couple of people in mind to play dad. We have to do this."
Part one of A&E's Secrets of Penthouse will be telecast Monday, September 4 at 9 p.m. Part two premieres on Tuesday, September 5 at 9 p.m.
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