Hustler’s Larry Flynt, porn mogul and free speech champion, dead at 78
- The self-described ‘smut peddler who cares’ had suffered from a variety of health problems since surviving an assassination attempt in 1978
- A controversial figure, Flynt was often in legal trouble, fighting obscenity charges or lawsuits, and he often turned courtroom appearances into spectacles.
Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt Jnr, the self-described “smut peddler who cares”, who used his pornography empire and flair for the outrageous to push the limits of free speech, has died at the age of 78.
Flynt’s brother Jimmy Flynt confirmed his death but did not cite a specific cause. Flynt suffered from a variety of health problems since a 1978 assassination attempt that left him a paraplegic.
Flynt loved to aggravate his critics with stunts such as wearing a diaper made from an American flag to court and was involved in a number of legal battles.
In the most famous, the US Supreme Court made an important First Amendment ruling in favour of Flynt in a libel battle with evangelist Jerry Falwell.
Flynt had published a fake ad in Hustler which depicted Falwell saying his first sexual encounter had been with his mother in an outhouse. Falwell sued for US$50 million and won a lower-court ruling, but in 1988 the Supreme Court said the ad was a parody and protected by free speech standards.
