He wasn't the only one, but apparently he donated the last $900K to makes sure that the Hollywood sign would remain right where it was. For some reason, the 138 acres behind the iconic sign were up for sale, and developers actually had the balls to say they were eying the hillside, once owned by Howard Hughes, for luxury mansions.
Of course they had a little heart. They allowed a nonprofit land-conservation group the chance to buy the land for $12.5 million. As an April 30 deadline neared, the group was nearly $1 million short.
"I was aware of the fact that they were raising the money, but I only learned about a week ago that they were running out of time," said Hefner. "They only had about a week and a half left to go." He came up with the rest and saved all those that dream of no longer needing to goop on acne medication and become stars their dreams.
"It would have been a real shame after having restored it if it wound up sold," Hefner, 84, told PEOPLE on Monday at the Hollywood premiere of Iron Man 2, with the legendary 45-foot white letters looming in the background. "It's become something iconic and represents not only the town but represents Hollywood dreams, and I think that's something worth preserving."
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