1 00:00:06,519 --> 00:00:06,880 Speaker 1: Novel. 2 00:00:11,039 --> 00:00:14,720 Speaker 2: Hey listeners, this is Ellie Flynn. Before we get started, 3 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:17,120 Speaker 2: I just wanted to let you know that this episode 4 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:21,680 Speaker 2: contains references to alleged sexual abuse. It's also a story 5 00:00:21,680 --> 00:00:24,880 Speaker 2: of female empowerment and camaraderie thanks to the women who 6 00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:28,320 Speaker 2: have shared their stories with us. We contacted the photographer 7 00:00:28,360 --> 00:00:31,280 Speaker 2: mentioned in this podcast multiple times for comment, but we 8 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:34,000 Speaker 2: never heard back. He has not been charged with any 9 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 2: crimes and is presumed innocent under the law. We also 10 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:40,839 Speaker 2: contacted Playboy USA. They state that they have asked their 11 00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:44,479 Speaker 2: licensees to blacklist the photographer mentioned in this series and 12 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 2: that they prohibit pay to play, which you'll hear more 13 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:50,800 Speaker 2: about later in this episode. Our research into his association 14 00:00:50,880 --> 00:00:54,240 Speaker 2: to Playboy and their statement will also be detailed in 15 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,160 Speaker 2: this episode. Oh and one more thing. Some of the 16 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:00,760 Speaker 2: voice notes you'll hear in this episode of all by actors. 17 00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:11,240 Speaker 2: If I was to ask you where in the world 18 00:01:11,400 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 2: might a playmate live, your answer probably wouldn't be in 19 00:01:14,959 --> 00:01:18,480 Speaker 2: a nondescript house on a quiet road in rural England. 20 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:21,680 Speaker 2: But that's just where me and my producer Eleanor have come. 21 00:01:22,360 --> 00:01:25,520 Speaker 2: Outside the window, muddy fields stretch out as far as 22 00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:32,199 Speaker 2: the eye can see hello, how are you doing? Nice 23 00:01:32,240 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 2: to see in the hallway kids Wellington boots, footballs and 24 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 2: skateboards are stacked haphazardly. And in the living room lucky 25 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:43,840 Speaker 2: cats here. Yes, do you know what? 26 00:01:43,880 --> 00:01:46,920 Speaker 3: He's not normally in here? He's very already come to here. 27 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 3: I think you've got the charm. 28 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:54,800 Speaker 2: So much. What's his name again? Frank? Me and Eleanor 29 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:57,800 Speaker 2: haven't come here to meet Frank. Okay, okay, we haven't 30 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 2: just come here to meet Frank. We're also here to 31 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:02,200 Speaker 2: meet Fiona Hollingsworth. 32 00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: I have been in the modern ing industry nearly all 33 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: my life, to be honest, gosh, we're probably talking twenty years. 34 00:02:12,680 --> 00:02:14,919 Speaker 2: Fiona was in her late thirties when she met Luis 35 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,000 Speaker 2: Gomez during his twenty twenty UK tour. She's one of 36 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:20,959 Speaker 2: the few models we've spoken to who hasn't accused Louise 37 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:24,800 Speaker 2: of sexual misconduct. But I still find her story really upsetting. 38 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:29,520 Speaker 2: Luise gave Fiona his usual spiel. He could make her 39 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:32,320 Speaker 2: a star. He could get her in Playboy. He could 40 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:35,240 Speaker 2: even get her the most coveted title in Glamour. 41 00:02:35,639 --> 00:02:38,959 Speaker 1: He said, for five thousand pounds, I could be the 42 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:39,800 Speaker 1: Playboy playmate. 43 00:02:41,960 --> 00:02:44,919 Speaker 2: We've heard of Luise charging for photo shoots before from 44 00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:48,959 Speaker 2: people like her, but charging someone to become a playboy playmate, 45 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:54,000 Speaker 2: that's new to us. But Fiona didn't bat an eyelid. 46 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:56,600 Speaker 1: In this industry, you have to put your money into 47 00:02:56,600 --> 00:02:59,160 Speaker 1: it in order to get the money back. So you know, 48 00:02:59,280 --> 00:03:02,440 Speaker 1: that could have helped me hugely in the future. 49 00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:05,880 Speaker 2: Fionna's a single mum with four kids. Times were tough. 50 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:08,280 Speaker 1: That was like, oh, you know, I'm really tight for money. 51 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 1: I'm not sure if I can. 52 00:03:10,440 --> 00:03:13,960 Speaker 2: But she knew this opportunity wouldn't come knocking again, so 53 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:18,639 Speaker 2: she borrowed the money. Fiona understood from Luis that all 54 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:21,680 Speaker 2: she needed to become a playmate was an official certificate 55 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 2: showing that she'd been published, but when it arrived in 56 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:28,360 Speaker 2: the post, it didn't quite live up to expectations. 57 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:33,120 Speaker 1: It's like a poster basically, so it's not actually a certificate. 58 00:03:33,160 --> 00:03:38,160 Speaker 1: I think it just says Fiona Hollingsworth Playboy playmate, photographer, 59 00:03:38,360 --> 00:03:39,040 Speaker 1: et cetera. 60 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:43,040 Speaker 2: Et cetera. Fiona shows me her playmate certificate. It's a 61 00:03:43,040 --> 00:03:46,200 Speaker 2: page of shiny photo paper with a picture of Fiona 62 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:50,600 Speaker 2: and the famous playboy Bunny logo. Fiona's topless, looking sultraally 63 00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 2: into the camera. She looks great, but overall the edit's bad. 64 00:03:56,080 --> 00:03:58,640 Speaker 2: The design doesn't even cover a full page, and it's 65 00:03:58,680 --> 00:04:02,080 Speaker 2: got tacky white borders on the edges. What's more, the 66 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:04,560 Speaker 2: photo shoot appears to have been done in a kitchen 67 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:08,240 Speaker 2: and not Kim Kardashian's. You can see a silver toaster 68 00:04:08,400 --> 00:04:11,720 Speaker 2: and tupperware boxes in the background, and the scenery is 69 00:04:11,760 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 2: not the only issue. Luise has censored Fiona's nipples with 70 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:19,800 Speaker 2: white circles, which seemed to glow. It's supposed to be 71 00:04:19,880 --> 00:04:23,320 Speaker 2: the document that makes Fiona an official playmate, but even 72 00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:27,320 Speaker 2: with Playmate Fiona superimposed in big letters, this feels about 73 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 2: as far from Playboy's centerfold as it's possible to imagine. 74 00:04:31,120 --> 00:04:34,200 Speaker 2: But Luis has published so many models in Playboy, so 75 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:37,919 Speaker 2: it must be legit, right, So Fiona went to Instagram 76 00:04:37,960 --> 00:04:41,000 Speaker 2: to try and get herself verified. It's partly why she 77 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:44,000 Speaker 2: invested in becoming a playmate, because a blue tick next 78 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:46,240 Speaker 2: to her name would open up a new world of 79 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:47,600 Speaker 2: professional opportunities. 80 00:04:48,440 --> 00:04:50,640 Speaker 1: Lewis has been saying to me, Yeah, if you just 81 00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:54,440 Speaker 1: hand those over to Instagram, that is enough to get 82 00:04:54,440 --> 00:04:55,120 Speaker 1: you verified. 83 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:59,039 Speaker 2: This was before you could pay to be verified. Fiona 84 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:02,520 Speaker 2: sent a picture of her Playmate certificate to Instagram, expecting 85 00:05:02,520 --> 00:05:05,520 Speaker 2: her account to get a blue tick, but Instagram never 86 00:05:05,560 --> 00:05:09,320 Speaker 2: got back to her. She sent it again and again, 87 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 2: still nothing. 88 00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:16,560 Speaker 1: I have tried. It must have been about four times 89 00:05:16,920 --> 00:05:21,359 Speaker 1: and I have still not become verified. I don't know 90 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:23,560 Speaker 1: whether it's because I don't have a lot of followers. 91 00:05:24,360 --> 00:05:25,560 Speaker 1: I don't know. 92 00:05:26,440 --> 00:05:28,320 Speaker 2: And then a friend of hers got in touch. 93 00:05:29,720 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: She was saying that she heard that Playboy has actually finished. 94 00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:38,440 Speaker 1: They're not actually published anymore. He's not really working for them. 95 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:42,080 Speaker 1: I was just like, oh my gosh. 96 00:05:42,160 --> 00:05:45,320 Speaker 2: If Luis isn't working for Playboy, then what the hell 97 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 2: did Fiona pay five grand for? 98 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:52,360 Speaker 1: I would love to know the answers. This must be 99 00:05:52,400 --> 00:06:00,080 Speaker 1: one of the biggest scams out there today. 100 00:06:00,600 --> 00:06:03,480 Speaker 2: I'm Ellie Flynn and from the team at Novel. This 101 00:06:03,560 --> 00:06:43,120 Speaker 2: is the Bunny Trap, Episode four, Pay for Play. Along 102 00:06:43,120 --> 00:06:45,560 Speaker 2: with the certificate, fi owner was sent a copy of 103 00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:48,960 Speaker 2: the Playboy magazine she was published in back home. I 104 00:06:49,040 --> 00:06:51,240 Speaker 2: take a closer look at it with my producer Eleanor. 105 00:06:51,880 --> 00:06:55,120 Speaker 2: It's my first time seeing one of Luisa's Playboy magazines 106 00:06:55,160 --> 00:06:59,719 Speaker 2: in real life. Okay, this is Playboy Portugal. So on surface, 107 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:03,360 Speaker 2: at the jit it looks like other Playboy magazines that 108 00:07:03,400 --> 00:07:05,440 Speaker 2: I've seen in the past. I mean, one thing that 109 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:08,600 Speaker 2: seems like slightly orders, how thin it is it's only 110 00:07:08,680 --> 00:07:11,800 Speaker 2: twenty pages long. And another red flag. I think it's 111 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:16,280 Speaker 2: strange that there there's no articles in here. It's just photos. 112 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:21,440 Speaker 2: The pages are stapled together rather than professionally bound. It's 113 00:07:21,960 --> 00:07:25,560 Speaker 2: all matt whereas I usually would expect a magazine to 114 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:30,000 Speaker 2: be glossy, and there's no centerfold. Fiona isn't in the 115 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:33,960 Speaker 2: centerfold as a playmate normally would be. Instead, she's actually 116 00:07:33,960 --> 00:07:37,320 Speaker 2: near the end of the magazine. It says playmate next 117 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:40,400 Speaker 2: to Fiona. So maybe that's what makes her a playmate. 118 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:46,240 Speaker 2: I don't know, there's something there's something not quite right 119 00:07:46,280 --> 00:07:53,520 Speaker 2: about this. I take another look at Fiona's playmate certificate. 120 00:07:54,320 --> 00:07:57,440 Speaker 2: I don't think that this piece of paper that I'm 121 00:07:57,480 --> 00:08:02,400 Speaker 2: looking at is any kind of actual certification that she's 122 00:08:02,400 --> 00:08:04,880 Speaker 2: a playmate. It doesn't look like it's come from Playboy, 123 00:08:05,240 --> 00:08:11,200 Speaker 2: and she paid five thousand pounds for this. Oh my 124 00:08:11,240 --> 00:08:18,520 Speaker 2: god's so sad. Until now I'd thought I was investigating 125 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:23,080 Speaker 2: awful allegations of sexual abuse against a Playboy photographer. There 126 00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:25,000 Speaker 2: were loads of things I was questioning when it came 127 00:08:25,040 --> 00:08:28,880 Speaker 2: to Luise's legitimacy, but in all honesty, his connection to 128 00:08:28,880 --> 00:08:33,280 Speaker 2: Playboy wasn't one of them. Because Luis looks legit online. 129 00:08:33,920 --> 00:08:37,480 Speaker 2: He's shooting big time glamor models around the world, hosting 130 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:41,080 Speaker 2: his Playboy publications on social media, and being credited as 131 00:08:41,120 --> 00:08:46,400 Speaker 2: a photographer from what appears to be Playboy accounts. So 132 00:08:46,480 --> 00:08:49,040 Speaker 2: what the fuck is going on here? What's the deal 133 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:52,400 Speaker 2: with his connection to Playboy? It's time for a quick 134 00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:57,280 Speaker 2: history lesson. Playboy was founded in nineteen fifty three. It 135 00:08:57,320 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 2: became the world's most famous men's magazine, and it's like 136 00:09:00,000 --> 00:09:02,360 Speaker 2: the conic bunny logo was heralded as part of the 137 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:07,520 Speaker 2: sexual revolution. The magazine became the staff of legend, as 138 00:09:07,559 --> 00:09:11,040 Speaker 2: did the antics of its founder, Hugh Hefner. His harem 139 00:09:11,040 --> 00:09:14,280 Speaker 2: with much younger girlfriends and alleged drug fueled orgies at 140 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:18,960 Speaker 2: his Playboy mansion made the brand notorious for decades. Playboy 141 00:09:19,000 --> 00:09:23,600 Speaker 2: magazine shifted millions of copies every month, but it was 142 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:25,959 Speaker 2: slow off the mark to adapt to the digital age. 143 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:29,320 Speaker 2: By the early two thousands, the print industry was dying 144 00:09:29,800 --> 00:09:31,640 Speaker 2: and Playboy was in decline. 145 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:35,920 Speaker 1: High speed internet porn allows you to essentially be on 146 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:37,480 Speaker 1: there twenty four hours a day. 147 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:40,920 Speaker 2: And you can just click online. Porn pretty much obliterated 148 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:44,720 Speaker 2: the demand for traditional men's mags. People didn't need Playboy 149 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:47,240 Speaker 2: to get off anymore, and the original audience for the 150 00:09:47,280 --> 00:09:52,360 Speaker 2: magazine was literally dying off. Playboy needed to reinvent itself. 151 00:09:52,640 --> 00:09:57,120 Speaker 2: Funny and playmids remain, but Playboy rebuilds its brand. In 152 00:09:57,160 --> 00:10:01,120 Speaker 2: the twenty tens, Playboy went through an identity cris editors 153 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:02,040 Speaker 2: banned nudity. 154 00:10:02,440 --> 00:10:04,400 Speaker 4: There will be a Playmate of the Month, but the 155 00:10:04,440 --> 00:10:05,920 Speaker 4: poses will be more PG. 156 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:11,920 Speaker 2: Thirteen. Unsurprisingly, that didn't work, so they unbanned it. And 157 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:13,840 Speaker 2: then in twenty seventeen. 158 00:10:15,320 --> 00:10:17,439 Speaker 3: We have some breaking news for you tonight. Playboy founder 159 00:10:17,520 --> 00:10:19,840 Speaker 3: Hugh Hefner has died at the age of ninety one. 160 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:25,319 Speaker 2: Without its founder, Playboy was lost. By twenty eighteen, circulation 161 00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:27,719 Speaker 2: of the magazine had fallen to roughly two hundred and 162 00:10:27,800 --> 00:10:30,760 Speaker 2: ten thousand copies a month, down from three point one 163 00:10:30,800 --> 00:10:34,640 Speaker 2: million in two thousand. Playboy USA decided to cut its 164 00:10:34,679 --> 00:10:38,000 Speaker 2: losses and go fully online. And its final magazine was 165 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:42,720 Speaker 2: printed in March twenty twenty, and yet Luis published Figona 166 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:46,920 Speaker 2: in several Playboy magazines in summer twenty twenty, months after 167 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:52,000 Speaker 2: the magazine shut down. How's that happened? The answer is 168 00:10:52,120 --> 00:10:59,040 Speaker 2: complicated because Luis wasn't shooting for Playboy USA, the magazine 169 00:10:59,080 --> 00:11:02,439 Speaker 2: most of us are sociate with the brand. We haven't 170 00:11:02,440 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 2: found any evidence of any of Luisa's photos ever appearing 171 00:11:06,840 --> 00:11:12,720 Speaker 2: in that magazine. Instead, Luis's shooting for international editions of Playboy. 172 00:11:14,840 --> 00:11:16,520 Speaker 1: I've been in like three of them now. I've been 173 00:11:16,559 --> 00:11:21,800 Speaker 1: in Playboy Spain, Playboy Croatia, and Playboy Portugal. 174 00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:25,319 Speaker 2: And it wasn't just Fiona, what Playboy were you? Published 175 00:11:25,320 --> 00:11:28,880 Speaker 2: in Playboy Portugal Portugal? I was in the Portugal mag 176 00:11:29,920 --> 00:11:34,559 Speaker 2: International playboys are sold like franchises and operate independently to 177 00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:39,560 Speaker 2: Playboy USA. Playboy USA has been selling international licenses to 178 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:43,599 Speaker 2: external publishers for decades. As far back as the seventies, 179 00:11:43,679 --> 00:11:46,680 Speaker 2: there have been global editions of Playboy magazine. In the 180 00:11:46,720 --> 00:11:50,880 Speaker 2: early noughties, there were around twenty international editions in circulation. 181 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:54,559 Speaker 2: All of them were ruled with an iron fist by 182 00:11:54,600 --> 00:12:00,280 Speaker 2: Hugh Hefler. A former director of Playboy's international magazines depart 183 00:12:00,559 --> 00:12:04,520 Speaker 2: told me no photograph or article was published in any 184 00:12:04,679 --> 00:12:09,520 Speaker 2: language without HEF's approval, and if any international publisher violated 185 00:12:09,559 --> 00:12:14,240 Speaker 2: Playboy's strict editorial standards, they could lose their license. One 186 00:12:14,320 --> 00:12:17,120 Speaker 2: global edition got pulled in twenty ten for publishing a 187 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:20,680 Speaker 2: pornographic Jesus Christ as their cover star. But our new 188 00:12:20,760 --> 00:12:26,199 Speaker 2: CEO changed all of that. The CEO has radically changed 189 00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:26,720 Speaker 2: the company. 190 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:30,319 Speaker 1: He's outsourced everything he could outsource and has really focused 191 00:12:30,360 --> 00:12:32,520 Speaker 1: on making Playboy a licensing business. 192 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:39,920 Speaker 2: A licensing business aka monetizing Playboy's famous bunny logo for 193 00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:43,480 Speaker 2: cold hard cash. Any Tom, Dick or Harry with enough 194 00:12:43,480 --> 00:12:47,200 Speaker 2: money could buy a Playboy license for anything, water bottles, 195 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:54,240 Speaker 2: air fresheners, or international magazines. Some of these magazines do 196 00:12:54,360 --> 00:12:58,400 Speaker 2: seem legit with actual editorial teams, but Playboy HQ no 197 00:12:58,480 --> 00:13:01,760 Speaker 2: longer vet the teams or have editors or oversight, which 198 00:13:01,800 --> 00:13:05,079 Speaker 2: means that basically anyone suddenly gets access to the biggest 199 00:13:05,080 --> 00:13:09,160 Speaker 2: glamour brand in the world. This is how people like 200 00:13:09,240 --> 00:13:15,560 Speaker 2: Luis Gomez become so called Playboy photographers. Believe me, it's 201 00:13:15,679 --> 00:13:18,680 Speaker 2: really hard to understand the difference between Playboy US and 202 00:13:18,720 --> 00:13:22,400 Speaker 2: these international franchises. So imagine being an up and coming 203 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:25,160 Speaker 2: model just entering the industry and trying to work this 204 00:13:25,200 --> 00:13:25,720 Speaker 2: stuff out. 205 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:29,400 Speaker 5: I don't know if enough people realize how that business 206 00:13:29,400 --> 00:13:33,120 Speaker 5: model works anymore. There's a very big difference between Playboy USA, 207 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:37,200 Speaker 5: which is the flagship brand, and other franchises around the world. 208 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:41,000 Speaker 2: That's Nino Batista. He's the photography instructor who first met 209 00:13:41,040 --> 00:13:44,680 Speaker 2: Luis in twenty fifteen and a longtime industry insider. 210 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:47,240 Speaker 5: If you shot for Playboy in nineteen ninety seven, then 211 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:50,000 Speaker 5: almost certainly you were commissioned and or employed by Playboy 212 00:13:50,080 --> 00:13:52,319 Speaker 5: and it was a big, big deal. That business model 213 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:56,280 Speaker 5: has changed radically. Most of the international Playboy franchises work 214 00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:57,640 Speaker 5: very differently than that. 215 00:13:58,480 --> 00:14:01,319 Speaker 2: Armed with my new knowledge about in national Playboy magazines, 216 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:05,400 Speaker 2: I take another look at FI owners and something strikes me. 217 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:10,800 Speaker 2: It's got no barcode. So that's odd because you wouldn't 218 00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:12,640 Speaker 2: be able to scan it in a shop. And my 219 00:14:12,760 --> 00:14:14,960 Speaker 2: producer Eleanor investigates why. 220 00:14:15,280 --> 00:14:18,800 Speaker 6: Playboy Portugal it is not available to buy the UK, 221 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:22,680 Speaker 6: is not available to buy anywhere. In order to get 222 00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:24,760 Speaker 6: a copy of the magazine, you need to buy it 223 00:14:24,800 --> 00:14:26,280 Speaker 6: off a site called Magster. 224 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:30,920 Speaker 2: Magster is like an online newsagent that stocks everything. They've 225 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 2: got time. They've got The Guardian, Evening, Standard, Daily Style, 226 00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:39,640 Speaker 2: Daily Express. Yeah, that looks legit. Men's Magazine too. 227 00:14:39,520 --> 00:14:39,880 Speaker 1: We go. 228 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:46,360 Speaker 2: They also sell Luis's own homemade magazines and multiple editions 229 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 2: of international playboys that he's shot for. Many of these 230 00:14:49,640 --> 00:14:54,440 Speaker 2: playboys share a publisher, and it's not Playboy Enterprises Untapped 231 00:14:54,480 --> 00:14:58,840 Speaker 2: World Publishing. They seem to be the biggest publisher in 232 00:14:58,880 --> 00:15:03,200 Speaker 2: this space, Untapped World Publishing. I hadn't heard of them, 233 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:05,640 Speaker 2: but it looks like Luis has shot with them for years. 234 00:15:06,720 --> 00:15:09,480 Speaker 2: This private company based in South Africa seems to be 235 00:15:09,600 --> 00:15:14,880 Speaker 2: leading the international playboy publication market. Oh my god. They 236 00:15:15,000 --> 00:15:20,400 Speaker 2: published so many international editions. So we've got Playboy Australia, 237 00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:27,040 Speaker 2: Playboy South Africa, Playboy Africa, Playboy Sweden, Playboy Denmark, Playboy Finland, 238 00:15:27,040 --> 00:15:30,960 Speaker 2: Playboy Norway, Playboy New Zealand. When my assistant producer, Amalia 239 00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:33,200 Speaker 2: looks into it, things get weird. 240 00:15:34,640 --> 00:15:39,960 Speaker 7: Something is off, no website, the number is defunct. I've 241 00:15:40,040 --> 00:15:44,440 Speaker 7: emailed all the people that I've found associated and only 242 00:15:44,520 --> 00:15:47,680 Speaker 7: one got back to me. And she thought that the 243 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:49,000 Speaker 7: company had closed down. 244 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:52,840 Speaker 2: Right, So if you look up Untapped World Publishing as 245 00:15:52,880 --> 00:15:57,760 Speaker 2: one director and his name's Dirk's team Camp. Dirk lives 246 00:15:57,760 --> 00:15:59,760 Speaker 2: in America now and he makes himself out to be 247 00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:02,680 Speaker 2: a bit of a media magnate. He even appeared on 248 00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 2: the podcast talking about how he's made a career out 249 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:08,040 Speaker 2: of purchasing international magazine licenses. 250 00:16:08,840 --> 00:16:11,160 Speaker 8: I started my own thing. I got a license for 251 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:14,360 Speaker 8: a magazine called Fighters only for the South African region. 252 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:17,080 Speaker 8: It's been a couple of years later. Now we're publishing 253 00:16:17,760 --> 00:16:20,400 Speaker 8: fifty odd titles in four different countries. 254 00:16:20,880 --> 00:16:24,400 Speaker 2: But nowhere in this interview does he mention anything about 255 00:16:24,440 --> 00:16:28,400 Speaker 2: glamor magazines. And there's nothing on his Instagram page about 256 00:16:28,400 --> 00:16:31,560 Speaker 2: the International Playboys either. Everyone on the team has reached 257 00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:35,160 Speaker 2: out to him via Instagram by email that does not 258 00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:40,600 Speaker 2: want to talk. We've not left him alone, No, we've 259 00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:44,920 Speaker 2: been handing why might Dirk want to keep his international 260 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:49,760 Speaker 2: glamour empire under wraps? It's confusing because this company looks 261 00:16:49,800 --> 00:16:53,600 Speaker 2: legit like there's business articles about him making acquisitions of magazines. 262 00:16:54,200 --> 00:17:01,680 Speaker 2: He's mentioned on the Playboy official Wikipedia page. Why oh interesting? 263 00:17:03,320 --> 00:17:08,040 Speaker 2: So researching Dirk's the incomp online mentions a model who 264 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:15,120 Speaker 2: filed a lawsuit the model's allegation that she paid thousands 265 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:33,359 Speaker 2: of dollars to appear in a fake magazine. 266 00:17:38,440 --> 00:17:41,800 Speaker 9: The entertainment business is a very dirty business. Anybody who 267 00:17:41,800 --> 00:17:45,040 Speaker 9: goes into it should be very weary and not trust 268 00:17:45,040 --> 00:17:47,440 Speaker 9: anybody except your lawyer, and even your lawyers, you don't 269 00:17:47,440 --> 00:17:48,640 Speaker 9: want to really trust them all that much. 270 00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:51,760 Speaker 2: And listen to me. That's Drew Sherman, a lawyer from 271 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:56,480 Speaker 2: Los Angeles who specializes in the entertainment industry. After almost 272 00:17:56,560 --> 00:17:59,600 Speaker 2: two decades in the business, he thought he'd seen it 273 00:17:59,640 --> 00:18:02,760 Speaker 2: all until he was blown away by a new case. 274 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:08,119 Speaker 2: Drew was contacted by a model who told him that 275 00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:11,399 Speaker 2: she'd been scammed in twenty sixteen by both Dirkstein Camp 276 00:18:11,800 --> 00:18:15,280 Speaker 2: and a photographer working with him. To be clear, this 277 00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:19,720 Speaker 2: was another Glamor photographer, not Luis Gomez. The model said 278 00:18:19,760 --> 00:18:22,520 Speaker 2: that she'd paid to appear in an international edition of 279 00:18:22,560 --> 00:18:26,960 Speaker 2: a Maxim magazine that didn't really exist. Maxim's another big 280 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:28,000 Speaker 2: Glamor magazine. 281 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:32,960 Speaker 9: Maxim is a legitimate magazine, but we alleged and we 282 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:36,840 Speaker 9: believed that the people that were licensed to these various 283 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:41,199 Speaker 9: versions internationally, this one person at least was using that 284 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,840 Speaker 9: right that they had to then make other illegitimate versions 285 00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:46,840 Speaker 9: and swindle people out of their money. 286 00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:50,520 Speaker 2: The model claimed she paid a photographer to be published 287 00:18:50,560 --> 00:18:53,880 Speaker 2: in Maxim South Africa, a magazine Dirk owned. The license 288 00:18:53,960 --> 00:18:58,120 Speaker 2: for The fee was ten thousand dollars in total. Four 289 00:18:58,160 --> 00:19:01,760 Speaker 2: thousand went to the photographer for shoot and six thousand 290 00:19:01,880 --> 00:19:04,720 Speaker 2: went to Dirk to get her on the cover. Then, 291 00:19:04,760 --> 00:19:07,639 Speaker 2: she says, the publisher and photographer told her that they 292 00:19:07,680 --> 00:19:11,080 Speaker 2: could get her and even more Maxim magazines if she 293 00:19:11,160 --> 00:19:12,360 Speaker 2: paid more money to. 294 00:19:12,359 --> 00:19:16,600 Speaker 9: Dirk, Maxim Nigeria and a Maxim Middle East. 295 00:19:16,960 --> 00:19:19,840 Speaker 2: But when she only received digital versions of these magazines 296 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:23,920 Speaker 2: and no hard copies, she became suspicious, so she hired 297 00:19:23,960 --> 00:19:26,560 Speaker 2: people on the ground to do some digging for her. 298 00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:30,040 Speaker 9: The persons that she hired in Nigeria and Dubai couldn't 299 00:19:30,040 --> 00:19:32,879 Speaker 9: find them because there is no such thing. Those Maxims 300 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:34,200 Speaker 9: never existed at all. 301 00:19:36,440 --> 00:19:39,960 Speaker 2: The model brought a claim against Maxim, Dirk and the photographer, 302 00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:43,040 Speaker 2: accusing them of fraud. By the time the model brought 303 00:19:43,040 --> 00:19:46,000 Speaker 2: the claim, Maxim had already cut ties with Dirk for 304 00:19:46,119 --> 00:19:46,960 Speaker 2: unknown reasons. 305 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:50,440 Speaker 9: Maxim came to us right away and said we didn't 306 00:19:50,440 --> 00:19:52,000 Speaker 9: have anything to do with it. We didn't allow this, 307 00:19:52,040 --> 00:19:52,879 Speaker 9: we didn't know about it. 308 00:19:52,960 --> 00:19:53,920 Speaker 3: Blah blah blah. 309 00:19:54,080 --> 00:19:55,120 Speaker 9: I mean, that's what happens. 310 00:19:55,359 --> 00:19:56,200 Speaker 6: Everybody di dies. 311 00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:00,480 Speaker 2: Maxim denied all allegations and brought a claim again against 312 00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:04,520 Speaker 2: Dirk for being a co conspirator who was quite negligently 313 00:20:04,640 --> 00:20:08,160 Speaker 2: and intentionally responsible for what had happened. The model ended 314 00:20:08,200 --> 00:20:12,240 Speaker 2: up retracting some allegations against the photographer, and all parties 315 00:20:12,320 --> 00:20:15,840 Speaker 2: eventually settled, but Drew still thinks Maxim should have taken 316 00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:18,320 Speaker 2: more responsibility. And I agree. 317 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:21,639 Speaker 9: We alleged that Maxim had an idea of what was 318 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:24,760 Speaker 9: going on. Maybe they didn't authorize it and weren't part 319 00:20:24,760 --> 00:20:26,479 Speaker 9: of it, weren't making money off of it, but they 320 00:20:26,520 --> 00:20:28,560 Speaker 9: knew what was going on and didn't do anything about it. 321 00:20:29,520 --> 00:20:31,880 Speaker 2: Herd the Houseworth was a journalist at the New York 322 00:20:31,920 --> 00:20:34,680 Speaker 2: Post who got a tip off about the lawsuit. After 323 00:20:34,720 --> 00:20:37,439 Speaker 2: looking into it, she found the Maxim case wasn't a 324 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:37,920 Speaker 2: one off. 325 00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:40,800 Speaker 10: Effectively, any woman can be a magazine cover role these 326 00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:42,320 Speaker 10: days if she's wanting to pony up the doll. 327 00:20:42,960 --> 00:20:45,240 Speaker 2: Basically, if you have the money. 328 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:47,119 Speaker 10: Then you too can be a cover role, and you 329 00:20:47,160 --> 00:20:49,600 Speaker 10: can be on Playboy Sweden or a Maximum South Africa 330 00:20:49,720 --> 00:20:50,919 Speaker 10: or play Woie Australia. 331 00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:54,200 Speaker 2: She gave it a name pay for play. But even 332 00:20:54,240 --> 00:20:57,560 Speaker 2: though Header cause it a scandal, many models still think 333 00:20:57,640 --> 00:20:59,560 Speaker 2: paying for appearances is worth it. 334 00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:04,119 Speaker 10: Maxim and Playboy are huge publications. Then one way to 335 00:21:04,119 --> 00:21:07,720 Speaker 10: get verified that coveted blue check is to be published. 336 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:10,200 Speaker 10: And obviously once you're verified on Instagram and you have 337 00:21:10,200 --> 00:21:12,200 Speaker 10: a certain follow account, then you can strike deals with 338 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:14,520 Speaker 10: brands and then you make money. It's how people are 339 00:21:14,680 --> 00:21:17,520 Speaker 10: making their living, you know. It's that whole figure till 340 00:21:17,560 --> 00:21:19,359 Speaker 10: you make it mentality at its core. 341 00:21:20,320 --> 00:21:23,120 Speaker 2: It's clear that the major glamour brands know about pay 342 00:21:23,160 --> 00:21:24,000 Speaker 2: for play. 343 00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:28,159 Speaker 10: Maxim and Playboy are not actually slapping down on this 344 00:21:28,240 --> 00:21:28,600 Speaker 10: at all. 345 00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:33,160 Speaker 4: They're not raining in these rogue actors. They're not cleaning 346 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:39,240 Speaker 4: up the mess. I went to Playboy and Maxim for comment. 347 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:42,199 Speaker 4: Maxim never got back to me, but they did give 348 00:21:42,240 --> 00:21:45,840 Speaker 4: a statement in response to Heather's article. Certain so called 349 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:49,480 Speaker 4: international editions of Maxim are unauthorized and are in no 350 00:21:49,600 --> 00:21:53,960 Speaker 4: way connected to Maxim magazine. Maxim's flagship USA edition does 351 00:21:54,000 --> 00:21:55,840 Speaker 4: not condone any form. 352 00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:58,480 Speaker 2: Of pay for play. Playboy did get back to me 353 00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:02,160 Speaker 2: with a statement. At trips to a company spokesperson, they 354 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:05,680 Speaker 2: told us the following. While the magazine is still printed 355 00:22:05,720 --> 00:22:10,240 Speaker 2: in several other countries through licensing partnerships, neither Playboy nor 356 00:22:10,280 --> 00:22:14,000 Speaker 2: its affiliates request payment by models. Any sort of request 357 00:22:14,040 --> 00:22:17,520 Speaker 2: for payment by models is not authorized nor endorsed by 358 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:23,199 Speaker 2: Playboy and its affiliates. This industry feels like a wild West, 359 00:22:23,359 --> 00:22:27,840 Speaker 2: where it appears anything goes, and it seems Luis Gomez's 360 00:22:27,840 --> 00:22:31,960 Speaker 2: whole enterprise relies on that lack of regulation because according 361 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:34,800 Speaker 2: to the models that we've spoken with, he engages in 362 00:22:34,840 --> 00:22:38,000 Speaker 2: pay for play as well. It's not just the owner 363 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:42,119 Speaker 2: paying for playmate certificates. He's charging models hundreds, if not 364 00:22:42,400 --> 00:22:46,280 Speaker 2: thousands of pounds to appear in Playboy all the time, 365 00:22:47,080 --> 00:22:49,480 Speaker 2: including loads of the models in the WhatsApp group that 366 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:52,399 Speaker 2: Emily and Hero were in. Here are some of the 367 00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:55,760 Speaker 2: messages that he sent promoting these so called opportunities. 368 00:22:56,640 --> 00:22:59,640 Speaker 11: We have a special rate of six cond of bounds 369 00:22:59,840 --> 00:23:04,679 Speaker 11: in British waves editorial in Playboy. Huge editorial production for 370 00:23:04,760 --> 00:23:08,080 Speaker 11: Playboy in July each year, have to pay only eight 371 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:12,600 Speaker 11: hundred dollars. Give me a prize of sixteen hundred dollars. 372 00:23:13,119 --> 00:23:14,560 Speaker 1: He will just try and get you to pay as 373 00:23:14,640 --> 00:23:16,000 Speaker 1: much money as he can get out of you. 374 00:23:16,840 --> 00:23:20,840 Speaker 11: One thousand, nine hundred and fifty dollars. That is the 375 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:26,520 Speaker 11: cost for an editorial in Playboy maximum FHM. I have 376 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:29,840 Speaker 11: an editorial in Playboy in next month. It's one thousand, 377 00:23:30,320 --> 00:23:35,359 Speaker 11: nine hundred and eighty dollars each. Three thousand, nine hundred 378 00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:37,200 Speaker 11: and eighty dollars this one. 379 00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:42,080 Speaker 2: Just think people paid that? Yeah, so many girls did. 380 00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:44,919 Speaker 2: They got a front cover, like a four page spread. 381 00:23:49,280 --> 00:23:51,639 Speaker 2: The most I've heard of a model paying Lewise is 382 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:56,480 Speaker 2: ten thousand pounds for a playmate title. I've spoken to 383 00:23:56,560 --> 00:23:59,160 Speaker 2: so many models who say they paid Lewise going as 384 00:23:59,200 --> 00:24:03,000 Speaker 2: insane ounce of money. Over the years, that money was 385 00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:05,720 Speaker 2: often hard to find. Some of these women were on 386 00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:09,879 Speaker 2: the breadline, out of work, with kids, in debt, and 387 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:12,960 Speaker 2: so desperate for a break that they even borrowed cash 388 00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:16,560 Speaker 2: of family and friends to pay him. And the model's 389 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:19,880 Speaker 2: alleged that Luise has one other option. If you're really broke, 390 00:24:20,440 --> 00:24:23,920 Speaker 2: if you won't pay me the money like other girls, 391 00:24:25,000 --> 00:24:28,720 Speaker 2: you've got to pay me in sex. What's more, not 392 00:24:28,960 --> 00:24:32,639 Speaker 2: one model told me that she benefited from those publications. 393 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:35,119 Speaker 2: My biggest regret was paying the bloke. 394 00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:40,240 Speaker 7: I've been published in someone's picture book that they've made. 395 00:24:40,920 --> 00:24:42,159 Speaker 2: It isn't going to help your career. 396 00:24:42,680 --> 00:24:43,680 Speaker 4: You're wasting your money. 397 00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:46,600 Speaker 7: You should be scouted and put in a magazine because 398 00:24:46,600 --> 00:24:48,199 Speaker 7: you're a good model, not because you've paid for a 399 00:24:48,240 --> 00:24:50,400 Speaker 7: publication that's completely backwards. 400 00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:55,040 Speaker 1: The experience was traumatic, and I've gained nothing from it. 401 00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:02,400 Speaker 2: This honestly makes me feel I went back to Playboy 402 00:25:02,480 --> 00:25:05,160 Speaker 2: with everything we found out about Luis and his pay 403 00:25:05,200 --> 00:25:08,800 Speaker 2: for play practices. They said they stand by their previous statement, 404 00:25:09,480 --> 00:25:14,360 Speaker 2: adding that Playboy expressly prohibits its international publishing licensees from 405 00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:17,399 Speaker 2: accepting content from photographers or models on a pay to 406 00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:21,480 Speaker 2: play basis, But they also added in something new which 407 00:25:21,520 --> 00:25:26,000 Speaker 2: completely blew my mind. Their statement reads, when Playboy has 408 00:25:26,040 --> 00:25:28,840 Speaker 2: become aware that certain photographers have engaged in pay to 409 00:25:28,840 --> 00:25:31,400 Speaker 2: play practices, such as the one it learned of mister 410 00:25:31,440 --> 00:25:34,680 Speaker 2: Gomes in April of twenty nineteen, it has acted without 411 00:25:34,720 --> 00:25:38,040 Speaker 2: hesitation in support of women and directed the licensees to 412 00:25:38,119 --> 00:25:45,720 Speaker 2: blacklist those specific photographers. Playboy had instructed their international additions 413 00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:49,840 Speaker 2: to blacklist Luise in April twenty nineteen. That's more than 414 00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:52,439 Speaker 2: a year before Emily, Fiona and the rest of the 415 00:25:52,520 --> 00:25:57,280 Speaker 2: UK models shot with him. I can't believe this. Luis 416 00:25:57,440 --> 00:26:01,400 Speaker 2: might have been blacklisted by Playboy USA, but he kept going, 417 00:26:02,280 --> 00:26:05,639 Speaker 2: kept using his perceived status as a Playboy photographer to 418 00:26:05,720 --> 00:26:09,680 Speaker 2: bookshoots all over the world, and kept getting his photos 419 00:26:09,720 --> 00:26:14,359 Speaker 2: published in international editions of Playboy. I'm still trying to 420 00:26:14,400 --> 00:26:18,679 Speaker 2: process all of this. When I get a tip, it 421 00:26:18,760 --> 00:26:21,440 Speaker 2: turns out it's not just models who are alleging financial 422 00:26:21,440 --> 00:26:24,560 Speaker 2: abuse at the hands of Luis. A former business partner 423 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:27,200 Speaker 2: is too. As far as you were aware, did he 424 00:26:27,320 --> 00:26:30,920 Speaker 2: have an official relationship with Playboy at all? 425 00:26:31,359 --> 00:26:33,840 Speaker 3: According to him, who did, he didn't want to give 426 00:26:33,880 --> 00:26:36,239 Speaker 3: me contact. He would never really like get into it. 427 00:26:56,480 --> 00:26:59,640 Speaker 2: Craig Block is an American glamour photographer. He's a big 428 00:26:59,680 --> 00:27:02,760 Speaker 2: guy with glasses and a shock of spiky, dark brown hair. 429 00:27:03,320 --> 00:27:05,520 Speaker 2: He says he first met Luise in twenty sixteen. 430 00:27:05,880 --> 00:27:07,879 Speaker 3: We would see each other at a couple of events. 431 00:27:08,119 --> 00:27:09,880 Speaker 3: We were talking. We would joke around a little bit. 432 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:11,720 Speaker 3: So if he saw my work, he'd liked my work, 433 00:27:12,800 --> 00:27:13,919 Speaker 3: maybe we could work together. 434 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:18,080 Speaker 2: According to Luis's website, Craig became the US director of 435 00:27:18,119 --> 00:27:22,439 Speaker 2: operations for Universe one three seven Studios, Luisa's company. But 436 00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:25,959 Speaker 2: now he tells me he'd like to see Louise behind bars, 437 00:27:26,680 --> 00:27:27,840 Speaker 2: and that's putting it mildly. 438 00:27:28,320 --> 00:27:31,159 Speaker 3: They call him to Venezuela and tapeworm the He's the 439 00:27:31,200 --> 00:27:34,600 Speaker 3: definition of parasite. He's an organism that feeds off of 440 00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:36,400 Speaker 3: others to their detriment. 441 00:27:37,760 --> 00:27:40,160 Speaker 2: Craig said he could record this interview at his place 442 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 2: of work, which I imagined would be a photography studio. Turns 443 00:27:43,800 --> 00:27:47,159 Speaker 2: out it's actually an incredibly loud factory on Long Island, 444 00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:47,840 Speaker 2: New York. 445 00:27:51,520 --> 00:27:53,560 Speaker 3: Called on one second, Sorry, it's a cert One of 446 00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:55,920 Speaker 3: the fellows in the machine shop had to do something. 447 00:27:57,400 --> 00:27:59,440 Speaker 2: This gives me a clue as to why Craig might 448 00:27:59,480 --> 00:28:03,520 Speaker 2: hate Louise Yes, because despite Craig's slick Instagram, which boasts 449 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:07,120 Speaker 2: endless pictures of scantily clad models, he is not living 450 00:28:07,119 --> 00:28:15,840 Speaker 2: a glamorous life. He's grinding hard at a factory. Something's 451 00:28:15,840 --> 00:28:18,600 Speaker 2: gone wrong, and Craig says it stems from his decision 452 00:28:18,600 --> 00:28:20,960 Speaker 2: to go into business with Luis in twenty eighteen. 453 00:28:21,640 --> 00:28:24,639 Speaker 3: He said to me, hey, I feel the universe has 454 00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:27,679 Speaker 3: put us together with good friends. We're supposed to be 455 00:28:27,680 --> 00:28:31,760 Speaker 3: doing something together. Honestly, he really did a great job 456 00:28:31,800 --> 00:28:35,800 Speaker 3: of convincing me that he was actually interested in being friend. 457 00:28:36,960 --> 00:28:40,040 Speaker 2: At the time, Craig was still fairly new to the industry, 458 00:28:40,320 --> 00:28:43,840 Speaker 2: so he was flattered that Louise wanted to work with him. 459 00:28:44,040 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 3: The business idea he can Playboy franchise. 460 00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:53,000 Speaker 2: Playboy Costa Rica, to be exact, this was massive, the 461 00:28:53,080 --> 00:28:56,520 Speaker 2: chance to take out an international Playboy license and become 462 00:28:56,560 --> 00:29:01,720 Speaker 2: a publisher, all thanks to Luis Gomers. Craig says. Louise 463 00:29:01,800 --> 00:29:04,000 Speaker 2: told him, if they made it big, they could be 464 00:29:04,040 --> 00:29:07,760 Speaker 2: earning up to three hundred and sixty thousand dollars from 465 00:29:07,760 --> 00:29:11,000 Speaker 2: the franchise alone, and twenty percent of that would go 466 00:29:11,080 --> 00:29:15,800 Speaker 2: straight to Craig. But first they need to invest. Took 467 00:29:15,880 --> 00:29:19,960 Speaker 2: me through the investment that you made. How much did 468 00:29:20,360 --> 00:29:22,760 Speaker 2: he ask for? What was the first payment? 469 00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:28,880 Speaker 3: I saw? It gets embarrassing. First payment was my retirement fine, 470 00:29:30,480 --> 00:29:31,960 Speaker 3: and that was about eighty thousand. 471 00:29:31,720 --> 00:29:37,000 Speaker 2: Dollars, roughly eighty thousand dollars. Unlike many things with Luise, 472 00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:39,720 Speaker 2: things quickly turned sour as. 473 00:29:39,560 --> 00:29:42,160 Speaker 3: Soon as we started the agreement. Apparently they became some 474 00:29:42,200 --> 00:29:44,920 Speaker 3: problem the Playboy and they weren't doing that anymore. So 475 00:29:45,000 --> 00:29:48,320 Speaker 3: who knows, but that d materialize. I'm just taking his 476 00:29:48,400 --> 00:29:50,720 Speaker 3: word from that. This is how it's all done. It's 477 00:29:50,720 --> 00:29:52,440 Speaker 3: a long term strategy. 478 00:29:52,560 --> 00:29:55,160 Speaker 2: Craig says. Louis always had a backup plan and he 479 00:29:55,240 --> 00:29:57,520 Speaker 2: always needed just a bit more cash from Craig to 480 00:29:57,560 --> 00:29:58,200 Speaker 2: make it happen. 481 00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:01,240 Speaker 3: There will always happen to him. You so pop up that. 482 00:30:01,360 --> 00:30:04,600 Speaker 3: He would be like, look, I need fifty thousand dollars. 483 00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:06,680 Speaker 3: I need forty thousand dollars so I can buy into this. 484 00:30:06,720 --> 00:30:08,240 Speaker 3: We can buy into that, we can get this, we 485 00:30:08,280 --> 00:30:08,680 Speaker 3: can get that. 486 00:30:10,720 --> 00:30:14,240 Speaker 2: According to Craig, another opportunity to get a Playboy license 487 00:30:14,280 --> 00:30:18,040 Speaker 2: came up. This time it was Playboy Portugal, but there 488 00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:20,960 Speaker 2: were other people interested in the franchise. They'd have to 489 00:30:20,960 --> 00:30:21,560 Speaker 2: move fast. 490 00:30:21,840 --> 00:30:23,680 Speaker 3: Well, he said to me, look, we're going to lose 491 00:30:23,680 --> 00:30:27,560 Speaker 3: Playboy Portugal if I don't have sixty thousand dollars. So 492 00:30:27,560 --> 00:30:29,000 Speaker 3: they're going to give it somebody other. Blah blah blah 493 00:30:29,000 --> 00:30:30,160 Speaker 3: blah blah. 494 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:33,240 Speaker 2: By now, Craig was running dry, but he still had 495 00:30:33,280 --> 00:30:36,920 Speaker 2: faith in Luise and their partnership, so he decided to 496 00:30:36,920 --> 00:30:39,600 Speaker 2: give it one last shot. He took out a loan 497 00:30:39,680 --> 00:30:42,440 Speaker 2: against his own business to pay for the license. 498 00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:45,560 Speaker 3: I said, look, this is a six month loan. I 499 00:30:45,600 --> 00:30:49,480 Speaker 3: either two thousand dollars a week payment on this loan. 500 00:30:50,200 --> 00:30:53,880 Speaker 3: I can't live with that. So you got to tell 501 00:30:53,920 --> 00:30:55,720 Speaker 3: me when I'm going to start getting the money. 502 00:30:56,520 --> 00:30:59,920 Speaker 2: Instead, Craig says he got excuse after excuse. 503 00:31:00,360 --> 00:31:02,080 Speaker 3: He would just say, well, it's not time yet. It 504 00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:02,720 Speaker 3: takes time. 505 00:31:07,000 --> 00:31:10,280 Speaker 2: In case it's not obvious, Craig thinks Luise ran off 506 00:31:10,320 --> 00:31:10,840 Speaker 2: with his money. 507 00:31:11,480 --> 00:31:13,920 Speaker 3: Well, he couldn't send me a red penny, and. 508 00:31:13,880 --> 00:31:15,600 Speaker 2: Now Craig's totally broke. 509 00:31:16,160 --> 00:31:18,120 Speaker 3: I said to him, you've led me dry. It's time 510 00:31:18,200 --> 00:31:22,640 Speaker 3: to leave. I've gone to an attorney that didn't seem 511 00:31:22,640 --> 00:31:25,840 Speaker 3: to do anything. My father a complain online with the FBI. 512 00:31:25,920 --> 00:31:29,040 Speaker 3: I haven't heard anything back. Nobody seems to want to 513 00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:32,040 Speaker 3: deal with it. I gave up on retirement. That's not 514 00:31:32,080 --> 00:31:32,640 Speaker 3: going to happen. 515 00:31:36,600 --> 00:31:39,480 Speaker 2: Craig says he has nothing to show for the estimated 516 00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:43,000 Speaker 2: quarter of a million dollars that he invested in Luise's 517 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:45,640 Speaker 2: playboy fantasy. When he was giving you this dream, when 518 00:31:45,640 --> 00:31:47,080 Speaker 2: he was telling you that you guys were going to 519 00:31:47,120 --> 00:31:49,960 Speaker 2: be business partners in what sounds like a bit of 520 00:31:49,960 --> 00:31:52,680 Speaker 2: a Glamor Empire. What would that have meant to you 521 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:53,760 Speaker 2: if that had all come off? 522 00:31:54,000 --> 00:31:56,800 Speaker 3: Oh would have meant I mean, that would have been fantastic. 523 00:31:57,320 --> 00:32:00,040 Speaker 3: He knows this. So for me to be able to 524 00:32:00,120 --> 00:32:02,040 Speaker 3: do something like that where I could travel and not 525 00:32:02,120 --> 00:32:06,080 Speaker 3: have to be changed to a machine chart, that would 526 00:32:06,160 --> 00:32:09,720 Speaker 3: mean the world to me. Yeah, and that's what he exploited. 527 00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:16,080 Speaker 2: Knowing what I know now about Louise being blacklisted by 528 00:32:16,080 --> 00:32:19,960 Speaker 2: Playboy in twenty nineteen, the Glamor Empire, he promised Craig 529 00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:23,400 Speaker 2: would probably never have seen the light of day. Just 530 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:26,680 Speaker 2: like with models, Louise seems to have used his associations 531 00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:29,640 Speaker 2: with the Glamor brand to extract a lot of money 532 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:32,720 Speaker 2: from Craig, and it looks like that money may have 533 00:32:32,800 --> 00:32:35,520 Speaker 2: landed in Louise's account before his trip to the UK 534 00:32:35,880 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 2: for his so called Playboy Tour, the tour where I've 535 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:42,320 Speaker 2: heard Luis Gomez used the allure of Playboy to conduct 536 00:32:42,360 --> 00:32:45,960 Speaker 2: photo shoots with around a dozen women, many of whom 537 00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:54,960 Speaker 2: came to me with allegations of abuse. It all seems 538 00:32:55,000 --> 00:32:59,920 Speaker 2: to be connected the money, the magazines, the alleged debut, 539 00:33:00,840 --> 00:33:03,840 Speaker 2: and it all leads back to Luis's exploitation of that 540 00:33:04,040 --> 00:33:08,520 Speaker 2: bunny logo like pulling focus on a camera. Things are 541 00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:13,120 Speaker 2: becoming clearer based on everything I've heard. Luis Gomez is rotten, 542 00:33:13,600 --> 00:33:15,680 Speaker 2: but he also seems to be a symptom of a 543 00:33:15,760 --> 00:33:20,760 Speaker 2: rotten industry. The golden age of adult magazines may be dead, 544 00:33:21,480 --> 00:33:25,080 Speaker 2: but this is still many women's dream. So what's left 545 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:32,080 Speaker 2: of the glamour industry? It's time for me to venture 546 00:33:32,120 --> 00:33:36,760 Speaker 2: into that world to find out for myself. Coming up 547 00:33:36,800 --> 00:33:39,560 Speaker 2: on the Bonnie Truck. When I thought of this world, 548 00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:43,000 Speaker 2: when I imagined where this podcast would take me, this 549 00:33:43,120 --> 00:33:45,920 Speaker 2: is what I've been looking for this whole time. That 550 00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:46,440 Speaker 2: we found the. 551 00:33:46,480 --> 00:33:49,360 Speaker 3: Glamour Universe seven studios. 552 00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:52,800 Speaker 7: Yeah, okay, now, oh my god, I actually can't believe 553 00:33:52,880 --> 00:33:53,480 Speaker 7: that we're doing this. 554 00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:07,600 Speaker 2: Thanks to the women who shared their stories with us. 555 00:34:08,239 --> 00:34:11,480 Speaker 2: We contacted Luis Gomes multiple times for comment, but we 556 00:34:11,560 --> 00:34:14,120 Speaker 2: never heard back. He has not been charged with any 557 00:34:14,120 --> 00:34:17,880 Speaker 2: crimes and is presumed innocent under the law. We also 558 00:34:17,960 --> 00:34:21,680 Speaker 2: sought comment from Playboy. They declined our request for an interview, 559 00:34:21,960 --> 00:34:24,959 Speaker 2: but did issue the statement you heard earlier in this episode, 560 00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:28,320 Speaker 2: stating that they asked their licensees to blacklist the photographer 561 00:34:28,360 --> 00:34:31,000 Speaker 2: mentioned in this series and that they prohibit pay to 562 00:34:31,080 --> 00:34:34,320 Speaker 2: play the practice of charging models to appear in magazines. 563 00:34:41,480 --> 00:34:44,640 Speaker 2: The Bonnie Trap is produced by Novel. For more from Novel, 564 00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:48,560 Speaker 2: visit novel dot Audio. The show is hosted by me 565 00:34:48,800 --> 00:34:51,200 Speaker 2: Ellie Flynn. You can find me on social media by 566 00:34:51,200 --> 00:34:54,960 Speaker 2: searching my name that's eb l i E Fly double n. 567 00:34:55,440 --> 00:34:58,280 Speaker 2: This season is produced by Ellen the Biggs and written 568 00:34:58,360 --> 00:35:01,600 Speaker 2: by me Ellie Flynn and l the Biggs. Our assistant 569 00:35:01,640 --> 00:35:05,080 Speaker 2: producer is Amalia Sortland, with additional production from Lee Meyer 570 00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:09,400 Speaker 2: and Saskia Collette. Additional research by Valeria Rocker. The editors 571 00:35:09,440 --> 00:35:12,920 Speaker 2: are Georgia Moody and Austin Mitchell. Our executive producers are 572 00:35:12,960 --> 00:35:16,880 Speaker 2: Max O'Brien and Craig Strachan. Our fact checker is Fendall Fulton. 573 00:35:17,280 --> 00:35:21,400 Speaker 2: Production management from Cherie Houston and Charlotte Wolfe. Sound design, 574 00:35:21,520 --> 00:35:25,720 Speaker 2: mixing and scoring by Daniel Kempson and Nicholas Alexander. Music 575 00:35:25,840 --> 00:35:30,520 Speaker 2: supervision by Nicholas Alexander, Eleana Biggs and Max O'Brien. Original 576 00:35:30,600 --> 00:35:33,960 Speaker 2: music composed and performed by Jake Long and additional production 577 00:35:34,000 --> 00:35:38,280 Speaker 2: by Nicholas Alexander, Louisa Gerstein and Daniel Kempson. The series 578 00:35:38,400 --> 00:35:42,640 Speaker 2: artwork was designed by Christina Limcole, Willard Foxton's creative director 579 00:35:42,680 --> 00:35:45,719 Speaker 2: of development. Various women from the WhatsApp group Chat were 580 00:35:45,760 --> 00:35:49,040 Speaker 2: voiced by Boo Miller. Luis Gomes was played by Juan Solari. 581 00:35:49,520 --> 00:35:52,000 Speaker 2: The news clips you heard were from CNN, The Wall 582 00:35:52,040 --> 00:35:55,560 Speaker 2: Street Journal, and NBC. The interview clip of drukstine Camp 583 00:35:55,719 --> 00:35:58,200 Speaker 2: was from the podcast Beyond Grit with Robert Young 584 00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:04,480 Speaker 1: Novel