up for sale...what's the world coming to....I NEVER LOOKED AT THE PICTURES....JUST READ THE ARTICLES...LOL

If you were Hugh Hefner, 81, would you give up the parade of busty blondes, the fancy mansion and the weird reality TV show for a payout? Because that is what it will likely take for the long-rumoured sale of Playboy Enterprises Inc. to happen, a new note from RBC Capital Markets says.

The struggling but still-iconic purveyor of skin has been linked with Iconix Brand Group, a company that specializes in buying under-leveraged brands and exploiting them through licensing, analyst David Bank with RBC said in a note.

"Given that the real long-term value creation opportunity for Playboy is clearly on the licensing side, we think chatter regarding a partnership makes some sense," he said.

However, the chances of a deal are slim as the company recently hired a new chief executive, Scott Flanders, and Mr. Hefner will likely want to see what the new management has planned.

"We think the wildcard here is Hugh Hefner," Mr. Bank said. "He could be ready to liquidate his holdings, detach from Playboy and his associated lifestyle."

But there are no indications of that happening any time soon. More likely, Mr. Hefner is hoping Mr. Flanders can turn the company around and drive the stock to a higher premium before selling later.

Either that, or he's just gotten too attached to the grotto.