Playboy Mansion’s Jewish Tunnels? April Fools!

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
(JTA) — In the days before April Fool’s Day, Playboy.com circulated a story about a series of secret underground tunnels connecting the Playboy Mansion to the houses of Kirk Douglas, James Caan, Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson.
It seemed too good to be true, and sadly, it was.
The Playboy staff went to great lengths to fool the Internet. They published old photos of underground walkways (that existed somewhere) and created fake, detailed blueprints.
They also published the story on March 30, which isn’t exactly April Fools Day.
Nevertheless, we send our apologies to the great Jewish (and non-Jewish) actors pranked in this stunt. But we’re sure that Spartacus and Sonny Corleone can take a joke.
Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief
