From NEW YORK POST

HUSTLER founder is taking the porn empire public

Larry Flynt is making noises about taking his Hustler porn empire public.

The 71-year-old porn king, who has expanded well beyond his monthly magazine into Web sites, casinos, a TV network and a licensing division, thinks the business could be worth as much as $500 million.

The Los Angeles-based company is already working with “high-powered” firms to consider an initial public offering, Flynt told the Cincinnati Enquirer in a recent interview.

The IPO could come to Wall Street within 12 to 18 months, the founder and chairman of the 40-year-old publication said.

Back in 1974, Hustler magazine joined Playboy and Penthouse in a newsstand competition for male adolescent eyeballs across the nation.

The competition served all three publications well for years, but when the market turned south in the late 1990s, Flynt had the foresight to diversify.

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