Why Did A Playboy Club Open In Lansing, Michigan?

Before I knew what Playboy really was, I knew its bunny logo. Today, it's still one of the most recognizable logos in America. Created by Hugh Hefner, Playboy was known for its nude magazines that dads would hide, and kids would search for, and its Playboy Clubs featuring predominantly male guests.

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At the center of all of this were the Playboy bunnies: women dressed up in lingerie and sported bowties, rabbit ears, and a big, bushy rabbit tail. These women worked in the membership-based Playboy Clubs around the world, first in Chicago and last in...Lansing.

Why did a club open in mid-Michigan, and how did it outlive every other, including New York and Los Angeles? 38 years ago, the doors closed; let's take a look back.

Lansing's Playboy Club, 38 Years Later

Playboy Clubs saw their heyday from the 1960s to the 1980s, with the Lansing location, attached to the Hilton Inn in Delta Township, opening on September 17th, 1982 . As with all the other Playboy Clubs around the country, entry was granted to any keyholder who paid a yearly $25 membership fee. At its peak, 45 Bunnies were employed here..

VIEW A PHOTO OF THE LANSING PLAYBOY CLUB

But those days didn't last. By the time it closed its doors in 1988, only 9 Bunnies worked part-time; the club had ditched its membership requirement and had opened to the public the year prior, according to SunSentinel. A newscast announcing the closure featuring footage inside the club and interviews with the Bunnies is available here.

Okay, But Why Lansing?

If you think the opening of a Playboy Club in Lansing seems random, you're not alone. In a Vanity Fair piece titled "A Bunny Thing Happened: An Oral History of the Playboy Clubs", Hugh Hefner, along with Playboy executives and former Bunnies, shared the rise and fall of the clubs.

READ MORE: Lansing's Prettiest Butthole Contest Returns with Special Guest

As the sexual revolution raged on in the mid-1960s, sex and nudity had become more commonplace, and customers were choosing more risqué places to party that showed more skin than the Bunnies and clubs with strict rules involving their girls. So, as a last-ditch effort, Hefner opened clubs in places "where the Bunny might have still passed for somewhat risque". That included Buffalo, Omaha, Columbus, and Lansing.

Hugh Hefner's 'Playboy Club' in midtown Manhattan, New York. / Getty Images

As the final clubs in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles closed in 1986, the Lansing location (which operated as a franchise) was able to outlive the initial death of the Playboy Clubs. Not by much, but long enough to earn the title of the last original Playboy Club.

Playboy in 2026

Despite these closures by 1990, Playboy has stayed alive and even recently returned to magazines with a revamped approach to their shoots that has shown early success. Playboy has continued opening (and closing) clubs to mixed success, as recently as last year when it was announced the headquarters would be moving to Miami Beach and a club opened inside.