Playboy Magazine founder Hugh Hefner and former President George W. Bush are, in fact, distantly related through Thomas and Welthian Richards, 17th-century residents of the Plymouth Colony and actual Pilgrims. Bush and Hefner aren't the only famous Americans on that Richards line, either. Former Senator, Secretary of State and Democratic nominee for President John Kerry, defeated by Bush in the 2004 presidential election, is also related to those two men through the Richards line, according to the Independent.
For his part, Hefner, who died in 2017, was less than thrilled to be related by blood to President Bush, however distant the relation might be. He did wish his distant cousin well, though, telling CBS News in 2004, "I would be delighted to invite both President Bush and Senator Kerry for a family reunion." Other notable Americans sharing a connection to the Richards family include General Douglas MacArthur, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Benedict Arnold. In light of this, the Richards lineage seems to be among the most important in American history.
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