Larry Flynt, the business mogul behind Hustler magazine has died aged 78.
The controversial star capitalised on a vast porn empire.
According to TMZ, Flynt passed away earlier this week and the US site report that family sources have confirmed he passed away on Wednesday morning in Los Angeles.
They add his cause of death was heart failure.
Flynt became one of the biggest names in adult entertainment after launching Hustler magazine in 1974.
The publication proved to be very popular but also picked up notoriety thanks to a string of legal battles.
They were so infamous that in 1996 Woody Harrelson starred in The People Vs Larry Flynt – an Oscar-nominated feature film about the glossy.
Larry Flynt has died aged 78 (Image: Reuters)
In 1978 he was the victim of a murder attempt by serial killer Joseph Paul Franklin.
While he survived the attack, he was shot and left paralysed from the waist down.
As a result he was confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life, and suffered from constant pain as a result of his injuries.
As well as producing Hustler magazine, Larry was the president of Larry Flynt Publications which produced a string of controversial mags.
Larry Flynt survived an assassination attempt though was left in a wheelchair (Image: Reuters)
In particular, his magazine Barely Legal raised more than a few eyebrows.
He also produced adult videos for Hustler TV.
Venturing away from adult content, in 2000 he opened the Hustler Casino near Los Angeles, California.
Three years later Flynt launched an unsuccessful bid to be voted in as Governor of California.
He had previously attempted a brief presidential run in the early 1980.
Away from his career, Flynt was married a total of five times.
At the time of his death he was married to Elizabeth Berrios, who he tied the knot with in 1998.
The media mogul is survived by five daughters and a son as well as a series of grandchildren and great grandchildren.
His daughter Lisa died in a car crash in 2014 at the age of 47.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
