Twitter was all aflutter last night with the news that Playboy South Africa editor, Peter Piegl, had resigned. The news broke late last night as the man himself tweeted: “I’ve resigned as editor of PLAYBOY South Africa.”
A flurry of tweets followed his news with @rayjoe commenting: “Out of the bunny’s mouth, so to speak.” And @inotherwordscg asking: “What? Already? You just took the job.” @Aeshree28 was brief: “????” she asked.
Despite an opportunistic DM to the @Piegl inbox inquiring as to why and asking for an interview, no response was forthcoming.
A quick check of the @Piegl Twitter feed found a few interesting comments. @Piegl himself said: “How ironic. Have gained more followers now, due to my resignation, than ever before. As for my detractors…”
And another wit commented: “@badtennis_: Good Luck at New Age! @Piegl” Funny guy
But “@petermacrobert: @bronwynnortje i think @Piegl only resigned so he could organise the opening of the new Playboy club in London :)”
A press release issued by Marcus Brewster Publicity today didn’t give much more away either. It said:
“PLAYBOY South Africa editor Peter Piegl has resigned. [Like we didn’t know that already.]
“Piegl, who will preside over the production of the July issue of the magazine before relinquishing his post, is to be replaced in the interim by Charl du Plessis, a veteran senior editor and media owner, who will take the helm in the new post of acting editor-in-chief.
“Peter has played a pivotal role in bringing the South African edition to fruition, and his resignation is a sad moment for us. We wish him good fortune in his future endeavours,” says Johann Botha, managing director of PLAYBOY South Africa.
“Nevertheless, we must keep moving forward, and we are heartened that Charl du Plessis has agreed to act as editor-in-chief. He is a highly experienced magazine journalist, and we are confident that PLAYBOY South Africa will continue to be in steady editorial hands.”
And that was that. @Piegl’s Twitter bio reads: “Editor of PLAYBOY South Africa. I’m a devout Harley-Davidson fan (and owner), proudly tattooed Hungarian/South African with a penchant for recalcitrance.”
Could it be that recalcitrance then? Publishers are notoriously unamused by such characteristics!
