Brace Yourselves: Playboy to Release 3D Centerfold

'What would people most like to see in 3-D?' asked Playboy founder Hugh Hefner. 'Probably a naked lady.'

Mr. Hefner makes no secret of hoping to capitalize on the popularity of 3-D movies such as Avatar and How to Train Your Dragon - even though he admitted he does not quite get the fuss.

'I'm not a huge enthusiast of 3-D,' he said. 'I leave real life to go to the movies and 2-D is fine with me.'

Playboy has been pushing the envelope lately in a desperate attempt to grab headlines and recoup sales.

Just a few months ago, the magazine put Marge Simpson - the blue-haired animated cartoon mother - on its cover and in a two-page centrefold.

'In today's print environment you have to create newsstand events,' said the editorial director of the Chicago-based magazine, Jimmy Jellinek.

'Marge Simpson was one of those.'

Playboy certainly must do something to get more people, especially younger people, to buy a magazine that has seen circulation plummet from 3.5million in 2006 to 1.5million today.

Mr. Jellinek said he hopes the issue featuring centrefold Hope Dworaczyk in 3-D also reminds people that for all the infatuation with the Internet, there is nothing quite like having a magazine in your hands.

'People want things that last and have meaning,' he said.

'This particular picture is one example of how books and magazines are different (than computer images),' Mr. Hefner added.

'You can hold it in your hands, save them, and as Dad used to, put them under the mattress.'