Hefner's 80th birthday party will continue

LOS ANGELES, April 10 (UPI) -- Playboy's Hugh Hefner, who celebrated his 80th birthday with about 1,000 revelers in Los Angeles, announced Monday he's taking his party on the road.

Hefner capped a full weekend of birthday festivities with a massive bash at the Playboy Mansion Sunday night -- then announced plans for a two-week swing through London, Cannes, Paris, Barcelona, Munich, Rome and Venice next month.

"This is the most rewarding time of my life," Hefner said in a news release. "With Playboy's global popularity, it seems only fitting to bring the celebration to Europe."

Hefner will be flanked throughout Europe by his girlfriends Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson, who are featured on the E! Entertainment cable network's "The Girls Next Door." Footage shot during the European trip will crop up in the second season of the reality show.

Hefner started his Playboy empire in 1953 in Chicago.