It's pay to play in Hefner's fantasy digs.

HUGH Hefner didn't show up and there were only a handful of bunnies in attendance. But Jim Freedman didn't care--he was celebrating his investment firm's 20th anniversary on the grounds of the Playboy Mansion.

Upwards of 350 employees and guests of Los Angeles-based Barrington Associates--mostly male--received tours of the estate and its skinny-dipping "grotto" as well as an elegant dinner served under white tents with chandeliers.

Price tag? Upwards of $150,000, not including the $40,000 that Barrington was asked to donate to a favorite charity approved by Hefner--in this case, UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.

"Most companies would have their party at a hotel or a run-of-the-mill venue and we wanted to do something that was a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said Freedman. "People are still calling us talking about it."

It seems that reports of Playboy's lost cachet are premature--at least when it comes to staging business and philanthropic events at the Holmby Hills estate. In fact, it continues to be one of the most sought-after venues on the local charity and corporate circuit, generating several million dollars in revenue each year for parent company Playboy Enterprises Inc. of Chicago.

As many as 80 events are held on the 5.5-acre grounds in Holmby Hills, where more than a few centerfolds have been photographed.

Far from the fantasy image projected by Playboy, guests describe events at the Tudor-style mansion on Chafing Cross Road as relatively low-key--much akin to the finer hotels in Los Angeles.

"It certainly is not the kinky madhouse that you see in the videos," said Joel Freedman (no relation to Jim), director of corporate finance at turnaround firm Kibel Green Inc., who attended the Barrington party in September. "The tours were fascinating because the home is very much ingrained in the 1970s."

There are, of course, scattered grumbles from those who view the setting as, well, inappropriate. Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., was taken to task for planning a fund-raising bash at the mansion during the 2000 Democratic National Convention, an event that eventually was cancelled.

And before picking up the phone, be advised: booking the mansion isn't easy--and it certainly isn't cheap.

Playboy charges $250 to $300 per person for an event--higher than the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills, where rates range from $150 to $220 per person. Playmates are extra--between $375 and $425 for the half-day rate (a photo booth can be arranged where guests pose with the Playboy bunnies).

Guests are routinely given tours of the estate, which includes a game house, aviary, tennis courts and zoo with 100 species of birds and two species of monkeys. Playboy recommends hiring from eight to 10 models for an event, as well a crew of 100 that includes the in-house chef, bartenders, cooks, butlers and maintenance workers.

A garden brunch for the Wildlife Waystation last month featured a buffet of grilled marinated sirloin of beef, artichoke and oven-roasted tomato frittata, herb-brushed shrimp and bay scallop brochette, and celery root and haricots verte salad.

"Anyone that comes through the Playboy mansion should leave feeling they've had an experience worthy of being at the Playboy mansion," said Playboy Enterprises spokesman Bill Farley.

Guests for the Barrington Associates party had to park at UCLA and get on a shuttle bus, 40 at time, for a short trek to the mansion. Guests flocked to an open bar--stocked with cigars bearing a wrapper with the Barrington logo--near the back entrance to the grounds. As with all events at the property, guests weren't allowed inside the mansion itself.

Many companies that have held events at the estate this year have some connection to Playboy, either through advertising, such as Dewar's, a unit of Baeardi Ltd., or licensing, such as Bally Gaming Systems, which licenses Playboy slot machines.

Those businesses get special treatment, such as not having to make a charitable contribution.

But companies with no connections are asked to make a donation, which has to be approved by Hefner himself. Donations made to charities, plus ancillary charges, can bring the total cost to upwards of $200,000.

The Henry Mancini Institute, based in Los Angeles, typically raises $130,000 a year by selling tickets for $500 each to its garden musical, held every August, in which a 77-piece orchestra plays for a crowd of 400.

Hefner, a supporter of jazz, typically has his own table at the event, one of the few he attends.

"They're really competitive with other organizations doing events," said Kelly Connaughton Chiappetta, executive director of the Henry Mancini Institute, which has sponsored the charity fund-raiser at the mansion for the past 20 years. "It's a business and they run a really tight ship."

Other charities and companies that have held events this year at the mansion include Cedars-Sinai Hospital, ESPN, Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation, Spike TV Network and the UCLA Cancer Foundation.

Playboy, which celebrates its 50th anniversary next month, owns the mansion and leased it back to Hefner for $1.1 million per year, according to a proxy filing in April with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

While homes in the neighborhood sell for millions, the mansion was listed as having a net book value of just $1.9 million last year with operating expenses of $3.6 million, net of rent received from Hefner.

"It really isn't a profit center," said Farley. "One of the biggest reasons we have it is for the image. It gives us a good image as people who want to give something back to the community, since we have a facility that is very desirable."

Don't tell that to the neighbors, who long have complained about putting up with excessive noise and clogged streets on Mapleton Drive, a tiny street leading up to the property.

Sandy Brown, president of the Holmby-Westwood Property Owners Association, maintains that it is illegal for a resident to conduct business from their home on the scale of the Playboy mansion.

When residents filed complaints with the Los Angeles City Council in 2001, city officials inspected the building and found no evidence of a business. "It's not really a residence, it goes far beyond that. It's a party rental hall," Brown said.