Take 5: Hoppin' down the Bunny tales

One of the more interesting fall series announced last month is NBC's

"Playboy Club." The early-1960s drama stars Eddie Cibrian ("Third Watch") as a Chicago high roller with shady connections who does business at the titular establishment. Hugh Hefner and his empire have previously figured in several other TV projects, such as these five:

Playboy's Penthouse (1959-60) -- Syndicated show set at a Chicago-based "hip" party at which Hef mingled with such guests as Lenny Bruce, Tony Bennett and Sammy Davis Jr.

Playboy After Dark (1969-70) -- Syndicated show set at an L.A.-based "hip" party at which Hef mingled with The Grateful Dead, Joe Cocker, Sammy Davis Jr. and others.

Death of a Centerfold: The Dorothy Stratten Story (1980) -- Jamie Lee Curtis starred in this TV movie about a murdered Playboy playmate. (The same story was told in the 1983's big-screen "Star 80" with Mariel Hemingway as Stratten.)

A Bunny's Tale (1985) -- TV movie based on a 1960s magazine article by Gloria Steinem (before she became famous as a feminist writer and spokeswoman) in which she went undercover as a Playboy Club bunny. Kirstie Alley played Steinem.

The Girls Next Door (2005-) -- E! reality series focusing on the lives of the young women who live with Hef at the Playboy Mansion.