Petersen is a veteran of forty years at Playboy magazine. Hired to be the Playboy Advisor in 1973, for two decades he answered “All reasonable questions—from fashion, food and drink, stereo, sports cars to dating dilemmas, taste and etiquette.” He was, according to USA Today, “the number One source of sex advice in America.” That was his day job. An award-winning freelancer, he has written about adventure travel, motorcycling, windsurfing, kayaking, and skiing (he co-authored Playboy’s Guide to Ultimate Skiing).