Inside the Secret Sisterhood of Women Who Worked at Playboy

I was recently interviewed by Elle magazine about my time working for Playboy magazine. The article is HERE

Patrick Stewart in Macbeth

Blood-soaked drama, abusive power, abominable brutality--terms synonymous with Shakespeare's Macbeth. Rupert Goold's dark production, which debuted in New York on February 12th at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Harvey Theater, comprises all of these frightening elements with a modernized interpretation that is positively chilling. Coming off of a wildly successful run in Britain, all shows for the five week American debut sold out within a week of going on sale, and Patrick Stewart's celebrated return to his Shakespearian roots in the title role undoubtedly has lured audiences in.

In a press conference held earlier this month, Stewart waxed passionately about the role. It was at the very young age of fourteen (!) when he first memorized Macbeth's lengthy speeches and colorful soliloquies, and relearning them at his current age of 67 was a pleasure for him. He read everything he could about Joseph Stalin, since Goold's production has a distinct Soviet-era feel and style. When questioned about his age as it relates to Macbeth, Stewart thought it created a fantastic dynamic: As an older man with a much younger and beautiful wife in Lady Macbeth, it provides the character with more inspiration to commit his heinous deeds, as if to say, "It ain't enough.I want everything."

Playing Lady Macbeth is Kate Fleetwood, the stunning British actress and wife of director Goold. Stewart jokingly claimed that her role should have come with a warning label because of all the "manhandling" his character does. Fleetwood did not study Stalin to prepare, but paid close attention to the sexual mannerisms of Nigella Lawson, Britain's sexpot TV star, chef and author. She also read "Women Who Kill" and confessed to being perversely fascinated by people with a similar history to Macbeth. Fleetwood and Stewart share a wonderful chemistry with each other that carries the audience throughout the epic, three-hour production.
               
What about those few over-zealous Star Trek fans showing up in full costume to view Stewart's stage performances? When asked about the phenomenon of his celebrity, Stewart takes great pride when he sees television fans convert to classical live theater. Although he wishes they'd leave the uniforms at home, he does feel single-handedly responsible for creating new audience members for his stage productions and derives great satisfaction from that.

Patrick did an interview with Playboy in 1992 where he spoke about his experience working on Star Trek and his most coveted Shakespearian role that we have yet to see him play: Hamlet.

For Those About to Rock, She Will Dress You

I recently interviewed New York City designer Alison Roberto about her new rock and metal inspired clothing line Metal Couture after her photographer took some shots of me wearing different pieces (photos above).

Alison works in the music industry designing graphics for projects ranging from large-scale award shows to CD covers and websites, so her aesthetic for blending art, fashion and music comes quite naturally. Alison told me about her edgy new clothing line as well as the surprising pastime of Tommy Lee and why the skull is such a popular symbol in fashion.

PLAYBOY: What’s it like working with high-profile musicians?

ALISON: Working in the music industry really is a lot of fun and I get to spend extended periods of time with the gods of the metal world. I’ve had Spinal Tap moments with Testament, shared veggie tacos with Lamb of God, been treated to beers by Zakk Wylde and hung out in a boxing ring with Phil Anselmo.

Recently I saw Anne Lindfjeld, the gorgeous host of Headbangers Ball Denmark, who was in New York doing an interview with tattoo artist Paul Booth. She wore one of our shirts during the interview, which blended nicely with the macabre surroundings of Paul’s midtown studio. (Ed. note: You can see more of Anne on the Grapevine pages in the November 2008 issue).

PLAYBOY: A few of your designs depict golf imagery. What’s the connection with rock n’ roll and golf?

ALISON: Hell if I know! The only thing that I like about golf is driving the little cart around. My fiancé, Mike, is really the one who inspired the brand. He’s the voice of Headbangers Ball and the lead singer of The Burn & Cry, and he absolutely loves golf. After he played a round with Chuck Billy, the singer of Testament, I realized how many rockers are into golf: Tommy Lee, Alice Cooper, Vinnie Paul and Aaron Lewis of Staind, just to name a few. Alice has said that golf saved his life. It helped him stop drinking and gave him a new focus. After being dragged through countless golf outlets I found the true offender not to be the sport itself, but the fashion sense. I thought with this new audience of younger people and rockers that the sport is attracting, they really need a clothing line all their own.

PLAYBOY: What does the skull symbolize to you and why do you think the image has become so closely associated with rock n’ roll?

ALISON: The skull is a global icon for rebellion. It’s seems only natural for rock n’ roll to embody such a powerful symbol. Historically the skull has been associated with everything from secret societies and toxic substances to black-flagged pirate ships. In some cultures skulls were used in various ceremonies and mythical rituals in order to commune with the dead. It’s been thought to represent wisdom and guidance and also as a symbol for death. Skulls have often been used as ornaments or weapons to terrorize enemies. But the skull has definitely grown beyond its ancient significance and rock n’ roll has helped turn it into a fashion icon. Covered in jewels, silhouetted in leather, cast in metal, silkscreened on clothes or embroidered on a diaper bag, it’s this union of opposites that allows Metal Couture to straddle the line between sophistication and debauchery.

PLAYBOY: The color palette of your line is refreshingly light. Are you trying to encourage rockers to put away their dark clothing?

ALISON: No, not at all. I still rock all black on most days myself! I just think there’s a new breed of fashionably conscious metalheads out there who are entirely underserved. Over ten years ago when girlie tees were hard to come by, we had to buy men’s band tees and custom cut them to fit our bodies. It forced me to be creative while remaining sexy! My mission became finding and creating the best fashion forward materials and graphics without ditching our classic rock & metal staple icons. I think we should have choices that not only have amazing graphics, patterns & bodies, but colors as well. Not everything has to be dark & heavy all of the time. My hope with this line is to be able to mix it in with your regular everyday wardrobe. Guys can rock an acid washed tee underneath a blazer for work, and girls can compliment our poofy sleeved “skulls n’ razor blades” top with a high-waisted skirt.

PLAYBOY: Who are/were some of the best-dressed musicians?

ALISON: Rock has had a few dark periods–the 80’s pop metal era was not a shining moment for fashion–but I think we’ve managed to scrape out a few decent dressers; Keith Richards, David Bowie, Queen, Gwen Stefani, Debbie Harry, Marilyn Manson, Jim Morrison….and let’s not forget, Elvis. I love style that defies expectations.

PLAYBOY: What’s the strangest custom order you’ve ever done for someone?

ALISON: We haven’t had too many strange requests, but we certainly welcome them. Making custom golf polos for Chuck Billy was probably the coolest. We’ll be adding accessories in the spring. We get so many requests for the black tutu skirt and bracelets pictured on our models, so we’ve decided to expand into accessories as well as apparel.

I’m also happy to announce that on March 5th, 2009 Metal Couture will have its first runway show and launch party at Fontana’s in New York City. We’ll have models from Suicide Girls and Playboy and there may even be a few metal celebrity appearances (wink, wink). The event will be co-hosted by José Mangin, host of Sirius Satellite Radio’s Liquid Metal, and Allison Hagendorf, host of Playboy’s Rock the Rabbit and Miss Playboy Mobile. Limited tickets will be made available to the public, so keep checking our website for details!

Photos by Justin Borucki.

Meeting Erica Jong

Eariler this month, author Erica Jong was in New York City to read from her new book of poems "Love Comes First" at my favorite independent bookstore, McNally Jackson Books. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to spend time with and speak one on one with this talented author.

I read Erica's first novel "Fear of Flying" published in 1973 two years ago. It was certainly interesting to read her unabashed thoughts and insights about sex from a young woman's point of view living in NYC in the 70s and how this influenced many women to act on their desires. (One might argue that Erica was the first to break down the barriers that helped "Sex and the City" become so popular). Her words continue to influence people to this day as evidenced by a girl at the book signing who was almost in tears when she spoke to Erica about how much it meant for her to identify with the unfulfilled character in Erica's book who was in an unhappy marriage.

I asked her the following question: "How do you think feminism has affected relationships between men and women in the 21st century? Some say it has had a negative effect with men citing confusion at how they should act in relationships and chivalry seems to have gone out the window." She responded by saying that women should never stop fighting for rights and that many women are still taken advantage of and mistreated because of their gender. Women's voices should always be heard.

In her new book of poems, Erica is clearly comfortable with herself and focuses not on sex, but on the simple pleasures of life.

Just When I Thought...

...All the low-key, classy, stylized bars were a thing of the past in New York City, I discovered The Bourgeois Pig this past Sunday. The Victorian/Gothic decor is beautiful and creates the perfect atmosphere for escaping the banal-looking, cookie-cutter places that seem to be taking over Manhattan. You'll feel right at home wearing your finest threads, and after a few sips of special drinks like "Wolf's Breath" you might feel transported back to the time when one might have spotted Poe or Wilde brooding in the background writing their next masterpiece with a glass of absinthe at their side. 

My other favorite bar Death and Company is located on one block away on E 6th St.

Books!

My career with Playboy has involved not only working for the magazine and website, but also on some really great books. I made this cover collage of all the books I've helped produce, so if you are a fan of cartoon art, check out these wonderful titles: 

Playboy's Little Annie Fanny by the extraordinary artists Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder. All of the multi-panel stories ever published in the magazine from 1962-1988 appear in these two volumes. One of my favorite fantasy artists Frank Frazetta, whose pivotal and influential work has inspired the look and feel of many sci-fi and fantasy movies, was friends with the now deceased artists and his work was parodied in a classic story from 1985.

Playboy: 50 Years The Cartoons. This is a collection of Hugh Hefner's favorite cartoons from 1953-2003. The cartoons are Hef's second favorite part of the magazine. No need to say what the first is.

Playboy's Eldon Dedini. A beautiful hardcover collection of Eldon's best cartoons that appeared in Playboy magazine from the past six decades. Eldon was a wonderful watercolor artist from Monterey, California. This was a very emotional book to work on; the artist was ill during the production stages but worked diligently on the project. When his work was finished and he knew the material was being shipped to printer, he passed away shortly after. 

Author Bruce Jay Friedman's musings were illustrated by the French artist Andre Barbe in Sexual Pensees. Bruce is perhaps most well-known for being one of the writers of the movie Splash.

Gahan Wilson: The Complete Playboy Collection. If you are a fan of Charles Addams' cartoons (which inspired The Addams Family show and movies), you will love the macabre art of Gahan Wilson. He's one of my favorite cartoon artists and I've written about him and his work many times. His environmental and political cartoons from the 70s are just as poignant and relevant today. This deluxe collection comprises every single cartoon ever published of Gahan's in the magazine! It will be released at the end of 2009.

Sweet Emotions

Each holiday season for the past decade the musical juggernaut known as The Trans Siberian Orchestra has performed their orchestral heavy holiday rock music to audiences around the country. This past weekend the group made stops at New York's Nassau Coliseum and New Jersey's Izod Arena (formerly known as The Meadowlands and now affectionately called "The Metal Lands") where they played three sold-out shows. Historically, guest musicians have made surprise appearances at these particular arenas, which have included Joan Jett, Jon Anderson (Yes) and Roger Daltrey (The Who), and this weekend was no exception when the legendary Steven Tyler of Aerosmith took the stage to close out all three shows. It was a perfect holiday treat to hear the classic songs "Dream On" and "Sweet Emotion" to end the three hour, over-the-top spectacle from this entertaining group of musicians.

I was sitting in the 6th row and ran up when Steven Tyler came out and was able to take these really close shots.

This entry made playboy.com's homepage the day it was posted (click to enlarge):

It’s Halloween and appropriately enough, I just finished watching It was a Dark and Silly Night, a new animated short by bestselling author Neil Gaiman and Playboy cartoonist Gahan Wilson. The film had its world premiere at the Hamptons International Film Festival earlier this month and is the latest project from director Steven-Charles Jaffe , best known for his work on the blockbusters Ghost and Star Trek VI. Jaffe also produced the extraordinary documentary about Gahan last year.

The movie is based on the adorable strip that appeared in Art Spiegelman and Françoise Mouly’s compilation Big Fat Little Lit and follows a group of children who end up throwing one hell of a party at their local graveyard after befriending the resident ghouls.

Steven tells us a little more about the film:

I've always loved Neil's writing, Anansi Boys, American Gods, and of course The Sandman: Book of Dreams. When I flew to a mysterious castle in the mid-northwest to meet and interview Neil for the documentary, Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird, I brought up It Was a Dark and Silly Night, asking how the collaboration between he and Gahan came about. Neil wrote it specifically for Gahan, saying, "It's full-on Gahan Wilson, but for five year olds!" I then received everyone’s permission to animate it. There's a great animation house in New Zealand that I worked with called Flux Animation (they did the Polar bear and the frog animation for Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth) and they did a wonderful job.

My favorite aspect of the film is the scene in the graveyard when the corpses come to life and party with the kids. Working in animation really pushes your imagination, as you are creating from scratch, and every frame has to be carefully thought out, or it gets costly (painfully so), but it's so satisfying when the characters come to life.

I’m hoping to include it as a special DVD extra on Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird, so both films will be available to everyone soon!  

I'd like to be skulking around a graveyard with Gahan for Halloween tonight, but instead I’m off to work on my next film: A thriller set in San Francisco, called I’ll See You Again.

Hauntingly Hysterical

"You can be a king or a street sweeper, but everyone dances with the Grim Reaper."

Those were the final words spoken by convicted murderer Robert Alton Harris the day he was executed in California's gas chamber more than 15 years ago. Death by Laughter, the latest book by cartoonist Harry Bliss, captures that sentiment with more than 100 of his best and most irreverent single-panel cartoons collected from his daily strip "Bliss."

You'll undoubtedly find yourself identifying with many of the other disturbing problems that Harry parodies in this hilarious little gem: Infidelity, pollution, breaking-up, therapist visits and computer breakdowns are all turned upside-down and inside-out exposing truths no one wants to talk about. 

Harry emailed us from his home in Vermont in response to a few questions we had for him, including how he got to know actor Christopher Guest, who wrote the introduction to Death by Laughter, and his favorite cartoon that he's drawn for Playboy to date.

PLAYBOY: Not only did Christopher Guest write the introduction to Death by Laughter, he owns some of your original artwork. What was your first encounter like with him?

BLISS: It was great meeting Chris and his wife, Jamie Lee Curtis -- two wonderful people; smart, funny, and very, very kind. My girlfriend and I met them for lunch in LA and we talked about all sorts of topics: cartoons, films, yoga, kids, and hybrid cars! Jamie has bought Chris a few of my cartoons and Chris and I have traded cartoons (he draws too).

PLAYBOY: Is there a different artistic process involved when you create illustrations for the various mediums (books, magazines, websites) your work appears?

BLISS: These days, all I seem to be doing is black and white cartoons, like the cartoons in syndication, on my Web site and in The New Yorker, so the process is the same. My work for kid's books is always in color and each book takes six to ten months, whereas I kick out the single-panel cartoons daily. With books, I'm the artist illustrating an author's words, so I guess there's a certain limitation in that, but it's a limitation I'm quite comfortable with, in fact, and I've grown to enjoy the collaboration. As far as the panels go, I generally begin by drawing a scene, say, a couple in bed talking, and once the drawing is finished I begin to imagine a narrative or back story for the people in the drawing -- what are they all about? Imagining the characters' motivations will often inspire a caption. Working this way, I feel, injects a certain sense of humanity in the work, and this is an important aspect I try to achieve in the panels. And sometimes the panels are immature, like me, and that's okay too.

PLAYBOY: Many of the dogs in your cartoons are personified exhibiting just as much angst and strife as the humans in your cartoons. Do you own a dog?

BLISS: I do have a dog. Well, it's my girlfriend's puppy, named Penny, and she's a terrific animal. I have a deep affection for animals and anthropomorphizing them is my way of bringing empathy to their existence.

PLAYBOY: In 2000 you illustrated the cover of the book Madam President in which the authors predicted there would be a female president of the United States within the next decade. When Hillary almost won the democratic nomination this year, you must have felt that your illustration was prophetic. What did you think eight years ago when you drew it?

BLISS: I've always felt that a woman could be president -- even when I'd done that book jacket. Other countries have elected women as leaders, so it has always seemed odd that the United States might be wary of this prospect. I suppose that being a cartoonist and a solipsist I kind of live in a bit of a bubble in that I tend to reject racism and sexism. I know they exist, but I just can't get my mind to admit it. Hillary would have made a great leader. Sarah Palin is another story. I respect her accomplishments, but she's not ready to be president, and McCain really underestimated women in this country by thinking Palin could ease their Hillary pain.

PLAYBOY: Nearly 30 cartoons of yours have appeared in the pages of Playboy in the last decade. Do you have a favorite?

BLISS:My favorite Playboy cartoon is Dude Descending a Staircase, No. 1, which is a spin on Marcel Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase. It's not a typical Playboy cartoon and I give Hef a lot of credit in giving me the OK for that one. Duchamp has always been one of my artistic heroes, even as a kid, so that cartoon stands out. It was difficult to do and when I do speaking gigs and that image shows up, it always gets a big laugh, which makes me happy. Penny is biting my toes, so I have to go now.

Molly's Box

Molly Crabapple ’s been very busy hosting Dr. Sketchy drawing sessions in her hometown of Brooklyn and abroad, but last week she unveiled her latest project - an impressive body of work inspired by Manhattan’s vaudevillian hotspot, The Box. 

Six illustrations (one of them pictured here) are on display as part of an all-female exhibition called 5 Identities 5 Destinations at Ad Hoc Art in Brooklyn, NY. Molly’s pieces take up the entire back wall and as you walk towards them, it seems as if the characters will jump off of the canvas and into the room. With the variegated costumes of the dancers and the lively kinetic energy of her line, she seems to have captured the essence of what’s made The Box such an alluring party-spot.   

We should know. Playboy partied at The Box with Duran Duran in November to celebrate their new album, and for the December 2007 issue, legendary photographer Harry Benson photographed some of The Box’s entertainers with models for a fashion spread.

It was particularly interesting to see Molly’s interpretation of a club that’s become a notorious hangout for celebrities looking to ogle scantily-clad dancers, cross-dressing midgets, fire-breathers, and contortionists. 

Molly’s illustrations will be on display at Ad Hoc Art until August 24, 2008.

Pinups and Tattoos

Tattoo artist Samuel Perez, who works out of Alley Kat Tattoo in New York City, recently inked Olivia De Berardinis’ illustration of Kendra from the September 2006 issue on a client’s leg and sent over a photo. It came just as an article about Olivia was published in the Los Angeles Times. Olivia discusses how she drew inspiration from Playboy as a young girl, and the work she does for the magazine today.

Cartoonist Edmond Kiraz recently unveiled a show of his original art, including eleven of his Playboy cartoons, at the prestigious Musée Carnavalet in Paris. 

Visitors to the exhibition are greeted with an enlarged copy of the words I wrote for the exhibition catalogue:
 
It was in 1970 when Kiraz’s first cartoon appeared in Playboy magazine, and since then his artwork has become a recognizable constant amongst its pages for good reason. His doe-eyed, lithe, lingerie-clad females painted in opulent settings add sophisticated sensibility with a Parisian flair. Highly adept at portraying eroticism with indifference, his mademoiselles are completely distinct. His roster of male characters include randy psychiatrists, piano teachers, cuckolds, boyfriends, libidinous executives, sassy swingers and historical figures, especially one Toulouse-Lautrec who has made numerous appearances in Kiraz’s cartoons. His unique style and timeless sense of humor have entertained Playboy’s readers for the past 37 years and continue to enhance the magazine to this day.

Born in Egypt, Kiraz has lived in Paris for most of his life. Along with Playboy, his work can be seen in numerous French magazines, and he’s published fourteen collections of his work. He is the archetype of the sophisticated Frenchman: a gourmet diner, bon vivant and raconteur. He travels a great deal and luckily for us, loves drawing beautiful women.

The exhibit runs until September 21, 2008.

Why We Love Duff's

Nestled a block from the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn is the infamous Duff’s bar. With cheap drinks, beautiful bartenders (that’s Tracy pictured here), a jukebox filled with heavy metal and hard rock classics and benches plastered with Playboy centerfolds, need we say more?

Playboy Store London, Cheers!

During my recent trip to London, I visited Playboy's largest retail store in the world, located in the shopping mecca on Oxford Street.
 
Open since September, this is the newest of all eight retail stores (the others are located in Las Vegas, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, and Auckland) and features 4,000 square feet and three levels of pure Playboy-product bliss, including rabbit ear-shaped hangers for the clothing and lingerie. 

With camcorder in hand, I sashayed all over the store and up and down the 39-step spiraling staircase with Natalie, who gave me a grand tour. Click here to watch the video I shot to meet her and see this impressive retail outlet.

This story was highlighted on playboy.com's homepage. Click to enlarge image:

Heavy Metal Readers

My recent trip to London involved attending the Metal Hammer Awards where the band Testament won a Golden God award for best album. 

The band relaxed post-show with some of their favorite reading material.

From the Musicians' POV

There have been a lot of films dealing with the political and military aspects of the war in Iraq, but a new documentary focuses on the civilians. Heavy Metal in Baghdad goes into the heart of Baghdad and into the lives of five young Iraqi musicians struggling to survive and create music. It’s a poignant and powerful political story that just happens to involve heavy metal.

The film has received a lot of positive attention, but it was an essay written about the movie by American guitarist Alex Skolnick of the heavy metal band Testament that seemed to capture the essence of the film with an acuity only another musician could offer. After the premiere on Friday, I spoke to Alex, and he was happy to contribute his essay to Playboy’s blog, which is excerpted here:

HMIB puts a very human face on the misunderstood, overlooked population of Iraqi civilians, via this group of dedicated musicians. Right away I feel I know these guys. They're just like any other cool metal guys from other countries. They speak pretty good, if broken, English (much of it learned from metal lyrics), they use the 'f' word a lot and they wear black clad t-shirts with logo's of their favorite bands. These are guys with whom you can share a beer and listen to a Slayer CD, fist in the air. They have a great sense of humor (despite all they're going through) and love metal. They want the same things most of us want, to be able to pursue our dreams and have a good time doing it. But for them, like anyone else in Iraq, it's not so easy. 

Any thoughts I've ever had about my own 'struggles' being a musician were quickly put to shame when I saw this film. Sure, I've dealt with my share of cancelled flights, lost luggage and equipment failure. But bombings, curfews, sniper fire, and having your country under siege 24 hours a day while on the brink of civil war? For the guys in Acrassicauda (which translates from Latin to “Black Scorpion”),  this is a daily reality in Iraq, where putting on one concert in Iraq is more challenging than booking an entire tour in the US. There is a litany of questioning, searches and inspections. Electricity is fleeting and there is an early evening curfew. As a result, gigs are extremely rare, and that's just in the beginning when we first get to know the band. Things only get worse from there.

While most musicians have been victims of equipment theft at one time or another, these guys have to watch their entire rehearsal spot destroyed by a bomb, with all their equipment inside. When the filmmakers attempt to donate instruments, CD's and other items to the guys, there is a wall of US bureaucracy that prevents the items from reaching the band. The band, meanwhile are unable to travel to Europe or the US because of their Iraqi passports.

These situations escalate and illustrate some of the many ironies presented in the film, one of the biggest being that the metal fans and musicians of Iraq have been suppressed by the very forces which should be embracing them the most. Whether US politicians (especially conservative Republicans) want to admit it or not, there is something very pro-Democracy and pro-American about metal. When we see these Iraqi guys with their Metallica and Megadeth T-shirts and CD's, they are proudly displaying products which are reflective of our capitalist systems. They're not ashamed of that and show no ill will toward the US. In other words metal is achieving what our foreign policy is not.

Heavy Metal in Baghdad premiered in New York City and Los Angeles on May 23rd and will be available on DVD June 10th. Testament’s new album, Formation of Damnation, was released in the US on April 29th. They were also recently the featured artist of the week on MTV.

This story was featured on playboy.com's homepage. Click to enlarge image:

The Pin-Up Poet at Comic Con 2008

We were introduced to Andrea Grant at last year’s Comic Con and this year we met up with the Canadian beauty again to find out about her two new projects: The third installment of her comic book series MINX and her new book titled THE PIN-UP POET. 

Standing over six feet tall, Andrea is a prolific artist and model who is devoted to expressing herself through many different mediums. Much of what she creates reflects her views about the stereotypes and traditional roles of women in society. She says of her work, "People want to play it safe. I don’t want to create safe work. I want it to be provocative, to smash all the ridiculous ideas to pieces. Boring ideals no longer serve us culturally.”
 
Andrea’s poems in The Pin-Up Poet haunt, inspire and provoke. Each poem is accompanied by a photograph of Andrea shot by various photographers, including Viva Van Story and Chas Ray Krider.

Oooh, La, la...

Burlesque star Dita Von Teese, recently announced that she'll be performing as a special guest for a limited engagement in February 2009 at the world famous Crazy Horse cabaret in Paris, France. She'll be debuting three new acts, including one where a few of the cabaret's beautiful, classically-trained dancers will join her on stage. 

Playboy has had a long love affair with the legendary Crazy Horse, which has been a Parisian hotspot since 1951. Photos of their stunning dancers first appeared in 1978 for that year's April issue and in 2008 the sister troupe in Las Vegas was photographed at the MGM Grand for the June issue.

It's very rare for the public to be able to see Dita's shows since she became the darling of the fashion world and performs mostly at exclusive invite-only events, but if you can't make it to Paris for her two-week stint, there's always YouTube.

*I've visited both Crazy Horse cabarets in Paris and Las Vegas and I think it's the most classy, artistic, live erotic show in production.

Yee-Ha!

This is the final week to see the exhibit Sole Desire: the Shoes of Christian Louboutin at The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Famous for those red-hot soles, Louboutin’s shoes are a favorite accessory of many celebrities, including Playboy's December 2002 covergirl, Dita Von Teese.

Her crystal-studded “Lipteese” cowgirl boots, which Louboutin designed especially for her MAC Viva Glam burlesque show, are one of the highlights of the exhibit. If you can’t make it to see them in person, check out this video where you can catch a glimpse of the boots and watch Dita skillfully ride a giant lipstick.

On the Isle of Devils

Gahan Wilson's band of ghouls, monsters and ghosts must have felt right at home this past weekend in Bermuda when the documentary about the cartoonist and longtime Playboy contributor was screened there. Hollywood director, producer and cinematographer, Steven-Charles Jaffe, whose roster of film credits includes Ghost, Star Trek VI and Strange Days, sent us this report from the island: 

Hamilton, Bermuda, April 5, 2008
My film, Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird, was invited to be shown in the documentary competition at the eleventh annual Bermuda International Film Festival by Deputy Director Duncan Hall. When I began making the film I knew I would have to please Gahan's fans (including myself), but I also had a responsibility to seduce a new generation of cartoon and comic book fans by introducing Gahan's work in a medium they were not originally designed for - cinema. The screenings in Bermuda were attended by a majority of Gahan Wilson "virgins," and as much as I enjoy the response from his die-hard fans, it's becoming more gratifying to hear the enthusiastic responses people who have never seen his work. These Wilson virgins approach me after the screenings, asking where they can find his cartoons, and tell me how eager they are to see more of them. After demonstrating his genius for more than fifty years in Playboy, last night Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird received a SPECIAL JURY AWARD. For a filmmaker, this makes the journey all the more gratifying. To be continued....

(Pictured: Producer/Director Steven-Charles Jaffe with former Bermuda resident and author, Mark Twain, as they share a Gahan Wilson moment.)