A COnversation with Dita VOn Teese

Photo by Ali MAHDAVI and Suzanne von Aichinger

Dear Shaded Viewers,

I met Dita Von Teese when I asked her to be in a film that I am making on Mr. Pearl. Dita is the muse of Mr. Pearl.

When I think about Dita's amazing act for Cointreau, I keep remembering that scene in Francis Ford Coppola's 1982 film One From the Heart with Nastassja Kinski in the champagne glass. You most likely know that Dita is the Ambassador for Cointreau. The other day I contacted Dita for a piece that I am writing about her for the next issue of ZOO. I enjoyed everything Dita had to say so I asked her how she would feel if I shared her thoughts with you. She said fine so here we are.

Burlesque and the Art of the Teese/ Fetish and the Art of the Teese, Harper Collins

DP: Can you tell me a bit about the advice that you offer in your book, "Burlesque and The Art of the Teese", great title, by the way.
DVT: Well, I wrote it at a moment when burlesque was really hitting the mainstream, and I was going a little crazy with the way burlesque was being misrepresented by commercialized burlesque... I was upset about things that were being said about it, that it was being made to be something of a fashion style, or about cute girls wearing fishnets and dancing around singing "Big Spender", and so one of my goals was to set the record straight and get the history of burlesque- the fact that it was about striptease, not just retro dancing- I wanted to make sure it's racy past wasn't forgotten. I felt like some of the media wasn't being fair to stars of the past that DID strip, like Gypsy Rose Lee, and Lili St Cyr. , so with my book I wanted to explain it's true history, and how I became so obsessed with this, and how it made me feel to transform myself into a glamorous performer when I felt very ordinary. It seems like a common thread with burlesque, historically, it was the stars that maybe weren't the most beautiful, the most talented, that became huge stars in burlesque...most of the pretty girls wanted to go to Hollywood and be actresses. And so, like Gypsy, I felt like I could build a name for myself this way, even if it wasn't 100% acceptable.... and while being my own producer, director... this process of creating a head to toe image, a show, and a business. And for Gypsy, she managed to be a star stripper who emerged from burlesque and made movies, wrote books, had a talk show. So when I think of her career, it always gave me hope that it was possible to take the less-traveled road, to try to be acknowledged for something that some people find offensive! And overall, I really wanted to get the message out to other people that you can make your own glamour, and that there is an alternative to natural, bikini babe beauty.... I never felt like I could fit into that, and I know that I have lots of female fans that feel the same way, so I'm also trying to make sure they know about the fabulous women of burlesque that made their own glamour.

© Steven Klein for Italian Vogue

DP: When did you first get interested in glamour and burlesque and how long did it take to reach the top?

DVT: I was obsessed with films from the 30's and 40's from a young age. When I was a teenager, I worked in a lingerie store, and I became very interested in the history of lingerie, and that's when I began collecting vintage lingerie and clothes. I wore my hair and makeup in vintage style, and then later, when I was 18, I wanted to be photographed pinup style in my vintage lingerie for my boyfriend. After that, recreating vintage pinups became a hobby for me, and I started one of the first adult websites on the internet in the early 90's, and it was all geared toward fetishists really, I had the idea that I would portray elegant and old-fashioned fetishism. At that time, around 1991, I was also working in a strip club, and I was, of course, performing in retro style wearing my corsets and stockings.... and that is basically how I learned about burlesque. I always wanted to know the complete history of everything I loved, of everything I was doing, so I dove right into that, with my mind set on making the same kind of connection burlesque stars of the 30's and 40's did, the connection between posing for pinups to promote their acts. All in all, it's taken me about 17 years to get where I am, with lots of ups and downs, lots of detractors, and a whole lot of dues-paying... but fortunately it's finally paid off, and I feel very lucky to be able to be able to make a living off what was originally just a hobby.

© Steven Klein for Italian Vogue

DP: Who are your icons? I remember seeing old footage of Betty Page and listening to her on the radio was or is she one of them?
DVT: Originally she was, because when I first started out, I had the idea to recreate retro-fetishistic images, and that was not really being done by anyone at that time, not with a real commitment to it anyway... I wanted to be recognized and known for posing, dancing and living my day-to-day life this way. I knew that there were a lot of people that still had this major cult-like adoration for Bettie, and I figured that it might be interesting if someone brought the spirit of what she was back to modern times, in a big way. So that was my goal. I thought that with all the modern pinups being very typical "playboy" style, it would be smarter for me to get involved in the same scene, but make my pinups very classic, glamorous and highly stylized, and to be the opposite of the "girl next door" image. I was looking to infiltrate the whole soft-porn world more than anything, because I thought it was so stale and I thought it was sort of absurd that there was this thought that men wanted to see only one kind of girl. So from about 1992-94 I was in full Bettie Page force. Then one day I thought about it more and decided that I didn't want to be a look-alike, and I had conquered this 50's look, so I became obsessed with the 40's. I became really intrigued by Betty Grable, and of combining her girl next door charm and Technicolor 40's glam, but with my black hair and pale skin. So now, over the years, I think my look has become a combination of all the eras I was inspired by, and it's a lot looser than it was at times. I was a bit obsessed... like when I was really getting into the 40's I would dress head to toe in exactly correct 40's style, down to the knickers- and I would know the year- like it's 1942 not 1948- and I even drove a car from the correct era, learned the social dances from the era.... s o I know my stuff, but now I am a bit more relaxed about mixing eras!

DP: Can you tell me a little bit about the exclusive lingerie line that you are designing for Wonderbra? What are the three 40's style lines that it includes? It will be released in September in Paris and beyond? Will there also be slips like Elisabeth Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?
DVT: Well, I have been collecting vintage lingerie from all eras for many years, and I wanted to make a collection that was both beautiful and functional, and that combined some of the finest details of my favorite pieces of vintage lingerie. I didn't merely copy things in my own vintage lingerie collection; I combined things like 1950's shaping with 1930's details. I also reinvented the look of one of Wonderbra's best-selling classic bras... my version is inspired by burlesque, naturally, and it has these brilliant break-a-way clasps that will make any woman look like an expert striptease queen! For the entire collection, it was important to me to choose fabrics that are of the best quality, and fit and shape were very important to me, which is one reason I wanted to collaborate with Wonderbra for lingerie rather than another maker. I thought about what kind of lingerie would drive me wild with desire if I were to see it in a lingerie boutique... I am quite obsessed with glamorous lingerie, and it's that obsession that launched my career, in fact! Often times, I peruse the lingerie shops, and I see something very beautiful and interesting on the rack, but then I try it on, and it does nothing to enhance the figure, so then I feel let down.... and so for this collection, I was intent on each piece being wearable, and that it would do amazing things for a woman's figure! And I have a lot of female fans that are embracing the spirit of burlesque and pinup, and tapping into their inner bombshell by finding ways to be glamorous in their everyday life, so this lingerie is for them to wear and enjoy any day of the week. For now, I have just done bras and panties and garters, but I would love to do a line of slips and elegant, sexy loungewear and slips. My collection of vintage slips a la Liz is BEGGING to be the source of inspiration!

photo Ali MAHDAVI & Suzanne Von Aichinger

DP: I think that you told me that you started wearing a corset at 14? Is that right? Is it true that your waist is 18"?
DVT: No, I was 18. I had been working in a lingerie boutique since I was 15, and as with everything I was into, I was studying up on the history, so I learned about corsets. But living in orange county California in the 80's as a teen, it wasn't so easy to figure out where to see or- gasp! - buy a corset. One day someone gave me an address on a slip of paper for a corset maker in Anaheim, Ca, and I went there and opened the door to a hard-core fetish shop. And there I was, asking if the black patent corset could be made in pink satin with black trim! It could! I saved up my money, and that was it. I also started perusing this fetish store, looking at the magazines, reading up about the scene... and that's when I made a very ambitious plan to become the most famous fetish pinup since Bettie Page!

photo Ali MAHDAVI & Suzanne Von Aichinger

DP: How did it feel the first time you tried on a corset? Is there a ritual involved with the wearing of one?
DVT: Well, just holding it my hands was an experience... the beauty of the boning encased in shiny pink satin, the laces in the back, the busk, the twelve or so garters... it was amazing to me! And when I put it on, it was heaven, I felt like a real woman, a curvy, exotic woman. I wanted to wear it all the time; it was so unusual to wear a corset... I was wearing it everywhere, over my clothes, under my clothes... everyone knew me for my colorful satin corsets! I once learned never, ever to let anyone but a true expert lace me down when someone ripped up my back by lacing it too quickly. So my main ritual is that I am the only one who touches my corset strings, unless it's Mr. Pearl or carefully educated lover. Everyone else, hands off!

photo Ali MAHDAVI & Suzanne Von Aichinger

DP: Do you have any special beauty regime to have that perfection porcelain skin? You are probably the easiest woman to photograph because you always look amazingly beautiful. Obviously your skin never sees the sun but maybe you have a special tip?
DVT: Oh, I just use common sense, I use sunscreen like anyone should, and if I'm going to be in the sun for a long time, I will carry a parasol or wear a big beautiful 1950s hat to shade my face. I just always liked contrast a lot, for some reason black, white and red always appealed to me. A tan has never appealed to me, maybe because I could never really get one anyway. It goes with what I said about not feeling like I could fit in to the bikini babe standard. I just went the extreme and decided to embrace and enhance what was different about me rather than dwell on what I'm not. And of course, I've always been called a vampire and made fun of from time to time, but I always look at these tan wrinkly people that shout stuff at me and thank goodness I'm not getting their stamp of approval! I don't want to be in their club!

Photographer- Ali MAHDAVI

DP: Are there any other collaboration on route? I know of course about your amazing performance for Cointreau, does that continue?
DVT: Yes, I am still the brand ambassador for Cointreau, so I'm performing at various events all over the world for them; with a new show I made just for Cointreau. It's such an elegant and sophisticated brand, I really got into the history of it when I was coming up with ideas for the design of the show. And I am also working on some all-new numbers for my return to the Crazy Horse Paris and Las Vegas, so those should be set to debut in Paris in the New Year. And I have some new acts in the works, more with Catherine D'Lish, and also new show collaboration with Mr. Pearl and another with Ali Mahdavi.

DP: Do you think one of these days you will leave LA and come live in Paris where the backdrop really becomes you? Any thoughts about LA vs. Paris?
DVT: I am aching to make the move from Hollywood to Paris! I always feel completely at ease there, and I have lots of friends there. There is something I just love about man-made beauty, and in Paris, it's everywhere. It can be a little frightening to make such a major move, but, I am, after all, living for adventure these days, and I have decided that the only regret I could possibly ever have is of not living out all my dreams!

www.dita.net
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Thank you Dita,

Later,

Diane