Dame of the Month - Ms. Liza Minnelli

Liza Mennelli in Cabaret, 1972

Liza in Parade Magazine, 3/2008

Liza in Cabaret, 1972

Liza in Parade Magazine, 3/2008

Liza on Porta a Porta, Italy 10/2008

Given the incredible energy, infamous voice, and stunning body she has been showing off in shows around the world, we would never know Ms. Liza Minnelli has battled through formidable health problems. For her courage and ability to conquer the odds while still staying sexy, we are proud to call Ms. Minnelli our July Dame of the Month.

Who She Is: Born in 1946 to entertainment celebrities Judy Garland and Vincente Minnelli, Ms. Minnelli is an actress and vocalist well known for her role in 1972 film Cabaret. She has won numerous awards, including an Academy Award for Best Actress, several Tony awards, an Emmy and a special Grammy.

Why We Love Her: Her many awards speak to her formidable talent. The youngest women to ever win a Tony Award for leading actress, Ms. Minnelli has a lot of practice in the limelight (she was the baby in the last show of In the Good Old Summertime in 1949). Yet, no one can say she hasn’t worked hard for her career. From working as a nightclub singer to juggling roles in film and theatre, Ms. Minnelli continues stunning audiences with her enthusiasm, her songs, and her dance abilities.

Her body is another thing to love. At 62, Ms. Minnelli is not afraid to bare her body, shocking Italians with an energetic TV performance while clad in a partially transparent black top and tights reminiscent of the classic Cabaret look she coined. After all, who will ever forget her legendary dark helmet of hair, her big eyes, and her extravagantly fabulous eyelashes?

We heartily approve her outfit choice (which would look fantastic over this set by Tra La La), and only hope that we will too can maintain a body that will pull off an outfit like that.

Extra Credit: Ms. Minnelli serves as an inspiration for people everywhere for her dedication to theatre and her ability to beat seemingly insurmountable odds.

After suffering through viral encephalitis, Ms. Minnelli brushed aside diagnosis of life in a wheelchair, and continues to dance despite “two false hips, a wired-up right knee, two crushed discs and scoliosis.”

Ladies, with a role model like this, how can we continue to languish on the couch?

Trivia: Members of Ms. Minnelli’s family on her father’s side were actually circus performers.

You are a fearless role model to us all, Ms. Minnelli. Your huge personality both on stage and off coupled with your determination to succeed, make us love you, and your fabulous body and willingness to show it off is just icing on the cake. Your classic, yet daring Cabaret style fit perfectly with our Playful Promises lingerie from England. Try this Miss Showgirl set or this Miss Beauty Queen set. And while we don’t have fur for you, we do have animal print.

Hugs and Kisses,
Dames and Broads

Dame of the Month- Dita Von Teese

We have adored her for years. It was only a matter of time before Ms Teese became our Dame of the month.

Who She is: Born Heather Sweet, Dita Von Teese is a burlesque superstar who went from stripper to MAC and Cointreau spokesperson, model/actress, and author.

Why We Love Her: It ain't easy to go from stripping in skeevy clubs in Southern California to sitting front row at the Dior show in Paris and having your own line of WonderBras. Hell, it's a miracle to go from stripping to anything other than porn. But if you have ever seen Dita dance, you know she is a miracle worker. A classically trained ballerina, Dita brings an elegance and grace to a traditionally seedy profession.

Extra Credit: Points must be given for living through 1 year of marriage to shock rocker Marylin Manson. After dealing with his drug and alcohol abuse as well as his affair with actress Evan Rachel Wood, she left his house and the marriage empty handed. Von Teese recently said of Manson, "He's been in touch a little. The apologies come, and he was like, 'I made a big mistake.' And I'm like, 'Yeah, yeah, I know. Go ahead and say what you need to say to feel better and to sleep at night.'" LOVE IT...

Trivia: Though she rarely acts, she won best Actress at the Beverly Hills Film Festival in 2005 for the short film, The Death of Salvador Dali.


Ms. Teese, please know that we recognize you for the American treasure you are. Shame your Wonderbra line is only available overseas... We would certainly carry it if they would let us...:)

Dames and Broads

Dame of the Month- Sophia Loren

Sophia Loren, Oscars 2009

not even close to a size zero... THANK GOD

Loren giving Jayne Mansfield "the eye"

Who she is: Born Sofia Villani Scicolone, Sophia Loren rose from poverty to become a sexual icon in the 60s. Often called the "Italian Marilyn Monroe" though not nearly as tragic a figure, she was the first person ever to win an acting Oscar for a foreign language film (a feat that would not be repeated until Roberto Benigni's win for Life Is Beautiful in 1998).

Why we love her: Even though Sofia Loren looked like an oversexed, overtanned orange bridesmaid at the 2009 Oscars, we forgive her and cant help but be amazed. At 74, she looks better than most more than half her age. She is not and never was a size 0, though she was a skinny child and considered an ugly duckling, nicknamed 'The Stick'. She later blossomed into a glamazon- so much so that many male actors refused to work with her since she stands nearly 5' 9" and in towering heels and big hair can appear over 6 feet tall (One leading man made her walk in a trench next to him to give the impression that he was taller). But she embraced her beautiful body famously saying"Everything you see I owe to spaghetti", making us want to eat a bowl of pasta immediately. In an age where you could cut yourself on the hip bones of most young actresses (we are talking about you Ms. Lohan), every picture of Sophia Loren reminds us to celebrate our curves. At the height of her career, her measurements were 36D-24-38. GOD BLESS HER!

Extra Credit: As a young girl, Sophia Loren entered 2 beauty contests winning neither but scoring a screen test with director Carlo Ponti. She failed the screen test miserably and was told by Ponti she might be more successful if she changed her oversized lips and nose. She ignored him and did neither but later married Ponti who would produce many of her movies.

Trivia: She appeared in the 2007 edition of the famous Pirelli Calendar at the age of 72, making her the oldest model in its history. Hating beauty salons, she does her hair and nails herself. She is also the godmother of Drew Barrymore- Let's not hold it against her.

Ms. Loren-While it was hidden under horrendous golden taffeta on Oscar night, your body is still one of the best in the business and we have the perfect lingerie for your voluptuous hourglass figure. In fact, this fantastic matching bra and panty set from Else reminds us of the black bra and panties you wore in Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (pictured above) and has the power to create an hourglass silhouette for those of us who have to fake it.

Thank god for it since not everyone has your heavenly gifts...

Half your age and still in awe,

Dames and Broads

Dame of the Month- Georgina Chapman

Who she is: Georgina Chapman is the co founder of the sometimes amazing, most times remarkably average fashion line, Marchesa, and the second wife of the most feared man in Hollywood, Harvey Weinstein.

Why we love her: Though not the first wife or the only founder, she seems to be the only one that matters. Just try naming the other women, we dare you. Press completely ignores the other chick whose blood sweat and tears also went into creating Marchesa, and all marvel at the newly tamed, kinder, gentler Weinstein after his marriage to Chapman, 20+ years his junior.

Extra Credit: The daughter of a millionaire coffee entrepreneur, Georgina could have sat on her gorgeous English laurels or been quite content with her mildly successful modeling career (recognize her from her early nineties Head and Shoulder ads? Neither do we). But she didn't. She seems to be a workhorse who hasn't let family money or lukewarm reviews from fashion critics stop her from becoming a force to be reckoned with. We have a feeling that her husband hasn't hurt her visibility either. Ever notice that all the stars of the Weinstein movies (current and upcoming) just happen to be in Marchesa on the red carpet, or that Georgina has walk on roles in nearly every film? What the hell was she doing in The Nanny Diaries?!

Trivia: Marchesa just happens to be named after an Italian socialite and Femme Fatale, Marchesa Luisa Casati- another amazing Dame.

All hail the beautiful and alluring Ms. Georgina Chapman- a true Dame if we ever saw one.

When you are ready Mrs Weinstein, we have some great lingerie for you...
Hugs and kisses,
Dames and Broads

Dames and Broads of the Month--- Here's to the Hustlers...

We are going to try something new here at Dames and Broads at the suggestion of our friend Lisa. Every month we will be honoring women who we admire and respect for all the wrong reasons. The ones that we call names but secretly want to be when we realized that sometimes being a lady simply is not enough. Here's to the hustlers, the working girls among us, the not so nice girls who finish first. Here's to the Dames and the Broads... We raise our champagne flutes in your honor...

Feel free to suggest upcoming dames / broads of the month. Not sure the difference between a Dame and a Broad? We see the Dame as a bit more stately and the Broad as scrappier. Both are formidable. But the Review Guys have given us pretty good guidelines:

Broads-
The Word itself has a Sinatra-esque gangster-ism ring to it. A broad can take care of herself, is probably out for herself to begin with. She’s tough and not to be messed with. She might be intimidating, but also sensuous. Is she a tough broad? A dumb broad? A smart broad? Regardless, she is a broad to be reckoned with.

Dames- “Dame” is French for “woman”, though it’s pronounced the same as a beaver’s “dam” (no beaver jokes, gutter-mouths!). This girl-nomer has a “can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em” quality I find irresistible. Implies the hold a woman can have over a man. I picture a Sinatra-era guy shaking his head, muttering “dames” under his breath, tortured, at once loving us and hating us. It’s great.

Pictured above: The icons- Mae West, Joan Crawford, and Eartha Kitt... They did it their way.