Video of the Week

All The News That's Fit To Strip

Burlesque bumps and grinds its way back into stereotypically buttoned-up Washington DC. The Washington Post reveals the Capitol's "Va Va Voom Boom."

Washington got its first taste of burlesque's new era with Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey, the vaudevillian Lobster Boy Revue and the World Famous Pontani Sisters who made regular jaunts down I-95 from New York. Today, Gilded Lily Burlesque in Baltimore, Kitty Victorian, left, and The Gurly Show keep things twirling along.

In other news ...

Virgin Mobile drops its striptease campaign.

Lola van Ella and the Alley Cat Revue and three other burlesque troupes descend on Kansas City for the fourth annual KC Fringe Festival.

Roxi Dlite "didn't even know it was called burlesque" when she got hooked.

Copious Magazine returns.

Video of the Week

We'll return to our special edition series of The Miss Exotic World Candy Gram interviews tomorrow. Today, enjoy this video from Trixie Little and The Evil Hate Monkey's performance at last year's pageant.

The Candy Gram: Trixie Little

In our ongoing Q&A series --"The Candy Gram"-- we ask the same quirky questions of burlesque's various performers. Until the 2008 Miss Exotic World pageant, we'll be featuring the burly queens competing in the festivities. If you want to be added to the mix, drop us a line at kellydinardo AT gmail DOT com. Today, say hello to Baltimore's Trixie Little.

What is your hometown?
Baltimore

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
Performing for 10 years. Burlesque for 5.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Presently 13

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Night Train - Alvino Rey
Tiny Bubbles - Don Ho

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
1. Rhinestones
2. Eyelashes
3. Urban Decay Tanning Stick (secret cleavage enhancer!)

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Pee Wee Herman

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Wild Cherry- total bad ass from 40's-50's New Orleans. She has the best stories of sass, surviving and life lessons- like making sure you get paid well for people to see what you've got.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
A bikini or a dirndl- hard to choose.

What’s the last movie you saw?
Hairspray! Love that Tracy Turnblad scene where she sings Good Morning Baltimore while feeding rats and driving to school atop a garbage truck! Great dance numbers and costumes too.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
So You Think You Can Dance and Jackass/Wild Boyz reruns- I love those guys.

What book is on your nightstand?
Several- reading in bed is my favorite hobby! Striptease by Rachel Schteir, Kiss Me Like A Stranger by Gene Wilder, Sacred Contracts by Caroline Myss and The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
India

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I have one- Irrepressible Cuteness. It serves me well in my mission to make the world mind-blowingly HAPPY!

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Amelie Soleil, Red Hot Annie, HoneyLu, Kimberlee Rose, Vicky Butterfly, Dominique Immora, Yasmine Vine, Cherry Bomb, Millie Dollar, Joanie Gyoza, Bonbon Vivant, Lola Martinet, Frankie Boudoir, Vixen Violette, Ravenna Black, Veronica Lashe, Amber Ray, Beatrix von Bourbon, Angie Pontani, Tanya Cheex, Bloody Belle, Clams Casino, Trixie Little, Michelle L'Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini, Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.

The Candy Gram: Trixie Little

In our ongoing Q&A series --"The Candy Gram"-- we ask the same quirky questions of burlesque's various performers. If you want to be added to the mix, drop us a line at kellydinardo AT gmail DOT com. Today, say hello to Baltimore's Trixie Little, who is currently at circus camp with Evil Hate Monkey.

What is your hometown?
Baltimore

How long have you been interested in burlesque/performing?
Performing for 10 years. Burlesque for 5.

How many pairs of pasties do you own?
Presently 13

What are your three favorite songs to perform to?
Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Night Train - Alvino Rey
Tiny Bubbles - Don Ho

What three items could you not live without as a performer?
1. Rhinestones
2. Eyelashes
3. Urban Decay Tanning Stick (secret cleavage enhancer!)

Who had the biggest influence on your career?
Pee Wee Herman

Who is your favorite burly queen?
Wild Cherry- total bad ass from 40's-50's New Orleans. She has the best stories of sass, surviving and life lessons- like making sure you get paid well for people to see what you've got.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
A bikini or a dirndl- hard to choose.

What’s the last movie you saw?
Hairspray! Love that Tracy Turnblad scene where she sings Good Morning Baltimore while feeding rats and driving to school atop a garbage truck! Great dance numbers and costumes too.

What’s on your must-see-TV list?
So You Think You Can Dance and Jackass/Wild Boyz reruns- I love those guys.

What book is on your nightstand?
Several- reading in bed is my favorite hobby! Striptease by Rachel Schteir, Kiss Me Like A Stranger by Gene Wilder, Sacred Contracts by Caroline Myss and The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

If you could go anywhere for vacation, where would you go?
India

If you could have any superpower, which one would you want? Why?
I have one- Irrepressible Cuteness. It serves me well in my mission to make the world mind-blowingly HAPPY!

Satisfy your appetite for more Candy Grams: Michelle L'Amour, Margaret Cho, Miss Dirty Martini,Princess Farhana, Miss Delirium Tremens, Paris Green, Jo Boobs, Jack Midnight, Heidi Von Haught, Diamond Minx, The Titillation Twins, Scratch, Creamy Stevens and Gina Louise.

The Name Game

This morning, David Brooks got me thinking about names. I'm sure the New York Times reporter meant for me to consider my own, but the names that came to mind were Kalani Kokonuts, Lucy Fur and Immodesty Blaize

Burlesque names seem to fall into several categories. There are those that hint at the performer's body in some way -- Fanny Tastic, Trixie Little, Jo Boobs. Some names like Dita Von Teese and Michelle L'Amour play to the desired effect. There are lots of food-related names -- Candy Barr, Della Delicious, Bonbon Vivant. And some that are simply fun whether it's because of a double entendre or how it rolls off the tongue -- Lola Pearl, Panty Raid, Harvest Moon, Lux LaCroix.

And if like me, you've had trouble coming up with a suitable burlesque name there's a name generator which spits out things like Ginger Spice, Antoinette Parfait, Caresse Frou-Frou, Miss Ecstasy Deluxe, Vivienne diVine.

All the News That's Fit To Strip

Margaret Cho gets saucy with The Sensuous Woman, a burlesque-inspired variety show. Cho told Playbill, "The Sensuous Woman is an evening of comedy, dance and music celebrating women's bodies. I have suffered from eating disorders and a horrendously distorted body image for my entire life, and I think the biggest reason is a lack of images of real women's bodies. Where are they? We don't see them in movies, on TV, in magazines. Instead, we are force-fed a steady diet of unattainable ideals, a tyranny of slenderness and youth, goals we can't even aspire to, they are so far out of reach. When we see dancers who enjoy their bodies, who are sexy and having fun, it gives us permission to enjoy our bodies and to enjoy ourselves in the process. We are presented with a new ideal, not one that is about dieting ourselves down to a smaller size, but expanding our notion of what is beautiful and to allow ourselves to be included there too."

In other news ...

Julie Atlas Muz shares her New York Diet.

SexTV's fall lineup includes Bump & Grind: The Making Of A Burlesque Diva, a documentary that follows four burlesque dancers to the Miss Exotic World competition.

Trixie Little makes a splash with water ballet.

Tessa Thompson shimmies into Make It Happen.

Dita Von Teese loves Madonna and porn.

Will DC's strip clubs start bumpin' underground?

Playboy reports Elvira Mistress of the Dark returns to TV this fall to put “the boob back into the boob tube.”

Mr. Skin bares the cinematic nude scenes for you.

E!'s favorite "bald dingbat" does a beachy striptease. So does a "wild-child in recovery."