Deja Vu

May 29, 2012

In Good Company

Tags:

bill clinton,

parties,

popes,

prostitution

2012: At a recent gala fundraiser hosted by Prince Albert of Monaco, former President Bill Clinton, currently on a fundraising-related tour of Europe, made the acquaintance of several young stars of the adult film industry. The New York Daily News reports:

Former President Bill Clinton apparently had stars in his eyes when he posed for a cozy photo-op with two porn starlets at Wednesday’s “Nights in Monaco” gala. Brooklyn Lee, who was named “Best New Starlet” this year by trade magazine AVN, tweeted a picture of herself with a smiling Clinton as well as adult star Tasha Reign and a third woman. Clinton is seen clasping Lee, wearing a strapless blue dress, with his left arm, while Reign holds snugly onto the former President’s blazer. TMZ.com, which picked up Lee’s tweet, said the redhead also earned “Best Sex Scene” at the AVN awards. The “Nights in Monaco” event attracted a number of Hollywood A-listers, including Joshua Jackson and Diane Kruger, and is benefiting the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the William J. Clinton Foundation.

1501: President Clinton is one of many in a long line of powerful men who enjoy the companies of ladies of the night. Pope Alexander VI, whose Borgia family was synonymous with hedonism and debauchery, often spent time with courtesans and fathered at least seven children during his tenure at the Vatican. One such event, chronicled by Papal Master of Ceremonies Johann Burchard, was known as the Ballet of Chestnuts and became infamous for its guest list:

On the last day of October, 1501, Cesare Borgia, son of the Pope, arranged a banquet in his chambers at the Vatican with fifty honest prostitutes, called courtesans, who danced after inner with the attendants and the others who were present, at first in their garments, then naked. After dinner the candelabra with the burning candles was placed on the floor, and chestnuts were strewn around, which the courtesans picked up, creeping on hands and knees between the chandeliers, while the Pope, Cesare, and his sister Lucrezia looked on. Finally prizes were awarded for those who could perform most often with the courtesans, such as tunics of silk, shoes, barrets, and other things.

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