Dita Von Teese, From Burlesque to a Brand

Fetish queen, fashion avatar and America’s sultry doyenne of burlesque, Dita Von Teese, née Heather Sweet of Rochester, Mich., is the toast of at least one generation of would-be calendar girls. And she is far too canny at this stage to even think of throwing down her scepter.

Which may be why, at 40, she is redoubling her efforts to cash in on her renown by becoming the latest cult phenomenon to turn her name into a brand.