How You Can Own Monica Lewinsky’s Black Negligee
Monica Lewinsky is not a name that's heard often these days.
The infamous former White House intern who had an affair with President Bill Clinton is back in the news this week — as are some of her former belongings. A letter signed by Clinton, handwritten notes, and a black negligee are just a few of her personal items being auctioned off online. The 32-item lot is expected to fetch between $25,000 and $50,000 by the time the bidding ends at 5 p.m. PT on Thursday at the Nate D. Sanders Auctions website. As of Tuesday, the top bid was $6,490.
Lewinsky won't get any cash for the sale, however. The items, which also include White House matches and sealed boxes of presidential M&Ms, were submitted by Kate Nason, the former wife of Andy Bleiler. Bleiler was once Lewinsky's high school teacher and, for five years, her lover. He also was the recipient of many of her gifts. Interestingly enough, Lewinsky was apparently friendly with Nason as well, and gave her some of the pieces of clothing, which are not up for auction. (We assume she was not the recipient of the negligee!)
The items were provided as evidence to Kenneth Starr during his investigation of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal in 1998, which took place before Clinton was impeached and then acquitted for perjury and obstruction of justice — basically for lying about his affair with Lewinsky — in his second term.
Clinton, of course, now leads the prolific charitable Clinton Foundation.
Not surprisingly, Lewinsky, who turns 40 on July 23, has made less of an impact on the world.
She memorably started her own line of handbags in late 1999, was hired then fired as a spokeswoman for Jenny Craig in 2000, and hosted a short-lived Fox reality show called "Mr. Personality" in 2003. By 2004, her handbag line was no more.
Lewinsky then moved to London, where she earned a master's degree in social psychology at the London School of Economics in 2006.
She was rarely spotted in the following years, although she was seen grabbing lunch with her celeb friend Alan Cumming in 2009.
Last fall, the New York Post reported that she was writing a tell-all that could earn her $12 million, as long as she was willing to provide some salacious details about her romance with the former leader of the free world. Unnamed friends of Lewinsky told the newspaper that she is prepared to share the secrets now because she needs the money.
"No one will hire her and she can't get a job because of Clinton," a source told the Post.
Around the same time, the U.K.'s Daily Mail wrote a story about Lewinsky's unhappy life.
"There is no husband, as she dreamed of, no boyfriend, and no children, despite saying that she was 'romantic at heart' and that getting married and having kids was 'the most important thing to me,'" Sara Nathan wrote, adding that Lewinsky had moved in with her mother. "After numerous failed attempts to reinvent herself professionally, there is no sign of a successful career either."
If Lewinsky really is strapped for cash, sounds like she should consider selling more of her belongings herself.
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