Devious Facts About Femmes Fatales
“I always wanted to be a femme fatale. Even when I was a young girl, I never really wanted to be a girl. I wanted to be a woman". –Diane von Furstenberg
What is a “femme fatale”? Is she a schemer? A mistress of seduction? A general maneater? Or is a “femme fatale” simply any woman with power and a plan?
The Hollywood film noir has immortalized the femme fatale as a sexy character archetype, a lady who lures men into deadly plots with her mix of great beauty and bad intentions.
Going backward into history, however, we can see her archetype emerge again and again, as artists and historians struggle to wrap their heads around female power.
These days, it looks like all a woman needs to do is exert power in any sort of dangerous or non-traditional way and—boom!—we got ourselves a femme fatale!
Not only classical temptresses, but also spies and serial killers have been classified under the intriguing label, even if these stories only minimally explore aspects of their allure or femininity.
Adjust that lipstick and savor these 42 devious facts about femmes fatales.
1. Assassin of My Heart
In 1960, the CIA coerced Fidel Castro's mistress to end his life. According to the plan, the woman, Marita Lorenzo, was to provide Castro with poison pills hidden in her jar of face lotion.
Unfortunately, the pills dissolved in the cream, and things got even worse: Castro got wise to her plot. Yet it appeared Castro was more heartbroken than mad, as he offered Lorenzo his own firearm and told her to finish him off herself.
She still loved him and couldn’t do it. They ended on good enough terms for her to visit one last time in 1961. That’s love, folks!
2. All in the Family
You don’t become China’s only ruling empress by playing by the rules. Wu Zeitan was the favorite concubine of Emperor Taizong and she chose not to merely retire upon his demise.
Instead, Wu connected with her late lover's son, the new Emperor Gaozong, maintained her hold on power, and even seized China for herself upon his passing.
3. Pay or Say
Harriette Wilson was a prolific courtesan in Georgian England and a breathing lesson in honoring your financial commitments to women. Facing hard financial times, Wilson penned a scandalous account of her affairs—and charged her ex-lovers to remain anonymous in her writings. Considering many of her lovers were among England’s most elite—including prime ministers, heroic veterans, and even royalty—they had to pay or have Wilson air their dirty laundry to the public, and their wives.
4. Better Out Than In
Agnes Sorel is generally cited as the first truly powerful royal mistress of France. As lover to King Charles VII, she was hugely influential, advancing land grants and court positions for herself as well as her family.
She was also quite avant-garde when it came to fashion; Agnes pioneered the style of exhibiting one side of her chest out of her dress at all times, as the ultimate symbol of her provocative superiority.
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