Ashley Alexandra Dupré Explained

Ashley Dupré
Other Names:Ashley DiPietro
Kristen
Nationality:American
Birth Name:Ashley Youmans
Birth Date:30 April 1985
Known:Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal
Occupation:Call girl, entertainer
Relatives:Alix Earle (stepdaughter)

Ashley Rae Maika DiPietro (born Ashley Youmans; April 30, 1985), better known by the stage name Ashley Alexandra Dupré,[1] is a former call girl. She gained fame in 2008 for her role as "Kristen" in the Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal, which led to the resignation of Eliot Spitzer as governor of New York.[1] [2]

Early life and education

Dupré spent her early childhood years in Beachwood, New Jersey, a borough near the Jersey Shore. Her father, William Youmans, owned a landscaping business and also worked as a salesman of surfing accessories. When her parents divorced, Dupré moved to Wall Township, New Jersey with her mother, Carolyn Capalbo, and her stepfather, Mike DiPietro, an oral surgeon. There, she attended Old Mill (elementary) School[3] and Wall High School until her sophomore year, when she moved to Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, to live with her father.[4] On her MySpace page, Dupré described leaving home at age 17 to escape a broken family and abuse,[5] but her aunt, Barbara Youmans of Seaside Heights, denied that Dupré had a difficult childhood. "She never had a bad life when she was growing up. She had the best of everything: bicycles, clothing, O'Neill surf boards. ... She was always dressed to kill and got everything she wanted."[4]

In 2004, at the age of 19, Dupré moved to New York City in pursuit of a music career, and worked as a waitress at a dance club called Viscaya in the Chelsea district. She also worked at the clubs Pink Elephant and Retox.[6] Jason Itzler, who ran a New York escort service called NY Confidential from 2003 to 2005, met Dupré while she was working as a cocktail waitress at the Hotel Gansevoort in 2004. Dupré began working for him on the side, using the alias Victoria. NY Confidential was shut down and Itzler sent to prison by Spitzer's New York State Attorney General's office in 2005.[7] [8] [9]

In 2006, Dupré changed her legal name from Youmans to her stepfather's name of DiPietro, stating that she regarded him as "the only father I have known."[1] By 2008, Dupré was living in a ninth-floor apartment in the Flatiron District of Manhattan. She maintains that she was concerned about her ability to pay her rent after the man she was living with left following her discovery that he had fathered two children.[1]

Media attention

February 2008 assignation with Spitzer

See also: Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal. On February 13, 2008, Dupré travelled by Amtrak from New York Penn Station to Washington, D.C., for an assignation at the Mayflower Hotel with New York Governor Eliot Spitzer. The arrangements had been made by phone between Spitzer and a booker at Emperors Club VIP, and were monitored by federal investigators who had initiated a wiretap after his bank had filed a suspicious activity report regarding money transfers by Spitzer to a front company operated by the escort service.[10]

Caught on the FBI's wiretap was Dupré's response to the booker's mention of other escorts' difficulties with Spitzer. "I don't think he's difficult," said Dupré. "I mean it's just kind of like, whatever, I'm here for a purpose. I know what my purpose is. I am not a … moron, you know what I mean."[11]

On March 6, federal authorities arrested four individuals involved with Emperors Club VIP, charging them under federal prostitution and money laundering laws.[12] Initial news reports and court documents did not identify the agency's clients or call girls by name, referring to Spitzer as "Client 9" and to Dupré as "Kristen".[13]

On March 10, The New York Times identified Spitzer as "Client 9."[14] Two days later on March 12, the Times identified Dupré as "Kristen." Her mother, Carolyn Capalbo, told the newspaper that her daughter "was a young kid with typical teenage rebellion issues, but we are extremely close now." Capalbo said she was "shell-shocked" when her daughter called to tell her she had been working as a prostitute.[15]

Dupré's only public comment was a brief interview with The New York Times for the March 12 story that revealed her identity. "I just don't want to be thought of as a monster," Dupré told the newspaper. "This has been a very difficult time. It's complicated." On the day the story broke, she posted a message to her MySpace page that said "Yeah, I did it"; it was later changed to read, "Thank you for your support, it means a lot to me." Dupré uploaded a second song to the Amie Street online music store around 2 a.m. on March 13. On March 14, New York City radio station Z100 played one Dupré song.[16]

Aftermath

Dupré remained in seclusion in the days after her role in the scandal became public, and became the subject of increasingly intense media coverage. The Village Voice called her "the most famous hooker in America",. By March 18, Dupré's profile on MySpace had received over 9 million page views.[17] [18] Dupré was reportedly offered US$1 million by Hustler magazine to pose nude, and received offers from Penthouse magazine and Vivid Entertainment.[19]

On March 19, the soft porn website Girls Gone Wild featured teasers of Dupré, shot in Miami Beach, Florida in 2003 before she had turned 18.[20] Dupré presented the company the drivers license of a New Jersey woman named Amber Arpaio,[21] claiming it was Dupré's own.[22] Company founder Joe Francis—who served a year in jail for a conviction of child abuse and prostitution involving filming two underaged girls in Panama City, Florida, in 2003 who had represented themselves as adults[23] [24] —prepared to release a full DVD of Dupré footage from company archives. "All nude images of Ms. Dupre were taken in public places and contain no sexual contact," said Francis. "In Florida, where Ms. Dupre was filmed, the law allows even women under the age of 18 to be filmed nude with their consent."[25]

Dupré's attorney, Don Buchwald, argued in an e-mail to Girls Gone Wild, "It was because she was underage that [Francis] sent her home on a Greyhound bus back to North Carolina. It would be outrageous at the very least to play the video of an underage female on the Internet."[26]

On April 28, 2008, Dupré filed suit against Francis and two of his companies alleging their exploitation of Dupré's name and image, seeking US$10 million in punitive damages,[27] but in July of that year she decided to drop the suit after Francis released footage showing her agreeing to be filmed.[28] [29]

In December 2009, Dupré started writing an advice column in the New York Post called "Ask Ashley".[30] Her last column appeared in May 2012.[31]

In January 2010, Dupré appeared on The Howard Stern Show, where she discussed incidents ranging from her situation as a rape victim to how she preoccupied her mind when engaged in intercourse with men she was not attracted to.[32]

She posed nude for the May 2010 issue of Playboy magazine.[33]

Legal proceedings

On March 15, 2008, Dupré was granted immunity from prosecution by the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York for her role in the Spitzer scandal, in order to testify at court hearings related to the Emperors Club VIP prostitution ring.[34] [35]

In July 2008, a woman named Amber Arpaio filed a federal lawsuit against Dupré for defamation and invasion of privacy, claiming Dupré used her lost driver's license to appear on a Girls Gone Wild video. Arpaio also sued Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis.[36]

Music career

Unspoken Words
Cover:Ashley Alexandra Dupre - Unspoken Words.jpg
Border:yes
Type:single
Artist:Ashley Dupré
A-Side:What We Want
B-Side:Move Ya Body
Genre:Dance-pop, R&B
Length:3:07
3:27
Label:Unsigned
Producer:Simon Ella for
Unbreakable Music Group

Dupré began singing professionally when Jerry Cooper, a musician she was living with, heard her singing the Aretha Franklin version of the song "Respect" in the shower. "She had this huge voice for such a little girl," Cooper told MTV, "and so I just kind of went in and said, 'Hey, come upstairs when you're done with this, and let's work on some songs.'"[37] According to Dupré, she then toured and recorded with Cooper's band, networking with people in the music industry. In 2005, she formed a company named Pasche New York, an entertainment business intended to promote her music career.

In the summer of 2006, she made an appearance in a music video for the song "Pop Off", performed by rapper Mysterious.[38]

Shortly after The New York Times published their profile of Dupré, her single "Move Ya Body" set a record for how fast it commanded the top price on the music-download site AmieStreet.com, reaching the site's maximum of US$0.98 per download in five hours.[39] Another single, "What We Want", was played more than 3 million times on the Internet after the scandal erupted. While some speculated that she may have earned as much as US$300,000–1.4 million from download sales of her singles on Amie Street,[40] others estimated her earnings at as low as US$13,720.[41] Dupré's music came to be featured in mash up YouTube videos, blending her tracks with those of established artists.[42] [43]

Television career

On July 7, 2008, E! reported that Dupré was engaged in talks about a proposed reality show with Handprint Entertainment, the same firm that managed the reality television careers of Nicole Richie and Pamela Anderson, and that she was considering a move from New York to Los Angeles. One of the concepts reportedly being considered was a dating program similar to A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila.[44] Dupré will reportedly be working with the production company Reveille Productions (responsible for the TV shows The Office and The Biggest Loser) to create a reality dating show based on the theme that everyone has skeletons in their closet.[45]

Dupré appeared on 20/20 on Friday, November 21, 2008, where she was interviewed by Diane Sawyer about her feelings about being an "escort," and the emotional effect it had upon her when the encounter with Spitzer was made public.[46] [47] [48]

On July 10, 2011, VH1 premiered Famous Food, a reality series featuring seven celebrities. Dupré came in third; first and second were given a partnership stake in the Lemon Basket.[49]

Personal life

In 2013, Dupré married New Jersey construction magnate Thomas "TJ" Earle, the father of social media influencer Alix Earle.[50]

Notes and References

  1. News: Serge . Kovaleski . Urbina, Ian . For an Aspiring Singer, a Harsher Spotlight . . March 13, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111119055404/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/13/nyregion/12cnd-kristen.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin . November 19, 2011 . live.
  2. News: Jersey Girl Is Revealed as 'Kristen' . . Stephanie . Gaskell . Hutchinson, Bill . March 13, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318030416/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/12/2008-03-12_jersey_girl_is_revealed_as_kristen.html . March 18, 2008.
  3. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080313/NEWS/80313007&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL Gov pays the price, Asbury Park Press, March 13, 20.
  4. News: Giovanna . Fabiano . 'Kristen' Becomes a Star, but Aunt Calls Her a 'Brat' . . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318111815/http://www.northjersey.com/news/crimeandcourts/Kristen_becomes_a_star_but_aunt_calls_her_a_brat.html . March 18, 2008.
  5. Web site: Ashley Alexandra Dupré . March 16, 2008 . Dupré, Ashley . . https://web.archive.org/web/20101129212758/http://www.myspace.com/ashleydupre . November 29, 2010 . live.
  6. News: Sean . Evans . Lemire, Jonathan . Friends: 'Kristen' Partied with Cocaine . . March 15, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100530092912/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/15/2008-03-15_friends_kristen_partied_with_cocaine.html . May 30, 2010 . live.
  7. News: Sean . Evans . McShane, Larry . She Came to N.Y. Looking for Record Deal Instead She Got Hooker Ring Offer . . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090306070146/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/14/2008-03-14_she_came_to_ny_looking_for_record_deal_i.html . March 6, 2009 . live.
  8. News: Michael . Clancy . Sex and the City: The Wild Life of Ashley Alexandra Dupre . Runnin' Scared . . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100325122111/http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2008/03/sex_and_the_cit.php . March 25, 2010 . dead.
  9. News: Mark . Jacobson . Secrets of the Megapimps . . March 16, 2008 . March 18, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101219073233/http://nymag.com/news/features/45119/ . December 19, 2010 . live.
  10. News: Alan . Feuer . Urbina, Ian . Affidavit: Client 9 and Room 871 . . March 11, 2008 . March 16, 2008 .
  11. News: Ashley Alexandra Dupré . March 19, 2008 . March 12, 2008 . Times Topics . The New York Times . William K. . Rashbaum . https://web.archive.org/web/20080317191322/http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/d/ashley_alexandra_dupre/index.html?inline=nyt-per . March 17, 2008 . live .
  12. News: Alan . Feuer . Four Charged With Running Online Prostitution Ring . . March 7, 2008 . March 19, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120515114125/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/07/nyregion/07prostitution.html?_r=1&oref=slogin . May 15, 2012 . live.
  13. http://www.nysun.com/pics/Emperors_Club_Complaint.pdf United States of America v. Mark Brener, Cecil Suwal, Temeka Rachelle Lewis, and Tanya Hollander
  14. News: Danny . Hakim . Rashbaum, William K. . Spitzer Is Linked to Prostitution Ring . . March 10, 2008 . March 19, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080312004102/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/10/nyregion/10cnd-spitzer.html . March 12, 2008 . live.
  15. News: . March 13, 2008 . She doesn't want to be called 'Monster' . . June 27, 2024.
  16. http://adage.com/article?article_id=125886 Advertising Age
  17. News: Gillian . Wee . Penthouse, Flynt Offer 'Kristen' Millions as Spitzer Makes Exit . Bloomberg.com . March 18, 2008 . March 21, 2008 . https://archive.today/20130119005023/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aLee2_xO8z9g&refer=us . January 19, 2013 . live.
  18. News: Rochelle . Oliver . Prostitute Makes Lemonade from Lemons . South Florida Times . March 21, 2008 . March 21, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110716044536/http://www.sfltimes.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1203&Itemid=187 . July 16, 2011 . live.
  19. News: Prostitute in Spitzer Scandal Scores Million Dollar Offer to Bare All . . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081203185946/http://www.accesshollywood.com/article/8771/prostitute-in-spitzer-scandal-scores-million-dollar-offer-to-bare-all . December 3, 2008 . live.
  20. Web site: Ashley Dupre Gone "Wild" – Legal or Jailbait? . . March 19, 2008 . March 19, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110324123822/http://www.tmz.com/2008/03/19/ashley-dupre-gone-wild-legal-or-jailbait/ . March 24, 2011 . live.
  21. News: Aline . Mendelsohn . From the Sentinel Archive: Anything Goes When the Cameras Roll . . March 19, 2003 . March 20, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081227054339/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/nationworld/orl-archive-girlsgonewildstory03192003,0,6190507.story . December 27, 2008 . dead.
  22. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/0717081arpaio1.html Woman: Spitzer Hooker Stole My Identity – July 17, 2008
  23. Web site: . Girls Gone Wild Founder Avoids Going to Jail . . April 1, 2007 . March 24, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110523165033/http://www.sptimes.com/2007/04/01/State/Girls_Gone_Wild_found.shtml . May 23, 2011 . live .
  24. News: Curt . Anderson . Spitzer Call Girl Sues 'Girls Gone Wild' for $10 Million . https://web.archive.org/web/20090313061338/http://www.myfoxlakecharles.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6418285&version=3&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.3.1 . dead . March 13, 2009 . Associated Press . April 29, 2008 . May 29, 2008.
  25. News: Photos show woman identified as Ashley Dupre at 'Girls Gone Wild' party . . March 19, 2008 . March 21, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110523230030/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-ashley-dupre-photos-pictures-spitzer,0,2003460.story?track=rss . May 23, 2011 . live.
  26. News: Associated Press . Spitzer Girl Ashley Alexandra Dupre 17 at Time of 'Girls Gone Wild' Video . . March 20, 2008 . March 22, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100311192509/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/19/2008-03-19_spitzer_girl_ashley_alexandra_dupre_17_a.html . March 11, 2010 . live .
  27. News: Mark . Dagostino . Ashley Dupré Sues Joe Francis . May 14, 2008 . April 28, 2008 . Crimes & Courts . . https://web.archive.org/web/20110209230341/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20195892,00.html . February 9, 2011 . live.
  28. Web site: The Hum: Joe Francis off the Hook . October 15, 2007 . Lia . Haberman . October 15, 2007 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20071016120644/http://www.eonline.com/gossip/hum/detail/index.jsp?uuid=0d2a43dc-c414-437e-aabb-1a90c39a2c7d . October 16, 2007 . live.
  29. Web site: Call Girl in Spitzer Case Drops "Gone Wild" Suit . Reuters . July 3, 2008 . Tom . Brown .
  30. News: Ask Ashley Dupre: Girl Who Bedded Eliot Spitzer Answers Questions on Sex, Love and Relationships . New York Post . December 13, 2009 . May 31, 2010.
  31. News: Ask Ashley: Hit Us, Ashley, One Last Time . . May 27, 2012.
  32. Web site: Ashley Dupre talks sex & prostitution with Howard . January 12, 2010 . Howard Stern Show . June 27, 2024.
  33. News: Ashley Dupre Playboy Photos Leaked: Pictures of Spitzer Call Girl Surface . The Huffington Post . April 14, 2010 . May 31, 2010 . David . Weiner . https://web.archive.org/web/20100427083208/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/14/ashley-dupre-playboy-phot_n_537417.html . April 27, 2010 . live.
  34. Web site: Hinckley . David . Associated Press . Associated Press . Spitzer May Have Spent Tens of Thousands on Call Girls: Investigators . . March 11, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080317181714/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/11/2008-03-11_spitzer_may_have_spent_tens_of_thousands-2.html . March 17, 2008 . January 19, 2023 .
  35. Web site: Wee . Gillian . 'Kristen,' Linked to Spitzer, Becomes Pop Star on Web (Update1) . . https://web.archive.org/web/20121020205941/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a1YDz7KwnW0Q&refer=home . March 15, 2008 . October 20, 2012 . January 19, 2023 .
  36. Web site: Woman Claims Spitzer Call Girl Stole Her Identity . . Associated Press . . https://web.archive.org/web/20080721042040/http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/07/18/dupre.lawsuit.ap/index.html . July 18, 2008 . July 21, 2008 . January 19, 2023 .
  37. News: Garth . Bardsley . Ashley Alexandra Dupre, Eliot Spitzer's Companion: Check Out Her First Recording Session!: 'She's going to come out on top,' ex-boyfriend predicts . . March 17, 2008 . March 18, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080321201413/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1583553/20080317/index.jhtml . March 21, 2008 . dead.
  38. News: Ashley Alexandra Dupre's Rap Video Appearance . MyFox New York . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318160827/http://www.myfoxny.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=6033756&version=2&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.3.1 . March 18, 2008 . dead.
  39. News: Jonathan . Lemire . Hooker's an online hit – to tune of $200G . . March 15, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318120316/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/03/15/2008-03-15_hookers_an_online_hit__to_tune_of_200g.html . March 18, 2008 . live.
  40. News: Rachel . Sklar . Rachel Sklar . Millionaire Call Girl? Spitzer's Hooker Rakes In A Fortune Online From Her Music . . March 14, 2008 . March 16, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318114517/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/14/millionaire-call-girl-sp_n_91659.html . March 18, 2008 . live.
  41. News: Peter . Kafka . Ashley Alexandra Dupre: Not Rich Yet. Will She Ever Be? . Silicon Alley Insider . March 17, 2008 . March 17, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080318174752/http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/3/ashley_alexandra_dupre_not_rich_yet_will_she_ever_be_ . March 18, 2008 . dead .
  42. News: ASHLEY DUPRE: THE WEEK AFTER . . March 18, 2008 . March 20, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080321014636/http://musicnation.musicnation.com/blog/2008/03/ashley-dupre-the-week-after . March 21, 2008 . dead.
  43. https://blogs.wsj.com/buzzwatch/2008/03/13/web-video-mashup-culture-takes-on-ashley-dupre-and-her-music/ Wall Street Journal: Buzzwatch
  44. News: Matt . Donnelly . Rosenbaum, Claudia . Ashley Dupré: Girl Gone Hollywood? . . July 7, 2008 . July 9, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080715215736/http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/detail.jsp?contentId=f94a7243-ae8d-4908-b096-8aca1b25280d . July 15, 2008 . live.
  45. News: Track . Inside . Call on Dupre for a dose of reality TV . . Gossip . July 17, 2008 . July 18, 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090313062613/http://news.bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view/2008_07_10_Call_on_Dupre_for_a_dose_of_reality_TV/srvc%3Dhome%26position%3Dalso . March 13, 2009.
  46. News: Kimberly . Launier . Katie . Escherich . Ashley Dupré Exclusive: 'My Side of the Story' . . November 19, 2008 . November 22, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081122152846/https://abcnews.go.com/2020/Story?id=6280407&page=1 . November 22, 2008 . live.
  47. News: Ashley Dupres opens up to Diane Sawyer (Part 1) . ABC News Video . November 21, 2008 . November 22, 2008.
  48. News: Ashley Dupres opens up to Diane Sawyer (Part 2) . ABC News Video . November 21, 2008 . November 23, 2008.
  49. News: VH1 - Famous Food Series . https://web.archive.org/web/20110628082058/http://www.vh1.com/shows/famous_food/series.jhtml . dead . June 28, 2011 . VH1.
  50. News: Moore . Julia . Who Is Alix Earle? All About the Viral TikTok Sensation . 13 August 2023 . . 2023-08-09.

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