Taking a Page from Bettie

Bettie Page became famous for her lack of clothing. Still, a few Las Vegas locals are hoping her name will soon be associated with clothes, modest ones at that.

The new Bettie Page boutique inside Desert Passage at the Aladdin, soon-to-be Planet Hollywood, boasts the type of clothing one would imagine the '50s pinup would have worn before one of her famous strip teases. Pencil skirts, Mary Jane platforms, round-collared button-up jackets and full A-line dresses -- the secretary-like uniform of that era -- all make a sexy comeback.

"I always liked that kind of style. It doesn't matter where they were, the kitchen or anywhere, (women of that time) always looked elegant and nice," said Tatyana Khomyakova, co-owner and designer of the Bettie Page clothing line, exclusive to Las Vegas.

Those who prefer the kind of gear they've come to associate with Page have a section just for them. Boy short sets, pretty bras, frilly panties and a variety of fishnets decorate a modest section of one of the walls in the store.

Although the clothes and lingerie turn heads, a few other features in the boutique compete for attention. Customers are greeted with a 12-feet-tall painted head shot of the vixen behind the cash register. On the right side wall, 25 paintings of Page hang. All of them are works of Olivia, the artist who is featured in Playboy magazine each month with a new painting of her muse, Bettie Page. Three of them are originals with price tags ranging from $50,000 to $80,000. And sitting atop a glass case in the corner of the store is a retro-inspired television showing none other than a Bettie Page strip tease in black and white. That doesn't keep today's HDTV and plasma-conditioned society from gathering around the tiny tube.

The store expects a steady stream of male customers. "It's amazing how many guys come in with Bettie Page tattoos," said Nicole Byrne, co-owner. For them, the store has calendars, memorabilia, T-shirts and dress shirts.

The guys aren't the only ones who pass the store and can't help but wander in. The ladies who were actually around to wear these styles when they first became fashionable want a piece of the action, too. For them it's more about nostalgia. "We get older ladies, which is great because our goal is not to have only young customers," Khomyakova said. "The older people like it because they wore it. The young people like it because it makes them stand out and they like to show off."

The Rockabilly community has embraced the '50s attire the most. The group tends to favor the era's hair, makeup, cars, even vernacular. Bettie Page owners, Khomyakova, Nicole Byrne, Steve Byrne and Jan Glaser, expect this weekend to put the opening of the store into high gear. Viva Las Vegas, the weekend in which the Rockabilly community invades the city for three days of music, cars and gallivanting, comes to town.

"They (Rockabilly girls) like it because it's very girly but naughty, too," Nicole Byrne said of the clothing. Khomyakova chimes in with a claim one wouldn't expect in a conversation about anything related to the iconic sex symbol: "Sometimes when everything is closed (and covered) it's even sexier," she said. Maybe they'll be able to convince Las Vegas of that.

The first and only Bettie Page boutique is inside Desert Passage at the Aladdin, soon to be Planet Hollywood, located at 3667 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 636-1100 or toll free at 1-866-4-BETTIE.