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$tars for $ale
By the Numbers: An Economic Analysis of 'Kristen'

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PAY FOR PLAY Dupre (Photo: MySpace)
Ashley Alexandra Dupré, aka "Kristen," aka the cute-ish 22-year-old hooker who, ahem, brought down New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, is officially the hottest thing on the Internet.

Over at Gawker, a gallery of her photos has already earned the blogger of the post a hefty traffic bonus. Her MySpace page is generating 5,000 visitors a minute, which is probably the reason she's decided to keep it live. "What We Want," her decently catchy debut single, has been played more than two million times and counting. She even has a fake Tumblr. The burning question: How effectively will "America's Whore" be able to monetize her new-found fame?

Portfolio's Jeff Bercovici has already looked into the possibility of young Kristen securing a book deal; interestingly, her prospects aren't as solid as you'd expect. Shameless publisher Judith Regan used to be the go-to for this sort of thing, but she's no longer in the biz, and other takers are few and far between. "I don't think it's worth anything," HarperCollins publisher Jonathan Burnham says. "There's no story there, just a transaction with a client."

Predictably, interest in Dupré jumps significantly if she were to put down the pen and take off her clothes. Penthouse publisher Diane Silberstein tells Radar that she'd be "very, very interested" in talking to anyone who had naked pics of Dupré, particularly if said pics were taken recently and of good quality. "We've already discussed some options—obviously, we'd be thrilled if we could land an exclusive," Silberstein says. (Is "exclusive" really in Dupré's lexicon, though?) When asked for a ballpark dollar amount the magazine would be willing to shell out, Silberstein said that any negotiation between the magazine and Dupré would be kept confidential. (A source at Playboy, however, says that the mag has also discussed the possibility of getting Dupré to pose, and that he could see her getting in the "high six figures.")

As for her burgeoning music career, enterprising Kristen has already taken the opportunity to add another club anthem, "Move Ya Body," to her Amie Street profile. She also jacked up the price of purchasing her two tracks to 98 cents apiece, up from 35 cents yesterday. ("Move Ya Body's" $4,300 hook: "Move ya hips, come with me tonight. Move ya body up against mine. Taste those lips, they taste so nice ...") One reviewer even maintains that "What We Want" is "not horrible," and estimates that she'll have an album in stores by May 5, 2008.

What else is out there? Paid appearances at Reno boat shows? A bit part in an upcoming Rob Schneider vehicle? A slot in the secretarial pool at Spitzer's new private practice? The possibilities are endless! Better cash in before this news cycle comes to an end.

By Neel Shah   03/13/08 1:45 PM
Related: $tars for $ale, Ashley Alexandra Dupre, Eliot Spitzer, Kristen, Scandal
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