Monique von Cleef

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Arriving in the United States in 1963, Monique first lived in Manhattan, where she took the first overt steps toward the career that later made her infamous; she began posing in leather for an S&M photo shoot. One thing led to another and eventually she moved to a house in Newark, New Jersey, which she would turn into the legendary "House of Pain". For over two years, she entertained clients from around the world who wanted to be disciplined and dominated by a woman.

In 1965, four days before Christmas, Monique von Cleef was arrested when an Essex County deputy sheriff, posing as a businessman, arranged for an “hour of discipline” at Miss von Cleef's plush home in the exclusive Newark neighborhood. The undercover deputy brought along a carload of detectives.

New Jersey police raided the elegant home and inside they found sixteen rooms outfitted with handcuffs, chains, a torture chamber, and an assortment of whips allegedly used by Miss von Cleef to satisfy the erotic whims of customers.

The next day the tabloids were filled with stories of, "The House of Pain," and its platinum blonde proprietress, "The Queen of Humiliation羞辱 — shame given on purpose."