Estella Marie Thompson

Last updated

Estella Marie Thompson
Divine Brown mug shot.jpg
Brown's 1995 mugshot
Born (1969-08-09) August 9, 1969 (age 54)
California, U.S.
Other namesDivine Brown
OccupationFormer sex worker
Known forHer arrest with Hugh Grant
PartnerAlvin C. Brown
Children2

Estella Marie Thompson (born August 9, 1969), also known as Divine Brown, is an American former sex worker who gained attention from law enforcement and the media in 1995 when actor Hugh Grant was caught receiving oral sex from her in his car on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard. Thompson has remained in the public eye since then through work in pornography, television appearances, and newspaper interviews.

Contents

Early life

Thompson grew up in poverty in the eastern part of Oakland, California. She was one of six children of a single mother. [1] Having herself become a mother of two daughters, she turned to sex work when she could not pay a $133 electricity bill. [1] Going to Union Square in San Francisco one night, she earned $1,000 in five hours.[ citation needed ]

Arrest with Hugh Grant

On June 27, 1995, Thompson and British actor Hugh Grant were arrested together in Los Angeles. According to Thompson, the attention of a policeman was alerted by Grant repeatedly pressing the brake pedal of his BMW with his foot, causing the brake lights to flash many times. [2]

Charged with lewd conduct, she pleaded no contest on September 6, 1995. [3] In addition to being ordered to attend an AIDS class and perform five days of community service, she was fined $1,150 for parole violations and sentenced to 180 days in jail. [3] Hugh Grant pleaded no contest and was fined $1,180, placed on two years' summary probation, and was ordered to complete an AIDS education program.

In September 1996, Thompson was arrested at the MGM Grand Las Vegas in Paradise after flirting and making suggestive comments to undercover police officers. [4] [5] A police officer involved in the operation was quoted as saying, "She didn't actually solicit, but the police officers knew what she was up to." [4] The arrest resulted in a $950 fine for loitering for the purpose of prostitution and resisting arrest. [6] Thompson denied she was still involved in sex work. [6]

Media appearances

Thompson only learned who her client had been when reporters besieged her house the day after her arrest.[ citation needed ] In the publicity that ensued in the days after her encounter with Grant, Thompson appeared on television shows, including The Howard Stern Show and Danny Bonaduce's short-lived Danny!. She appeared in a television commercial promoting a Los Angeles radio station, a commercial for a Brazilian lingerie company, [3] in semi-nude pictures for soft-porn magazines like Penthouse , and as a presenter on UK pornography channel Television X.[ citation needed ] In 1996, she played herself in an X-rated docu-drama based on the incident, Sunset and Divine: The British Experience. [7] In September 1996, she made an appearance at the professional wrestling show Fight the Power. [8]

Thompson continued to stay in the public eye, appearing in Joey Buttafuoco's public-access television show in 1998, on Judge Judy in 1996, [9] and on the Danish documentary series Negermagasinet in 2005. She was the subject of the biopic Million Dollar Hooker in 2006 and appeared on Hollywood Lives, an ITV television series, in 2007.

Personal life

Thompson has been reported to have earned a total of $1.6 million from publicity related to her arrest with Grant. As a result, she and her manager, partner, and father of her children, Alvin C. Brown, bought a four-bedroom home in Beverly Hills. Thompson has said the money she earned from interviews and endorsements after the 1995 interrupted dalliance has allowed her to put her daughters through private school. [10] "Everything worked out for the better," she said in 2007: "It helped me turn it into something positive … I was blessed that it could get me out of that lifestyle." [1] [11]

Grant, asked in a 2003 London Times interview about how he viewed his encounter with Thompson, said, "I think, ultimately, the pros and cons about evened out, actually. I remember saying to my agent the night of the event – I was very drunk – 'Is this bad for my career?' He was a very Hollywood guy, for whom everything is fantastic, and even he ... had to say: 'Oh, it's not great.' But on the other hand, there were odd things coming out of it that were quite positive, in a way. So I have to say, in all honesty, I think it was kind of neutral." [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liza Minnelli</span> American actress, singer, and dancer (born 1946)

Liza May Minnelli is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is one of the very few performers awarded a non-competitive Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT). Minnelli is a Knight of the French Legion of Honour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xaviera Hollander</span> Dutch prostitute (born 1943)

Xaviera Hollander is a Dutch former call girl, madam and author. She is best known for her best-selling memoir The Happy Hooker: My Own Story.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ginger Lynn</span> American pornographic actress

Ginger Lynn Allen is an American pornographic actress and model who was a premier adult-entertainment star of the 1980s. She also had minor roles in various B movies. Adult Video News ranked her at #7 of the 50 greatest porn stars of all time in 2002. After ending her pornography career, she began using her full name and found work in a variety of B-movies. She had a late-career return to the adult industry and made a brief series of movies. Allen is a member of AVN, NightMoves Adult Entertainment, and XRCO Halls of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenna Jameson</span> American pornographic actress (born 1974)

Jenna Marie Massoli, known professionally as Jenna Jameson, is an American businesswoman, writer, television personality and former pornographic film actress. She has been named the world's most famous adult entertainment performer and "The Queen of Porn".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marilyn Chambers</span> American pornographic actress (1952–2009)

Marilyn Ann Taylor, known professionally as Marilyn Chambers, was an American pornographic actress, exotic dancer, model, actress, singer and vice-presidential candidate. She was known for her 1972 hardcore film debut, Behind the Green Door, and her 1980 pornographic film Insatiable. She ranked at No. 6 on the list of Top 50 Porn Stars of All Time by AVN, and ranked as one of Playboy's Top 100 Sex Stars of the Century in 1999. Although she was primarily known for her adult film work, she made a successful transition to mainstream projects and has been called "porn's most famous crossover".

<i>Sense and Sensibility</i> (film) 1995 film by Ang Lee

Sense and Sensibility is a 1995 period drama film directed by Ang Lee and based on Jane Austen's 1811 novel of the same name. Emma Thompson wrote the screenplay and stars as Elinor Dashwood, while Kate Winslet plays Elinor's younger sister Marianne. The story follows the Dashwood sisters, members of a wealthy English family of landed gentry, as they must deal with circumstances of sudden destitution. They are forced to seek financial security through marriage. Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman play their respective suitors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugh Grant</span> English actor (born 1960)

Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as a charming and vulnerable romantic leading man, and has since transitioned into a character actor. Hallmarks of Grant's comic skills include a nonchalant touch of sarcasm and characteristic physical mannerisms. Among his accolades, he has received a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and an Honorary César. As of 2018, his films had grossed a total of nearly US$3 billion worldwide. In 2022, Time Out magazine listed Grant as one of Britain's 50 greatest actors of all time.

<i>Hustler</i> (magazine) American pornographic magazine

Hustler is a monthly adult-targeted magazine published by Larry Flynt Publications (LFP) in the United States. Introduced in 1974, it was a step forward from the Hustler Newsletter, originally conceived by founder Larry Flynt as cheap advertising for his strip club businesses at the time. The magazine grew from an uncertain start to a peak circulation of around 3 million in the early 1980s; it has since dropped to approximately 500,000. Hustler was among the first major US-based magazines to feature graphic photos of female genitalia and simulated sex acts, in contrast with relatively modest publications such as Playboy. In the 1990s, Hustler, like several of its competitors, began featuring depictions of sexual penetration and oral sex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Savannah (actress)</span> American pornographic actress (1970–1994)

Shannon Michelle Wilsey, better known by her stage name Savannah, was an American pornographic film actress who starred in over 100 videos during her career. One of the most prominent adult industry models of her time, she achieved notoriety within her short (1990–1994) career due to her onscreen presence and personal life. In January 2002, AVN ranked her at #19 on its list of the top 50 porn stars of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lorna Luft</span> American actress and singer (born 1952)

Lorna Luft is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of Judy Garland and Sidney Luft, the sister of Joey Luft and the half-sister of Liza Minnelli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christy Canyon</span> American pornographic actress (born 1966)

Christy Canyon is a retired pornographic actress and American radio personality. She is an inductee of the AVN and XRCO Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Bauer</span> American actress

Michelle Bauer is an American actress, model, and B movie scream queen.

<i>Nine Months</i> 1995 romantic comedy film by Chris Columbus

Nine Months is a 1995 American romantic comedy film produced, written and directed by Chris Columbus. The film stars Hugh Grant, Julianne Moore, Tom Arnold, Joan Cusack, Jeff Goldblum and Robin Williams. It is a remake of the French film, Neuf mois, and served as Grant's first US starring role. It was filmed on location in the San Francisco Bay Area. The original music score was composed by Hans Zimmer. It was released on July 12, 1995, and received mixed reviews from critics, grossing $138 million worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeanna Fine</span> American pornographic actress (born 1964)

Jeanna Fine is an American former pornographic actress and erotic dancer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kylie Ireland</span> American pornographic actress (born 1970)

Kylie Ireland is an American pornographic actress, film director, producer, publicist, and satellite radio show host. She is an inductee into the AVN, XRCO, and NightMoves Halls of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Candy Barr</span> American stripper, burlesque dancer (1935–2005)

Juanita Dale Slusher, better known by her stage name Candy Barr, was an American stripper, burlesque dancer, actress, and adult model in men's magazines of the mid-20th century.

Monica Mattos is a Brazilian former pornographic actress, director, dancer and television presenter who began her film career in 2003 in Brazil and in 2005 in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter North (actor)</span> Canadian pornographic actor

Alden Joseph Brown, known professionally as Peter North, is a Canadian retired pornographic actor, director and producer. He has 2,155 credits as an actor and 77 as a director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JC's Girls</span> 21st-century American evangelical organization

JC's Girls is an evangelical Christian women's organization in the United States whose members evangelize to female workers in the sex industry. The organization supports women wishing to leave the industry, but does not try to persuade them to do so. The group does not focus upon conversion but rather on communicating its message that Christians exist who are not judging female sex workers and are willing to accept them. The organization also helps both women and men seeking to overcome pornography addiction.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Dugan, Emily (July 7, 2007). "Dumb luck, divine intervention?". The Age. Retrieved August 11, 2009.
  2. 1 2 "Hugh Grant interview". Times Online. February 2, 2003. Retrieved May 2, 2010.(subscription required)
  3. 1 2 3 Hollywood Hooker Divine Brown Starts Jail Term Daily News, November 2, 1995 (From Google News Archive)
  4. 1 2 ANNE E. KORNBLUT (September 10, 1996), "DIVINE'S NOT OFF THE HOOK YET", New York Daily News
  5. ↑ Matthew Ross Lippman Contemporary Criminal Law: Concepts, Cases, and Controversies Google Books
  6. 1 2 "All is not divine when Brown stands on street corners" The Post-Standard, November 22, 1996
  7. ↑ Transcripts: Showbiz Tonight CNN.com, February 6, 2007; Retrieved May 25, 2007
  8. ↑ Heels Inc (April 29, 2014). "The "Oh My God!" review: ECW TV 6/4/96 "Fight the Power"". CrazyMax.org. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
  9. ↑ JJ Justice (November 8, 2021). "Judge Judy "Special Edition" 1996 Fred Lapides Opening Theme, Teasers, and End Theme/Credits". YouTube.com. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  10. ↑ Hugh's Divine intervention Sydney Morning Herald, July 7, 2007
  11. ↑ WENN (August 28, 2010). "Former prostitute thanks Grant for changing her life". Wonderwall. MSN. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.