Ménage à trois
Encyclopedia
Ménage à trois is a French
term which originally described a domestic arrangement in which three people having sexual relations occupy the same household – the phrase literally translates as "household of three". In contemporary usage, the meaning of the term has been extended to mean any living relationship between three people, whether or not sex is involved, but because it has also been extended to refer to the actual sexual act between three people, otherwise known as a threesome
, the term retains its suggestive quality.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
term which originally described a domestic arrangement in which three people having sexual relations occupy the same household – the phrase literally translates as "household of three". In contemporary usage, the meaning of the term has been extended to mean any living relationship between three people, whether or not sex is involved, but because it has also been extended to refer to the actual sexual act between three people, otherwise known as a threesome
Threesome
A threesome is a group of three engaged in the same activity. In relation to a sexual activity a threesome refer to the activity involving three people of any gender or sexual orientation...
, the term retains its suggestive quality.
Historical instances
Some known examples are:- Sir William HamiltonWilliam Hamilton (diplomat)Sir William Hamilton KB, PC, FRS was a Scottish diplomat, antiquarian, archaeologist and vulcanologist. After a short period as a Member of Parliament, he served as British Ambassador to the Kingdom of Naples from 1764 to 1800...
(British ambassador to Naples), his wife Emma Hamilton, and her lover, the naval hero Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson, from 1799 until Nelson's death in 1805. - Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, the Duke of DevonshireWilliam Cavendish, 5th Duke of DevonshireWilliam Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, KG was a British aristocrat and politician. He was the eldest son of the William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire by his wife the heiress Lady Charlotte Boyle, suo jure Baroness Clifford of Lanesborough, who brought in considerable money and estates to...
, and Lady Elizabeth Foster - Henry Mond, 2nd Baron MelchettHenry Mond, 2nd Baron MelchettHenry Ludwig Mond, 2nd Baron Melchett was a British politician, industrialist and financier.-Early life and education:...
his wife, Amy Gwen Wilson, and writer Gilbert CannanGilbert CannanGilbert Cannan was a British novelist and dramatist.-Early life:Born in Manchester of Scottish descent, he got on badly with his family, and in 1897 he was sent to live in Oxford with the economist Edwin Cannan...
. - In SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in 1775, Count Adolf Fredrik Munck af FulkilaCount Adolf Fredrik Munck af FulkilaAdolf Fredrik, Count Munck af Fulkila was a Swedish and Finnish noble alleged to have been the biological father of King Gustaf IV Adolf.- Biography :...
had reputedly been hired by king Gustaf III to assist him in the consummationConsummationConsummation is the initial sexual act made within a marriage.Consummation can also refer to:* Consummation , 1970 recordingSee also:* Consummation of days, event predicted in Daniel Chapter 12, verses 1-4...
of his marriage with Queen Sophie Magdalena. He was to act as sexual instructor for the couple. His "aid" is alleged to have resulted in the birth of the future King Gustaf IV Adolf in 1778. By further rumors, he was the lover of the king as well as of the queen. These rumors eventually had serious political implications in the end of the House of Holstein-Gottorp's rule in Sweden. - The German intellectual Dorothea von Rodde-SchlözerDorothea von Rodde-SchlözerDorothea von Rodde-Schlözer , , was a talented German scholar and the first woman to receive a doctor of philosophy degree in Germany.-Life:...
, her husband Mattheus Rodde and the French philosopher Charles de VillersCharles de VillersCharles François Dominique de Villers was a French philosopher. He was mainly responsible for translating the philosophy of Immanuel Kant into the French language.-Life:...
from 1794 until her husband's death in 1810. - Poet Ezra PoundEzra PoundEzra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
, his wife Dorothy Shakespear and his mistress, concert violinist Olga RudgeOlga RudgeOlga Rudge was an American-born concert violinist, now mainly remembered as the long-time mistress of the poet Ezra Pound, by whom she had a daughter, Mary....
. - Surrealist painters Max ErnstMax ErnstMax Ernst was a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was one of the primary pioneers of the Dada movement and Surrealism.-Early life:...
, Paul ÉluardPaul ÉluardPaul Éluard, born Eugène Émile Paul Grindel , was a French poet who was one of the founders of the surrealist movement.-Biography:...
and his wife Gala, later Gala DalíGala DalíGala Dalí , usually known simply as Gala, was the wife of first Paul Éluard, then Salvador Dalí, and an inspiration for them and many other writers and artists.- Early years :...
. - The writer Aldous HuxleyAldous HuxleyAldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
and his first wife Maria, with Mary Hutchinson a friend of Clive BellClive BellArthur Clive Heward Bell was an English Art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group.- Origins :Clive Bell was born in East Shefford, Berkshire, in 1881...
. - The author E. NesbitE. NesbitEdith Nesbit was an English author and poet whose children's works were published under the name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on over 60 books of fiction for children, several of which have been adapted for film and television...
lived with her husband Hubert Bland and his mistress Alice Hoatson, raising their children as her own. - William Moulton MarstonWilliam Moulton MarstonDr. William Moulton Marston , also known by the pen name Charles Moulton, was an American psychologist, feminist theorist, inventor and comic book writer who created the character Wonder Woman...
, creator of Wonder WomanWonder WomanWonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
, and his wife Elizabeth Holloway MarstonElizabeth Holloway MarstonElizabeth "Sadie" Holloway Marston was an American psychologist who was a career woman at a time when it was difficult for women to be so. She was involved in the creation of the comic book character, Wonder Woman with her husband, William Moulton Marston...
lived with and shared a relationship with Olive Byrne. - Philosophers Friedrich NietzscheFriedrich NietzscheFriedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
, Paul RéePaul RéePaul Ludwig Carl Heinrich Rée was a German author and philosopher, and friend of Friedrich Nietzsche.-Biography:...
and their mutual friend Lou Andreas-SaloméLou Andreas-SaloméLou Andreas-Salomé was a Russian-born psychoanalyst and author. Her diverse intellectual interests led to friendships with a broad array of distinguished western luminaries, including Nietzsche, Wagner, Freud, and Rilke.- Early years :Lou Salomé was born in St...
lived in an "academic commune" around 1882. - The actress and stage director Edith CraigEdith CraigEdith Ailsa Geraldine Craig was a prolific theatre director, producer, costume designer and early pioneer of the women's suffrage movement in England...
who lived with and was in a relationship with the dramatist Christabel MarshallChristabel MarshallChristabel Gertrude Marshall was a British campaigner for women's suffrage, a playwright and author...
and the artist Clare AtwoodClare AtwoodClare 'Tony' Atwood was a British painter of portraits, still life, landscapes, interiors and decorative flower subjects...
from 1916 to 1947. - The actress Hattie JacquesHattie JacquesJosephine Edwina Jaques was an English comedy actress, known as Hattie Jacques.Starting her career in the 1940s, Jacques first gained attention through her radio appearances with Tommy Handley on ITMA and later with Tony Hancock on Hancock's Half Hour...
lived with her husband John Le MesurierJohn Le MesurierJohn Le Mesurier was a BAFTA Award-winning English actor. He is most famous for his role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the popular 1970s BBC comedy Dad's Army.-Career:...
and her lover John Schofield. - Speculation that, in 1547–8, Queen Catherine ParrCatherine ParrCatherine Parr ; 1512 – 5 September 1548) was Queen consort of England and Ireland and the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII of England. She married Henry VIII on 12 July 1543. She was the fourth commoner Henry had taken as his consort, and outlived him...
, widow of Henry VIIIHenry VIII of EnglandHenry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, and her fourth husband Thomas SeymourThomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of SudeleyThomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, KG was an English politician.Thomas spent his childhood in Wulfhall, outside Savernake Forest, in Wiltshire. Historian David Starkey describes Thomas thus: 'tall, well-built and with a dashing beard and auburn hair, he was irresistible to women'...
were involved in a ménage with the future Queen ElizabethElizabeth I of EnglandElizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
, is probably exaggerated, although there were well attested episodes of sexually charged horseplay involving the three. - Russian and Soviet poet Vladimir MayakovskyVladimir MayakovskyVladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky was a Russian and Soviet poet and playwright, among the foremost representatives of early-20th century Russian Futurism.- Early life :...
lived with Lilya BrikLilya BrikLilya Yuryevna Brik is known best as a muse of Vladimir Mayakovsky. She was an older sister of Elsa Triolet and wife of Osip Brik. Pablo Neruda called her "muse of Russian avant-garde"...
, who was considered his muse, and her husband Osip BrikOsip BrikOsip Maksimovich Brik , , Russian avant garde writer and literary critic, was one of the most important members of the Russian formalist school, though he also identified himself as one of the Futurists....
, an avant garde writer and critic. - British actress Tilda SwintonTilda SwintonKatherine Mathilda "Tilda" Swinton is a British actress known for both arthouse and mainstream films. She has appeared in a number of films including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Burn After Reading, The Beach, We Need to Talk About Kevin and was nominated for a Golden Globe for her...
lives in NairnNairnNairn is a town and former burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness...
, near to Scottish painter John Byrne and their twin children: a son, Xavier, and a daughter, Honor. She travels with her partner Sandro Kopp, a German/New Zealand painter. She has been with Kopp since 2004 and the relationship has Byrne's blessing. In an interview, Swinton commented on her domestic situation: "It’s the way we have been for nearly four years. I’m very fortunate. It takes some extraordinary men to make a situation like that work."
In popular culture
The ménage à trois is a recurring theme in fiction and has been the subject of a number of books, plays, films and songs. Some notable examples include:Literature
- Marion Zimmer BradleyMarion Zimmer BradleyMarion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Many critics have noted a feminist perspective in her writing. Her first child, David R...
, The Mists of AvalonThe Mists of AvalonThe Mists of Avalon is a 1983 novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley, in which she relates the Arthurian legends from the perspective of the female characters.-Plot introduction:...
(1982): relates the relationship of King ArthurKing ArthurKing Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
, GuinevereGuinevereGuinevere was the legendary queen consort of King Arthur. In tales and folklore, she was said to have had a love affair with Arthur's chief knight Sir Lancelot...
, and LancelotLancelotSir Lancelot du Lac is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend. He is the most trusted of King Arthur's knights and plays a part in many of Arthur's victories...
as a ménage à trois. - The same theme is taken up in Guy Gavriel KayGuy Gavriel KayGuy Gavriel Kay is a Canadian author of fantasy fiction. Many of his novels are set in fictional realms that resemble real places during real historical periods, such as Constantinople during the reign of Justinian I or Spain during the time of El Cid...
's "The Fionavar TapestryThe Fionavar TapestryThe Fionavar Tapestry is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Guy Gavriel Kay, set partly in our own contemporary world, but mostly in the fictional world of Fionavar. It is the story of five University of Toronto senior law and medical students, who are drawn into the 'first world of the Tapestry' by...
", where the Athurian characters are resurrected and have further adventures in the world of Fionavar, in the course of which they overcome the jealousies of their previous lives; when last appearing in this trilogy, Guinevere is depicted having one of her arms around each of the two men, the three of them bound to live happily ever after. - Michael CunninghamMichael CunninghamMichael Cunningham is an American writer, best known for his 1998 novel The Hours, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award in 1999.-Early life and education:...
, A Home At The End Of The WorldA Home at the End of the WorldA Home at the End of the World is a 1990 novel by Pulitzer Prize-winning American author Michael Cunningham.The book is narrated in the first person, with the narrator changing in each chapter. Bobby and Jonathan are the main narrators, but several chapters are narrated by Alice, Jonathan's mother,...
(1990): centers for the most part on a ménage à trois. - Arnon GrunbergArnon GrünbergArnon Yasha Yves Grunberg is a Dutch writer. Some of his books were written using the heteronym Marek van der Jagt....
, The Asylum SeekerThe Asylum SeekerThe Asylum Seeker is a novel by Dutch author Arnon Grunberg. Published in 2003, the novel won the AKO Literatuurprijs and Ferdinand Bordewijk Prijs in 2004, and has been reprinted more than fourteen times...
(2003): has a ménage à trois involving a disillusioned man, a terminally ill woman, and an asylum seeker. - Ernest HemingwayErnest HemingwayErnest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
, The Garden of EdenThe Garden of EdenThe Garden of Eden is the second posthumously released novel of Ernest Hemingway, published in 1986. Begun in 1946, Hemingway worked on the manuscript for the next 15 years, during which time he also wrote The Old Man and the Sea, The Dangerous Summer, A Moveable Feast, and Islands in the...
(written 1946–1961, published 1986): centers on an American expatriate couple who bring another woman into their marriage. - Jean RhysJean RhysJean Rhys , born Ella Gwendolen Rees Williams, was a mid 20th-century novelist from Dominica. Educated from the age of 16 in Great Britain, she is best known for her novel Wide Sargasso Sea , written as a "prequel" to Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre.-Early life:Rhys was born in Roseau, Dominica...
, Quartet (originally titled Postures) (1928): a roman à clefRoman à clefRoman à clef or roman à clé , French for "novel with a key", is a phrase used to describe a novel about real life, overlaid with a façade of fiction. The fictitious names in the novel represent real people, and the "key" is the relationship between the nonfiction and the fiction...
in which Rhys fictionalised her affair with Ford Madox FordFord Madox FordFord Madox Ford was an English novelist, poet, critic and editor whose journals, The English Review and The Transatlantic Review, were instrumental in the development of early 20th-century English literature...
. - Bob ShawBob ShawBob Shaw, born Robert Shaw, was a science fiction author and fan from Northern Ireland. He was noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980...
, The Two-Timers (1968): described a ménage à trois in which the husband and the lover are two versions of the same man, from two alternate time lines. - Adam ThirlwellAdam ThirlwellAdam Thirlwell is a British novelist. He was educated at the independent Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, Elstree. He is assistant editor of Areté, an arts tri-quarterly. He also writes a column for Esquire magazine....
, PoliticsPolitics (novel)Politics is a 2003 novel by Adam Thirlwell about a father-daughter relationship and about a ménage à trois which includes said daughter and two of her friends. We are informed by the narrator that the novel is about "goodness".-Plot summary:...
(2003): a novel about a ménage à trois, which is referred to as "the socialist utopia of sex". - In the Lunar society depicted by Robert Heinlein in The Moon is a Harsh MistressThe Moon Is a Harsh MistressThe Moon Is a Harsh Mistress is a 1966 science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, about a lunar colony's revolt against rule from Earth....
, a common form of family is a troika, composed of a wife, a senior husband and a junior husband. - Dylan ThomasDylan ThomasDylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer, Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 January 2008. who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
, Under Milk WoodUnder Milk WoodUnder Milk Wood is a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, adapted later as a stage play. A movie version, Under Milk Wood directed by Andrew Sinclair, was released during 1972....
: a ménage à trois is seen in the form of Dai Bread, and his two wives: Mrs. Dai Bread 1 and Mrs. Dai Bread 2. - Simone de BeauvoirSimone de BeauvoirSimone-Ernestine-Lucie-Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir, often shortened to Simone de Beauvoir , was a French existentialist philosopher, public intellectual, and social theorist. She wrote novels, essays, biographies, an autobiography in several volumes, and monographs on philosophy, politics, and...
's, She Came to StayShe Came to StayShe Came to Stay is a novel written by French author Simone de Beauvoir first published in 1943. The novel is a fictional account of her and Jean-Paul Sartre's relationship with Olga Kosakiewicz and Wanda Kosakiewicz.-Plot:...
tells the semi-fictional story about a woman named Françoise whose open relationship with Pierre becomes strained when they form a ménage à trois with her younger friend Xaviere. - John UpdikeJohn UpdikeJohn Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short story writer, art critic, and literary critic....
, in Rabbit ReduxRabbit ReduxRabbit Redux is a 1971 novel by John Updike. It is the second book in his "Rabbit" series, beginning with Rabbit, Run and followed by Rabbit Is Rich, Rabbit At Rest, and the related 2001 novella, Rabbit Remembered.-Plot summary:...
when Rabbit who welcomes Jill in his house finally hosts Skeeter for a period before the arson of the house. - In The Deptford TrilogyThe Deptford TrilogyThe Deptford Trilogy is a novel trilogy by Canadian novelist Robertson Davies.-Overview:The trilogy consists of Fifth Business , The Manticore , and World of Wonders...
by Robertson DaviesRobertson DaviesWilliam Robertson Davies, CC, OOnt, FRSC, FRSL was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best-known and most popular authors, and one of its most distinguished "men of letters", a term Davies is variously said to have gladly accepted for himself...
, the scholar Dunstan Ramsay and the stage magician Paul Dempster a.k.a. Magnus Eisengrim end up as the "permanent guests" and lovers of the eccentric Swiss millionaire Lieselotte Naegeli - the three of them occasionally sharing an especially large bed, though "most often in order to have a breakfast in bed or take an important decision" rather than for sex. - Science fictionScience fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
writer Poul AndersonPoul AndersonPoul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories...
, in his novel Three Worlds to Conquer, depicts an alien species (on JupiterJupiterJupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
) for whom a kind of "ménage à trois" is a fundamental biological imperative. A female of that species can only conceive by mating with two different males within a few hours of each other; thus, every individual has a mother and two fathers, and every family is composed of a female and two males. - In the Anita BlakeAnita BlakeAnita Blake is a fictional character in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series of novels by Laurell K. Hamilton. Subsequently, she has also appeared in the Dabel Brothers/Marvel Comics adaptation of her first novel, Guilty Pleasures....
series by Laurell K. HamiltonLaurell K. HamiltonLaurell Kaye Hamilton is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is the author of two series of stories. Hamilton is known for her New York Times-bestselling Anita Blake series, featuring a professional zombie raiser/supernatural consultant for the police as the protagonist in a world where...
between AsherAsherAsher , in the Book of Genesis, is the second son of Jacob and Zilpah, and the founder of the Tribe of Asher.-Name:The text of the Torah argues that the name of Asher means happy/blessing, implying a derivation from the Hebrew term osher ; the Torah actually presents this in two variations—beoshri...
, Anita BlakeAnita BlakeAnita Blake is a fictional character in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series of novels by Laurell K. Hamilton. Subsequently, she has also appeared in the Dabel Brothers/Marvel Comics adaptation of her first novel, Guilty Pleasures....
and Jean-ClaudeJean-ClaudeJean-Claude is a fictional character in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series of novels by Laurell K. Hamilton. Within the novels, Jean-Claude's role is as one of the primary love interests of the series heroine, Anita Blake....
. Also mentioned as previously occurring and not described in detail in the series is the relationship between Jean-Claude, Asher, and Julianna.
Theatre
- Noel CowardNoël CowardSir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
, Design for LivingDesign for LivingDesign for Living is a comedy play written by Noël Coward in 1932. It concerns a trio of artistic characters, Gilda, Otto and Leo, and their complicated three-way relationship. Originally written to star Lynn Fontanne, Alfred Lunt and Coward, it was premiered on Broadway, partly because its risqué...
(1933), also Design for Living (film)Design for Living (film)Design for Living is a 1933 American comedy film produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch. The screenplay by Ben Hecht is based on the 1933 play of the same name by Noël Coward. It concerns a trio of artistic Americans in Paris and their complicated three-way relationship.The film stars Fredric...
(Ernst LubitschErnst LubitschErnst Lubitsch was a German-born film director. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as his prestige grew, his films were promoted as having "the Lubitsch touch."In 1947 he received an Honorary Academy Award for his...
, 1933): about the complicated relationship between two men and a woman. - Samuel BeckettSamuel BeckettSamuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
, Play (play)Play (play)Play is a one-act play by Samuel Beckett. It was written between 1962 and 1963 and first produced in German as Spiel on 14 June 1963 at the Ulmer Theatre in Ulm-Donau, Germany, directed by Deryk Mendel, with Nancy Illig , Sigfrid Pfeiffer and Gerhard Winter...
(1963): absurdistAbsurdist fictionAbsurdist fiction is a genre of literature, most often employed in novels, plays or poems, that focuses on the experiences of characters in a situation where they cannot find any inherent purpose in life, most often represented by ultimately meaningless actions and events...
theatre piece about the situation between two women and one man.
Films
- Design for LivingDesign for Living (film)Design for Living is a 1933 American comedy film produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch. The screenplay by Ben Hecht is based on the 1933 play of the same name by Noël Coward. It concerns a trio of artistic Americans in Paris and their complicated three-way relationship.The film stars Fredric...
(Ernst LubitschErnst LubitschErnst Lubitsch was a German-born film director. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as his prestige grew, his films were promoted as having "the Lubitsch touch."In 1947 he received an Honorary Academy Award for his...
, 1933): An early example of ménage à trois in Hollywood cinema. - Jules et Jim (François TruffautFrançois TruffautFrançois Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...
, 1961): is another classic ménage à trois. - Paint Your WagonPaint Your Wagon (film)Paint Your Wagon is a 1969 American musical film starring Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood. The movie was adapted by Paddy Chayefsky from the 1951 stage musical by Lerner and Loewe, set in a mining camp in Gold Rush-era California.-Plot:...
(Paddy ChayefskyPaddy ChayefskySidney Aaron "Paddy" Chayefsky , was an American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. He is the only person to have won three solo Academy Awards for Best Screenplay....
, 1969): Ben marries Elizabeth, but she falls in love with Partner. They decide that if a MormonMormonThe term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
man can have two wivesPlural marriagePolygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
, then a wife can have two husbands. - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 American Western film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman...
(George Roy HillGeorge Roy HillGeorge Roy Hill was an American film director. He is most noted for directing such films as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting, which both starred the acting duo Paul Newman and Robert Redford...
, 1969): the relationship between ButchButch CassidyRobert LeRoy Parker , better known as Butch Cassidy, was a notorious American train robber, bank robber, and leader of the Wild Bunch Gang in the American Old West...
, Sundance and Etta Place is a classic ménage à trois. - SplendorSplendor (1999 film)Splendor is a film directed by Gregg Araki starring Kathleen Robertson, Johnathon Schaech, Matt Keeslar, Kelly Macdonald and Eric Mabius. The film narrates the lives of the characters Veronica Abel and Zed , and how a relationship forms between these three characters that is equivalent to a...
(Gregg ArakiGregg ArakiGregg Araki is an American independent filmmaker. He is involved in New Queer Cinema.-Early life:Araki was born in Los Angeles but grew up in Santa Barbara, California...
, 1999): Comedy/romance involving three central characters, Abel (Johnathon SchaechJohnathon SchaechJohnathon Schaech is an American actor, writer, and director.-Early life:Schaech was born in Edgewood, Maryland to Joseph, a Baltimore City law enforcement officer, and Joanne Schaech, a human resources executive. He is of German and Italian descent, and was raised Roman Catholic...
), a shy writer, Veronica (Kathleen RobertsonKathleen RobertsonKathleen Robertson is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Clare Arnold in Beverly Hills, 90210 .-Career:Robertson started taking acting classes when she was ten, and had roles in local theater productions...
), a headstrong actress, and Zed (Matt KeeslarMatt KeeslarMatt Keeslar is an American actor.Keeslar was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the son of Fred Keeslar and Ann Ferguson, who divorced in 1977....
), a drummer in an indie band, who form a romantic relationship following Veronica's inability/refusal to choose between the two male characters, and the male characters' eventual acceptance of each other as equal romantic partners to Veronica. - ThreesomeThreesome (film)Threesome is a 1994 film, written and directed by Andrew Fleming. The film is an autobiographical comedy mixed in with some social commentary, and is based on the college memories of Fleming. It was given an R rating by the Motion Picture Association of America...
1994 film about 2 guy college roommates who mistakenly get a female roommate in their dorm. - French TwistFrench TwistFrench Twist , is a 1995 French comedy film. It was written and directed by co-star Josiane Balasko. The film was a hit in France gaining 3,790,381 Admissions and grossing $1,026,646 in the United States.-Synopsis:...
(Josiane BalaskoJosiane BalaskoJosiane Balasko is a French actress, writer and director.She was born Josiane Balašković in Paris. One of Balasko's most recognized roles among English speakers is as a lesbian in 1995's Gazon maudit...
, 1995) : a comedy about a man who hates lesbians, his wife and a lesbian. - Sunday Bloody SundaySunday Bloody Sunday (film)Sunday Bloody Sunday is a 1971 British drama film directed by John Schlesinger and starring Murray Head, Glenda Jackson and Peter Finch. It tells the story of a free-spirited young bisexual artist and his simultaneous relationships with a female recruitment consultant and a male Jewish doctor...
(John SchlesingerJohn SchlesingerJohn Richard Schlesinger, CBE was an English film and stage director and actor.-Early life:Schlesinger was born in London into a middle-class Jewish family, the son of Winifred Henrietta and Bernard Edward Schlesinger, a physician...
, 1971): film about a threesome with a homosexual man, a heterosexual woman, and a bisexual man. - Dona Flor and Her Two HusbandsDona Flor and Her Two HusbandsDona Flor and Her Two Husbands is a 1976 comedy film directed by Bruno Barreto. Based on the novel of the same name by Jorge Amado, it takes place in 1940s Bahia. It stars Sônia Braga, José Wilker, and Mauro Mendonça in the leading roles...
(Bruno BarretoBruno BarretoBruno Barreto is a Brazilian film director born in Rio de Janeiro. He has been making feature-length films ever since he was seventeen years old and remains one of Brazil’s most accomplished and popular directors to this day...
, 1976): tells of a woman who lives simultaneously with her second husband and the ghost of her first. - Summer LoversSummer LoversSummer Lovers is a 1982 film written and directed by Randal Kleiser, starring Peter Gallagher, Daryl Hannah and Valerie Quennessen, and filmed on location on the island of Santorini, Greece. The original music score is composed by Basil Poledouris...
(Randal KleiserRandal KleiserJohn Randal Kleiser is an American film director and producer, perhaps best known for directing the 1978 musical film Grease.-Life and career:...
, 1982): a vacation in Greece leads to a female-male-female relationship that is both emotional and sexual. - Tenue de soirée (Bertrand BlierBertrand BlierBertrand Blier is a French screenwriter and film director.Born in Boulogne-Billancourt, France. He is the son of Bernard Blier....
, 1986) : a couple and a homosexual friend. - Rita, Sue and Bob TooRita, Sue and Bob TooRita, Sue and Bob Too is a 1986 British film directed by Alan Clarke about two West Yorkshire teenaged schoolgirls who have a sexual fling with a married man. It was adapted by Andrea Dunbar, based on two of her stage plays; Rita Sue and Bob Too and The Arbor...
, (1986): two Bradford teenagers have affairs with a married man. - Three of HeartsThree of Hearts (film)Three of Hearts is a 1993 comedy/romance film directed by Yurek Bogayevicz and starring William Baldwin, Kelly Lynch, and Sherilyn Fenn.- Plot summary :...
(Yurek BogayeviczYurek BogayeviczYurek Bogajevicz is a Polish film director, screenwriter, actor and producer. He directed, among others, Anna , Three of Hearts and Exit in Red .-Director:* Anna...
, 1993): a menage between straight gigoloGigoloGigolo may refer to:* A male prostitute, escort, or dancer, who offers services to women* Gigolo , a 2006 single by Helena Paparizou* Gigolo , a 2003 single by Nick Cannon...
, his lesbian best friend and her former lover, an attractive bisexual woman. - Vicky Cristina BarcelonaVicky Cristina BarcelonaVicky Cristina Barcelona is a 2008 romance comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, and starring Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall...
(Woody AllenWoody AllenWoody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
, 2008): depicts a dysfunctional, sometimes violent relationship between two Spanish artists that is finally brought in to balance with the addition of Cristina. - Whatever WorksWhatever WorksWhatever Works is a 2009 American comedy film directed and written by Woody Allen, starring Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Clarkson, Ed Begley, Jr., Michael McKean, and Henry Cavill.-Plot:...
(Woody AllenWoody AllenWoody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
, 2009): Marietta, an Evangelical Christan from the Deep SouthDeep SouthThe Deep South is a descriptive category of the cultural and geographic subregions in the American South. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the pre-Civil War period...
, arrives in New York City and undergoes a life change that involves becoming an artist moving in with two men. - Y tu mamá tambiénY tu mamá tambiénY tu mamá también is a 2001 Mexican comedy-drama film directed by Alfonso Cuarón, and co-written by Cuarón and his brother Carlos. The film is a coming-of-age story about two teenage boys taking a road trip with a woman in her late twenties; it stars Mexican actors Diego Luna and Gael García...
(AlfonsoAlfonso CuarónAlfonso Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his films Children of Men, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mamá también, and A Little Princess.- Early life :...
and Carlos CuarónCarlos CuarónCarlos José Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican screenwriter, film producer and film director. He is the brother of Alfonso Cuarón.- Biography :Carlos Cuarón was born in Mexico City and studied English literature at UNAM...
, 2001): a MexicanMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
coming-of-age movie focusing on the sexual lives of the three main characters. - The Dreamers (Bernardo BertolucciBernardo BertolucciBernardo Bertolucci is an Italian film director and screenwriter, whose films include The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris, 1900, The Last Emperor and The Dreamers...
, 2003): a beautiful and functional ménage à trois with an unfortunate end. - Head in the CloudsHead in the CloudsHead in the Clouds is a 2004 drama film written and directed by John Duigan. The original screenplay focuses on the choices young lovers must make as they find themselves surrounded by increasing political unrest in late-1930s Europe.-Plot synopsis:...
(John DuiganJohn DuiganJohn Duigan, is an Australian film director.Duigan emigrated to Australia in 1961, having been born to an Australian father...
, 2004): tells the story of these three characters' sexual and romantic relationship with each other. - Ilona Arrives with the Rain (Sergio CabreraSergio CabreraSergio Moises Cabrera Diaz is a male swimmer from Paraguay. He was the nation's only swimming competitor at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, where he ended up in 35th place in the men's 200 metres butterfly event....
, 1996): Colombian/Italian/Spanish co-production. After some time apart, Ilona (Margarita Rosa de FranciscoMargarita Rosa de FranciscoMargarita Rosa de Francisco Baquero also known as La Mencha is a Colombian telenovela, movie actress, singer and TV presenter.-Personal life:...
) and Maqroll (Humberto Dorado) meet in Panama and open an airplane-themed brothel in order to raise funds so that Abdul (Imanol AriasImanol AriasImanol Arias born Manuel María Arias Domínguez , is a Spanish actor and one off film director.Imanol Arias began his career with a travelling theatre group in Spain performing in the Basque Country of northern Spain. He debuted on TV in 1976 and his first film was in "Cecilia " of 'Humberto Solas'...
), who has recently been released from prison in CeutaCeutaCeuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
, can buy a steamship to meet up with Ilona and Maqroll, and the three can resume their long-term romantic relationship. - BanditsBanditsBandits is a 2001 American crime-comedy drama film directed by Barry Levinson. It stars Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, and Cate Blanchett. Filming began in October 2000 and ended in February 2001. It helped Thornton earn a National Board of Review Best Actor Award for 2001...
(Barry LevinsonBarry LevinsonBarry Levinson is an American screenwriter, film director, actor, and producer of film and television. His films include Good Morning, Vietnam, Sleepers and Rain Man.-Early life:...
, 2001): a ménage à trois is a major part of the plot. - Chasing AmyChasing AmyChasing Amy is a 1997 romantic comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith. The central tension revolves around sexuality, sexual history, and evolving friendships. It is the third film in Smith's View Askewniverse series....
(Kevin SmithKevin SmithKevin Patrick Smith is an American screenwriter, actor, film producer, and director, as well as a popular comic book writer, author, comedian/raconteur, and internet radio personality best recognized by viewers as Silent Bob...
, 1997): Ménage à trois is proposed as a cathartic solution between the three main characters. - Bride of ChuckyBride of ChuckyBride of Chucky is a 1998 American comedy horror film directed by Chinese director Ronny Yu. It is the fourth entry in the Child's Play series. The film stars Jennifer Tilly and Brad Dourif...
(Ronny YuRonny YuRonny Yu Yan-Tai is a Hong Kong director, producer, and movie writer. Yu was born in Hong Kong and graduated from Ohio University. He has worked on both Hong Kong and American films.- Career :...
, 1998): Jennifer Tilly offers a ménage à trois to a victim she is about to kill, and involves the homicidal doll as entertainment. - Kiss the SkyKiss the Sky (film)Kiss the Sky is a 1999 film drama directed by Roger Young. The plot follows two men in their forties, friends since college, who travel together on a business trip to the Philippines. There they examine their lives and consider trading their adult responsibilities for a return to the hedonism of...
(Roger YoungRoger Young (director)Roger E. Young is an American TV and film director. He won an Emmy Award in 1980 in Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series for Lou Grant . He was born in Champaign, Illinois. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism from the University of Illinois...
, 1999): aging married friends try to form a threesome while building an island retirement refuge. Though they fail, they learn to accept their situation with the help of a Buddhist monk. - ShortbusShortbusShortbus is a 2006 comedy-drama film written and directed by John Cameron Mitchell. The plot revolves around a sexually diverse ensemble of colorful characters trying desperately to connect in New York City. The characters converge in a weekly Brooklyn artistic/sexual salon loosely inspired by...
(John Cameron MitchellJohn Cameron MitchellJohn Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...
, 2006): James and Jamie meet a young ex-model and aspiring singer named Ceth and the three begin a sexual relationship. - Les DiaboliquesLes Diaboliques (film)Les Diaboliques , released as Diabolique in the United States and variously translated as The Devils or The Fiends, is a 1955 French black-and-white thriller feature film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot, starring Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot and Paul Meurisse...
(Henri-Georges ClouzotHenri-Georges ClouzotHenri-Georges Clouzot was a French film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best remembered for his work in the thriller film genre, having directed The Wages of Fear and Les Diaboliques, which are critically recognized to be among the greatest films from the 1950s...
, 1955): the husband is led on by his wife and mistress to believe that he will have a sexual encounter with both of them. - TroisTroisTrois is a 2000 thriller directed by Rob Hardy. This movie stars Gary Dourdan, Kenya Moore and Gretchen Palmer. The film was one of the highest grossing African-American films of 2000...
(2000): thriller about the aftermath of a bored married couple bringing a young woman into their relationship - The DuchessThe Duchess (film)The Duchess is a 2008 British drama film based on Amanda Foreman's biography of the 18th-century English aristocrat Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. It was released in September 2008 in the UK...
(Saul DibbSaul DibbSaul Dibb is the British director of Bullet Boy, for which he was nominated for the Douglas Hickox Award, The Line of Beauty, and The Duchess. He is a graduate of the University of East Anglia.-Notes:...
, 2008): with Keira KnightleyKeira KnightleyKeira Christina Knightley born 26 March 1985) is an English actress and model. She began acting as a child and came to international notice in 2002 after co-starring in the film Bend It Like Beckham...
and Ralph FiennesRalph FiennesRalph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is an English actor and film director. He has appeared in such films as The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, The Duchess and Schindler's List....
about the Duchess and Duke of Devonshire and Lady Elizabeth Foster who all lived together and had sexual relations.
Television
- The Brady BunchThe Brady BunchThe Brady Bunch is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz and starring Robert Reed, Florence Henderson, and Ann B. Davis. The series revolved around a large blended family...
, A Very Brady SequelA Very Brady SequelA Very Brady Sequel is a 1996 comedy film and sequel to 1995’s The Brady Bunch Movie. Both films are parodies-homages of the classic 1969–1974 television sitcom The Brady Bunch. The film was directed by Arlene Sanford and stars Shelley Long and Gary Cole as Carol and Mike Brady. The film was a box...
: Marcia and Jan are walking home from the last day of school reading each other's yearbookYearbookA yearbook, also known as an annual, is a book to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school or a book published annually. Virtually all American, Australian and Canadian high schools, most colleges and many elementary and middle schools publish yearbooks...
messages. Marcia reads one to Jan that says "ménage à trois". Marcia replies saying "I bet that means 'you're the most'". This joke becomes a recurring gag throughout the course of the film between Marcia, Jan, and her fictitious boyfriend, George Glass. - Three's CompanyThree's CompanyThree's Company is an American sitcom that aired from March 15, 1977, to September 18, 1984, on ABC. It is based on the British sitcom, Man About the House....
- FriendsFriendsFriends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
(1994): Phoebe meets her biological mother and learns that her biological mother, her father, and the woman who raised her were extremely "close" and all had sexual relations together (#3.25). - SeinfeldSeinfeldSeinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
:- "The SwitchThe Switch"The Switch" is the 97th episode of NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 11th episode for the 6th season. It aired on January 5, 1995. This episode is notable for revealing Kramer's first name as Cosmo.-Plot:...
": Jerry SeinfeldJerry SeinfeldJerome Allen "Jerry" Seinfeld is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and television and film producer, known for playing a semi-fictional version of himself in the situation comedy Seinfeld , which he co-created and co-wrote with Larry David, and, in the show's final two seasons,...
attempts to end a relationship with one roommate, and start one with another, using a suggestion by George. - "The Label MakerThe Label Maker"The Label Maker" is the 98th episode of NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 12th episode for the 6th season. It aired on January 19, 1995.-Plot:...
": George CostanzaGeorge CostanzaGeorge Louis Costanza is a character in the American television sitcom Seinfeld , played by Jason Alexander. He has variously been described as a "short, stocky, slow-witted, bald man" , "Lord of the Idiots" , and as "the greatest sitcom character of all time"...
, referring back to the ploy he hatched with Jerry in the earlier episode, attempts to terminate a relationship by suggesting a ménage à trois, only to have it blow up in his face.
- "The Switch
- Star Trek TNG also aired an episode entitled "Ménage à Troi". The title is a punPunThe pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use and abuse of homophonic,...
on the French phrase. - Will & GraceWill & GraceWill & Grace was an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 21, 1998 to May 18, 2006 for a total of eight seasons. Will & Grace remains the most successful television series with gay principal characters...
saw Jack McFarland (Sean HayesSean Hayes (actor)Sean Patrick Hayes is an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Jack McFarland in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, for which he won an Emmy Award, four SAG Awards, one American Comedy Award, and six Golden Globes nominations.He also portrayed comedian Jerry Lewis in the...
) remark, on several occasions, the "number of people in a ménage à trois," in the episode Back Up, DancerBack Up, Dancer"Back Up, Dancer" is the second episode of the seventh season of the American television series Will & Grace. It was written by Tracy Poust and Jon Kinnally and directed by series producer James Burrows. The episode originally aired on the National Broadcasting Company in the United States on...
(#7.02)
Music
Artist | Song | Notes/Quote |
---|---|---|
The Pierces The Pierces The Pierces are an American New York-based band consisting of sisters Allison Pierce and Catherine Pierce .-Childhood:... |
Boring | |
David Crosby David Crosby David Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR... |
Triad Triad (David Crosby song) "Triad" is a song written by David Crosby in 1967 about a ménage à trois, a subject perfectly in keeping with the "free love" hippie philosophies of the day. The song was written while Crosby was a member of the rock band The Byrds, who were at that time recording their fifth studio album, The... |
A song about a ménage à trois, also recorded by Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success.... |
Interpol Interpol (band) Interpol is an American indie rock and post-punk revival band from New York City. Formed in 1997, the band's original line-up consisted of Paul Banks , Daniel Kessler , Carlos Dengler and Greg Drudy . Drudy left the band in 2000 and was replaced by Sam Fogarino... |
No I in Threesome | (2007) |
Type O Negative Type O Negative Type O Negative was a gothic metal band from Brooklyn, New York City. The band also incorporated elements of doom metal and thrash metal. Their dramatic lyrical emphasis on themes of romance, depression, and death resulted in the nickname "The Drab Four"... |
My Girlfriend's Girlfriend My Girlfriend's Girlfriend My Girlfriend's Girlfriend is a song from American gothic metal band Type O Negative's 1996 album October Rust, describing a polyamorous relationship... |
(1996) |
Isaac Hayes Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American songwriter, musician, singer and actor. Hayes was one of the creative influences behind the southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwriter and as a record producer, teaming with his partner David Porter during the... |
Moonlight Lovin' (Ménage Á Trois) | "Stars will never tell of the rendezvous of me and you and... you." (1977) |
Notorious B.I.G. | Hypnotize Hypnotize (The Notorious B.I.G. song) "Hypnotize" is the Grammy-nominated hip-hop song recorded by rapper The Notorious B.I.G. It was released as the first single from his album Life After Death in December 13, 1996. It was the fifth song to hit #1 posthumously for a credited artist.... |
|
A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006... |
What | "What is ménage à trois? Or, that is." (1991) |
Joan Jett Joan Jett Joan Jett is an American rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer and actress.She is best known for her work with Joan Jett & the Blackhearts including their hit cover "I Love Rock 'n' Roll", which was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 from March 20 to May 1, 1982, as well as for their other popular... |
The French Song | (1983) |
Katy Perry Katy Perry Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a... |
Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.) Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.) "Last Friday Night " is a song by American recording artist Katy Perry. The song was produced by Lukasz Gottwald and Max Martin, who also co-wrote the song with Perry and Bonnie McKee for Perry's third studio album, Teenage Dream. Perry stated that she was inspired to write the track after a night... |
"We went streaking in the park, skinny dipping in the dark, then had a ménage à trois." |
Motley Crue Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil... |
Girls, Girls, Girls | (1987) |
Eminem Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition... |
Despicable | "And you want a ménage à trois, you twat?" |
Adam Lambert Adam Lambert Adam Mitchel Lambert is an American singer, songwriter, and actor from San Diego, California. In May 2009, he finished as the runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol... originally by Lady Gaga Lady GaGa Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to... |
Fever | |
Kevin Rudolf Kevin Rudolf Kevin Rudolf is an American singer-songwriter and record producer signed to Cash Money Records. Rudolf is mostly known for singing and producing rock/pop music... ft. Lil' Wayne |
Let it Rock Let It Rock (Kevin Rudolf song) "Let It Rock" is the debut single of Kevin Rudolf from his debut album In the City. It features rapper Lil Wayne. The track was produced and written by Rudolf.... |
|
Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction is an American alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The band's original line-up featured Perry Farrell , Dave Navarro , Eric Avery and Stephen Perkins . After breaking up in 1991, Jane's Addiction briefly reunited in 1997 and again in 2001, both times... |
Three Days Three Days (song) "Three Days" is a ten minute, forty-six second song featured on Jane's Addiction's 1990 album, Ritual de lo Habitual. It is a three-part song that meditates on death and rebirth... |
|
Britney Spears Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album... |
3 3 (song) "3" is a song by American recording artist Britney Spears, from her second greatest hits compilation The Singles Collection. It was released on September 29, 2009, as the only single of the album by Jive Records. The song was produced by long-time collaborator Max Martin and Shellback, and recorded... |
|
M.I.A. M.I.A. (artist) Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam , better known by her stage name M.I.A. , is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, painter and director of Sri Lankan Tamil descent. Her compositions combine elements of hip hop, electronica, dance, alternative and world music. M.I.A... |
URAQT | |
Usher Usher (entertainer) Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100... Ft. Nicki Minaj Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist... |
Little Freak | "If girls wanna ménage then it wetter than it rainin" "I'm bout to have a ménage a..." |
Kanye West Kanye West Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and... ft. Jay Z Nicki Minaj Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist... and Rick Ross Rick Ross Rick, Ricky or Richard Ross may also refer to:* Rick Ross , American rapper* Richard J. Ross, a Massachusetts State Senator* Richard Ross , an American photographer... |
Monster | "I think me, you, and AM should menage Friday" |
Mac Miller Mac Miller Malcolm McCormick , known by his stage name Mac Miller , is an American rapper from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania... |
Down The Rabbit Hole Fly In Her Nikes |
"Two in ones, that's a menage a trois." |
Slum Village Slum Village Slum Village was a hip hop group from Conant Gardens, Detroit, Michigan.The group was formed by three members: rappers Baatin and T3, plus rapper and producer J Dilla . J Dilla left in 2002 to pursue a solo career with MCA Records... |
Climax | |
Jay-Z Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010... |
Heart of the City (Ain't No Love) | "Hopefully they'll ménage before I reach my garage." |
Shwayze Shwayze Aaron Smith , better known by his stage name Shwayze, is an American rapper.Born and raised in Malibu, California, Shwayze worked at a local Starbucks coffee shop until he met Whitestarr frontman Cisco Adler at a nightclub. One night Shwayze jumped on stage during Whitestarr's performance and... |
Polaroid | |
Juicy J Juicy J Jordan Michael Houston, better known by his stage name Juicy J is an Academy Award winning American rapper and record producer from Memphis, Tennessee and is the co-founder and a member of the duo Three 6 Mafia . He is also the younger brother of Project Pat... |
Smoke Dat Weed | |
Wolfgang Gartner Wolfgang Gartner Wolfgang Gartner is a Grammy-nominated American electro house producer and DJ. Much of his music prior to 2010 was released through his own record label – Kindergarten, but in 2010 he signed with Ultra Records and in 2011 signed to Ministry of Sound in the UK.In his short time producing music, a... |
Ménage à Trois | |
Timbaland Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.... |
Bounce | |
mc chris Mc chris mc chris is an American rapper, voice actor, writer and improvisational comedian.... |
DQ Blizzard | "Siamese twins want ménage à trois" |
Restaurants
Anthony Worral Thompson's first restaurant was called Ménage à trois and was famous for only serving starters and desserts.See also
- PolyamoryPolyamoryPolyamory is the practice, desire, or acceptance of having more than one intimate relationship at a time with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved....
- PolyandryPolyandryPolyandry refers to a form of marriage in which a woman has two or more husbands at the same time. The form of polyandry in which a woman is married to two or more brothers is known as "fraternal polyandry", and it is believed by many anthropologists to be the most frequently encountered...
- PolygamyPolygamyPolygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
- PolygynyPolygynyPolygyny is a form of marriage in which a man has two or more wives at the same time. In countries where the practice is illegal, the man is referred to as a bigamist or a polygamist...
- SwingingSwingingSwinging or partner swapping is a non-monogamous behavior, in which both partners in a committed relationship agree, as a couple, for both partners to engage in sexual activities with other couples as a recreational or social activity...
- TroilismTroilismTroilism refers to the erotic interest in watching one’s romantic partner engage in sexual behavior with a third party, sometimes while hidden. A common example is a husband watching his wife have intercourse with another man. This scenario is part of the swinger lifestyle, and varies depending...
Further reading
- Barbara Foster, Michael Foster, Letha Hadady. Three in Love: Ménages à trois from Ancient to Modern Times. ISBN 0595008070
- Vicki Vantoch. The Threesome Handbook: A Practical Guide to sleeping with three. ISBN 1568583338