Between the two world wars, Paris offered more than wine and art. It became the capital of fantasy. And at the center of it stood a brothel so lavish that guests called it a palace.
It was named after its address: One-Two-Two, 122 Rue de Provence. Inside, there were twenty themed rooms, a fine-dining restaurant, a torture chamber, and a private medical clinic. It attracted film stars, spies, Nazis, and jazz singers. It was managed by women and protected by politics.
For over two decades, One-Two-Two offered its guests something more theatrical than sex. It offered a stage, and everyone was expected to perform.
Doriane and the Creation of a Palace
The story begins with Camille Fernance Alfrédine, who worked at Le Chabanais, a high-end brothel in Paris. When that house began to lose its appeal, Camille and her partner Marcel Jamet opened a smaller house on Rue Taitbout.
She named it Dinah, her nickname. It did well. By 1927, they upgraded to a larger address—122 Rue de Provence—and renamed it One-Two-Two. The English pronunciation was deliberate. It helped tourists find it.
Camille also rebranded herself. Dinah became Doriane. She wasn’t interested in velvet curtains and outdated luxury. She wanted surprise. By 1933, the couple added four floors to the building, making it seven stories tall.
From the outside, it looked like a standard neoclassical townhouse. Inside, it resembled a private theatre.
A Menu of Fantasies
Each room had a country, an era, or a genre. Clients moved between them as if traveling across time. A few highlights:
- The Orient Express Room had a full replica of a train compartment. The bed bounced. Sound effects mimicked rattling tracks. Some guests requested an actor dressed as a conductor to barge in mid-session.
- The Pirate Room included a swinging bed and water jets that soaked the visitors, mimicking a stormy voyage.
- The Renaissance Room offered antique gowns and mirrors. Courtesans dressed like they served at the court of Francis I.
- The Igloo Room came with furs and snow effects.
- The Egyptian Room resembled Cleopatra’s quarters.
- The Mirror Gallery had rotatable glass walls styled after Versailles.
- The upper floors featured a torture chamber with shackles, chains, and crucifix setups.
Each room had its own staff, lighting, sound, costumes, and scripts. Some clients followed the Kama Sutra in themed sequences. They called it “the journey around the world.”
A Staff of Professionals
At any time, One-Two-Two employed around sixty women. All were selected for their appearance and skill. They did four sessions a day for a flat rate of twenty francs each. Sundays required only two. All tips were personal. The women lived offsite, came in at 4 PM, and stayed until 4 AM.
There was no pressure to upsell. Clients could spend hours drinking wine or smoking cigars in the lounges. They could talk to staff with no expectation of intimacy. The establishment included twelve showers, a full laundry service, and a hair and beauty station. Each floor had its own look. Each worker had her own boundaries.
A Dining Room with No Uniforms
Attached to the house was a restaurant called “Le Boeuf à la Ficelle.” It served roast beef dipped in spiced broth. Guests could eat while seated with women who wore only heels, a camellia, and an apron.
After dinner, they could retire to one of the themed rooms or remain in the cigar lounge. Some preferred to spend the evening talking. Others came only to dine.
The restaurant was open to the public. It allowed the establishment to pass as a private club.
The Sphinx and the Competition
Across the city, Marthe Marguerite, known as Martoune, created her own space called The Sphinx. Located near Montparnasse station, it looked more like a jazz club than a brothel.
Martoune wanted it to feel like the American party houses she had seen during her travels. She bought new property and launched it in 1931. Inside, there were artists, musicians, politicians, and dancers. There were no obligations. Women could leave at will.
The Sphinx didn’t need private rooms. It thrived on atmosphere. It drew in stars like Clark Gable and Errol Flynn. Martoune blended into the nightlife scene, made friends with musicians, and built her brand on openness.
One-Two-Two Evolves Again
Doriane and Marcel saw the success of The Sphinx. They responded with upgrades. More painters. More sculptors. More rooms.
By 1935, One-Two-Two had a bar, a smoking salon, and private lounges named The Miami, The Musketeer, and The Maple. Its themed rooms expanded to twenty-two.
Everything was coordinated—from furniture to scent. One room had hay. Another had sand. Some floors focused on European fantasy. Others recreated tribal villages. The upper rooms were reserved for bondage themes. Fabienne Jamet, who later ran the house, said the higher you went, the closer you came to hell.
Wartime Activity and Influence
During the German occupation, One-Two-Two remained open. It was not affected by rationing. It became a meeting point for Nazi officers. Otto Brandl and Captain Wilhelm Radecke, both from the Abwehr, used it to run black market deals. Gold, tobacco, and arms were exchanged in the lounges.
One-Two-Two also served American officers after the liberation. Fabienne recalled good clients and troubling encounters. In one case, she stopped a man who tried to assault a Black worker. The staff protected one another. The women enforced their own rules.
A Champagne Wedding
In 1942, Marcel left Doriane and married Fabienne, a woman who had worked at the house. They hosted their wedding at One-Two-Two. It featured fifty-six guests, thirty-four magnums, and a feast that lasted hours. The business became hers. She ran it until it closed.
The Shutdown
In 1946, France passed the Marthe Richard Law, banning all brothels. One-Two-Two closed on October 7. The building was sold to a leather workers’ union for thirty-two million francs. Today, it houses corporate offices. There is no plaque. Nothing on the door suggests what once happened inside.
Legacy in Film and Memory
Fabienne later wrote a memoir. In 1978, a film titled “One-Two-Two: 122 Rue de Provence” told the story of the house. It starred Nicole Calfan and was nominated for a César award. The film recreated the rooms in detail. It showed how fantasy had once passed as business.
One-Two-Two left behind no survivors, but it remains a symbol of how Paris blurred lines between desire and performance. It was never just a brothel. It was a designed experience.
What Remains
Today, there are no signs. Tourists walk past 122 Rue de Provence without stopping. But inside, during its peak, one could drink champagne, dance in a pirate ship, flirt in an igloo, and meet a spy in the bar. One-Two-Two was a world tour wrapped in a single building.
It told Parisian men they could have anything. It gave women a chance to run the show. And for twenty years, it convinced the world that pleasure could be elegant.
