{FREE} Marilyn Monroe: the Biography Ebook, Epub

MARILYN MONROE: THE BIOGRAPHY PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

Monroe later noted the experience "was the best thing that ever happened to me. I never felt like a star before in my heart. As she started out in the movie industry, Monroe did submit to the casting couch. However, she also worked hard by taking lessons and giving her all to the parts that came her way. To gain experience for a role in B movie Ladies of the Chorus , she performed in a burlesque show under the name "Mona Monroe. Monroe certainly didn't experience overnight success — she cycled through a couple of movie studios, and saw film contracts expire. But she was always prepared to triumph in her career. Marilyn performing for American servicemen in Korea in February Artists who refused to reveal people who'd been involved with Communist activities could be sent to prison for contempt of Congress, but Miller refused to name names. Throughout this ordeal, Monroe remained committed to Miller — despite studio executives and acting teacher Paula Strasberg warning that her decision could expose Monroe to a public backlash that might destroy her career. Monroe also agreed to marry Miller , even after he surprised her by announcing their wedding plans in his HUAC testimony. Her public display of loyalty likely helped keep him out of prison Miller was given a suspended sentence for his contempt conviction in ; the conviction went on to be overturned in However, Monroe's actions ended up attracting further interest: Support of Miller, combined with a request she'd made to visit the Soviet Union in though she didn't make the trip , prompted the FBI to open a file on her. Her relationship with Miller, which ended in divorce in , wasn't the only means by which Monroe became politically aware. With Shelley Winters, a one-time roommate, Monroe attended rallies protesting the violation of civil liberties caused by anti-Communist fervor. She was once chastised for reading a "radical" biography of muckraker Lincoln Steffens on a film set. Having been raised to hold more progressive views on race, Monroe also became an advocate for civil rights. In , Monroe was elected as an alternate delegate to Connecticut's state Democratic convention it was a largely honorary position and she didn't attend the gathering. She also once said to reporters, "My nightmare is the H-bomb. What's yours? The FBI, which continued to keep tabs on her, noted in her file in "Subject's views are very positively and concisely leftist; however, if she is being actively used by the Communist Party, it is not general knowledge among those working with the movement in Los Angeles. Monroe had a lifelong fear of losing her sanity, something she'd witnessed in her mother. So when Dr. Desperate to escape, Monroe took inspiration from one of her early films, broke a window and threatened to cut herself with a piece of glass. This behavior led to Monroe being restrained and carried to another level of the facility, and her desperation grew. Kris didn't visit; Monroe wrote to Lee and Paula Strasberg, her acting teachers, but they weren't able to obtain her release. Only ex-husband DiMaggio came through, rushing to the facility when he learned what was happening. She was transferred to Columbia University Presbyterian Hospital, where she received treatment in a private room. McDonough, Yona Zeldis, ed. New York: Simon and Schuster, Slatzer, Robert F. New York: Pinnacle House, Spoto, Donald. Marilyn Monroe: The Biography. New York: HarperCollins, Victor, Adam. The Marilyn Encyclopedia. Woodstock, NY: Overlook Press, Toggle navigation. Growing up Norma Jean Norma Jean Baker, better known as Marilyn Monroe, experienced a disrupted, loveless childhood that included two years at an orphanage. End of a star The couple was divorced on January 24, , and later that year Monroe entered a New York psychiatric clinic. For More Information Barris, George. User Contributions: 1. Anon A. Marilyn Monroe was a truly outspoken woman. I don't believe that she committed suicide on purpose. She was just probably under the pressure of the press. Besides what she did to herself, the fact that she was an outspoken actress made me think that she is my role model, for that part, anyway. Otherwise, I think she was a little tiny, nutso when it came to her as a "sex screen symbol. Thanks for listening. From, Anon. Marylin was a person who had a life every girl could ever imagine having. That fact that she committed suicide is beyond comprehension. She is my favorite actress only because my sister In law told me about her but there is no way that she could have commited suicide when she had every thing. I wish marylin could be here to see how much she is loved in life. She prolly killed herself because she was probably stress overwhelmed or prolly felt like she wasting loved. Norma Jean Baker was a person as we all are, people who above all want to be loved and have a purpose in life. There is no mystery to her death, it was suicide. Well folks, no matter if you are seen as a great star or have all the money in the world, you are the same as the person you walk by every day in the park who sleeps on a bench as he has no where to go. All we want is love, a purpose in life and to be happy. I live close to her grave and home and sometimes I stop by for a visit and to reflect. I think, wow, with all the obstacles in your life you had the strength to pursue a career in acting and the result was beyond your wildest dreams, one if not THE greatest stars of all time. Unfortunately it did not give those things I said everyone wants. I have a life almost parallel , not a film star but much of the same experiences. Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: Name:. E-mail: Show my email publicly. Marilyn Monroe: The Biography by Donald Spoto

In , Marilyn appeared in Don't Bother to Knock , in which she played a somewhat mentally unbalanced babysitter. Critics didn't particularly care for her work in this picture, but she made a much more favorable impression later in the year in Monkey Business , where she was seen for the first time as a platinum blonde, a look that became her trademark. It was also the same year she began dating the baseball great Joe DiMaggio. Marilyn was now a genuine box-office drawing card. Although her co-stars got the rave reviews, it was the sight of Marilyn that really excited the audience, especially the male members. That was quickly followed by The Seven Year Itch , which showcased her considerable comedic talent and contained what is arguably one of the most memorable moments in cinema history: Marilyn standing above a subway grating and the wind from a passing subway blowing her white dress up. By October , Marilyn announced her divorce from DiMaggio. The union lasted only eight months. It was her second suspension, the first being for not reporting for the production of The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing Both roles went to others. Her work was slowing down, due to her habit of being continually late to the set, her illnesses whether real or imagined and generally being unwilling to cooperate with her producers, directors, and fellow actors. However in Bus Stop , Marilyn finally showed critics that she could play a straight dramatic role. It was also the same year she married playwright, Arthur Miller they divorced in In , Marilyn flew to Britain to film The Prince and the Showgirl which proved less than impressive critically and financially. It made money, but many critics panned it for being slow-moving. The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. Again, while it made money, it was critically panned as stodgy and slow-moving. The following year, Marilyn made what was to be her final film. The Misfits , which also proved to be the final film for the legendary Clark Gable , who died later that year of a heart attack. The film was popular with critics and the public alike. Again, her absenteeism caused delay after delay in production, resulting in her being fired from the production in June of that year. It looked as though her career was finished. Studios just didn't want to take a chance on her because it would cost them thousands of dollars in delays. She was only thirty-six years old. Marilyn acted in only thirty films, but her legendary status and mysticism will remain with film history for ever. Sign In. Edit Marilyn Monroe. Showing all items. Was roommates with Shelley Winters when they were both starting out in Hollywood. Voted Empire's UK "sexiest female movie star of all time" in She was Playboy's first "Sweetheart of the Month" in December Marianne Kris, her psychoanalyst. When Dr. Started using the name Marilyn Monroe in , but did not legally change it until Given a dog she named Tippy by foster father Albert Bolender. In her final, unfinished film Something's Got to Give , the dog was also named Tippy. Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the Sexiest Stars in film history 2. Hugh Hefner owned the closest burial vault next to hers. She had a phone in one of her hands, her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. Ex-husband Joe DiMaggio put fresh roses at her memorial site, for numerous years after her death. When putting her imprints at Grauman's she joked that Jane Russell was best known for her large front-side and she was known for her wiggly walk, so Jane could lean over, and she could sit in it. It was only a joke, but she dotted the "I" in her name with a rhinestone, which was stolen within days. Redheaded actress Tina Louise played the character role of Ginger Grant on the television series Gilligan's Island , was loosely based on her personality, but a different hair color. During the filming of Niagara , she was still under contract as a stock actor, thus, she received less salary than her make-up man. This was also the only film in which her character died. The film was reworked to highlight her after Anne Bancroft withdrew. Often carried around the book, "The Biography of Abraham Lincoln. Was an outstanding player on the Hollygrove Orphanage softball team. Because the bathing suit she wore in the movie Love Nest was so risque for the time period and caused such a commotion on the set, director Joseph M. Newman had to make it a closed set when she was filming. Fearing blemishes and sweat, she washed her face fifteen times a day. She was suggested as a possible wife for Prince Rainier of Monaco. But he picked actress, Grace Kelly , to be his wife. The first time she signed an autograph as Marilyn Monroe, she had to ask how to spell it. She didn't know where to put the "i" in "Marilyn". Suffered from endometriosis, a condition in which tissues of the uterus lining endometrium leave the uterus, attach themselves to other areas of the body, and grow, causing pain, irregular bleeding, and, in severe cases, infertility. Divorced last husband, Arthur Miller , in Juarez, Mexico. Married Arthur Miller twice: the 1st time in a civil ceremony, then in a Jewish to which she had converted ceremony two days later. Won an interlocutory decree from Joe DiMaggio on Wednesday, October 27th, , but, under California law, the divorce was not finalized until exactly one year later. Offered to convert to Catholism in order to marry Joe DiMaggio in a Church ceremony, but she was turned down because she was divorced. The boy died, and Gladys returned to California. In , Elton John released a single in tribute to her entitled "Candle in the Wind". In , it was re- recorded with updated lyrics in memory of Princess Diana , becoming the UK's best-selling single of all time. Def Leppard 's single "Photograph" from their "Pyromania" album was also written about Monroe. Her behavior on the unfinished Something's Got to Give dimmed her reputation in the industry, but she was still big box office at the time of her death. What a Way to Go! When she was told that she was not the star in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes she verbally said "Well whatever I am, I'm still the blonde. The famous nude photo of her by Tom Kelley originally appeared as anonymous on a calendar entitled "Miss Golden Dreams. Neither Kelley or Monroe ever saw a dime of the millions the calendar made for its publisher. Greene , on December 31, Appears on sleeve of The Beatles ' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" album. She was one of the plant's employees. She left her job and signed with Emmeline Snively 's modeling agency. Was referenced in the dialogue of La Dolce Vita , in the context of dieting. When she wasn't acting, she preferred to wear nothing but a bathrobe and occasionally a bikini. The punk band The Misfits created or picked their name from the last movie title she acted in, The Misfits Featured on a 1. The very popular version of "Santa Baby" also found in the film, Party Monster thought to be sung by her was instead recorded by Cynthia Basinet for Jack Nicholson as a Christmas gift. Ten days in advance, on Saturday, May 19th, , she performed for U. President John F. Kennedy at his 45th birthday tribute in his honor at Madison Square Garden. She sang "Happy Birthday". Kennedy's real birthday was May 29th. After discovering her dress was torn, at the Academy Awards, she burst into tears. The dress Marilyn Monroe wore to serenade John F. Kennedy , on May 19, at his birthday celebration was so tight, that it had to be sewn onto her. She had to sit still for approximately an hour. One of the first Los Angeles natives to become a major movie star. Aside from her birth name of Norma Jeane Mortenson, she was baptized and mainly known throughout her life as Norma Jeane Baker. During her modeling days she was also known as Norma Jeane Dougherty her first marriage name , and also as Jean Norman. When she signed with 20th Century-Fox, studio casting executive Ben Lyon had first chosen the name Carol Lind as her stage name, although she disliked that. Eventually she chose her mother's maiden name of Monroe. Three names were drawn up as possible stage names. The first was Norma Jeane Monroe, although that sounded awkward; the second was Jean Monroe, and the third was Marilyn Monroe, the latter first name being chosen by Lyon who thought Norma Jeane resembled famed stage actress Marilyn Miller. Norma Jeane liked Jean Monroe, for it preserved some of her name, but Lyon convinced her that Marilyn Monroe sounded more alliterative and so it was chosen. She took acting lessons from Michael Chekhov. A review into the original inquest of Marilyn's death, conducted on its year anniversary, concluded that the actress committed suicide or accidentally overdosed, and was not murdered--rumors that were fueled by the sloppy handling of evidence, the delay in securing the scene and the disappearance of tissue samples. In , actress Veronica Hamel and her husband became the new owners of Marilyn's Brentwood home. They hired a contractor to replace the roof and remodel the house, and the contractor discovered a sophisticated eavesdropping and telephone tapping system that covered every room in the house. The components were not commercially available in , but were in the words of a retired Justice Department official, "standard FBI issue. Edgar Hoover believed that President Kennedy and his brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy who was Hoover's boss were threats to national security because of their dalliances with Monroe and with Judith Exner, who was also a girlfriend of a Mafia boss. This bugging equipment led to Hoover's rumored blackmailing of the Kennedy brothers. Was good friends with Dorothy Dandridge and Ava Gardner when they were all young, struggling actresses in Hollywood. When budding actresses Shelley Winters and Marilyn were roommates in the late s in Hollywood, Shelley said that one day she had to step out and asked Marilyn to "wash the lettuce" for a salad they were to share for dinner. When Shelley got back to the apartment, Marilyn was apparently new to the art of cooking had the leaves of lettuce in a small tub of soapy water and was scrubbing them clean. She had not heard of the phrase before either, or did not know it's true meaning. Her real father was Charles Stanley Gifford. Coincidentally, this is how her character was murdered in Niagara Don't Bother to Knock her 18th film was an attempt to prove to critics that she could act successfully. Because some earlier films took numerous takes and much longer time to complete. Especially, The Seven Year Itch which took numerous extra takes, for her character role, alone. In Italy, her films were dubbed at the beginning of her career by Miranda Bonansea. As she matured she was dubbed by the marvellous and prolific Rosetta Calavetta with immense success, particularly in Some Like It Hot Her lifelong bouts with depression and self-destruction took their toll during filming The Seven Year Itch She frequently muffed scenes and forgot her lines, leading to sometimes as many as 40 takes of a scene before a satisfactory result was produced. The film still managed to make a nice profit. The classic shot of her dress blowing up around her legs as she stands over a subway grating in this film was originally shot on Manhattan's Lexington Avenue at 52nd St. Five thousand onlookers whistled and cheered through take after take as Marilyn repeatedly missed her lines. This occurred in presence of an increasingly embarrassed and angry Joe DiMaggio her husband at the time; the nine-month-old marriage officially ended during the shooting of this film. The original footage shot on that night in New York never made it to the screen; the noise of the crowd had made it unusable. Director Billy Wilder re-shot the scene on the 20th Century-Fox lot, on a set replicating Lexington Avenue, and got a more satisfactory result. However, it took another 40 takes for Marilyn to achieve the famous scene. Amazingly, her very narrow spike heels don't get stuck or break in the subway grating, although this was a universal problem at the time for the countless women wearing that very popular style heel in New York City in that era. An important promotional campaign was released for this mainstream motion picture, including a foot-high cutout of Marilyn from the blowing dress scene erected in front of Loews State Theater, in New York City's Times Square. The movie premiere was on June 1, , which was also her 29th birthday. Was originally set to play Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's , but Audrey Hepburn played the role instead. Producer Arthur P. Jacobs was her publicist and J. Lee Thompson was on her list of approved directors. She resided at the Hollywood Roosevelt while she was breaking into the acting business. Her "Happy Birthday Mr. Her classic shape, according to her dressmaker, is actually measured at In , she signed her first studio contract with 20th Century Fox and dyed her hair. Spent most of her early childhood in foster homes and orphanages because her mother was committed to a mental institution. Later, she lived with her mother's best friend, Grace McKee, and her family. McKee, a big fan of Jean Harlow , allowed her to wear make-up and curl her hair and, when she was 15, it was McKee who pierced her ears for her using a sewing needle. At 16, when McKee could no longer take care of her, she got married to avoid returning to the orphanage. Producer Keya Morgan owns her Bible. When she married Joe DiMaggio , the couple moved into a home at N. She tried 9 different shades of blonde hair color before settling on platinum blonde. Her personal library contained over books on topics ranging from art to history, psychology, philosophy, literature, religion, poetry, and gardening. Many of the volumes, auctioned in , bore her pencil notations in the margins. Nearly 11 years after her death, she appeared on the cover of the Tuesday, July 17th, edition of "Time Magazine" in a full-color portrait taken by Bert Stern , from the last photographic sitting before her death. The cover-story heralds the publication of "Marilyn," the biography of her by Norman Mailer. Mailer reportedly was displeased that "Time" chose to play up Monroe and diminish him, visually on the cover. The publication of the coffee table biography, which contained many photographs including several by Stern, was a major event of that publishing season. The level of Nembutal in her bloodstream was 4. Her last film Something's Got to Give , was finally released in In the swimming pool scene, Marilyn reveals much more to the camera than she did in her then controversial calendar photo from the early s. Was in consideration for the part of Adelaide in Guys and Dolls , but Vivian Blaine was cast instead. Actresses such as Elizabeth Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck were earning significantly more. Former stepmother of Robert A. Half-sister of Berniece and Robert Kermitt Baker but she never knew him, because he died at 14 by her mother's side. Became pregnant twice in July and November during her marriage to Arthur Miller ; on both occasions she suffered miscarriages. Although she was an avid buyer of books and owned over of them at her death, third husband Arthur Miller said, "Aside from Colette's Cheri and a few short stories, I had never known her to read anything all the way through. She felt she could get the idea of a book, and often did, in just a few pages. Was close friends with singer Ella Fitzgerald and helped her rise in her musical career by arranging for her to sing in many upscale nightclubs some of which were segregated during the time of their friendship. Monroe was a stutterer, a little known fact that was easily covered thanks to studio vocal coaches who provided her with diction lessons. She and Joan shared the same birthday June 1. Film editor Dann Cahn recommended a young woman he was dating for the part of a beautiful young woman in Your Show Time Producer Stanley Rubin auditioned her and turned her down because she did not have enough experience. The young woman's name was Marilyn Monroe. She was scheduled for The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing , but she was thought too old at 30 when the character was supposed to be 17 so she was replaced with Joan Collins. According to Adam Curtis' "The Century of Self", Monroe was in the later years subjected to an experimental kind of therapy where she was forced to attend the rituals of an average family and then expected to model her self upon the experience. Arthur Miller commented in the same documentary "I don't think suffering is always a mistake". Ayn Rand wrote a powerful tribute to her, compiled in "The Voice of Reason". She campaigned to play the Maria Schell role in "The Brothers Karamazov," but she was never seriously considered. According to the book "Flesh and Fantasy" Monroe perfected a Vaseline-based lip gloss. Director Billy Wilder was quoted as saying, "The great success of Monroe Was good friends with Judy Garland. Played by Mary Hanson in Hollywood Mouth 2 Murder to work with because she was scared to death of acting - even when she became a big movie actress. We had a hell of a time getting her out of the dressing room. When it was five o'clock , it got irritating: 'C'mon, Marilyn, we want to go home! Something happened between the lens and the film. Nobody knew what the hell it was. On the set, you'd think: 'Oh, this is impossible; you can't print this. Olivier said the same thing. She had that phenomenal something! She lost 15 pounds, she was buoyant. She bought a Pucci dress at Saks three days before she died. So we are to forget about the wiretappers and blackmail and J. Edgar Hoover. Drop the Kennedy thing, we are ordered. Somehow those words say more than all the MMography in the world. Hot Property. About Us. Brand Publishing. Times Events. Times News Platforms. Times Store. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options. For the record: AM, Jun. Her seeming innocence of everything only evidenced the obliviousness of such a position. To me, the fact that she never got to express any sort of art significantly made it all seem even more pitiful. Overall, even though Spoto's writing attempts to put the appropriate distance between the author and the book's subject, the account never becomes cold, and the most touching aspects of Marilyn's life never lose their poignancy. And despite everything, I found myself rooting for her happiness and getting more depressed knowing how it would doubtlessly end. Despite everything, she was a lovely, lovely human being. I'm no biography fan; I only read those about people I'm truly interested in. This is a heavy, thorough account of Marilyn's life, and while it was worth it, to me, I can see why some people might find it boring or unnecessarily long. For them, though, I suggest Wikipedia, or Marilyn Monroe fansites. View 1 comment. May 19, J. Seem rated it it was amazing Shelves: biographies-memoirs. Yes, it's true, I am a total Marilyn Monroe fangirl. I have, however, sometimes had a difficult time explaining why, exactly, she's such a role model for me as an actress. As an actress, she was constantly underrestimated and type cast as the simple, blond bombshell, and she was terribly insecure about herself, her talent, art and appearance. And perhaps it's simply that, that I can identify with her. I too, am in constant terror when I act, wishing for the approval, not so much of the audience, b Yes, it's true, I am a total Marilyn Monroe fangirl. I too, am in constant terror when I act, wishing for the approval, not so much of the audience, but from directors and co-actors, for the approval of my work. I'm very insecure, and so are some other actors I've worked with. One of those who have the hardest time actually get anxiety attacks on stage and black out, and he says "why do we insist on doing this to ourselves? And yes, sometimes I too forget why exactly, but we tarry on nonetheless, until we eventually hit a good spot that refreshes our memory. And I too, am type cast. I have a history of playing mean, angry, frustrated or strict women like Mrs. Sowerberry in "Oliver! I have a dream part coming up this autumn in Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann's "Urinetown", which is not my usual type of girl, and I just know I want to expand my reportoire and do my best to get it, to show everyone I can do something other than mean lady. I might, of course, be cast as Ms. And somehow I think it's Marilyn's struggle to prove herself, to be better, to grow, is what's so inspiring about her. This is a wonderful biography. And one that's deeply needed. A lot of the things written about Marilyn is often very badly researched, and you'd be surprised at how many books are complete fabrications. So many myths have been invented over the years, so many unfounded rumours cooked up, that they distract from the truth, which is astonishing and wonderful in itself. Such money-making schemes are simply unnessecary and distracting. This work, is free of all that imaginary sensation, and is instead very well researched and wonderfully written in a most engaging manner. It takes focus away from Marilyn the myth, and back to Marilyn the human being, which is so often forgotten. It sees her as she really is, not a goddess, but a woman, with weaknesses, struggles and an amazing, yet unfulfilled talent. I absolutely adored this book. It has to be the best work on her ever written, and it further inspired me, through her story, to be the best actress I can be. View all 9 comments. Nov 27, Andrea rated it it was amazing Shelves: nonfiction , nonfiction-biography , chunkster , read-sorted , library , favorites , nonfiction-film. I have never been an avid Monroe fangirl, but I admire a lot of her work. The movie Niagara , from which the cover image is taken, left a very memorable impression on me as a child, and was the first film of hers that I've seen. Some Like It Hot counts second of the top three in my all time favourites list The Princess Bride holding eternally the 1 spot, and The Atonement closing the list at 3. After watching My Week With Marilyn a few months ago, I realised that, while I know these films by I have never been an avid Monroe fangirl, but I admire a lot of her work. After watching My Week With Marilyn a few months ago, I realised that, while I know these films by heart, I don't really know much about the actress herself. Naturally I turned to Goodreads to find a good biography to fill gaps in my knowledge. Marilyn Monroe was a cultural icon shrouded in myth and otherworldly allure. It is no wonder that the majority of her biographers fall victim to sensationalism, hysteria, and twisting of facts in favour of strange conspiracy theories. When I took upon myself to find the most reliable narrative of the late actress's life, Donald Spoto's monumental work crossed my path showcasing numerous recommendations. Indeed, this is the most unbiased biography of Marilyn's life I've seen yet. It doesn't indulge in unnecessary flourishes, instead relying on hard facts and documents from the estate. It never crosses into gossipy territory, which would immediately turn me off from reading it further. I was so very sad to turn the last page. This biography tells of Marilyn's unstable childhood, her relationship with her own sexuality, her battle with the movie studio tycoons, and her three tragic marriages. If you want to read one book on Marilyn, let it be this one. It details her family line history which led to the abandonment she had to go through. As a person who did not know about Marilyn more than what was told in the news; I found almost everything in the book to be new important piece of information. Especially as I stated above that Mr. Spoto enlightens the reader about those around her which paints a clearer picture of who she really was and what happened. Spoto debunks all the myths that surrounded Marilyn's life and death with real facts and receipts. He doesn't treat MM as an object; he seeks to humanize her and reveal her inner self with a deep and a better understanding of the woman beyond the myths and falsehoods. You're always running people's unconscious. It's nice to be included in people's fantasies, but you also like to be accepted for your own sake. I don't look on myself as a commodity, but I'm sure a lot of people have, including one corporation in particular which shall be nameless. If I'm sounding 'picked on,' I think I have been. As I said once before, I don't care about the money. I just want to be wonderful. I can't imagine the hard work he went through to write such comprehensive biography. I admit that the first pages are quite slow and almost dull -bulked up with details- but quickly the pace gets more intriguing with every page. The most important element of this biography is the comprehensive telling of how Marilyn was killed by her doctor and assistance. That was truly shocking to read. Spoto didn't speculate on who was behind them, however, he gave full description of how they did it. Excellent and lengthy account. The composition of events before, during and after her death is remarkable. I was blown away with all the important information that was written and provided with legit proofs. It had become a need for him and others that she be considered sick, dependent and needy. There was something sinister about Ralph Greenson. It was well known that he exerted enormous influence over her. Spoto included a bonus chapter to debunk the bogus theory that she was killed by Bobby Kennedy and he provides the alibis. I always believed that he did not kill her because there was no logical reason of why he or his brother would want such a thing--Marilyn was not obsessed with John Kennedy as the media likes to portray and mislead us. I believe that Marilyn been misrepresented and we all are misinformed regarding her but Mr. Spoto does a remarkable job in portraying her true self, no fabrications and no sensationalism. There are many psychological hypotheses and many more insight into Hollywood's dysfunctional system. If you wish to study the life of this immortal goddess from the very beginning to the very tragic end; this is the best definitive biography to read. Aug 29, Amanda rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Marilyn fans. This book was so interesting to me. I'm a fan of Marilyn, of course, so alot of the stuff in this book really surprised me because I had never heard any of it before. This man, Spoto, who wrote it, researched her life heavily in order to get all the facts for himself and his writing style was, I found, very engaging. I've read through lots of other books about Marilyn but this one was without a doubt the very best one I've ever come across. I would warn any more sensitive readers that there are This book was so interesting to me. Her life was full of scandal and drama and it's all in this book so I wouldn't recommend it to very young readers or people who are sensitive to the black and white truth that the author sets out on the table. But if you are a Marilyn fan, I would highly recommend this book. You really feel like you are able to get to know her as she really was. Dec 14, Shelbi rated it liked it. Lately, I have been quite torn in the books I have read. Donald Spoto is a wonderful biographer and quite thorough - I am quite excited to read even more from him. He paints a fascinating picture of this enigmatic woman, whom I and most of society, really am inexplicably entranced with. However, the more I read about her, the less interested I was in her. At the end of the day, she is just like any other celebrity - beautiful and selfish, with a lot of issues known and unknown to the public. I Lately, I have been quite torn in the books I have read. I got about halfway through, but I decided to put it down for good, today. I feel there are better books on my list that are more worth my time. At more than pages, this behemoth is way more than I want to be reading about someone unless it is Christ. Moral: wonderful author, not so wonderful subject. She is not someone I would want to emulate, although the allure she has held 50 years after her death is quite remarkable. View 2 comments. A biography of astonishing depth. Reading this book cements my place as a fan-not of Marilyn Monroe the sex symbol, but of the woman, the 'little girl lost', who achieved so much as an actress despite a crippling insecurity, low self esteem, and little self worth. It is a shame that her abilities as an actress were not recognised or fully appreciated until after her death. From a personal perspective, I recognised certain aspects of her behaviour and character traits from my time as a foster car A biography of astonishing depth. From a personal perspective, I recognised certain aspects of her behaviour and character traits from my time as a foster carer. This book is a comprehensive study of her life, while debunking the usual murder plot as is normally trotted out, it does nevertheless hold people culpable, convincingly, for the death of the actress, and we are left with a definable sense of sadness at the end. Sadness at the end of the life of a woman who needed to rely upon, became dependent on, and ultimately was failed by, others. A great read. A solid biography of a complicated person. Spoto does an admirable job at dispelling many of the myths associated with Marilyn some of which, to be fair, were created by the subject herself. While ultimately you're taking Spoto's word over others, his research appears to be thorough, so when he says there's absolutely no way Marilyn ever had an affair with Bobby Kennedy, I tend to believe him. As for his reconstruction of the events surrounding Marilyn's death, again, I think his research is s A solid biography of a complicated person. As for his reconstruction of the events surrounding Marilyn's death, again, I think his research is sound, but we'll never know for sure. He also includes an afterword where he goes and systematically disproves all the other theories that are out there. Seems to check out for me. In any event, Marilyn Monroe was a complex person. She led a strange and sad life. Which makes for a pretty entertaining read. If you're going to read a biography of Marilyn Monroe, it should probably be this one. Jun 16, Inessa rated it liked it. An in depth biography of an intriguing woman, enjoyable to read. Jul 31, Nisha-Anne rated it really liked it. This is a pretty difficult book to review which is why I've put it off so long. I've read enough biographies to know I have to be careful which one I pick up and to make sure it's properly researched and respected. I read way too many wildly speculative biographies of James Dean before I came upon Donald Spoto's Rebel and finally could sigh some relief that here was one that properly acknowledged the lacunae and didn't just make shit up to fill in the gaps. So I came to this, fully secure that Sp This is a pretty difficult book to review which is why I've put it off so long. So I came to this, fully secure that Spoto would tell me the truth about Norma Jeane and Marilyn and tell me what he couldn't find out. It's true, this is a fairly dry book. It's nowhere as easy to read as John Coldstream's authorised biography of Dirk Bogarde or the marvellous effortlessness of Patricia Bosworth's biography of Montgomery Clift. It's true, Spoto does repeat himself a bit within a few pages and he does go into potted synopses of each major player in Marilyn's life. The latter bit I didn't mind so much, it was good enough to know the info was there if I wanted to go back and check. What really took me aback, as I updated, was the sexual willingness of Norma Jeane. Spoto explains it in terms of a woman fully comfortable with her sex appeal and her body, explains how she was raised by a woman who knew just how to work that aspect, explains how Marilyn Monroe was so very much a product of a childhood lived on the fringe of Hollywood, ever aspiring to the silver screen, ever modelling herself on those images. A combination of nature and nurture, definitely. He rationalises it well. And I suppose it's my own sense of morality and ethics that recoils from that sort of availability. The fact that she made love to the camera of her own preternatural affinity and then as an extension of that, made love to the photographer. That's how Spoto explains it. The fact that she had a long affair with her agent even though there was apparently very little love on her part. The fact that she slept with at least one producer. I rationalise it to myself as well, perhaps those were the days, maybe that was the difference since the 30s when Kate Hepburn was trying to make it big. As far as I know, Hepburn never slept with anyone to further her career and I will probably do blue murder to anyone who suggests it. Marilyn Monroe: Fascinating Facts About the Real Woman Behind the Legend - Biography

An appearance in All About Eve won her another contract from Fox and much recognition. In she married baseball star Joe DiMaggio , and the attendant publicity was enormous. With the end of their marriage less than a year later she began to grow discontented with her career. In she married playwright Arthur Miller and briefly retired from moviemaking, although she costarred with Sir Laurence Olivier in The Prince and the Showgirl She won critical acclaim for the first time as a serious actress for Some Like It Hot Her last role, in The Misfits , was written by Miller, whom she had divorced the year before. John F. Kennedy , with whom she was allegedly having an affair. In June Monroe was fired from the film. Her early image as a dumb and seductive blonde gave way in later years to the tragic figure of a sensitive and insecure woman unable to escape the pressures of Hollywood. Her vulnerability and sensuousness combined with her needless death eventually raised her to the status of an American cultural icon. Print Cite. When I took upon myself to find the most reliable narrative of the late actress's life, Donald Spoto's monumental work crossed my path showcasing numerous recommendations. Indeed, this is the most unbiased biography of Marilyn's life I've seen yet. It doesn't indulge in unnecessary flourishes, instead relying on hard facts and documents from the estate. It never crosses into gossipy territory, which would immediately turn me off from reading it further. I was so very sad to turn the last page. This biography tells of Marilyn's unstable childhood, her relationship with her own sexuality, her battle with the movie studio tycoons, and her three tragic marriages. If you want to read one book on Marilyn, let it be this one. It details her family line history which led to the abandonment she had to go through. As a person who did not know about Marilyn more than what was told in the news; I found almost everything in the book to be new important piece of information. Especially as I stated above that Mr. Spoto enlightens the reader about those around her which paints a clearer picture of who she really was and what happened. Spoto debunks all the myths that surrounded Marilyn's life and death with real facts and receipts. He doesn't treat MM as an object; he seeks to humanize her and reveal her inner self with a deep and a better understanding of the woman beyond the myths and falsehoods. You're always running people's unconscious. It's nice to be included in people's fantasies, but you also like to be accepted for your own sake. I don't look on myself as a commodity, but I'm sure a lot of people have, including one corporation in particular which shall be nameless. If I'm sounding 'picked on,' I think I have been. As I said once before, I don't care about the money. I just want to be wonderful. I can't imagine the hard work he went through to write such comprehensive biography. I admit that the first pages are quite slow and almost dull -bulked up with details- but quickly the pace gets more intriguing with every page. The most important element of this biography is the comprehensive telling of how Marilyn was killed by her doctor and assistance. That was truly shocking to read. Spoto didn't speculate on who was behind them, however, he gave full description of how they did it. Excellent and lengthy account. The composition of events before, during and after her death is remarkable. I was blown away with all the important information that was written and provided with legit proofs. It had become a need for him and others that she be considered sick, dependent and needy. There was something sinister about Ralph Greenson. It was well known that he exerted enormous influence over her. Spoto included a bonus chapter to debunk the bogus theory that she was killed by Bobby Kennedy and he provides the alibis. I always believed that he did not kill her because there was no logical reason of why he or his brother would want such a thing--Marilyn was not obsessed with John Kennedy as the media likes to portray and mislead us. I believe that Marilyn been misrepresented and we all are misinformed regarding her but Mr. Spoto does a remarkable job in portraying her true self, no fabrications and no sensationalism. There are many psychological hypotheses and many more insight into Hollywood's dysfunctional system. If you wish to study the life of this immortal goddess from the very beginning to the very tragic end; this is the best definitive biography to read. Aug 29, Amanda rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Marilyn fans. This book was so interesting to me. I'm a fan of Marilyn, of course, so alot of the stuff in this book really surprised me because I had never heard any of it before. This man, Spoto, who wrote it, researched her life heavily in order to get all the facts for himself and his writing style was, I found, very engaging. I've read through lots of other books about Marilyn but this one was without a doubt the very best one I've ever come across. I would warn any more sensitive readers that there are This book was so interesting to me. Her life was full of scandal and drama and it's all in this book so I wouldn't recommend it to very young readers or people who are sensitive to the black and white truth that the author sets out on the table. But if you are a Marilyn fan, I would highly recommend this book. You really feel like you are able to get to know her as she really was. Dec 14, Shelbi rated it liked it. Lately, I have been quite torn in the books I have read. Donald Spoto is a wonderful biographer and quite thorough - I am quite excited to read even more from him. He paints a fascinating picture of this enigmatic woman, whom I and most of society, really am inexplicably entranced with. However, the more I read about her, the less interested I was in her. At the end of the day, she is just like any other celebrity - beautiful and selfish, with a lot of issues known and unknown to the public. I Lately, I have been quite torn in the books I have read. I got about halfway through, but I decided to put it down for good, today. I feel there are better books on my list that are more worth my time. At more than pages, this behemoth is way more than I want to be reading about someone unless it is Christ. Moral: wonderful author, not so wonderful subject. She is not someone I would want to emulate, although the allure she has held 50 years after her death is quite remarkable. View 2 comments. A biography of astonishing depth. Reading this book cements my place as a fan-not of Marilyn Monroe the sex symbol, but of the woman, the 'little girl lost', who achieved so much as an actress despite a crippling insecurity, low self esteem, and little self worth. It is a shame that her abilities as an actress were not recognised or fully appreciated until after her death. From a personal perspective, I recognised certain aspects of her behaviour and character traits from my time as a foster car A biography of astonishing depth. From a personal perspective, I recognised certain aspects of her behaviour and character traits from my time as a foster carer. This book is a comprehensive study of her life, while debunking the usual murder plot as is normally trotted out, it does nevertheless hold people culpable, convincingly, for the death of the actress, and we are left with a definable sense of sadness at the end. Sadness at the end of the life of a woman who needed to rely upon, became dependent on, and ultimately was failed by, others. A great read. A solid biography of a complicated person. Spoto does an admirable job at dispelling many of the myths associated with Marilyn some of which, to be fair, were created by the subject herself. While ultimately you're taking Spoto's word over others, his research appears to be thorough, so when he says there's absolutely no way Marilyn ever had an affair with Bobby Kennedy, I tend to believe him. As for his reconstruction of the events surrounding Marilyn's death, again, I think his research is s A solid biography of a complicated person. As for his reconstruction of the events surrounding Marilyn's death, again, I think his research is sound, but we'll never know for sure. He also includes an afterword where he goes and systematically disproves all the other theories that are out there. Seems to check out for me. In any event, Marilyn Monroe was a complex person. She led a strange and sad life. Which makes for a pretty entertaining read. If you're going to read a biography of Marilyn Monroe, it should probably be this one. Jun 16, Inessa rated it liked it. An in depth biography of an intriguing woman, enjoyable to read. Jul 31, Nisha-Anne rated it really liked it. This is a pretty difficult book to review which is why I've put it off so long. I've read enough biographies to know I have to be careful which one I pick up and to make sure it's properly researched and respected. I read way too many wildly speculative biographies of James Dean before I came upon Donald Spoto's Rebel and finally could sigh some relief that here was one that properly acknowledged the lacunae and didn't just make shit up to fill in the gaps. So I came to this, fully secure that Sp This is a pretty difficult book to review which is why I've put it off so long. So I came to this, fully secure that Spoto would tell me the truth about Norma Jeane and Marilyn and tell me what he couldn't find out. It's true, this is a fairly dry book. It's nowhere as easy to read as John Coldstream's authorised biography of Dirk Bogarde or the marvellous effortlessness of Patricia Bosworth's biography of Montgomery Clift. It's true, Spoto does repeat himself a bit within a few pages and he does go into potted synopses of each major player in Marilyn's life. The latter bit I didn't mind so much, it was good enough to know the info was there if I wanted to go back and check. What really took me aback, as I updated, was the sexual willingness of Norma Jeane. Spoto explains it in terms of a woman fully comfortable with her sex appeal and her body, explains how she was raised by a woman who knew just how to work that aspect, explains how Marilyn Monroe was so very much a product of a childhood lived on the fringe of Hollywood, ever aspiring to the silver screen, ever modelling herself on those images. A combination of nature and nurture, definitely. He rationalises it well. And I suppose it's my own sense of morality and ethics that recoils from that sort of availability. The fact that she made love to the camera of her own preternatural affinity and then as an extension of that, made love to the photographer. That's how Spoto explains it. The fact that she had a long affair with her agent even though there was apparently very little love on her part. The fact that she slept with at least one producer. I rationalise it to myself as well, perhaps those were the days, maybe that was the difference since the 30s when Kate Hepburn was trying to make it big. As far as I know, Hepburn never slept with anyone to further her career and I will probably do blue murder to anyone who suggests it. It's something that deeply appalls me, the idea of relying on something other than your craft to make it big. And maybe I shouldn't believe Spoto when he says with cited interviews and such that she did? I'm not certain now. What astounded me and more in terms of the Marilyn fans I know online is the calm assertion that she did occasionally solicit on the boulevard in those very early days in Hollywood. The staunch MM fandom online, of which I will count myself, will have you believe Marilyn never hooked. Spoto perhaps makes a bit of apology for that, and later backs himself up by telling us how Marilyn spun the possible scandal to her benefit like she did with explaining the nude pictures away as poverty. Me, I was covering my eyes, imagining the furious reaction from fans online who haven't yet read this biography. But there's a great deal of love and compassion in this book, a great deal of care taken to portray Marilyn in all her flaws and virtues, explain the psychological motivation behind both. What I really loved was the analysis of her image and her symbolism in that era of Fifties morality and in context of the Kinsey study being published. I was quite fascinated too by how intuitively clever she was about working the press to her advantage and yet keeping her charitable works away from the public eye. Spoto's unequivocal about who he believes was responsible for her death. In fact, that last bit makes for utterly gripping reading and it was only later I realised it was all theory. Quite plausible theory, yes, and compellingly put. But still theory. What chilled me to the core was seeing the terrible dependency on medication unfurl. How it's been repeated so many times through Hollywood history and still never loses its horror. To know it's still happening and we're still losing talents to it. I read this book, believing completely in its truth, trusting Spoto to the nth detail. And then weirdly enough, the week after I finished it, I came down the stairs in my apartment building and found somebody had left a biography of Laurence Olivier in the foyer. And it was by Spoto. Naturally I grabbed it up with much excitement and hurtled to the bus stop off to work. By the time I got to the office, I had discovered that apparently Spoto had totally made up stuff in that biography and that even Joan Plowright had denounced him not so directly. So now I'm doubting his Marilyn biography. Damn it. This is one of the best-written biographies I've ever read. The book begins with a very interesting study of her family history and ends up by exploring the events after her death and discussing any possible theory relating to her eventual murder. The thing I respect the most is that Donald Spoto does't have any personal feelings involved while telling us the story. Instead, he strictly stick to the facts without paying attention to gossips and unconfirmed rumors. I have always liked Marilyn Monr This is one of the best-written biographies I've ever read. I have always liked Marilyn Monroe not only as a sex symbol but also as a good actress. She can turn even the most stupid scenario to decent movie and that's why I was really surprised to learn how insecure she was in her acting skills and in herself as a person. I was extremely angry by reading how badly she was treated by the studio and her co-workers. She has been underestimated through her whole life and often had been accused to be unprofessional, dump and lousy actress. Even her closest people have taken advantage of her weakness by spending her money and use her fame to improve themselves. The last few chapters of this book sounds to me like Agatha Christie's mystery novel but unfortunately in this case the crime remains unsolved. It's really sad how weak and how dependent she was of her psycho doctor and his magic pills. I think in the end her loneliness truly had killed her. I guess she was too good, too sensitive and too trustworthy for living in this messed up word. I want to end my review with a quote of Marilyn which made me understand her and respect her even more: I think that when you are famous every weakness is exaggerated. This industry should behave like a mother whose child has just run out in front of a car. But instead of clasping the child to them, they start punishing the child. Like you don't dare get a cold. How dare you get a cold! I mean, the executives can get colds and stay home forever and phone it in, but how dare you, the actor, get a cold or a virus. You know, no one feels worse than the one who's sick. I sometimes wish, gee, I wish they had to act a comedy with a temperature and a virus infection. Joseph L. Mankiewicz saw her in a small part in The Asphalt Jungle and put her in All About Eve , resulting in 20th Century re- signing her to a seven-year contract. Niagara and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes launched her as a sex symbol superstar. When she went to a supper honoring her in the The Seven Year Itch , she arrived in a red chiffon gown borrowed from the studio she had never owned a gown. That same year, she married and divorced baseball great Joe DiMaggio their wedding night was spent in Paso Robles, California. She worked with director Lee Strasberg and also underwent psychoanalysis to learn more about herself. Critics praised her transformation in Bus Stop and the press was stunned by her marriage to playwright Arthur Miller. True to form, she had no veil to match her beige wedding dress so she dyed one in coffee; he wore one of the two suits he owned. They went to England that fall where she made The Prince and the Showgirl with Laurence Olivier , fighting with him and falling further prey to alcohol and pills. Two miscarriages and gynecological surgery followed. So did an affair with Yves Montand. Work on her last picture The Misfits , written for her by departing husband Miller was interrupted by exhaustion. She was dropped from the unfinished Something's Got to Give due to chronic lateness and drug dependency. On August 4, , Marilyn Monroe's day began with threatening phone calls. Ralph Greenson, Marilyn's physician, came over the following day and quoted later in a document "felt it was possible that Marilyn Monroe had felt rejected by some of the people she had been close to". Apart from being upset that her publicist slept too long, she seemed fine. Pat Newcombe, who had stayed the previous night at Marilyn's house, left in the early evening as did Greenson who had a dinner date. Marilyn was upset he couldn't stay, and around pm she telephoned him while she was to tell him that her second husband's son had called him. Peter Lawford also called Marilyn, inviting her to dinner, but she declined. Lawford later said her speech was slurred. As the dark and depressing evening for Marilyn wore on there were other phone calls, including one from Jose Belanos, who said he thought she sounded fine. According to the funeral directors, Marilyn died sometime between pm and pm. Her maid unable to raise her but seeing a light under her locked door, called the police shortly after midnight. She also phoned Ralph Greenson who, on arrival, could not break down the bedroom door. He eventually broke in through French windows and found Marilyn dead in bed. The coroner stated she had died from acute barbiturate poisoning, and it was a 'probable suicide'. Prior to her birth, Marilyn's father bought a motorcycle and headed north to San Francisco, abandoning the family in Los Angeles. Marilyn grew up not knowing for sure who her father really was. Her mother, Gladys, had entered into several relationships, further confusing her daughter as to who it was who fathered her. Poverty was a constant companion to Gladys and Norma. Gladys, who was extremely attractive and worked for R. Studios as a film-cutter, suffered from mental illness and was in and out of mental institutions for the rest of her life, and because of that Norma Jeane spent time in foster homes. When she was nine, she was placed in an orphanage where she was to stay for the next two years. Upon being released from the orphanage, she went to yet another foster home. In , at sixteen years old, Norma Jeane married twenty-one-year-old aircraft plant worker James Dougherty. The marriage only lasted four years, and they divorced in By this time, Marilyn began to model swimsuits and bleached her hair blonde. Various shots made their way into the public eye, where some were eventually seen by R. Pictures head Howard Hughes. He offered Marilyn a screen test, but an agent suggested that 20th Century-Fox would be the better choice for her, since it was a much bigger and more prestigious studio. Her first film was in with a bit part in The Shocking Miss Pilgrim Her next production was not much better, a bit in the eminently forgettable Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! Two of the three brief scenes in which she appeared wound up on the cutting room floor. Later that same year, she was given a somewhat better role as Evie in Dangerous Years However, Fox declined to renew her contract, so she went back to modeling and acting school. Columbia Pictures then picked her up to play Peggy Martin in Ladies of the Chorus , where she sang two numbers. Notices from the critics were favorable for her, if not the film, but Columbia dropped her. Once again Marilyn returned to modeling. In , she appeared in United Artists' Love Happy It was also that same year she posed nude for the now famous calendar shot which was later to appear in Playboy magazine in and further boost her career. She would be the first centerfold in that magazine's long and illustrious history. The next year proved to be a good year for Marilyn. Even though both roles were basically not much more than bit parts, movie fans remembered her dizzy but very sexy blonde performance. In , Marilyn got a fairly sizable role in Love Nest The public was now getting to know her and liked what it saw. She had an intoxicating quality of volcanic sexuality wrapped in an aura of almost childlike innocence. In , Marilyn appeared in Don't Bother to Knock , in which she played a somewhat mentally unbalanced babysitter. Critics didn't particularly care for her work in this picture, but she made a much more favorable impression later in the year in Monkey Business , where she was seen for the first time as a platinum blonde, a look that became her trademark. It was also the same year she began dating the baseball great Joe DiMaggio. Marilyn was now a genuine box-office drawing card. Although her co-stars got the rave reviews, it was the sight of Marilyn that really excited the audience, especially the male members. That was quickly followed by The Seven Year Itch , which showcased her considerable comedic talent and contained what is arguably one of the most memorable moments in cinema history: Marilyn standing above a subway grating and the wind from a passing subway blowing her white dress up. By October , Marilyn announced her divorce from DiMaggio. The union lasted only eight months. It was her second suspension, the first being for not reporting for the production of The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing Both roles went to others. Her work was slowing down, due to her habit of being continually late to the set, her illnesses whether real or imagined and generally being unwilling to cooperate with her producers, directors, and fellow actors. However in Bus Stop , Marilyn finally showed critics that she could play a straight dramatic role. It was also the same year she married playwright, Arthur Miller they divorced in In , Marilyn flew to Britain to film The Prince and the Showgirl which proved less than impressive critically and financially. It made money, but many critics panned it for being slow-moving. The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. Again, while it made money, it was critically panned as stodgy and slow-moving. The following year, Marilyn made what was to be her final film. The Misfits , which also proved to be the final film for the legendary Clark Gable , who died later that year of a heart attack. The film was popular with critics and the public alike. Again, her absenteeism caused delay after delay in production, resulting in her being fired from the production in June of that year. It looked as though her career was finished. Studios just didn't want to take a chance on her because it would cost them thousands of dollars in delays. She was only thirty-six years old. Marilyn acted in only thirty films, but her legendary status and mysticism will remain with film history for ever. Sign In. Edit Marilyn Monroe. Showing all items. Was roommates with Shelley Winters when they were both starting out in Hollywood. Voted Empire's UK "sexiest female movie star of all time" in She was Playboy's first "Sweetheart of the Month" in December Marianne Kris, her psychoanalyst. When Dr. Started using the name Marilyn Monroe in , but did not legally change it until Given a dog she named Tippy by foster father Albert Bolender. In her final, unfinished film Something's Got to Give , the dog was also named Tippy. Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the Sexiest Stars in film history 2. Hugh Hefner owned the closest burial vault next to hers. She had a phone in one of her hands, her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. Ex-husband Joe DiMaggio put fresh roses at her memorial site, for numerous years after her death. When putting her imprints at Grauman's she joked that Jane Russell was best known for her large front-side and she was known for her wiggly walk, so Jane could lean over, and she could sit in it. It was only a joke, but she dotted the "I" in her name with a rhinestone, which was stolen within days. Redheaded actress Tina Louise played the character role of Ginger Grant on the television series Gilligan's Island , was loosely based on her personality, but a different hair color. During the filming of Niagara , she was still under contract as a stock actor, thus, she received less salary than her make-up man. This was also the only film in which her character died. The film was reworked to highlight her after Anne Bancroft withdrew. Often carried around the book, "The Biography of Abraham Lincoln. Was an outstanding player on the Hollygrove Orphanage softball team. Because the bathing suit she wore in the movie Love Nest was so risque for the time period and caused such a commotion on the set, director Joseph M. Newman had to make it a closed set when she was filming. Fearing blemishes and sweat, she washed her face fifteen times a day. She was suggested as a possible wife for Prince Rainier of Monaco. But he picked actress, Grace Kelly , to be his wife. The first time she signed an autograph as Marilyn Monroe, she had to ask how to spell it. She didn't know where to put the "i" in "Marilyn". Suffered from endometriosis, a condition in which tissues of the uterus lining endometrium leave the uterus, attach themselves to other areas of the body, and grow, causing pain, irregular bleeding, and, in severe cases, infertility. Divorced last husband, Arthur Miller , in Juarez, Mexico. Married Arthur Miller twice: the 1st time in a civil ceremony, then in a Jewish to which she had converted ceremony two days later. Won an interlocutory decree from Joe DiMaggio on Wednesday, October 27th, , but, under California law, the divorce was not finalized until exactly one year later. Offered to convert to Catholism in order to marry Joe DiMaggio in a Church ceremony, but she was turned down because she was divorced. The boy died, and Gladys returned to California. In , Elton John released a single in tribute to her entitled "Candle in the Wind". In , it was re-recorded with updated lyrics in memory of Princess Diana , becoming the UK's best-selling single of all time. Def Leppard 's single "Photograph" from their "Pyromania" album was also written about Monroe. Her behavior on the unfinished Something's Got to Give dimmed her reputation in the industry, but she was still big box office at the time of her death. What a Way to Go! When she was told that she was not the star in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes she verbally said "Well whatever I am, I'm still the blonde. The famous nude photo of her by Tom Kelley originally appeared as anonymous on a calendar entitled "Miss Golden Dreams. Neither Kelley or Monroe ever saw a dime of the millions the calendar made for its publisher. Greene , on December 31, Appears on sleeve of The Beatles ' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" album. She was one of the plant's employees. She left her job and signed with Emmeline Snively 's modeling agency. Was referenced in the dialogue of La Dolce Vita , in the context of dieting. When she wasn't acting, she preferred to wear nothing but a bathrobe and occasionally a bikini. The punk band The Misfits created or picked their name from the last movie title she acted in, The Misfits Featured on a 1. The very popular version of "Santa Baby" also found in the film, Party Monster thought to be sung by her was instead recorded by Cynthia Basinet for Jack Nicholson as a Christmas gift. Ten days in advance, on Saturday, May 19th, , she performed for U. President John F. Kennedy at his 45th birthday tribute in his honor at Madison Square Garden. She sang "Happy Birthday". Kennedy's real birthday was May 29th. After discovering her dress was torn, at the Academy Awards, she burst into tears. The dress Marilyn Monroe wore to serenade John F. Kennedy , on May 19, at his birthday celebration was so tight, that it had to be sewn onto her. She had to sit still for approximately an hour. One of the first Los Angeles natives to become a major movie star. Aside from her birth name of Norma Jeane Mortenson, she was baptized and mainly known throughout her life as Norma Jeane Baker. During her modeling days she was also known as Norma Jeane Dougherty her first marriage name , and also as Jean Norman. When she signed with 20th Century-Fox, studio casting executive Ben Lyon had first chosen the name Carol Lind as her stage name, although she disliked that. Eventually she chose her mother's maiden name of Monroe. Three names were drawn up as possible stage names. The first was Norma Jeane Monroe, although that sounded awkward; the second was Jean Monroe, and the third was Marilyn Monroe, the latter first name being chosen by Lyon who thought Norma Jeane resembled famed stage actress Marilyn Miller. Norma Jeane liked Jean Monroe, for it preserved some of her name, but Lyon convinced her that Marilyn Monroe sounded more alliterative and so it was chosen. She took acting lessons from Michael Chekhov. A review into the original inquest of Marilyn's death, conducted on its year anniversary, concluded that the actress committed suicide or accidentally overdosed, and was not murdered--rumors that were fueled by the sloppy handling of evidence, the delay in securing the scene and the disappearance of tissue samples. In , actress Veronica Hamel and her husband became the new owners of Marilyn's Brentwood home. They hired a contractor to replace the roof and remodel the house, and the contractor discovered a sophisticated eavesdropping and telephone tapping system that covered every room in the house. The components were not commercially available in , but were in the words of a retired Justice Department official, "standard FBI issue. Edgar Hoover believed that President Kennedy and his brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy who was Hoover's boss were threats to national security because of their dalliances with Monroe and with Judith Exner, who was also a girlfriend of a Mafia boss. This bugging equipment led to Hoover's rumored blackmailing of the Kennedy brothers. Was good friends with Dorothy Dandridge and Ava Gardner when they were all young, struggling actresses in Hollywood. When budding actresses Shelley Winters and Marilyn were roommates in the late s in Hollywood, Shelley said that one day she had to step out and asked Marilyn to "wash the lettuce" for a salad they were to share for dinner. When Shelley got back to the apartment, Marilyn was apparently new to the art of cooking had the leaves of lettuce in a small tub of soapy water and was scrubbing them clean. She had not heard of the phrase before either, or did not know it's true meaning. Her real father was Charles Stanley Gifford. Coincidentally, this is how her character was murdered in Niagara Don't Bother to Knock her 18th film was an attempt to prove to critics that she could act successfully. Because some earlier films took numerous takes and much longer time to complete. Especially, The Seven Year Itch which took numerous extra takes, for her character role, alone. In Italy, her films were dubbed at the beginning of her career by Miranda Bonansea. As she matured she was dubbed by the marvellous and prolific Rosetta Calavetta with immense success, particularly in Some Like It Hot Her lifelong bouts with depression and self-destruction took their toll during filming The Seven Year Itch She frequently muffed scenes and forgot her lines, leading to sometimes as many as 40 takes of a scene before a satisfactory result was produced. The film still managed to make a nice profit. The classic shot of her dress blowing up around her legs as she stands over a subway grating in this film was originally shot on Manhattan's Lexington Avenue at 52nd St. Five thousand onlookers whistled and cheered through take after take as Marilyn repeatedly missed her lines. This occurred in presence of an increasingly embarrassed and angry Joe DiMaggio her husband at the time; the nine- month-old marriage officially ended during the shooting of this film. The original footage shot on that night in New York never made it to the screen; the noise of the crowd had made it unusable. Director Billy Wilder re-shot the scene on the 20th Century-Fox lot, on a set replicating Lexington Avenue, and got a more satisfactory result. However, it took another 40 takes for Marilyn to achieve the famous scene.

Marilyn Monroe - Biography - IMDb

She would go deep down within herself and find it and bring it up into consciousness. Monroe and Miller separated after filming wrapped, and she obtained a Mexican divorce in January Geoff Andrew of the British Film Institute has called it a classic, [] Huston scholar Tony Tracy has described Monroe's performance the "most mature interpretation of her career", [] and Geoffrey McNab of The Independent has praised her for being "extraordinary" in portraying the character's "power of empathy". Monroe was next to star in a television adaptation of W. Somerset Maugham 's Rain for NBC , but the project fell through as the network did not want to hire her choice of director, Lee Strasberg. She underwent a cholecystectomy and surgery for her endometriosis, and spent four weeks hospitalized for depression. President " on stage at President John F. Monroe next filmed a scene for Something's Got to Give in which she swam naked in a swimming pool. This was the first time that a major star had posed nude at the height of their career. Fox soon regretted its decision and re-opened negotiations with Monroe later in June; a settlement about a new contract, including re-commencing Something's Got to Give and a starring role in the black comedy What a Way to Go! Her housekeeper Eunice Murray was staying overnight at the home on the evening of August 4, She saw light from under Monroe's bedroom door, but was unable to get a response and found the door locked. Murray then called Monroe's psychiatrist, Dr. Ralph Greenson , who arrived at the house shortly after and broke into the bedroom through a window to find Monroe dead in her bed. Monroe's sudden death was front-page news in the United States and Europe. In the following decades, several conspiracy theories , including murder and accidental overdose, have been introduced to contradict suicide as the cause of Monroe's death. The s had been the heyday for actresses who were perceived as tough and smart—such as Katharine Hepburn and Barbara Stanwyck —who had appealed to women- dominated audiences during the war years. From the beginning, Monroe played a significant part in the creation of her public image, and towards the end of her career exerted almost full control over it. In her films, Monroe usually played "the girl", who is defined solely by her gender. In press stories, Monroe was portrayed as the embodiment of the American Dream , a girl who had risen from a miserable childhood to Hollywood stardom. Although Monroe's screen persona as a dim-witted but sexually attractive blonde was a carefully crafted act, audiences and film critics believed it to be her real personality. This became an obstacle when she wanted to pursue other kinds of roles, or to be respected as a businesswoman. The biggest myth is that she was dumb. The second is that she was fragile. The third is that she couldn't act. She was far from dumb, although she was not formally educated, and she was very sensitive about that. But she was very smart indeed—and very tough. She had to be both to beat the Hollywood studio system in the s. Such a good actress that no one now believes she was anything but what she portrayed on screen. Biographer Lois Banner has written that Monroe often subtly parodied her status as a sex symbol in her films and public appearances, [] and that "the 'Marilyn Monroe' character she created was a brilliant archetype, who stands between Mae West and Madonna in the tradition of twentieth-century gender tricksters. According to Dyer, Monroe became "virtually a household name for sex" in the s and "her image has to be situated in the flux of ideas about morality and sexuality that characterised the Fifties in America", such as Freudian ideas about sex, the Kinsey report , and Betty Friedan 's The Feminine Mystique Dyer has also argued that Monroe's blonde hair became her defining feature because it made her "racially unambiguous" and exclusively white just as the civil rights movement was beginning, and that she should be seen as emblematic of racism in twentieth-century popular culture. Monroe was perceived as a specifically American star, "a national institution as well known as hot dogs, apple pie, or baseball" according to Photoplay. If America was to export the democracy of glamour into post-war, impoverished Europe, the movies could be its shop window Marilyn Monroe, with her all American attributes and streamlined sexuality, came to epitomise in a single image this complex interface of the economic, the political, and the erotic. By the mid s, she stood for a brand of classless glamour, available to anyone using American cosmetics, nylons and peroxide. Twentieth Century- Fox further profited from Monroe's popularity by cultivating several lookalike actresses, such as Jayne Mansfield and Sheree North. The Smithsonian Institution has included her on their list of " Most Significant Americans of All Time", [] and both Variety and VH1 have placed her in the top ten in their rankings of the greatest popular culture icons of the twentieth century. Hundreds of books have been written about Monroe. She has been the subject of films, plays, operas, and songs, and has influenced artists and entertainers such as Andy Warhol and Madonna. Monroe's enduring popularity is linked to her conflicted public image. Due to the contrast between her stardom and troubled private life, Monroe is closely linked to broader discussions about modern phenomena such as mass media, fame, and consumer culture. Monroe remains a cultural icon, but critics are divided on her legacy as an actress. David Thomson called her body of work "insubstantial" [] and Pauline Kael wrote that she could not act, but rather "used her lack of an actress's skills to amuse the public. She had the wit or crassness or desperation to turn cheesecake into acting—and vice versa; she did what others had the 'good taste' not to do". From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. For other uses, see Norma Jean disambiguation and Marilyn Monroe disambiguation. American actress, model, and singer. Los Angeles , California, U. James Dougherty. Joe DiMaggio. Arthur Miller. Up in front, there with the screen so big, a little kid all alone, and I loved it. Monroe as a 20th Century-Fox contract player in She had two small film roles while under contract and was let go after a year. Studio publicity photo. Monroe as Rose Loomis in the film noir Niagara , which dwelt on her sex appeal. Monroe and co-star Jane Russell after pressing their hands in wet concrete at Grauman's Chinese Theatre. Main article: Death of Marilyn Monroe. I always thought symbols were those things you clash together! That's the trouble, a sex symbol becomes a thing. I just hate to be a thing. But if I'm going to be a symbol of something I'd rather have it sex than some other things they've got symbols of. Main article: Marilyn Monroe in popular culture. Main article: Marilyn Monroe performances and awards. Dangerous Years Scudda Hoo! She told him about her grievances with the studio, and Greene suggested that they start their own production company. Although they sometimes had casual sexual encounters, there is no evidence that their relationship was serious. Los Angeles Times. Tribune Publishing. Archived from the original on September 25, Retrieved September 23, The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on November 4, Retrieved October 21, Wartime Press. Archived from the original on August 7, Retrieved January 13, Retrieved September 11, Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 18, American Film Institute. Retrieved August 8, The New York Times. Penske Media Corporation. December 31, Public Broadcasting Service. July 19, Archived from the original on August 10, Retrieved July 11, Quigley Publishing Company. Archived from the original on December 21, Retrieved August 25, The hook, of course, is still the Kennedys. Because without them, who do we blame for the loss? With a star this beloved, there has to be a villain. Spoto leans heavily on the shrink and the housekeeper both of whom are now dead. For once, a biographer is letting the Kennedys off scot-free. According to Spoto, Kennedy in-law Peter Lawford was a soul mate, not a pimp-conspirator. One can even imagine Kennedy wife Pat Lawford giving the book a quote. But, then again, Spoto is a Hollywood biographer, so probably not. Spoto makes a case, and a good one, that MM becomes most interesting after , as she begins to explore herself psychologically. She was the first star to go public with her neuroses and get away with it. Greene was the guru who refinanced his home in Connecticut to launch the unfortunate Marilyn Monroe Productions with her; he also gave her his New York shrink. The author does let the actress off the hook a lot--for her habitual tardiness and occasionally poor hygiene--but a revisionist author has built-in limitations. He gives us the girl who just wanted to be wonderful, and he gives her due credit for becoming just that. MMography, which has become a genre in publishing, exists for venal reasons. See Article History. Top Questions. Get exclusive access to content from our First Edition with your subscription. Subscribe today. Learn More in these related Britannica articles:. Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, and Eli Wallach portrayed aging modern-day cowboys who capture wild horses and sell them to be slaughtered for dog food. Louis , would be the only biographical film that he would ever make. History at your fingertips. Sign up here to see what happened On This Day , every day in your inbox! Email address. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Notice. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox.

https://files8.webydo.com/9589572/UploadedFiles/F4742208-F7F6-AB58-F20D-AB3553E8DB53.pdf https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/e102ed6b-0652-41ab-914d-79e991e86d8e/betriebssysteme-grundlagen-entwurf-implementierung-261.pdf https://files8.webydo.com/9593458/UploadedFiles/9F9CDBA1-8B84-CAE3-34D9-9FB349556AAA.pdf https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/a4833c2e-c137-451d-90cb-1bfda330f2c0/einfuhrung-in-die-kulturwissenschaften-theoretische- grundlagen-ansatze-perspektiven-158.pdf