Marilyn Monroe was an American film actress who was born on June 1, 1926, and died on August 5, 1962. Although her career was commercially successful back in the 1950s and early 1960s, she remains a household name to this day. Notable events in Monroe's life include her multiple marriages and her death from barbiturate overdose.
Monroe spent most of her childhood living with distant relatives or in foster homes. She did some modeling in 1945 before signing a film contract with Twentieth Century-Fox in 1946. Her early film career consisted of minor roles, but Monroe began to attract serious attention with her performances in the 1950 dramas "All About Eve" and "The Asphalt Jungle." Monroe's first starring role was in the 1952 thriller "Don't Bother to Knock." This was followed by a series of comedies that made good use of her "dumb blond" persona, for which she became typecast.
Monroe began taking formal acting lessons in 1955 to broaden her acting range and received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in the 1956 drama "Bus Stop." She was also nominated for a BAFTA Award for the 1957 drama "The Prince and the Showgirl." Her performance in the 1959 comedy "Some Like it Hot" won Monroe a Golden Globe Award and is often considered her best performance. The 1961 drama "The Misfits" was Monroe's last completed film, which received critical acclaim despite being commercially unsuccessful. The actress died while filming "Something's Got to Give," a comedy that was never completed.
All three of Monroe's marriages ended in divorce, and she is also alleged to have had affairs with President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert Kennedy. She never had children, having suffered an ectopic pregnancy and two miscarriages throughout her marriages. Monroe married James Dougherty on June 19, 1942, shortly after her 16th birthday. Dougherty did not approve of her modeling career, and Monroe divorced him in 1946.
Next, Monroe married retired baseball player Joe DiMaggio in a civil ceremony on January 14, 1954. They met in 1952, although Monroe was initially reluctant to date the retired athlete. Monroe performed a series of USO shows in Japan during the couple's honeymoon, which is widely believed to have created the initial strain on the marriage. The troubled marriage reached the final straw when Monroe filmed the iconic skirt-blowing scene for "The Seven Year Itch" on September 14, 1954. The shoot became a media circus and ended with DiMaggio and Monroe in a shouting match. Monroe filed for a divorce the following month.
Monroe's third marriage was with playwright Arthur Miller in a civil ceremony that took place on June 29, 1956. They met in 1950, although the relationship did not become serious until 1955, when Monroe was filming "Bus Stop." The couple dated discretely over the next year, until their relationship began to receive media attention. The private ceremony was followed by a formal Jewish wedding two days later. Miller wrote the screenplay for "The Misfits" in 1959, intending it as a Valentine gift for Monroe. However, the marriage was irreparable when filming began in 1960 and the couple obtained a divorce in Mexico on January 24, 1961.
Monroe died at her home in Brentwood, California. Her housekeeper discovered her body and called Monroe's psychiatrist, Ralph Greenson. Greenson reported Monroe's death at 4:25 a.m. on August 5, 1962. An autopsy detected chloral hydrate in her blood at a concentration of 8 milligrams per deciliter of blood and 4.5 mg/dL of Nembutal, more than enough to be lethal. The Los Angeles County Coroners office ruled the death a probable suicide due to barbiturate poisoning. Many conspiracy theorists have advanced theories that Monroe's death was arranged by various parties, including John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, the CIA, and the Mafia.
Monroe's body was interred in Los Angeles at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery on August 8, 1962. The funeral was attended by only 31 people, a very small number considering her fame and the circumstances of her death. Joe DiMaggio handled the arrangements, which included a police presence to keep the media away.
Monroe's will left her personal effects to her coach Lee Strasberg, specifying that he distribute them among her friends and colleagues. However, Strasberg stored the items in a warehouse and they went to his wife Anna upon his death in 1982. Anna auctioned off the majority of Monroe's effects through Christie's auction house in October 1999, netting $13,405,785.
Anna Strasberg was also granted ownership of Monroe's home after a long legal battle. She received the proceeds from the sale of the home in July 2010, at a total of $3.6 million. Providing useful articles, reviews and writings on movies and films online.
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