Marilyn Monroe: who was it, biography, trivia

marilyn monroe was an actress, model and singer of the U.S which gained prominence in the 1950s and early 1960s. The platinum blonde died at the age of 36. She has become one of the main icons of cinema.

Considered one of the most beautiful women in history, the actress has participated in several films, among which stands out Sin lives next doorado, in which she appears in the famous flowing white dress.

Also known as one of the greatest sex symbols of all time, Marilyn Monroe is a great icon of the 20th century and pop culture.

Read too: Carmen Miranda — internationally recognized Brazilian singer, actress and dancer

Topics of this article

  • 1 - Life of Marilyn Monroe
  • 2 - Marilyn Monroe's love affairs
  • 3 - Happy Birthday, Mr. President
  • 4 - Death of Marilyn Monroe
  • 5 - Work by Marilyn Monroe
  • 6 - The beauty of Marilyn Monroe
  • 7 - Iconic dresses by Marilyn Monroe
  • 8 - Films honoring Marilyn Monroe
  • 9 - Curiosities about Marilyn Monroe

Life of Marilyn Monroe

marilyn monroe was born on June 1, 1926, in the city of Los Angeles, in the state of California, United States.

Norma Jeane Baker Mortenson was her real name by Marilyn Monroe. When she became an actress, she took the name after actress Marilyn Miller and her mother's maiden name: Monroe.

Norma's mother, Gladys Baker, already had two children from a previous marriage, but had no contact with them. The name of Marilyn Monroe's father has never been revealed.

Gladys suffered from psychiatric problems, which also affected other members of her family. Shortly after Norma Jeane was born, Gladys gave her daughter up to a foster family. Studies reveal that she did not feel safe to take care of a child.

At the age of seven, Norma returned to live with her mother. However, a few months later, Gladys had a nervous breakdown and had to be admitted to a psychiatric clinic. Doctors assessed that she had chronic depression and mental disorder.

Gladys was deemed unfit to care for her daughter. So her friend Grace McKee became Marilyn's legal guardian. During the rest of her childhood and part of her adolescence, the future actress lived with Grace in some periods and in others, in orphanages.

Marilyn Monroe as a teenager still with brown hair.
Marilyn Monroe as a teenager, when she was still called Norma Jeane.

As a teenager, Marilyn Monroe's beauty began to attract attention, and she became a vain young woman. According to biographical books, it was during this period that she suffered harassment and sexual abuse from men, including Grace's husband.

When she could, Gladys took her daughter to Hollywood to watch comedy features. Marilyn Monroe loved Jean Harlow movies. This actress became a reference for Norma Jean, both in her platinum blonde look and in her decision to later become an actress.

Before fame, Marilyn Monroe worked in a factory in the military sector that produced drones during the Second World War.

Do not stop now... There's more after the publicity ;)

Marilyn Monroe Love Relations

Marilyn Monroe was an actress much courted and harassed by men because of her stunning beauty. Throughout her life, she had several boyfriends and relationships. Overall, the actress had three marriages.

Little before turning 16, the actress got married for the first time. James Dougherty, a 21-year-old who lived in her neighborhood, was chosen. Studies indicate that she got married for fear of having to return to the orphanage. They divorced when Marilyn was 20 years old.

O baseball player Joe DiMaggio was the second husband by Marilyn Monroe. They were married in 1953. The marriage lasted less than a year because she couldn't stand her husband's possessiveness and jealousy.

Marilyn Monroe and her second husband, gambler Joe DiMaggio, in 1954.
Marilyn Monroe and her second husband, gambler Joe DiMaggio, in 1954.

O Marilyn's third husband was Arthur Miller, writer and playwright, with whom he stayed from 1956 to 1961. Research points out that this was the man the actress liked most in her life. In this marriage, the actress lost a baby.

Rumors suggest that Marilyn Monroe was the lover of the then president John F. kennedy (JFK) and his brother Robert.

Throughout her life, the platinum blonde has been involved with several men. Among the most famous are the actor Marlon Brando, the film director Elia Kazan, the son of Charles Chaplin and the former US president. Ronald Reagan.

marilyn monroe had no children. Studies indicate that she suffered a few miscarriages during her lifetime.

Read too:Diana Spencer — the biography of the famous Lady Diana

Happy birthday Mr. President

One of the most memorable episodes in the life of Marilyn Monroe it was when the actress sang Happy Birthday to then-president JFK on May 19, 1962, at a gala that took place at Madison Square Garden in New York.

When Marilyn Monroe sang “Happy Birthday, Mr. President,” she wore a tight dress covered in rhinestones. The song was sung in a sensual and provocative way, fueling rumors that she was having an affair with him.

Death of Marilyn Monroe

Black and white image of Marilyn Monroe from the 1953 film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
Marilyn Monroe in the movie Men prefer blondes, from 1953.

Marilyn Monroe became a recognized actress in the late 1950s and early 1960s in the United States and became a beauty icon. Many admired her, and the paparazzi often pursued her. This lack of privacy resulted in the appearance of a depressive condition in the actress.

Research points out that the Hollywood star was afraid to sleep, so she used tranquilizers and sleeping pills. The actress was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and depression and she was found to be addicted to medicine.

Marilyn Monroe was Found dead on August 5, 1962, aged 36, on her bed, in the bedroom of her Los Angeles mansion. As there were packets of sedatives and tranquilizers on the floor, it was believed that she died of overdose.

Until today, the The reason for Marilyn Monroe's death is considered a mystery. While some point out that the actress did, in fact, die of an overdose, others believe that, in fact, she was murdered, since the police left the case open.

The death of Marilyn Monroe spawned some conspiracy theories. The main one indicates that the actress was killed by the US secret service for having had the alleged relationship with JFK. Another theory points out that the blonde had sympathy for the womunism and that, therefore, she was murdered.

The actress's funeral was widely publicized by the world's media. Marilyn Monroe is buried in the Hall of Memories at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

After her death, Marilyn Monroe came to be considered one of the greatest legends of cinema, pop culture and, still, a great icon of the 20th century.

Marilyn Monroe artwork

Marilyn Monroe in full body, wearing a red dress, in the movie
Marilyn Monroe in the movie torrents of passion, from 1953.

At age 18, when she was still working in a factory, Marilyn Monroe was discovered by a photographer and became a modelShe joined the modeling agency called Blue Book and was on the cover of several magazines.

By becoming a model, studies point out that Marilyn discovered herself. She felt happy and began to attract men's gazes even more. In the following years, the young woman began to dye her brown hair platinum blonde and wear clothes and accessories that resembled the pin-ups of the time.

Already a successful model, the blonde went on to take dance, singing and acting classes. In 1946, she got her first contract to act in films for 20th Century Fox., in Hollywood. In 1948, she signed with Columbia.

Initially, Marilyn won comic roles in which she played the beautiful and dumb woman, who wore bathing suits or sexy clothes. But, over time, film producers began to recognize the actress's talent.

Throughout her 12-year career, Marilyn Monroe she became famous for her participation in several films from hollywood. In her last years of life, the productions in which the actress participated were guaranteed to attract all kinds of audiences.

check the Marilyn Monroe's top movies:

The Secret of Jewels – 1950;

the bad one – 1951;

Always young – 1951;

The Inventor of Youth – 1952;

Men prefer blondes – 1953;

How to Catch a Millionaire – 1953;

the pecado mnow to lado – 1955;

I was never a saint – 1956;

the pPrince It isenchanted – 1957;

how much mouch whatuent mbest – 1959.

Among the awards that Marilyn Monroe received, the Golden Globe for best actress, in 1960, for the film The hotter the better. The actress never won a statuette at the awards oscar, but hosted its 23rd edition (Oscar 1951).

The beauty of Marilyn Monroe

Serious Marilyn Monroe with wavy hair and turtleneck blouse, 1953.
Marilyn Monroe is considered one of the most beautiful women of all time. [6]

Marilyn Monroe is considered one of the greatest beauty icons of all time. More than being recognized as an actress, she was remembered for her sensuality and glamor and for attracting the attention of everyone wherever she went.

Research indicates that, in the late 40s, Marilyn had surgery on her nose and cheekbones, however this has never been proven. Also during this period, the best-known blonde in Hollywood began to wear a mole on her face.

Other physical features of the actress became famous, such as thick and arched eyebrows, pale skin and lips painted with bright red lipstick.

To this day, Marilyn Monroe is also a fashion icon for being representative of the New Look, style created by designer Christian Dior which valued well-marked silhouettes.

Read too: Frida Kahlo — Mexican painter who became a female icon in the art world

Marilyn Monroe's iconic dresses

The clothes worn by the actress drew attention, but two dresses became more famous:

  • White dress: Marilyn Monroe wore the flowing white halter dress in the film Sin lives next door. The scene in which she stands on a subway railing on Lexington Avenue in New York and her dress rises up is one of the most famous scenes in Hollywood history.

  • Happy Birthday Mr Dress President: the dress in earthy tones that Marilyn wore when she sang Happy Birthday to President Kennedy is also one of the most iconic in fashion. The piece was custom-made to fit the actress's body.

Films honoring Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe with red lipstick and necklace wearing white strapless dress.
Marilyn Monroe, an icon in the history of cinema. [1]

What was special about Marilyn Monroe? The beautiful face, the sculptural body and the innate sensuality, point out the various books, films and documentaries produced in honor of the most famous blonde in world cinema.

But the actress was not limited to her unique beauty. Her life, especially her love life, provokes a lot of curiosity even today. See below some films that honor Marilyn Monroe:

the vtrue Hmarilyn monroe story – 1996;

seven dyou were going with marilyn – 2011;

With love, Marilyn – 2012;

the vgoing sMarilyn Monroe writing – 2015;

blonde – 2022;

the mMarilyn Monroe mystery – 2022.

Facts about Marilyn Monroe

  • Marilyn Monroe posed nude for calendars in 1949. She claimed to have only done this because she was broke.

  • One of Marilyn's nude photos graced the magazine's first issue. playboy in 1953.

  • One of the most famous portraits of Andy Warhol, representative painter of pop art, is Marilyn Monroe smiling. The image is an icon of 20th-century pop culture.

  • Singer-songwriter Elton John created the song Candle in the wind in honor of Monroe.

  • Somewhere over the rainbow, of the movie The Wizard of Oz, was Marilyn's favorite song.

  • Chanel number 5 was Marilyn's favorite perfume.

  • Marilyn had a dream of producing a film about Jean Harlow, the blonde actress whose films she watched with her mother as a child.

image credits

[1] very worldly / Shutterstock

By Silvia Tancredi
Journalist

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