Happy 90th Birthday Marilyn Monroe

Today is the 90th birthday of the woman that is an American icon, even fifty years after her death: Marilyn Monroe. Do yourself a favor and watch The Misfits sometime soon. You won’t be disappointed. One of my favorite stories about her is that for 20 years after her death, Joe Dimaggio had red roses delivered to her crypt twice a week. Generations of flower shop delivery boys learned the story, made the drive to visit her final resting place in honor of their baseball hero, replace the 3-day old roses with new ones, touch the her bronze name placard and understood the true meaning of eternal love. The world is a better place because she was in it and still feels the loss that she has left.

NAME: Marilyn Monroe
OCCUPATION: Film Actress, Pin-up
BIRTH DATE: June 01, 1926
DEATH DATE: August 05, 1962
PLACE OF BIRTH: Los Angeles, California
PLACE OF DEATH: Los Angeles, California
ORIGINALLY: Norma Jeane Mortensen
REMAINS: Buried, Westwood Memorial Park, Los Angeles, CA
GOLDEN GLOBE: 1962
HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME: 6778 Hollywood Blvd. (motion pictures)

BEST KNOWN FOR: Actress Marilyn Monroe overcame a difficult childhood to become of the world’s biggest and most enduring sex symbols. She died of a drug overdose in 1962.

Marilyn Monroe (born Norma Jeane Mortenson but baptized and raised as Norma Jeane Baker; June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962) was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s.

After spending much of her childhood in foster homes, Monroe began a career as a model, which led to a film contract in 1946. Her early film appearances were minor, but her performances in The Asphalt Jungle and All About Eve (both 1950) drew attention to her—by now her hair was dyed blonde. By 1953, Monroe had progressed to a leading role in Niagara (1953), a melodramatic film noir that dwelled on her seductiveness. Her “dumb blonde” persona was used to comic effect in subsequent films such as Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) and The Seven Year Itch (1955). Limited by typecasting, Monroe studied at the Actors Studio to broaden her range. Her dramatic performance in Bus Stop (1956) was hailed by critics, and she received a Golden Globe nomination. Her production company, Marilyn Monroe Productions, released The Prince and the Showgirl (1957), for which she received a BAFTA Award nomination and won a David di Donatello award. She received a Golden Globe Award for her performance in Some Like It Hot (1959). Monroe’s final completed film was The Misfits, co-starring Clark Gable with the screenplay written by her then-husband, Arthur Miller.

The final years of Monroe’s life were marked by illness, personal problems, and a reputation for being unreliable and difficult to work with. The circumstances of her death, from an overdose of barbiturates, have been the subject of conjecture. Though officially classified as a “probable suicide”, the possibility of an accidental overdose, as well as the possibility of homicide, have not been ruled out. In 1999, Monroe was ranked as the sixth greatest female star of all time by the American Film Institute. In the years and decades following her death, Monroe has often been cited as both a pop and a cultural icon as well as the quintessential American female sex symbol.

On August 8, 1962, Monroe was interred in a crypt at Corridor of Memories #24, at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Lee Strasberg delivered the eulogy. Joe DiMaggio took control of the funeral arrangements which consisted of only 31 close family and friends. Police were also present to keep the press away. Her casket was solid bronze and was lined with champagne colored silk. Allan “Whitey” Snyder did her make-up which was supposedly a promise made in earlier years if she were to die before him. She was wearing her favorite green Emilio Pucci dress. In her hands was a small bouquet of pink teacup roses. For the next 20 years, red roses were placed in a vase attached to the crypt, courtesy of DiMaggio.

FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
Something’s Got to Give (1962)
The Misfits (1-Feb-1961) · Roslyn Taber
Let’s Make Love (8-Sep-1960) · Amanda Dell
Some Like It Hot (29-Mar-1959) · Sugar Kane Kowalczyk
The Prince and the Showgirl (13-Jun-1957) · Elsie
Bus Stop (31-Aug-1956) · Cherie
The Seven Year Itch (3-Jun-1955) · The Girl
There’s No Business Like Show Business (16-Dec-1954) · Vicky
River of No Return (30-Apr-1954) · Kay Weston
How to Marry a Millionaire (5-Nov-1953) · Pola Debevoise
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (15-Jul-1953) · Lorelei Lee
Niagara (21-Jan-1953) · Rose Loomis
O. Henry’s Full House (19-Sep-1952)
Monkey Business (5-Sep-1952) · Lois Laurel
Don’t Bother to Knock (18-Jul-1952) · Nell Forbes
We’re Not Married! (11-Jul-1952) · Annabel Norris
Clash by Night (18-Jun-1952) · Peggy
Let’s Make It Legal (31-Oct-1951) · Joyce
Love Nest (10-Oct-1951) · Bobbie Stevens
As Young as You Feel (2-Aug-1951)
Home Town Story (1-May-1951)
All About Eve (13-Oct-1950) · Miss Casswell
The Fireball (7-Oct-1950)
The Asphalt Jungle (23-May-1950) · Angela Phinlay
Love Happy (12-Oct-1949) · Grunion’s Client
Ladies of the Chorus (22-Oct-1948) · Peggy Martin
Dangerous Years (7-Dec-1947)