A century of Marilyn Monroe

TODAY WOULD’VE been Norma Jeane Mortenson – Marilyn Monroe’s – 100th birthday, born June 1, 1926, at the Los Angeles County Hospital.

 

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures just opened an exhibit at its Los Angeles Museum to celebrate the iconic actress, known as Hollywood’s blonde bombshell.  “Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon” runs to February 28, 2027, and features over 200 objects from personal documents, including her final Screen Actors Guild card, to dozens of photographs, to the William Travilla-designed pink satin gown she wore in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.”

 

You’ll also hear Marilyn’s gentle voice during her final interview for Life Magazine, recorded at her Brentwood home, where she said, “I like people, but the public scares me.” She died from a drug overdose at the age of 36 at her Spanish bungalow at the foot of the Santa Monica mountains in February of 1962.

We include 22 screenshots (16 SDR, 8 HDR) from seven motion pictures in our physical library. Click an image to see the larger versions.

Marilyn sings her rendition of “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend.” SDR screenshot from the 20th-Century Fox Blu-ray (2013).

“All About Eve” (1950)

In the center, white dress, Marilyn’s supporting role as an aspiring young actress, Claudia Casswell, on a date with Addison DeWitt (George Sanders). The two are attending Margo Channing’s (Bette Davis) party in Manhattan. “All About Eve” won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, Screenplay for Joseph L. Mankiewicz. SDR screenshot from The Criterion Collection Blu-ray (2019) sourced from the 20th-Century 4K restoration.

“The Asphalt Jungle” (1950)

Monroe’s breakout performance as the girlish Angela Phinlay, the lover of corrupt lawyer, Alonzo D. “Uncle Lon” Emmerich (Louis Calhern). SDR screenshot from The Criterion Collection Blu-ray (2016) sourced from a 2K master from Warner Bros. Entertainment.

“Niagara” (1953)

Marilyn stars as Rose Loomis, a seductive femme fatale who plots to murder her mentally unstable husband, George (Joseph Cotten). The three-strip Technicolor process, and its brilliant colors, propelled Marilyn to international stardom. SDR screenshots from the 20th-Century Fox Blu-ray (2013).

“Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1953)

The 20th Century Fox musical from director Howard Hawks, as Marilyn, co-starred with Jan Russell, as two showgirls who head to Paris on a luxury cruise liner. SDR screenshots from the 20th-Century Fox Blu-ray (2013).

“River of No Return” (1954)

Marilyn plays Kay Weston, a glamorous saloon singer who is forced onto a perilous downriver journey with widower Matt Calder (Robert Mitchum) and his young son Mark (Tommy Rettig) after her fiancé abandons them. SDR screenshots from the 20th-Century Fox Blu-ray (2013).

“Some Like it Hot” (1959)

Marilyn as the ukulele player/singer Sugar Kane Kowalczyk, in the all-female jazz band heading to Florida. Tony Curtis as saxophonist Joe, and up-and-coming funny man Jack Lemmon as Jerry, the house bass player, disguise themselves as women and join the band after witnessing the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. HDR screenshots from KL Studio Classics & MGM/Amazon Studios.

“The Misfits” (1961)

“The Misfits” is the last film of the pop culture icon, and also, it’s the last film of co-star Clark Gable, the “King of Hollywood.” The screenplay was from Marilyn’s third husband, playwright Arthur Miller (“Death of a Salesman”). The film opens with the divorce of Roslyn Taber, played by Marilyn. Shortly after the production filmed in and around Reno, Nevada, the marriage between Miller and Monroe dissolved. HDR screenshots from Capelight Pictures / MGM/Amazon Studios.