Glamourpuss
Glamorous Ladies of the Silver Screen
Biography
Marilyn Monroe
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Born: | June 1, 1926 Los Angeles, California |
|---|---|
| Died: | August 5, 1962 Los Angeles, California |
| Occupation: | Model, Singer,Film Actress |
| Spouse: | James Dougherty, Joe DiMaggio, Arthur Miller |
| Website: | http://www.marilynmonroe.com Official Website of the Monroe Estate |
Marilyn Monroe (June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962) is one of the 20th century's most famous movie stars, sex symbols and pop icons. After acting in small roles for several years, she gradually became known for her comedic skills, sex appeal and screen presence, going on to become one of the most popular movie stars of the 1950s. Later in her career, she worked towards serious roles with a measure of success. However, long standing problems were exacerbated by disappointments in both career and personal life during her later years. Her death, officially ruled to be probable suicide by drug overdose, has been the subject of much speculation and conspiracy theory.
She was born Norma Jean Mortenson in the charity ward of the Los Angeles County Hospital. According to biographer Fred Lawrence Guiles, her grandmother, Della Monroe Grainger, had her baptized Norma Jean Baker by Aimee Semple McPherson. Her mother, Gladys Pearl Monroe, had returned from Kentucky where her ex-husband had kidnapped their children, Robert and Berniece. Some of Monroe's biographers portray Jasper Baker as a vicious brute. Berniece recounted in My Sister Marilyn that when Robert later suffered a series of physical ailments, Baker refused to seek proper medical attention for him; the boy died in 1933. Many biographers believe Norma Jeane's biological father was Charles Stanley Gifford, a salesman for the studio where Gladys worked as a film-cutter. The birth certificate lists her second husband, Martin Edward Mortensen, the father. While Mortensen left Gladys before Norma Jeane's birth, some biographers think he was the father. In an interview with Lifetime, James Dougherty said Norma Jeane believed that Gifford was her father. Whoever the father, that he played no part in the child's life has never been in dispute. Unable to persuade Della to take Norma Jeane, Gladys placed her with foster parents Albert and Ida Bolender of Hawthorne, where she lived until she was seven. In her autobiography My Story, Monroe states she thought Albert and Ida were her parents until Ida rudely corrected her. Some do not consider My Story trustworthy. It was ghost-written by Ben Hecht, and designed to promote Monroe's image as a long-suffering orphan. [1] Hecht divulged to his agent: "It is easy to know when she is telling the truth. The moment a true thing comes out of her mouth, her eyes shed tears. She's like her own lie detector." [2] Gladys visited Norma Jeane every Saturday. One day, she announced that she had bought a house. A few months after they had moved in, Gladys suffered a breakdown. In the book, Monroe recalls her mother "screaming and laughing" as she was forcibly removed to the State Hospital in Norwalk. Gladys's father, Otis, died in an asylum near San Bernardino from syphilis. According to My Sister Marilyn, Gladys's brother, Marion, hanged himself upon his release from an asylum, and Della's father hung himself in a fit of depression. Norma Jeane was declared a ward of state and Gladys's best friend, Grace McKee (later Goddard) became her guardian. After McKee married in 1935, Norma Jeane was sent to a Los Angeles orphanage and then to a succession of foster homes where she was allegedly subjected to abuse and neglect. There is, however, little evidence that she lived in as many foster homes as claimed. The Goddards were moving East and could not take her. Grace Goddard worried about Norma Jeane having to return to the orphanage, so she spoke to the mother of James Dougherty. Mrs. Dougherty approached her son, who agreed to take Norma Jeane out on dates, paid for by Grace . They married two weeks after she turned 16.
Career
While her husband served in the Merchant Marines during World War II, Norma Jeane Dougherty moved in with her mother-in-law, and worked in a factory spraying airplane parts with fire retardant and inspecting parachutes. Army photographer David Conover scouted local factories taking photos for a YANK magazine article about women contributing to the war effort. He saw her potential as a model and she was soon signed by The Blue Book modelling agency. In his book "Finding Marilyn", Conover claims the two had an affair that lasted years.
She became one of their most successful models, appearing on dozens of magazine covers. In 1946 she came to the attention of talent scout Ben Lyon. He arranged a screen test for her with 20th Century Fox. She passed and was offered a standard six-month contract with a starting salary of $75 per week. Lyon suggested "Marilyn" (after Marilyn Miller) to be her stage name, since Norma Jeane wasn't considered commercial enough. She came up with her mother's maiden name "Monroe". Thus the twenty-year old Norma Jeane Baker became "Marilyn Monroe". During her first half-a-year at Fox, Monroe was given no work. Instead, she learned about hair, make-up, costumes, acting and lighting. After six months Fox renewed her contract. She was given minor appearances in Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! and Dangerous Years, both released in 1947. In Scudda Hoo!, her face wasn't even visible. Both films failed at the box office and Fox decided not to renew her contract again. Monroe returned to modelling and began to network and make contacts in Hollywood |
In 1948, a six-month stint at Columbia Pictures saw her star in Ladies of the Chorus, but the low-budget musical was not a success and Monroe was dropped yet again. She then met one of Hollywood's top agents, Johnny Hyde, who had Fox re-sign her after MGM had turned her down. Fox Vice-President Darryl F. Zanuck was not convinced of Monroe's potential. However, due to Hyde's persistence, she gained supporting parts in All About Eve and The Asphalt Jungle. Even though the roles were small, movie-goers took notice and Monroe began receiving more fan mail than some top-billed stars of the time.
The next two years were filled with inconsequential roles in standard fare such as We're Not Married! and Love Nest. However, RKO executives used her to boost box office potential of the Fritz Lang production Clash By Night. After the film performed well, Fox employed a similar tactic and she was cast as the ditzy receptionist in the Cary Grant/Ginger Rogers comedy Monkey Business. Critics no longer ignored her, and both films' success at the box office was partly attributed to Monroe's growing popularity.
Fox finally gave her a starring role in 1952 with Don't Bother to Knock, in which she portrayed a deranged babysitter who attacks the little girl in her care. It was a cheaply made B-movie, and although the reviews were mixed, many claimed that it demonstrated Monroe's ability and confirmed that she was ready for more leading roles. Her performance in this, one of her earliest films, has since been noted as one of the finest of her career by many critics.
Monroe proved she could carry a big-budget film when she received star billing for Niagara in 1953. Movie critics focused on Monroe's connection with the camera as much as the sinister plot[4]. She played the part of an unbalanced woman of easy virtue who is planning to murder her new husband.
Around this time, nude photos of Monroe began to surface, taken by photographer Tom Kelley when she had been struggling for work. Prints were bought by Hugh Hefner and in December 1953 appeared in the first edition of Playboy. To the dismay of Fox, Monroe decided to publicly admit it was indeed her posing in the pictures. To a journalist asking what she had on during the photoshoot, she replied: "The radio." When asked what she wore in bed, she said: "Chanel No. 5".
Over the following months, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How To Marry A Millionaire cemented Monroe's status as an A-List screen actress and she quickly became one of the world's biggest movie stars. The lavish Technicolor comedy films established Monroe's "dumb blonde" on-screen persona.
In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Monroe's turn as the gold-digging showgirl Lorelei Lee won her rave reviews [5], and the scene where she sings "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" has had an impact on popular culture, inspiring the likes of Madonna and Kylie Minogue. In the Los Angeles premiere of the film, Monroe and co-star Jane Russell pressed their foot- and handprints in the cemented forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theatre.
In How to Marry a Millionaire, Monroe was teamed up with Lauren Bacall and Betty Grable. She played a short-sighted dumb blonde, and even though the role was stereotype, critics took note of her comedic timing.[6]
Her next two films, the western River of No Return and the musical There's No Business Like Show Business, were not successful. Monroe got tired of the roles that Zanuck assigned her. After completing work on The Seven Year Itch in early 1955, she broke her contract and fled Hollywood to study acting at The Actors Studio in New York. Fox would not accede on her contract demands and insisted she return to start work on productions she considered inappropriate, such as The Girl in Pink Tights (which was never filmed), The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing, and How to Be Very, Very Popular
Monroe refused to appear in these films and stayed in New York. As The Seven Year Itch raced to the top of the box office in the summer of 1955, and with Fox starlets Jayne Mansfield and Sheree North failing to click with audience, Zanuck admitted defeat and Monroe triumphantly returned to Hollywood. A new contract was drawn up, giving Monroe an approval of the director as well as the option to act in other studios' projects.
The first film to be made under the contract was Bus Stop, directed by Joshua Logan. Praised by critics for her performance as Chérie [7], a saloon bar singer who falls in love with a cowboy, Monroe deliberately appeared badly made-up and non-glamorous. She was nominated for a Golden Globe for the performance.
Monroe formed her own production company with friend and photographer Milton H. Greene. Marilyn Monroe Productions released its first and only film The Prince and the Showgirl in 1957 to mixed reviews. Along with executive-producing the film, she starred opposite the acclaimed British actor Laurence Olivier, who directed it.
Olivier got furious at her habit of being late to the set, as well as her dependency on her drama coach, Paula Strasberg. While Monroe's reputation in the film industry for being difficult grew, her performance was hailed as a first-rate characterization by critics, especially in Europe, where she was handed the David di Donatello, the Italian equivalent of the Academy Award, as well as the French Crystal Star Award. She also got nominated for the British BAFTA award
Later years
In 1959 she scored the biggest hit of her career starring alongside Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot. After shooting finished, Wilder publicly blasted Monroe for her difficult on-set behavior. Soon, however, Wilder's attitude softened, and he hailed her a great comedienne. Some Like It Hot is consistently rated as one of the best films ever made. Monroe's performance earned her a Golden Globe for best actress in musical or comedy.
After Some Like It Hot, Monroe did Let's Make Love directed by George Cukor and co-starring Yves Montand. Monroe, Montand and Cukor all considered the script subpar, yet Monroe was forced to shoot the picture because of her obligations to Twentieth Century Fox. While the film was not a commercial or critical success, it included one of Monroe's legendary musical numbers, Cole Porter's "My Heart Belongs to Daddy".
Arthur Miller wrote what became her and her co-star Clark Gable's last completed film, The Misfits. The exhausting shoot took place in the hot Nevada desert. Monroe's tardiness became chronic and the shoot was troublesome. Despite this, Monroe, Gable and Montgomery Clift delivered performances that are considered excellent by contemporary movie critics[10]. Monroe became friends with Clift, with whom she felt a deep connection. Some blamed Gable's death of a heart attack on Monroe, claiming she had given him a hard time on the set. Gable, however, insisted on doing his own stunts and was a heavy smoker. After his death, Monroe attended the baptism of his son.
Some of the most famous photographs of her were taken by Douglas Kirkland in 1961 as a feature for the 25th anniversary issue of LOOK magazine.
Monroe returned to Hollywood to resume filming on the George Cukor comedy Something's Got to Give. In May 1962, she made her last significant public appearance, singing Happy Birthday, Mr. President at a televised birthday party for President John F. Kennedy. After shooting what was claimed to have been the first ever nude scene by a major motion picture actress, Monroe's attendance became even more erratic.
Already in a financial strain due to production costs of Cleopatra, starring Elizabeth Taylor, Fox dropped Monroe from the film and replaced her with Lee Remick. However, co-star Dean Martin was unwilling to work with anyone else but Monroe. She was rehired.
Monroe conducted a lengthy interview with Life Magazine, in which she expressed how bitter she was about Hollywood labeling her as a dumb blonde and how much she loved her audience. [11] She also did a photo shoot for Vogue, and began discussing a future film project with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra, as stated in the Donald Spoto biography. Furthermore, she was planning to star in a biopic as Jean Harlow. Other projects being considered for her were What a Way to Go! and The Stripper.
Before the shooting of Something's Got to Give resumed, Monroe was found dead in her Los Angeles home, on the morning of August 5, 1962. Although her death has become subject to conspiracy theories, she remains one of the 20th Century's most legendary public figures and the archetypal Hollywood Movie Star.
Marilyn Monroe Make up
First get Marilyn's glowing skin by applying some foundation, then covering it with a little luminous face powder.
Marilyn used 5 coats of Guerlain Rouge Diabolique, to give her that famous lip color, but that's sadly no longer available although Guerlain Divinora Color and Shine, number 221 is a really close match at.
To the sultry look of her eyes work Miners Silver Schmooze Idol Eyes eyeshadow, over the lid and up to the brow line. Then add two coats of Look mascara, .
Marilyn's look can't be complete without red nails, to match the lips.
Hair and Make up
Marilyn Monroe Hair
Color- Golden Blonde
Suits- Faces with well balanced features
Works Best If- Your hair has a loose curl, or waves
Start with a layered shoulder length style, with shorter layers around the face and longer ones at the back.
Comb some gel mousse through damp hair, section and blow-dry your hair to make it smooth and straight. (If you have straight hair you don't need to do this.)
When it's dry section and mist the ends with spray gel and set with large and medium hot rollers. Remove the rollers then brush the hair forward and spray under the layers, with a Finishing Styling Spray.
Flip your hair back and work a little styling cream through, for extra bounce.
