On June 1 Marilyn Monroe’s hometown of Hollywood kicks off a series of special events marking the 100th anniversary of the movie icon’s birth.
Tributes to Tinseltown’s legendary daughter began with the Academy Museum opening Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon, an exhibit celebrating her film career and life cut short.
After shooting to superstardom in the 1950s, the actress and model died of an overdose at her Brentwood home in August 1962, aged 36.
The Academy Museum is hosting special screenings of her prolific filmography throughout the month, including The Asphalt Jungle (1950), Niagara (1953), The Seven Year Itch (1955), Some Like It Hot (1959), and The Misfits (1961).
The exhibit, which runs until February 2027, includes hundreds of original pieces, some rarely on display – such as Monroe’s famed pink dress worn during her iconic performance of Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.
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Born in Los Angeles on June 1, 1926, Monroe had an unstable childhood spent between orphanages and foster homes. She married for the first time at age 16.
She had her first brush with show business in 1944, while working in a factory, when a photographer arrived to capture photos of women working on production lines during World War II.
Launching into the world of modeling soon after, she divorced her husband and made a history-defining decision: dyeing her brown hair platinum blonde.
She landed her first contract with Fox, and by the age of 30 had established herself as a global star.
Behind the scenes, Monroe founded her own production company, attended the prestigious Actors Studio in New York, and even defied the studios.
In the 1950s, while under contract with 20th Century Fox, she refused to act in the adaptation of the musical The Girl In Pink Tights, deeming the script mediocre and her salary – three times less than that of co-star Frank Sinatra – unfair.
More than half a century before the #MeToo movement shook the global entertainment industry, Monroe denounced the Hollywood “wolves” preying on female talent. – AFP
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