The Collection
The Exhibits
The Collector
Podcast
Blog
About Marilyn
Contact
Press & Media

marilyn-monroe-bio-2

Published March 23, 2013 at 521 × 414 in Marilyn Monroe Biography

Explore the Collection

Marilyn’s Clothing and Accessories
Marilyn’s Furs and Accessories
Marilyn’s Film Pieces
Marilyn’s Makeup
Marilyn’s Personal Library
Items from Marilyn’s Childhood
Marilyn’s Personal Possessions
Dear Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn’s Personal Invoices & Receipts
Marilyn’s Personal Files
Marilyn’s Financial Documents
Marilyn’s Bank Checks
Marilyn Monroe Autographs
Marilyn Monroe Photographs
An Original Chieftain Yearbook

Follow the MMC

MMC Search

58917

MMC News

Monroe Preservation Group Uncovers the History of “Cursum Perficio”
In Memory: Anna Strasberg
Rewriting History: Marilyn Monroe and Stanley Gifford

MMC Instagram

marilynmonroecollection

Official account for the Scott Fortner Marilyn Monroe Collection, the world’s largest private collection of Monroe’s personal property & archives.

Wait for it… 👠 In Her Shoes: Hotel del Co

Wait for it… 👠

In Her Shoes: Hotel del Coronado

A trip to San Diego over the July 4th holiday weekend called for a visit to Coronado Island. Of course, this is the location of the famous Hotel del Coronado, where location shots were filmed for Marilyn’s 1959 classic, “Some Like It Hot.”

The hotel is basically the same as it was when Mairlyn filmed there, although there have been some changes due to refurbishment. The hotel was first opened in 1888, making it 137 years old.

In this photo, Marilyn is seen on Coronado Beach on the back side of the hotel. Crowds of fans and onlookers can be seen behind her.

“Hot” Film Facts:

🔥 In 2001, the American Film Institute selected SLIH as the number one comedy film of all time.
During filming, Marilyn was pregnant for the final time. She miscarried in December 1958.

🔥 SLIH won an Academy Award for Best Costume Design (b&w) and received nominations for Best Actor (Lemmon), Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography (b&w), Best Director and Best Screenplay.

🔥 Reverend Monsignor Thomas F. Little of the National Catholic Legion of Decency found Some Like It Hot to contain “screen material elements that are judged to be seriously offensive to Christian and traditional standards of morality and decency. ... The subject matter of ‘transvestism’ naturally leads to complications; in this film there seemed to us clear inference of homosexuality and lesbianism.” 🙄

Stay tuned and follow me for more “In Her Shoes” posts from the Hotel del Coronado.

#marilynmonroe #hoteldelcoronado

Happy early 4th of July! 🇺🇸 🎆 It’s a

Happy early 4th of July! 🇺🇸 🎆

It’s a great big three day weekend here in the US. If you’re celebrating, what are your plans?

I’ll be visiting the Hotel Del Coronado where Marilyn filmed Some Like It Hot! 👊🏻

#marilynmonroe

Up Close and Personal: Marilyn Monroe’s purple e

Up Close and Personal: Marilyn Monroe’s purple eyeshadow.

A small glass bottle with a gold plastic stopper; filled with purple eye shadow called “Lumino Violette de Parme,” label reads in part “Starry Eyes, Lilly Dache, Liquid Eye Luster.” This makeup was originally sold at Julien’s Auctions in 2005, and it comes directly from Marilyn’s estate.

Marilyn wore this purple eye shadow to the press party for Some Like it Hot, which was held on July 8, 1958 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The photos of Marilyn in this video are from that event.

The Marilyn Monroe Collection includes Marilyn’s personal cosmetics from Erno Laszlo, Elizabeth Arden, Helena Rubenstein, and now Lilly Dache.

You can see items from the collection, including Marilyn’s personal cosmetics, on exhibit next year at the Academy Museum in Los Angeles as part of their exhibit “Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon,” from May 31, 2026 through February 28, 2027. @academymuseum

#marilynmonroe

While in Korea to perform for US troops as part a

While in Korea to perform for US troops as part a USO tour while on her honeymoon with Joe DiMaggio in February 1954, Marilyn received an invitation for lunch from the men of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Infantry Division, APO 248, U.S. Army, Korea.

Upon arriving at the base, she received a 19” x 14” hand-drawn and colored invitation, signed on the reverse by all members of the unit. The invitation remained with Joe DiMaggio for the rest of his life. It sold as part of the Joe DiMaggio estate.

Today, this invitation, seen with Marilyn in these photos, is owned the Marilyn Monroe Collection.

She accepted and did have lunch with them! 😱

#marilynmonroe

Remembering Marilyn’s idol Jean Harlow (1911-193

Remembering Marilyn’s idol Jean Harlow (1911-1937), who passed 88 years ago this month (June 7) at the very young age of 26. Young Norma Jeane was 11 years old when Harlow died of kidney failure. She too died while in the middle of making a movie, Saratoga. MGM completed filming using body doubles and it was released less than two months after her death. It was the highest-grossing picture for the studio that year.

#marilynmonroe
#jeanharlow

May 18, 1962: Marilyn Monroe attended rehearsals f

May 18, 1962: Marilyn Monroe attended rehearsals for President Kennedy’s birthday gala, where she rehearsed her now famous rendition of “Happy Birthday Mr. President.” 🎙️

She wore her lime green Pucci blouse, which is now part of the Marilyn Monroe Collection. She also wore white Ferragamo high heels, possibly the same pair that is also part of my collection.

FACT: Did you know she planned to sing it that way? Some say she was high, drunk, lost, out of breath the night she sang for President Kennedy. The truth is Marilyn had practiced and perfected her version of “Happy Birthday” for weeks leading up to her actual performance at Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1962. The last photo in this post shows Marilyn rehearsing and her actual performance, and you can see the exact same hand gestures and body movements when comparing the rehearsal to the performance. She knew what she was doing (hence the dress) and today this remains an iconic blending of Hollywood and American politics. The importance and significance this historic event has never been achieved by someone else, although Marilyn’s rendition of the song is regularly copied.

#marilynmonroe

🎙️🎧 Thanks so much to our loyal listeners

🎙️🎧 Thanks so much to our loyal listeners and followers! We’re celebrating 50,000 podcast downloads! 🎉

Tune in to All Things Marilyn wherever you listen to podcasts or catch us at allthingsmarilyn.buzzsprout.com. We cover “all things Marilyn.” Link in bio.

New episodes coming soon. 💋

#marilynmonroe

Wait for it… Marilyn at Sutton Place My trip t

Wait for it…

Marilyn at Sutton Place

My trip to New York City in Janaury last year was all about seeking out and locating places where Marilyn had been. In this shot, I’m standing outside of Marilyn’s first New York apartment building located at 2 Sutton Place South. I’m leaning against that building but on East 57th Street side. Marilyn is was seen here, incognito, walking a dog that interestingly is not Hugo, the Basset Hound she and third husband Arthur Miller had when she lived here. She’s headed West with the East River behind her. Just feet away in the direction she’s walking is 444 East 57th, the second home she had in this section of New York. This photo was likely taken by a member of the Monroe Six, a group of six super fans who regularly photographed Marilyn. She came to know each of them by name.

#marilynmonroe

TFW Marilyn Monroe’s personal cowgirl boots from

TFW Marilyn Monroe’s personal cowgirl boots from The Misfits are just settin’ on your shelf. 😱

#marilynmonroe

© 2025 The Marilyn Monroe Collection LLC All Rights Reserved