I’ve done some additional “before and after” research on the state of Marilyn Monroe’s famous gown. We all know Ripley’s loaned it to Kim Kardashian for the 2022 @themetgalaofficial. Now it’s damaged. Ripley’s is to blame. They made the decision, they are responsible.
Was there a second stopgap opportunity? It is believed by many that Anna Wintour (Vogue’s Editor-in-Chief) reviews and approves/denies every garment being worn to the Gala in advance. Could Wintour have stopped this from happening? The irony: The event itself is an annual fundraiser to benefit the Met’s Costume Institute, which has an entire department focused on “preserving and conserving garments and accessories.”
So, here is the question: If it’s true that Wintour approves outfits for the Gala, why would she allow this historic gown to be worn?
Was the dress in its current state prior to the Gala? Let’s look at before/after photos, taken 52 days apart. These are screenshots from Ripley’s IG from May 2, and this fitting occurred on 4/21. The right photo was taken by @1morrisette on 6/12. By my count, there are seven crystals missing from the gown in the after photo, which were present during the fitting. The screenshots show only a portion of the dress. There are likely many more missing.
It’s never been implied that the gown was in perfect condition. My own photos show some crystals missing prior to the auction. However, it’s significantly more today. I don’t think we need to ask why when we see the video of the fitting.
No one else has worn the dress. From Ripley’s own May 2 press release: “The multi-million-dollar dress has rarely been separated from its dress form, let alone worn by anyone other than Monroe. Great care was taken to preserve this piece of history. With input from garment conservationists, appraisers, archivists, and insurance, the garment’s condition was top priority.” Really?
Theis before/after photo evidence shows that there actually was damage done to the dress due to being worn. The state of the dress today is in fact not, “the way it was when Kim wore it.”
![Flashback: Meeting Amy Greene, August 5, 2012
Without question, it’s mind boggling and beyond cool to meet people who were part of Marilyn Monroe’s inner circle. During my time as a fan and collector I’ve met several people who fall into that category. In this case, its Amy Greene, wife of Milton Greene. I met her at the 2012 MM memorial where she was a guest speaker. Marilyn lived with the Greenes in their Connecticut home in 1954 and 1955.
Amy on what it was like to live with Marilyn: I’m a very secure woman, so she was fine. She never got out of line, and I never got out of line, and we became girlfriends. As Sinatra said, ‘She was a good broad.’ I love that statement. You young people don’t know what that means, but it is the highest compliment that a man like Sinatra could say about anybody.
In the past, she’s talked about how she and Milton heard of Marilyn’s passing: We were in France, in Paris. Milton was doing the collections for Life magazine, and there was a radio. I kept saying, ‘Well let’s try to get some music or something.’ All we got was news, news, news, and neither one of us could understand French that well. All of a sudden, the words Marilyn Monroe came on. We didn’t know what it was. So, we went to [Château de] Fontainebleau, had a wonderful picnic lunch, drove back to Paris, and the first thing we heard—the telephone was ringing off the wall. It was Arthur Jacobs, who was her publicist trying to get us all day. And he said Marilyn’s dead. […] I collapsed. Milton was staggering. That was the last thing we expected.
Amy on Marilyn’s public image today: The interesting thing, and I was thinking about this yesterday, was in the ’50s she was strictly candy for men, but since the feminist movement—which started around my dining room table, thank you very much—women have accepted her, they no longer make fun of her. So in the end, she’s earned respect, which is what she wanted.”
(Source for quotes: Gotham Magazine)
If I were to describe her in one word, it would be “sharp.” Her senses are keen. She was as confident when I met her as she was during the Edward R. Murrow interview. (Swipe left!)
#marilynmonroe](https://themarilynmonroecollection.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
how disgusting!!! she really feels entitled doesn’t she? that video is horrible, they had to squeeze her in it, should have never happened, what some companies and people WON”T do for money…. pathetic
Lo que se ha hecho con todo lo referente con Marilyn es una aberración.No la dejaron en paz ni viva ni muerta.son una panda de hienas que se disputan como hienas todo lo que pertenecía a la pobre Marilyn.
Que unas estúpidas Degradante pijas se pongan los vestidos de Marilyn para darse notariedad a costa de su figura poniéndose sus prendas de vestir es una aberración de personas repugnante junto con los que lo consintieron.
Todas prendas que pertenecieron a Marilyn deben estar en un museo del cine clásico así como su último hogar donde debe de ser declarado patrimonio nacional.
‘She’ ruined the integrity of a beautiful historical dress.
How could ‘Ripley’s’ allow this to happen?
It would have been better on a more petite model who could carry it off better.
Total disregard to the late ICON herself. How the likes of KK got ahold of Marilyn Monroe’s dress…. Disgusting. She should be ashamed of herself. There is clearly no resemblance in class, style, self respect, or integrity ( lets not forget SIZE difference) in KK and or whomever had the gross disrespect to allow tarnishing such an amazing piece of history. There wasn’t and never will be any other individual to touch Marilyn Monroes essence… she is truly and always will be one of a kind. Such a tragedy to happen to stroke someone’s ego. I hope she and whomever else is responsible in this decision making is happy with themselves.
It’s a real heartbreak that now the last person to wear it is not Marilyn Monroe. It boggles the mind for someone to think that it is totally fine to use historically significant garments as a chance to play dress up & to garner global press attention for themselves. I find it self-serving in the extreme, not to mention in the poorest of taste. My hope now is that Ripley’s have the sense (!) to have the dress restored by professional garment conservationist — although I believe it will take new owners to step up and do the right thing. It would be wonderful to see the gown repaired as much as possible and have it be on permanent loan to The Smithsonian or another academic museum that would value and treat it as it ought to be.