Long before the world was enthralled by the sultry Marilyn, there was just young, starry-eyed Norma Jeane Baker. Although many have come to associate Marilyn Monroe as a sexy, confident femme fatale, very few realize that it was all just an image-a persona, a role, created by an actress who knew how to make it big in Hollywood. She was far from the dumb blonde who sang about diamonds being her best friend. Behind the image, Marilyn Monroe was really just a bright yet insecure and depressed woman.
When most think of Marilyn, they think of the dumb blonde roles she often portrayed. Her sexy image only added to the stereotype. Rarely talked about was the woman who in her free time tackled James Joyce’s Ulysses and even studied at UCLA during the beginning of her career (One of them being an art history class!). After all, who would ever believe that sex symbol Marilyn had brains? People just never seemed to understand that Marilyn and her characters were two different things. But in reality, Marilyn was an avid reader. She had almost over 400 books in her library-from books on art, history, and even psychology! In fact, most candid pictures of Marilyn were ones with her nose stuck in a book.
When Marilyn briefly left Hollywood in 1955 after refusing to play “Girl in the Pink Tights”, many scoffed at her decision. To them, she was a dumb girl trying to play smart. But still, Marilyn prevailed. After insisting she be able to choose her own roles, director and what not, she started her own production company: Marilyn Monroe Productions with the help of photographer friend, Milton Greene. This allowed Marilyn to receive a better contract as well as the ability to work on her terms. She had fought for her rights and won. Marilyn was no pushover.
It was also during her time away from Hollywood that Marilyn studied acting under Lee Strasberg at the Actor’s Studio. Contrary to the belief that Marilyn cannot act, she was one of his star students, devoted to learning the ways of method acting; she wanted to be taken seriously as an actress. Acting was no joke to her-often times she would require multiple takes for a scene until she felt her portrayal was perfect. Even when the director insisted that her take was just fine, she would be adamant, much to his annoyance, that she redo the scene. To the world she was perfect, but to herself, she was never good enough.
On the set of “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,” Marilyn was at first a nervous wreck. She had locked herself in her trailer. It wasn’t until costar and later on friend Jane Russell came along and calmed Marilyn’s nerves. There are reports of similar scenarios, but unfortunately without Russell’s aid-Marilyn was infamous for showing up late on set. Although no one but Marilyn knows for sure why, it is a safe bet that part of the reason is due to her constant need to be perfect. Anything to the contrary would be a blow to her confidence. For example, after having two failed marriages (Jim Dougherty and Joe Dimaggio) Marilyn was desperate to have her third marriage to Arthur Miller work. She did not want to fail as a wife. And so when she accidentally stumbled upon Arthur’s diary where he had written about his frustrations with her, she was crushed. The insults vary from bitch to whore, but either way, the damage had been done. Marilyn was crushed. Having already a few people that she trusted in her life, it hurt her deeply to know that someone she thought she knew and trusted thought such negative things about her. This, along with several other factors led Marilyn into depression.
Her smile was gorgeous. The way her eyes lit up when she smiled was so natural that it’s hard to believe that this beautiful wasn’t always happy. During the last few years of her life, Marilyn had been heavily dependent on sleeping pills. As unbelievable as it sounds, Marilyn had accumulated “problems” over the years. Being a star only worsened her problems. Like most women, Marilyn yearned to be a mother. A series of failed pregnancies along with her third failed marriage took a huge toll on Marilyn’s state of mind. Added to that, when “The Misfits” costar had passed away due to a heart attack, many blamed Marilyn for his death. Murderer, they would scream at her, citing the fact that the stress Marilyn caused on set had been the source of Gable’s heart attack. It was all lies, but to hear people say she was the cause of the death of her childhood idol was the final straw. Marilyn sunk deep into depression.
Once a cheerful young woman, aspiring to strike it big in Hollywood, Marilyn was now just a shadow of herself. As Hollywood had put her up on a pedestal, it also led to her downfall. The very blonde bombshell image that propelled her into stardom haunted her throughout her career. She was sick of being thought of as a dumb blonde. When she tried to be taken seriously as an actress, she was laughed at. Even now, decades later, people still think of Marilyn as a dumb blonde-her humble plea to not make her look like a joke had gone unheard.