Monroe Exhibit Opens in England

April 2009

Jersey Heritage presents a new exhibition of stage and personal costumes worn by the screen idol Marilyn Monroe. At Jersey Museum from 25 March 2009, this exhibition combines these iconic costumes with accessories, jewellery, keepsakes and trinkets owned by Marilyn. Many of these items are on display to the public for the first time and the exhibition offers an intimate look into the life of the superstar.

Sponsored by UBS AG this exhibition brings together costumes from some of Marilyn’s’ most famous movies, including the iconic red sequined gown from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). The ‘wiggle dress’ from Niagara, designed to accentuate the voluptuous curves of the star who competed for attention against the magnificent backdrop of Niagara Falls. There is also an elaborate stage costume worn by Marilyn in There's No Business Like Showbusiness (1954). Marilyn played the role of hat-check girl and sultry singer Vicky Hoffmann in this musical. The costume is constructed of a full length flesh-tone gown with a net overlay heavily embellished with flowers and leaves of sequins with white and silver bugle beads. A pleated panel was inserted into the revealing costume to cover Marilyn's bare leg when filming alternate shots for countries where such "nudity" was forbidden.

Personal items also in the collection include a Beverley Hills Hotel postcard sent by Marilyn to masseur Ralph Roberts who became a close friend. It reads, "Dear Raffe, See I did write! I have a surprise for you and I'm not pregnant either. XOXO Love M." A silver ring given to Marilyn by her mother and a relaxed photo of Marilyn taken on the set of The Misfits by world-renowned photographer Eve Arnold.

The collection has been loaned to Jersey Heritage by Jersey collector David Gainsborough-Roberts. David said: ‘I have been approached before by organisations to lend costumes for a Marilyn exhibition, but I’ve always said no. I want Jersey to have the privilege. I want to thank UBS and Christies for their support of this wonderful exhibition.’

Eduard Klein from UBS AG said: ‘UBS is pleased to be associated with this unique exhibition celebrating the life and work of Marilyn Monroe, probably the ultimate screen icon, and in helping make this collection accessible to a wider audience’.

The Marilyn exhibition is on at Jersey Museum from March 25 to end of December 2009.

Please contact Jersey Heritage if you would like to see the costumes before they appear in the exhibition, photo opportunities can be arranged.

For more information contact:
Sophie Darwin, Jersey Heritage, +44(0)1534 633315 or email sophie.darwin@jerseyheritage.org

Click here for a news article on this exhibit.

Special thanks to Suzie Kennedy for sharing her personal images from this exhibit with me.

Marilyn Monroe Wax Figures Up For Auction

April 2009

Two wax figures of Marilyn Monroe from The Hollywood Wax Museum are being auctioned by Profiles in History. Both figures represent Marilyn in the now iconic subway grate scene from The Seven Year Itch. Estimate for Each: $2,000-3,000.00.

www.profilesinhistory.com

This auction will be held on May 1. Other celebrities in wax being auctioned include Mae West, Humphrey Bogart, Judy Garland, Lucille Ball, James Dean, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., The Beatles, and many others.

The "Beyond The Legend" DVD Contest

April 2009

Visit The Marilyn Monroe Collection today and enter for a chance to win your personal DVD copy of "Marilyn Monroe...Beyond The Legend." This 1985 documentary includes rare footage of Marilyn, and interviews with Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Sheree North, Susan Strasberg, Don Murray, Celeste Holm and Josh Logan.

Coming Soon: The "Beyond The Legend" Contest at The Marilyn Monroe Collection

April 2009

Coming soon to the Marilyn Monroe Collection, your chance to win "Marilyn Monroe... Beyond The Legend," a 1985 documentary on DVD that includes rare footage of Marilyn, and interviews with Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Sheree North, Susan Strasberg, Don Murray, Celeste Holm and Josh Logan. For a view of the documentary trailer, visit the Marilyn Monroe Collection YouTube Channel here. More information to come soon!

"Marilyn" Opens at the Apollo Theatre in London

April 2009

Empire film magazine recently crowned Marilyn Monroe the ‘Sexiest Female Movie Star of all Time’, Playboy hailed her the ‘Number One Sex Star of the 20th Century’, while People magazine voted her the 'Sexiest Woman of the Century'. Now the life of the troubled screen goddess, one of Hollywood’s most beautiful icons from the golden age of movies, is coming to the West End in Marilyn, a dance musical that celebrates her all-too-brief life.

With original music from Marilyn’s movies and performances as diverse as “Happy Birthday, Mr President” and “My Heart Belongs to Daddy”, and a company of 15 dancers, choreographed and directed by Olivier Award and Evening Standard Award-winning Peter Schaufuss, Marilyn will play a strictly limited season of just 11 performances at the Apollo Theatre from Wednesday June 3 - Saturday June 13. The press performance is Wednesday June 3 at 8.00pm.

Marilyn is the story of a childhood without a father and love; a schizophrenic mother who doesn’t want her child to exist and even tries to strangle her as an infant; and an abused young girl who marries at 16 to avoid being sent to an orphanage. Marilyn's career as an actress was to span just 16 years but featured starring roles in such classics as “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”,”How to Marry a Millionaire”, “The Seven Year Itch” and “Some Like It Hot”. She made a total of 29 films - 24 of them in the first 8 years of her career. However, the typecasting of her "dumb blonde" persona limited her career prospects, and she made more headlines for her private life, including marriages to baseball player Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller. The final years of her life were marked by illness, personal problems, and a reputation for being unreliable and difficult to work with. The circumstances of her death, from an overdose of barbiturates, have ever since been the subject of conjecture and wild conspiracy theories. In 1999, Marilyn was ranked as the sixth greatest female star of all time by the American Film Institute.

Marilyn stars British ballerina Zara Deakin in the title role. Deakin trained at The Royal Ballet School. Sir Frederick Ashton created the ballet “Nursery Suite” for her in honour of Queen Elizabeth’s Birthday. She danced with the English National Ballet and Deutsche Oper Berlin before joining The Peter Schaufuss Company as a founding member, appearing in leading roles in all the companies’ 19 productions. In “Divas”, which had its West End premiere in 2008, Zara created the role of Marlene Dietrich. In the acclaimed production “Diana - The Princess”, she portrayed Diana. Zara has performed all over the world, including at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York and Royal Opera House.

Marilyn is her third appearance starring in a West End production. Peter Schaufuss was an international ballet star in the 1970s and 1980s on a par with Baryshnikov and Nureyev. More recently he has become a modernising choreographic force as a company director, winning both the Olivier and Evening Standard awards. He was named artistic director of the London Festival Ballet (now called the English National Ballet) in 1984; was the artistic director of the Deutsch Oper Ballet in Berlin from 1990 to 1994, when he became the artistic director of his native Royal Danish Ballet. In 1997 he formed his own company. Today, he is probably best known in the UK for his controversial dance work, “Diana - The Princess”, a tribute to his friend, pupil and ENB patron, which premiered in Manchester in 2005. His most recent West End productions were “Divas” in 2008 and “Satisfaction”, in 2007, choreographed to the music of the Rolling Stones.

View the full press release here.