'''Marilyn Monroe''' (<!--IPA necessary for millions of nonnative English speakers-->{{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|r|ə|l|ɪ|n|_|m|ə|n|ˈ|r|oʊ}} {{respell|MARR|ə|lin|_|mən|ROH}}; born '''Norma Jeane Mortenson'''; June 1, 1926{{spnd}} August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model.<!--Keep most notable jobs here per [[MOS:ROLEBIO]].--> Known for playing comic "[[Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell|blonde bombshell]]" characters, she became one of the most popular [[sex symbol]]s of the 1950s and early 1960s, as well as an emblem of the era's [[sexual revolution]]. She was a top-billed actress for a decade, and her films grossed $200&nbsp;million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|USD|0.2|1962}} billion in {{Inflation/year|USD}}) by the time of [[Death of Marilyn Monroe|her death]] in 1962.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/archives/la-me-marilyn-monroe-19620806-story.html|title=Marilyn Monroe Dies; Pills Blamed|work=Los Angeles Times|date=August 6, 1962|access-date=September 23, 2015|first1=Howard|last1=Hertel|first2=Don|last2=Heff|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925094726/http://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/archives/la-me-marilyn-monroe-19620806-story.html|archive-date=September 25, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

Born and raised in Los Angeles County, Monroe spent most of her childhood in a total of twelve foster homes and an orphanage before marrying [[James Dougherty (police officer)|James Dougherty]] at age sixteen. She was working in a factory during [[World War II]] when she met a photographer from the [[First Motion Picture Unit]] and began a successful [[pin-up model]]ing career, which led to short-lived film contracts with [[20th Century Fox]] and [[Columbia Pictures]]. After a series of minor film roles, she signed a new contract with Fox in late 1950. Over the next two years, sheShe became a popular actress with roles in several comedies, including ''[[As Young as You Feel]]'' and ''[[Monkey Business (1952 film)|Monkey Business]]'', and in the dramas ''[[Clash by Night]]'' and ''[[Don't Bother to Knock]]''. Monroe faced a scandal when it was revealed that she had posed for nude photographs prior to becoming a star, but the story did not damage her career and instead resulted in increased interest in her films.

By 1953, Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars. She had leading roles in the film noir ''[[Niagara (1953 film)|Niagara]]'', which overtly relied on her sex appeal, and the comedies ''[[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953 film)|Gentlemen Prefer Blondes]]'' and ''[[How to Marry a Millionaire]]'', which established her star image as a "[[Blonde stereotype|dumb blonde]]". The same year, her nude images were used as the [[centerfold]] and cover of the first issue of ''[[Playboy]]''. Monroe played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, but felt disappointed when [[Typecasting|typecast]] and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project but returned to star in ''[[The Seven Year Itch]]'' (1955), one of the biggest box office successes of her career. When the studio was still reluctant to change Monroe's contract, she founded her own film production company in 1954. She dedicated 1955 to building the company and began studying [[method acting]] under [[Lee Strasberg]] at the [[Actors Studio]]. Later that year, Fox awarded her a new contract, which gave her more control and a larger salary. Her subsequent roles included a critically acclaimed performance in ''[[Bus Stop (1956 film)|Bus Stop]]'' (1956) and her first independent production in ''[[The Prince and the Showgirl]]'' (1957). She won a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical|Golden Globe for Best Actress]] for her role in ''[[Some Like It Hot]]'' (1959), a critical and commercial success. Her last completed film was the drama ''[[The Misfits (1961 film)|The Misfits]]'' (1961).

Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson on June 1, 1926, at the [[LAC+USC Medical Center|Los Angeles General Hospital]] in Los Angeles, California.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=3, 13–14|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=13}} Her mother, [[Gladys Pearl Baker]] (née Monroe; 1902–1984), was born in [[Piedras Negras, Coahuila]], Mexico<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.biography.com/news/marilyn-monroe-family-genealogy | title=Inside Marilyn Monroe's Family Tree |first=Juliana |last=Szucs | date=November 17, 2020 }}</ref> to a poor [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] family who migrated to California at the turn of the century.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=9–10|2a1=Rollyson|2y=2014|2pp=26–29}} At age 15, Gladys had married John Newton Baker, an abusive man nine years her senior. They had two children together, Robert (1918–1933){{sfnm|1a1=Miracle|1a2=Miracle|1y=1994|1p=see family tree|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=19–20|3a1=Leaming|3y=1998|3pp=52–53}} and [[Berniece Baker Miracle|Berniece]] (1919–2014).{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=7–9|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=19}} She successfully filed for divorce and sole custody of her two oldest in 1923, but Baker kidnapped the children soon after and moved with them to his native [[Kentucky]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=9 for the exact year when divorce was finalized|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=20|3a1=Leaming|3y=1998|3pp=52–53}}

Monroe was not told that she had a sister until she was 12, and they met for the first time in 1944 when Monroe was 17 or 18.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=88, for first meeting in 1944|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=72, for mother telling Monroe of sister in 1938}} Following the divorce, Gladys worked as a film negative cutter at [[Consolidated Film Industries]].{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1p=150, citing Spoto and Summers|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp= 24–25}} Her second marriage occurred in 1924 when she married Martin Edward Mortensen, but they separated just months later and divorced in 1928.{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1p=150, citing Spoto and Summers|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp= 24–25}}{{efn|Gladys named Mortensen as Monroe's father in the birth certificate (although the name was misspelled),{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|p=150, citing Spoto, Summers and Guiles}} but it is unlikely that he was the father as their separation had taken place well before she became pregnant.{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1pp=149–152|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=26|3a1=Spoto|3y=2001|3p=13}} Biographers Fred Guiles and [[Lois Banner]] stated that her father was likely Charles Stanley Gifford, Gladys's superior at RKO Studios, with whom she had an affair in 1925,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Korin |last2=Spanfeller |first2=Jamie |title=Did Marilyn Monroe Ever Meet Her Biological Father? All About Charles Stanley Gifford |url=https://www.womenshealthmag.com/life/a41425153/marilyn-monroe-father-charles-stanley-gifford/ |website=Women's Health |date=September 29, 2022 |access-date=September 30, 2022}}</ref> whereas [[Donald Spoto]] thought that another co-worker was probably the father.{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1p=152|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=26|3a1=Spoto|3y=2001|3p=13}}}} In 2022, DNA testing indicated that Monroe's father was Charles Stanley Gifford (1898–1965),<ref>{{cite web|url= https://variety.com/2022/tv/global/marilyn-monroe-documentary-charles-stanley-gifford-mediawan-1235222789/ |title= Marilyn Monroe's Biological Father Revealed in Documentary 'Marilyn, Her Final Secret'|first1= Elsa |last1= Keslassy |magazine= [[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date= April 4, 2022 |access-date= April 4, 2022}}</ref><ref>[https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/marilyn-monroe-could-still-alive-27671585 EXCLUSIVE: Marilyn Monroe could still be alive if she hadn't been rejected by her dad, niece says] in ''[[Daily Mirror]]'' by Graeme Culliford August 5, 2022</ref><ref>San Jacinto Valley Cemetery records, San Jacinto, California plot R-3-W-H</ref> a co-worker of Gladys, with whom she had an affair in 1925,{{sfnm|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1p=152|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=26|3a1=Spoto|3y=2001|3p=13}} though until then, her father was thought to be Mortensen.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ap |date=February 13, 1981 |title=Birth of Marilyn Monroe Shown to Be Legitimate |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/02/13/arts/birth-of-marilyn-monroe-shown-to-be-legitimate.html |access-date=June 11, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Monroe also had two other half-siblings from Gifford's marriage with his first wife; a sister, Doris Elizabeth (1920–1933), and a brother, Charles Stanley (1922–2015).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Anagnoson |first=Alex |date=October 2, 2022 |title=The Truth About Marilyn Monroe's Siblings |url=https://www.nickiswift.com/1034834/the-truth-about-marilyn-monroes-siblings/ |access-date=November 12, 2022 |website=Nicki Swift}}</ref>[[File:Marilyn monroe as an infant brightened.jpg|right|thumb|upright|alt=Monroe as an infant, wearing a white dress and sitting on a sheepskin rug|Monroe as an infant, {{circa|1927}}]]Although Gladys was mentally and financially unprepared for a child, Monroe's early childhood was stable and happy.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=17–26|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=32–35}} Gladys placed her daughter with [[evangelicalism|evangelical Christian]] foster parents Albert and Ida Bolender in the suburban town of [[Hawthorne, California|Hawthorne]]. She also lived there for six months, until she was forced to move back to the city for employment.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=16–26|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2p=164|3a1=Banner|3y=2012|3pp=22–35}} She then began visiting her daughter on weekends.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=17–26|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=32–35}} In the summer of 1933, Gladys bought a small house in [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] with a loan from the [[Home Owners' Loan Corporation]] and moved seven-year-old Monroe in with her.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=26–28|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=35–39|3a1=Leaming|3y=1998|3pp=54–55}} They shared the house with lodgers, actors George and Maude Atkinson and their daughter, Nellie.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=26–28|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=35–39}} In January 1934, Gladys had a mental breakdown and was diagnosed with [[paranoid schizophrenia]].{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|pp=155–156}} After several months in a rest home, she was committed to the [[Metropolitan State Hospital (California)|Metropolitan State Hospital]].{{sfnm|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=39–40|1a1=Churchwell|1y=2004|1pp=155–156}} She spent the rest of her life in and out of hospitals and was rarely in contact with Monroe.{{sfnm|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=39–42, 45–47, 62, 72, 91, 205|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=100–101, 106–107, 215–216}} Monroe became a [[ward (law)|ward of the state]], and her mother's friend Grace Goddard took responsibility over her and her mother's affairs.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=40–49|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2p=165|3a1=Banner|3y=2012|3pp=40–62}}

OverFor the next four years, Monroe's living situation changed often. For the first 16 months, sheMonroe continued living with the Atkinsons, and may have been [[child sexual abuse|sexually abused]] during this time.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=33–40|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=40–54}}{{efn|Monroe spoke about being sexually abused by a lodger when she was eight years old to her biographers [[Ben Hecht]] in 1953–1954 and [[Maurice Zolotow]] in 1960, and in interviews for ''[[Paris Match]]'' and ''[[Cosmopolitan (magazine)|Cosmopolitan]]''.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=48–49}} Although she refused to name the abuser, Banner believes he was George Atkinson, as he was a lodger and fostered Monroe when she was eight; Banner also states that Monroe's description of the abuser fits other descriptions of Atkinson.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=40–59}} Banner has argued that the abuse may have been a major causative factor in Monroe's mental health problems, and has also written that as the subject was [[taboo]] in mid-century United States, Monroe was unusual in daring to speak about it publicly.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=7, 40–59}} Spoto does not mention the incident but states that Monroe was sexually abused by Grace's husband in 1937 and by a cousin while living with a relative in 1938.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=55|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2pp=166–173}} Barbara Leaming repeats Monroe's account of the abuse, but earlier biographers Fred Guiles, Anthony Summers and Carl Rollyson have doubted the incident owing to lack of evidence beyond Monroe's statements.{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|pp=166–173}}}} Always a shy girl, she now also developed a [[stutter]] and became withdrawn.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp= 27, 54–73}} In the summer of 1935, she briefly stayed with Grace and her husband Erwin "Doc" Goddard and two other families.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=47–48}} In September 1935, Grace placed her in the Los Angeles Orphans Home #2, Hollygrove.<ref name="flickr/7416642764">{{cite web |last1=Acosta |first1=Yvonne |title=Young Marilyn: Photo from Hollygrove Orphanage |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/picarooned/7416642764 |website=flickr |access-date=November 2, 2023 |date=May 30, 2012}}</ref><ref name="pcad/7187">{{cite web |title=Los Angeles Orphans' Home Society, Orphanage #2, Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA |url=https://pcad.lib.washington.edu/building/7187/ |website=pcad.lib.washington.edu |publisher=PCAD - Pacific Coast Architecture Database |access-date=November 2, 2023}}</ref><ref name="latimes/2005-12-20/me-hollygrove20">{{cite news |last1=Pool |first1=Bob |title=A Haven for Children in L.A. Closes After 125 Years |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-dec-20-me-hollygrove20-story.html |access-date=November 2, 2023 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 20, 2005}}</ref>{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=44–45|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2pp=165–166|3a1=Banner|3y=2012|3pp=62–63}} The orphanage was "a model institution" and was described in positive terms by her peers, but Monroe felt abandoned.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=60–63}} Encouraged by the orphanage staff, who thought that Monroe would be happier living in a family, Grace became her [[legal guardian]] in 1936, but did not take her out of the orphanage until the summer of 1937.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=49–50|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=62–63 (see also footnotes), 455}} Monroe's second stay with the Goddards lasted only a few months because Doc [[molested]] her.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=62–64}} She then lived for brief periods with her relatives and Grace's friends and relatives in Los Angeles and [[Compton, California|Compton]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=49–50|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=62–64, 455}}

[[File:Monroe and James Dougherty.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Monroe with her first husband, [[James Dougherty (police officer)|James Dougherty]], {{circa|1943–44}}. They married when she was 16 and divorced in 1946, when she was 20.]]Monroe's childhood experiences first made her want to become an actress: "<blockquote>I didn't like the world around me because it was kind of grim ... When I heard that this was acting, I said that's what I want to be ... Some of my foster families used to send me to the movies to get me out of the house and there I'd sit all day and way into the night. Up in front, there with the screen so big, a little kid all alone, and I loved it."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2007/sep/14/greatinterviews|title=Great interviews of the 20th century: 'When you're famous you run into human nature in a raw kind of way'|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=September 14, 2007|access-date=October 21, 2015|first=Richard|last=Meryman|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151104070748/http://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2007/sep/14/greatinterviews|archive-date=November 4, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref></blockquote>

Monroe found a more permanent home in September 1938, when she began living with Grace's aunt Ana Lower in the west-side district of [[Sawtelle, Los Angeles|Sawtelle]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=51–67|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=62–86}} That same year, she was thrilled to learnlearned she had an older half-sister, [[Berniece Baker Miracle]], then pregnant with her daughter, Mona Rae Miracle.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Tremaine |first=Julie |date=December 23, 2023 |title=Who Was Marilyn Monroe's Sister? All About Berniece Baker Miracle |url=https://people.com/who-was-berniece-baker-miracle-marilyn-monroe-sister-8380410#:~:text=Despite%20Monroe's%20work%20and%20travel,,%20postmarked%20Oct%2028,%201944. |access-date=August 14, 2024 |website=[[Peoplemag]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ott |first=Tim |date=2020-09-09 |title=How Marilyn Monroe's Childhood Was Disrupted by Her Mother's Paranoid Schizophrenia |url=https://www.biography.com/actors/marilyn-monroe-mother-relationship |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Biography |language=en-US}}</ref> Monroe was enrolled at [[Emerson Junior High School]] and went to weekly [[Christian Science]] services with Lower.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=68–69|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=75–77}} She excelled in writing and contributed to the school newspaper, but was otherwise a mediocre student.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=73–76}} Owing to the elderly Lower's health problems, Monroe returned to live with the Goddards in [[Van Nuys, Los Angeles|Van Nuys]] in about early 1941.<ref name="ha//997052-1017.s">{{cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe personal teenage photograph - Norma Jeane at 14 years old. |url=https://entertainment.ha.com/itm/movie-tv-memorabilia/marilyn-monroe-personal-teenage-photograph-norma-jeane-at-14-years-old/a/997052-1017.s |website=Heritage Auctions |access-date=November 2, 2023 |date=1940 |quote=Vintage original gelatin silver 1.25 x 1.75 in. photograph of Norma Jeane taken in Van Nuys, California. Exhibiting some surface soiling and corner creasing. In good condition. Provenance: Christie's LA, Collection of Marilyn Monroe Memorabilia Sold to Benefit Hollygrove Children's Home, 12 September 2001, Lot 76.}}</ref>{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=67–69|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=86}} That same year, she began attending [[Van Nuys High School]], where she met factory worker [[James Dougherty (police officer)|James Dougherty]], the Goddard's neighbor's son who was five years her senior.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=67–69}} At the age of 15, she began dating him,.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McDowell |first=Erin |date=June 1, 2024 |title=50 rare photos of Marilyn Monroe that show another side to the film star |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/rare-photos-marilyn-monroe-2019-8#despite-her-career-success-monroes-personal-life-was-struggling-16 |access-date=August 14, 2024 |website=[[Business Insider]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":5" /> their first date being a Christmas dance.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Sheedy |first=Karen |date=2023-04-03 |title=Marilyn Monroe's Sadness Was Deeper Than Anyone Knew (And Owed to Her Mother) —Here's the Story of Their Relationship |url=https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/celebrities/marilyn-monroes-early-life |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Woman's World |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=Mrs. James Dougherty |url=https://marilynfromthe22ndrow.com/wp/a-brief-biography/james-dougherty/ |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Marilyn From The 22nd Row |language=en-US}}</ref> Monroe had been harboring a huge crush on Dougherty, who had been class president and football captain during his days at school.<ref name=":8" />

In 1942, the company that employed Doc Goddard relocated him to [[West Virginia]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=70–75|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=86–90}} California child protection laws prevented the Goddards from taking Monroe out of state, and she faced having to return to the orphanage.{{sfn|Banner|2012|pp=86–90}} To prevent this, Grace Goddard approached Dougherty's mother, Ethel, with the proposition that Dougherty marry Monroe, whom she had already been dating for several months.<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |date=2022-09-28 |title=50 Rare Photos From Marilyn Monroe's Turbulent Marriages |url=https://www.elle.com/life-love/news/g29955/marilyn-monroe-husbands-photos/?slide=3 |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=[[Elle (magazine)|Elle]] |language=en-US}}</ref> Ethel agreed, and the two told Monroe and Dougherty their idea. Both were rather skeptical of the idea: Dougherty thought Monroe was rather young to marry, and Monroe was nervous.<ref name=":11">{{Cite web |last=Morgan |first=Michelle |date=2022-09-27 |title=Who was Marilyn Monroe's first husband? |url=https://www.yours.co.uk/leisure/nostalgia/marilyn-monroes-first-husband-james-dougherty/ |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Yours Magazine |language=en}}</ref> On one occasion, Monroe approached Grace with the idea that they marry as friends instead of [[Consummation|consummating]] their marriage, but Grace replied, "Don't worry, you'll learn."<ref name=":8" />

Monroe married Dougherty on June 19, 1942, just after her 16th birthday, at the home of family friends named the Howells.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=70–75}}<ref name=":11" /> Though neither the Goddards or Monroe's mother attended the wedding, Bolenders and their daughter, Nancy, were in attendance. "I remember the winding staircase in the living room and all of us just staring at the top of the stairs until she appeared," Nancy later recalled. "What a beautiful bride."<ref name=":8" /> Monroe subsequently dropped out of high school and became a housewife.<ref name=":11" /> After the wedding, they honeymooned at a lake in [[Ventura County, California]], then moved into a [[studio apartment]] in [[Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles]], where they lived a calm, idyllic life.<ref name=":10" /><ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Chen |first=Joyce |date=2022-02-01 |title=A Look Back at Marilyn Monroe's Three Wedding Looks |url=https://www.theknot.com/content/marilyn-monroe-wedding-dress?srsltid=AfmBOor9u2NlbjfF8FPUhBIxIy1Oho7Y8VFfdbsKiaE2QHAGNZtFzRo8 |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=The Knot |language=en}}</ref> Dougherty later recalled that despite the circumstances they married under, he and Monroe "loved each other madly" and that being married "was like being on a honeymoon for a year."<ref name=":12" /> Monroe herself told Grace that though marriage was hard work, it was fun, and she deeply loved Dougherty.<ref name=":11" /> However, according to biographer [[Donald Spoto]], Monroe found herself and Dougherty mismatched, and later said she was "dying of boredom" during the marriage.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=70–78}} The first problems in their marriage appeared in late 1943, when Monroe and Dougherty attended a dance at the [[Catalina Casino]] ballroom. That night, Monroe was a popular dancing partner, while Dougherty was relatively ignored. Jealous, he told her that they were leaving. When Monroe told him she might go back to the dance alone, he told her that she would not be allowed to come home if she did.<ref name=":9" /> In 1943, Dougherty enlisted in the [[United States Merchant Marine|Merchant Marine]] and was stationed on [[Santa Catalina Island, California|Santa Catalina Island]], where Monroe moved with him.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=83–86|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=91–98}}

In April 1944, Dougherty was shipped out to the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific]], where he remained for most of the next two years.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=83–86|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=91–98}} Monroe, who had previously been having doubts about having children, begged him for a baby before he left.<ref name=":11" /> That same year, Monroe met Miracle and her husband, Paris, for the first time. After meeting her, Monroe sent the Miracles a postcard reading, "Dearest Berniece, I just can't tell you both how I enjoyed meeting you. I want to thank you for everything, for I had a wonderful time. Love, Norma Jeane. P.S. Berniece, I will write to you soon. Give Mona Rae my love." They continued to stay in touch throughout Monroe's career.<ref name=":4" />

The agency deemed Monroe's figure more suitable for [[Pin-up model|pin-up]] than high fashion modeling, and she was featured mostly in advertisements and men's magazines.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=95–107}} To make herself more employable, sheShe straightened her naturally curly brown hair and dyed it [[Blond|platinum blonde]], upon receivingon advice from a [[modeling agency]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=93–95|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=105–108}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cotton |first=Ruby |date=September 26, 2022 |title=Marilyn Monroe's Natural Hair Colour Isn't What You Think It Is |url=https://www.beautyheaven.com.au/hair/marilyn-monroe-natural-hair-colour/ |access-date=June 8, 2024 |website=beautyheaven |language=en-US}}</ref> According to Emmeline Snively, the agency's owner, Monroe quickly became one of its most ambitious and hard-working models; by early 1946, she had appeared on 33 magazine covers for publications such as ''[[Pageant (magazine)|Pageant]]'', ''U.S. Camera'', ''Laff'', and ''Peek''.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=95, for statement & covers|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2p=109, for Snively's statement}} As a model, Monroe occasionally used the pseudonym Jean Norman.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=93–95|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=105–108}}

Through Snively, Monroe signed a contract with an acting agency in June 1946.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=110–111}} After an unsuccessful interview at [[Paramount Pictures]], she was given a screen-test by [[Ben Lyon]], a [[20th Century Fox|20th Century-Fox]] executive. Head executive [[Darryl F. Zanuck]] was unenthusiastic about it,{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=110–112|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=117–119}} but he gave her a standard six-month contract to avoid her being signed by rival studio [[RKO Pictures]].{{efn|RKO's owner [[Howard Hughes]] had expressed an interest in Monroe after seeing her on a magazine cover.{{sfn|Banner|2012|p=119}}}} Monroe's contract began in August 1946, and she and Lyon selected the stage name "Marilyn Monroe".{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=112–114}} The first name was picked by Lyon, who was reminded of Broadway star [[Marilyn Miller]]; the surname was Monroe's mother's maiden name.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|p=114}} However, the studio was reluctant to hire Monroe, a married woman, for fear she would become pregnant.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Fraga |first=Kaleena |date=February 24, 2024 |title=James Dougherty, The Man Who Married 16-Year-Old Norma Jeane Baker Before She Became Marilyn Monroe |url=https://allthatsinteresting.com/james-dougherty |access-date=August 15, 2024 |website=All That's Interesting |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |last=Milner |first=Richard |date=September 21, 2022 |title=Whatever Happened To Marilyn Monroe's First Husband, James Dougherty? |url=https://www.grunge.com/1019027/whatever-happened-to-marilyn-monroes-first-husband-james-dougherty/ |access-date=August 15, 2024 |website=Grunge |language=en-US}}</ref> In September 1946, she divorced Dougherty, leaving him heartbroken.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Radar |date=September 30, 2022 |title='Like Getting Kicked By A Mule': Marilyn Monroe's First Husband Details Heartbreak After Being Served Divorce Papers From Love Of His Life |url=https://radaronline.com/p/marilyn-monroe-first-husband-talks-split-divorce/ |access-date=June 8, 2024 |website=RadarOnline |language=en-US}}</ref> Though Monroe offered to continue the relationship unmarried, Dougherty refused, and the relationship officially ended.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":7" />

[[File:Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Movie Trailer Screenshot (34).jpg|thumb|239x239px|Monroe performing the song "[[Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend]]" in the trailer for the 1953 film, [[Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953 film)|''Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'']]]]

Monroe met baseball player [[Joe DiMaggio]] in 1952, while on a [[blind date]] in Los Angeles.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 12, 2024 |title=How Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio Became the Ultimate Power Couple |first=Jessica Pearce |last=Rotondi |url=https://www.history.com/news/marilyn-monroe-joe-dimaggio-marriage-icons |access-date=June 11, 2024 |website=HISTORY |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Alexandra |first=Rae |date=January 10, 2024 |title=How Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio's Tumultuous Marriage Began in San Francisco |url=https://www.kqed.org/arts/13922524/marilyn-monroe-joe-dimaggio-san-francisco-city-hall-wedding-1954 |access-date=June 11, 2024 |website=www.kqed.org |language=en}}</ref> After two years of dating,<ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine |date=January 14, 2014 |title=Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio: The End of a Marriage, 1954 |url=https://www.life.com/people/tearful-photos-from-the-day-marilyn-divorced-dimaggio-in-1954/ |first=Ben |last=Cosgrove |access-date=June 11, 2024 |magazine=LIFE |language=en-US}}</ref> she and DiMaggio were married at the [[San Francisco City Hall]] on January 14, 1954.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|p=260}} They then traveled by car<ref name="Chron-Hoppe-jo-dimag">{{cite news |last1=Hoppe |first1=Art |author1-link=Art Hoppe |title=Joe Di Maggio Marries Marilyn Monroe at San Francisco City Hall |url=http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist8/jodimag.html |access-date=June 12, 2022 |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |date=January 15, 1954 |location=San Francisco |quote=Di Maggio said he didn’t know where they would spend their honeymoon but they would 'probably just get in the car and go' tonight.}}</ref> first to [[Paso Robles, California|Paso Robles]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Middlecamp |first=David |date=November 16, 2013 |title=Celebrity love story passed through Paso |pages=B1 |work=The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, CA)}}</ref> then south to nearby [[San Luis Obispo]] the day after,<ref name="sanluisobispo-MM-JD">{{cite news |last1=Middlecamp |first1=David |title=Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe's Central Coast honeymoon |url=https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/photos-from-the-vault/article39460947.html |access-date=June 12, 2022 |work=[[San Luis Obispo Tribune]] |date=March 25, 2016}}</ref> before spendingspent their honeymoon<ref name="Mungo-Desert-Playground">{{cite book |last1=Mungo |first1=Ray |title=Palm Springs Babylon: Sizzling Stories From The Desert Playground Of The Stars |date=January 15, 1993 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-0-312-06438-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kb0s0dHpd_AC&dq=Joe+DiMaggio+Marilyn+Monroe+Idyllwild+January+1954&pg=PA49 |language=en |quote=In January, 1954, Marilyn and Joe DiMaggio spent their honeymoon in the area, mostly tucked away playing billiards in a cabin up in the Idyllwild Hills.}}</ref> outside [[Idyllwild, California]],<ref name="idyllwildtowncrier/2014/01/30/past-tense">{{cite news |title=Past Tense: January 30, 2014 |url=https://idyllwildtowncrier.com/2014/01/30/past-tense-jan-30-2014/ |access-date=September 10, 2022 |work=Idyllwild Town Crier |date=January 30, 2014}}</ref><ref name="idyllwildtowncrier-MM-JD">{{cite news |title=Before Our Time: Idyllwild's SMASH! |url=https://idyllwildtowncrier.com/2012/06/06/before-our-time-idyllwilds-smas/ |access-date=June 12, 2022 |work=[[Idyllwild Town Crier]] |date=June 6, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=ERNIE MAXWELL: Idyllwild 'old-timer' remembers much of mountain town's history |first=Paul |last=Zalis |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=DS19840901.2.21&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 |access-date=June 12, 2022 |work=[[The Desert Sun]] |date=September 1, 1984 |location=[[Palm Springs, California]] |via=[[California Digital Newspaper Collection]]}}</ref> in the mountain lodge of Monroe's lawyer Lloyd Wright.<ref name="HeritageAuctions-Monroe-agent-files">{{cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe extensive archive of her agent Charles K. Feldman's files of (150+) typed and handwritten letters, memos, clippings and telegrams from the Famous Artists Corporation. |url=https://entertainment.ha.com/itm/movie-tv-memorabilia/marilyn-monroe-extensive-archive-of-her-agent-charles-k-feldman-s-files-of-150-typed-and-handwritten-letters-memos-clipp/a/997052-1088.s |website=Heritage Auctions |access-date=September 10, 2022 |date=December 11, 2018 |quote=Marilyn Monroe is giving press statements in New York that she was not returning to 20th-Fox, where she is under contract, and also that she was dismissing her attorney, Lloyd Wright, and her agency, Famous Artists...}}</ref><ref name="O'Hagan-Atlantic-MM-JD">{{cite book |last1=O'Hagan |first1=Andrew |author1-link=Andrew O'Hagan |title=The Atlantic Ocean: Reports from Britain and America |date=January 22, 2013 |publisher=HMH |isbn=978-0-547-72789-9 |page=112 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6zuAqkiZf20C&dq=Lloyd+Wright+Idyllwild&pg=PA112 |language=en}}</ref> On January 29, 1954, fifteen days later,<ref name="historynet-monroe-korea">{{cite web |title=When Marilyn Monroe Interrupted Her Honeymoon to Go to Korea |first=Liesl |last=Bradner |url=https://www.historynet.com/when-marilyn-monroe-interrupted-her-honeymoon-to-go-to-korea/ |website=[[HistoryNet]] |access-date=September 10, 2022 |date=December 3, 2019}}</ref> they flew to Japan,<ref name="marilynmonroe.ca-tickets">{{cite web |author1=Melinda |title=Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio Honeymoon in Japan |url=http://www.marilynmonroe.ca/camera/tickets/index.html |website=MarilynMonroe.ca |access-date=June 12, 2022 |location=Ontario, Canada}}</ref> combining a "honeymoon" with his commitment to his former [[San Francisco Seals (PCL)|San Francisco Seals]] coach [[Lefty O'Doul]],<ref name="Getty-Monroe-O'Doul-Japan">{{cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe, (Left Center), and Jean O'Doul, the wife 'Lefty' O'Doul, (Right Center), are shown posing with pretty Japanese Geisha Girls after a 'Sukiyaki' Dinner in Kobe. The dinner was given by the Central League, one of Japan's professional baseball organizations. Husbands DiMaggio and O'Doul were among the diners. Miss Monroe and DiMaggio are flying home today. |url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/marilyn-monroe-and-jean-odoul-the-wife-lefty-odoul-are-news-photo/517367908 |website=[[Getty Images]] |date=March 22, 2016 |access-date=September 10, 2022 |language=en-us}}</ref> to help train<ref name="pressdemocrat-lefty-odoul">{{cite news |title=The streak continues for 'Lefty' O'Doul |first=Chris |last=Smith |url=https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/sonoma-stories-lefty-odoul-was-like-an-uncle-to-this-rohnert-park-man/ |access-date=September 10, 2022 |work=[[Santa Rosa Press Democrat]] |date=September 4, 2017}}</ref> Japanese baseball teams.<ref name="Doyle-monroe-dimaggio" />{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=262–263}} From Tokyo, she traveled with Jean O'Doul,<ref name="Doyle-monroe-dimaggio">{{cite web |last1=Doyle |first1=Jack |title='Marilyn & Joe, et al.' A 70-Year Saga |url=https://pophistorydig.com/topics/marilyn-monroe-joe-dimaggio/ |website=The Pop History Dig |access-date=September 10, 2022}}</ref> Lefty's wife, to Korea,<ref name="Getty-Monroe-O'Doul-Korea">{{cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe (left) stands with (l to r) Marine Col. William K. Jones and Jean O'Doul while visiting American troops in Korea. |url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/marilyn-monroe-stands-with-marine-col-william-k-jones-and-news-photo/517384340 |website=[[Getty Images]] |date=March 22, 2016 |access-date=September 10, 2022 |language=en-us}}</ref><ref name="orlandosentinel-lefty-odouls">{{cite news |last1=Warner |first1=Gary A. |title=Lefty O'Doul's is the best baseball bar in San Francisco |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/vs-travel-san-francisco-lefty-odouls-20121112-story.html |access-date=September 10, 2022 |work=[[Orlando Sentinel]] |agency=[[Orange County Register]] |date=November 12, 2012 |quote=The name on the card is 'Norma Jean DiMaggio'&nbsp;– the legal name of DiMaggio's then-wife, Marilyn Monroe, who needed the card to make overseas visits to build the morale of American troops in Korea.}}</ref> where she participated in a [[United Service Organizations|USO]] show,<ref name="japantoday-Monroe-Japan">{{cite news |last1=Parr |first1=Patrick |title=Mrs and Mr Marilyn Monroe honeymoon in Japan |url=https://japantoday.com/category/features/lifestyle/Mrs-and-Mr-Marilyn-Monroe-honeymoon-in-Japan |access-date=September 10, 2022 |work=[[Japan Today]] |date=August 23, 2018 |language=en}}</ref> singing songs from her films for over 60,000 U.S. Marines over a four-day period.<ref>{{cite web |last1=O'Doul |first1=Jean |title=A Marilyn Monroe Group of Never-Before-Seen Black and White Snapshots from Korea, 1954 |url=https://entertainment.ha.com/itm/movie-tv-memorabilia/photos/a-marilyn-monroe-group-of-never-before-seen-black-and-white-snapshots-from-korea-1954/a/7082-46004.s |website=Heritage Auctions |access-date=September 10, 2022 |date=December 12, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Miller-Monroe-DiMaggio">{{cite book |last1=Miller |first1=Jennifer Jean |title=Marilyn Monroe & Joe DiMaggio - Love In Japan, Korea & Beyond |date=February 14, 2014 |publisher=J.J. Avenue Productions |isbn=978-0-9914291-6-5 |page=79 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mXTdAgAAQBAJ&dq=Monroe++O%27Doul+Korea&pg=PT79 |language=en}}</ref>{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|p=241}} After returning to the U.S., she was awarded ''Photoplay''{{'}}s "Most Popular Female Star" prize.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|p=267}} Monroe settled with Fox in March, with the promise of a new contract, a bonus of $100,000, and a starring role in the [[The Seven Year Itch|film adaptation]] of the [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] success ''[[The Seven Year Itch (play)|The Seven Year Itch]]''.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|p=271}}

Monroe continued her relationship with DiMaggio despite the ongoing divorce process; she was also rumored to have dated actor [[Marlon Brando]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|pp=319–332|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2p=253, for Miller|3a1=Banner|3y=2012|3p=285, for Brando}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Mike |date=2024-05-21 |title=Who Were Marilyn Monroe's Most Famous Lovers? Revisiting Her Relationships and Rumored Affairs |url=https://people.com/marilyn-monroe-dating-history-8651634 |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=[[Peoplemag|People]] |language=en}}</ref> Monroe had met playwright [[Arthur Miller]] in 1951, after being introduced on the set of [[As Young as You Feel|''As Young as You Feel'']] by director [[Elia Kazan]].{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|pp=319–332|2a1=Churchwell|2y=2004|2p=253, for Miller|3a1=Banner|3y=2012|3p=285, for Brando}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe weds playwright Arthur Miller {{!}} June 29, 1956 |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/marilyn-monroe-weds-arthur-miller |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=HISTORY |language=en}}</ref> Though he was married to a woman named Mary Slattery, they began an affair in 1955.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Laura |date=2022-09-27 |title='Blonde': The True Story of Arthur Miller's Relationship With Marilyn Monroe |url=https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/film/a41242949/blonde-arthur-miller-marilyn-monroe-relationship/ |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Esquire |language=en-GB}}</ref> The affair became increasingly serious after October 1955, when Monroe's divorce was finalized and Miler separated from Slattery so he could be with Monroe.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=337|2a1=Meyers|2y=2010|2p=98}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wood |first=Gaby |date=2005-02-13 |title='I like the company of women. Life is boring without them' - Arthur Miller |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/feb/13/theatre.arthurmiller |access-date=2024-09-08 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0029-7712}}</ref> The studio urged her to end it, as Miller was being investigated by the [[FBI]] for allegations of [[communism]] and had been [[Subpoena|subpoenaed]] by the [[House Un-American Activities Committee]], but Monroe refused.{{sfnm|1a1=Summers|1y=1985|1p=157|2a1=Spoto|2y=2001|2pp=318–320|3a1=Churchwell|3y=2004|3pp=253–254}} The relationship led to the FBI opening a file on her, as they suspected she was part of a communist group.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1p=337|2a1=Meyers|2y=2010|2p=98}} However, the FBI never uncovered any evidence proving these claims.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Laura |date=2022-09-28 |title='Blonde': Did the FBI Really Open a File on Marilyn Monroe? |url=https://www.esquire.com/uk/culture/a41314807/blonde-did-the-fbi-open-a-file-on-marilyn-monroe/ |access-date=2024-09-08 |website=Esquire |language=en-GB}}</ref>

They did, and I said to them 'If you are going to treat me like a nut I'll act like a nut'.</blockquote>Four days later, Monroe was rescued by DiMaggio.[[File: Marilyn Monroe Misfits.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Monroe holding a hat and standing in the middle of a crowd of people, facing the camera. On her right is Gable and on her left, Winwood. There is a sign that says 'BAR' in the background.|Monroe, [[Estelle Winwood]], [[Eli Wallach]], [[Montgomery Clift]], and [[Clark Gable]] in ''[[The Misfits (1961 film)|The Misfits]]'' (1961). ''The Misfits'' was the final completed film for Monroe and Gable, who both died within two years.]]The last film Monroe completed was [[John Huston]]'s 1961 film ''[[The Misfits (1961 film)|The Misfits]]'', which Miller had written to provide her with a dramatic role.{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|p=266}} She played Roslyn Taber,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pfeiffer |first=Lee |title=The Misfits {{!}} Drama, Western, Monroe {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Misfits |access-date=August 16, 2024 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.|Brittanica]] |language=en}}</ref> a recently divorced woman who becomes friends with her Reno landlady, and three aging cowboys, played by [[Clark Gable]], [[Eli Wallach]] and [[Montgomery Clift]]. The filming in Reno, and in the Nevada desert east of Carson City between July and November 1960 was difficult.{{sfn|Spoto|2001|pp=429–430}} As a girl, Monroe had thought and "hoped" that Gable was her father, after she saw a photo of one of her mother's exes who had a "thin mustache" like Gable.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Caskey |first=Sara |date=June 24, 2023 |title=Why Marilyn Monroe Once Believed A Hollywood Icon Was Her Father |url=https://www.thelist.com/1317591/marilyn-monroe-believed-hollywood-icon-father/ |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=The List |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Escalante |first=Ana |date=August 3, 2012 |title=10 Things You Don't Know About Marilyn Monroe |url=https://www.glamour.com/story/5-things-you-dont-know-about-m |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=Glamour |language=en-US}}</ref> When Huston wanted to make Roslyn a [[Supporting character|secondary character]] instead of a [[Primary character|major character]], Gable "fought" Huston to assure Roslyn's place as a primary character.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Crislip |first=Anthony |date=December 18, 2022 |title=Clark Gable Fought John Huston To Save Marilyn Monroe's The Misfits Role |url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1138716/clark-gable-fought-john-houston-to-save-marilyn-monroes-the-misfits-role/ |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=SlashFilm |language=en-US}}</ref> By the time the movie was finished, Monroe's and Miller's marriage was effectively over, and he began a new relationship with Magnum movie photographer [[Inge Morath]].{{sfn|Churchwell|2004|p=266}}

During her final months, Monroe lived at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Her housekeeper [[Eunice R. Murray|Eunice Murray]] was staying overnight at the home on the evening of August&nbsp;4, 1962.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=574–577|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=410–411}} Murray woke at 3:00{{nbsp}}a.m. on August 5 and sensed that something was wrong. She saw light from under Monroe's bedroom door but was unable to get a response and found the door locked. Murray then called Monroe's psychiatrist [[Ralph Greenson]], who arrived at the house shortly after and broke into the bedroom through a window. He found a nude Monroe dead in her bed, covered by a sheet, with her hand clamped around a telephone receiver.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marilyn Monroe is found dead {{!}} August 5, 1962 |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/marilyn-monroe-is-found-dead |access-date=June 6, 2024 |website=HISTORY |language=en}}</ref>{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=574–577|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=410–411}} Monroe's physician, Hyman Engelberg, arrived at around 3:50{{nbsp}}a.m.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=574–577|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=410–411}} and pronounced her dead. At 4:25{{nbsp}}a.m., the [[Los Angeles Police Department]] was notified.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=574–577|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=410–411}}

Her funeral, held at the [[Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery]] on August&nbsp;8, was private and attended by only her closest associates.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=594–597|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=427–428}} The service was arranged by DiMaggio, Miracle, and Monroe's business manager Inez Melson.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=594–597|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=427–428}} DiMaggio, having claimed her body, was the only of her ex-husbands to attend.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Mosca |first=Alexandra Kathryn |title=Marilyn Monroe: The Sad and Untimely Death of America's Fantasy |url=https://www.qcc.cuny.edu/socialSciences/ppecorino/SS680/Funeral_Marilyn_Monroe.html |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=www.qcc.cuny.edu}}</ref> Monroe's mother, who was confined to a [[sanatorium]] at the time, did not attend either, as she was not informed her daughter had died.<ref name=":2" /> DiMaggio barred the [[Kennedy family]] from attending,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bertram |first=Colin |date=November 17, 2020 |title=Inside Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio's Roller Coaster Romance |url=https://www.biography.com/celebrities/marilyn-monroe-joe-dimaggio-relationship |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=Biography |language=en-US}}</ref> as well as most of Hollywood, saying, "Tell them if it wasn't for them, she'd still be here."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gaffney |first=Dennis |title=Joe Directs Marilyn's Funeral |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/dimaggio-joe-directs-marilyns-funeral/ |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=[[PBS]] |language=en}}</ref> She was adorned in a simple green [[Emilio Pucci]] dress and green scarf, with baby pink roses and champagne silk lining her twin-bronze casket.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Siegel |first=Joshua |date=October 9, 2023 |title=Marilyn Monroe Funeral: Uncovering Her Farewell |url=https://titancasket.com/blogs/celebrity-caskets-and-funerals/marilyn-monroe-funeral-uncovering-her-farewell |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=Titan Casket |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Evon |first=Dan |date=May 29, 2015 |title=FACT CHECK: Marilyn Monroe Funeral Photograph |url=https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/at-rest-in-a-pucci-dress/ |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=Snopes |language=en}}</ref> DiMaggio was distraught at the funeral, kissing Monroe's body and saying, "I love you. I love you."<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Lusher |first=Adam |date=January 11, 2018 |title=Why Arthur Miller didn't go to Marilyn Monroe's funeral |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/marilyn-monroe-arthur-miller-joe-dimaggio-funeral-overdose-death-how-die-secret-who-killed-unpublished-essay-a8154086.html |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=[[The Independent]] |language=en}}</ref> Hundreds of spectators crowded the streets around the cemetery.{{sfnm|1a1=Spoto|1y=2001|1pp=594–597|2a1=Banner|2y=2012|2pp=427–428}} Monroe was later entombed at Crypt No.&nbsp;24 at the Corridor of Memories.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1919236_1919237_1919221,00.html|title=Top&nbsp;10 Celebrity Grave Sites: Marilyn Monroe|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|access-date=October 15, 2015|date=September 3, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151119201501/http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0%2C28804%2C1919236_1919237_1919221%2C00.html|archive-date=November 19, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> For 20 years after her death, DiMaggio sent roses to Monroe's grave.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Alice |date=August 17, 2023 |title=Joe DiMaggio's Heart-Wrenching Gesture for Marilyn Monroe That He Continued for 20 Years After Her Death |url=https://www.sheknows.com/entertainment/articles/2822820/joe-dimaggio-marilyn-monroe-flowers-grave/ |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=[[SHE Media|SheKnows]] |language=en-US}}</ref> According to his attorney, Morris Engleberg, DiMaggio's last words were "I'll finally get to see Marilyn."<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 9, 2000 |title=Report: DiMaggio's Final Words |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/story?id=100802&page=1 |access-date=August 8, 2024 |website=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |language=en}}</ref>