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Martha Sleeper

Marilyn Monroe

Norma Shearer

Marilyn Monroe: Video Reel Life.

How to Marry a Millionaire (1953).

How to Marry a Millionaire (1953). Romantic/comedy. Director: Jean Negulesco. Produced and written by Nunnally Johnson. Music by Alfred Newman. Cinematography: Joseph MacDonald. Costumes: Travilla. Cast: Lauren Bacall, Marilyn Monroe, Betty Grable, William Powell, David Wayne, Rory Calhoun, Cameron Mitchell, Alexander D'Arcy, and Fred Clark.

The story begins when, high fashion model Schatze Page, leases a luxury New York City apartment owned by Freddie Denmark, a businessman "on the lam" from the Internal Revenue Service. She quickly calls her friend calls, Pola Debevoise, to tell her that they rented the apartment.

Pola, arrives and convinces Schatze to also invite her friend Loco Dempsey, to come live with them. Loco Instructed to bring lunch, arrives with several bags of groceries and Tom Brookman, who paid for her food. Schatze, immediately kicks him out (not knowing that he is rich), tells the girls" that a man met at the cold cuts counter is not the kind of man they want to get hooked up with." Over hot dogs and champagne, Schatze tells Loco that she and Pola have taken the apartment in order to find rich husbands and that after divorcing a "gas pump jockey," she now wants to live in luxury. Thinking Schatze's scheme is the smartest thing they ever heard, Loco and Pola agree.

After three months, none of the girls have become engaged and Schatze has to sell the furniture to pay the rent.

One afternoon, Loco comes home with another gentleman helping her with her boxes. J. D. invites the women to a reception that night, where the girls meet promising looking men. Afterward, the women accompany their dates to a fancy restaurant. Pola is escorted by J. Stewart Merrill, "Arab" who brags about his money, while Loco is accompanied by Waldo Brewster, a rich businessman who complains about his wife. Now all the girls have to do is use all their talents to trap and marry 3 millionaires.

 

Marilyn, Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall all make wonderful gold-diggers, that you cant help but love. In this movie with all it's cute twists and turns, which make it worth watching, on a Sunday afternoon.

FUN FACTS: This film was the final box-office success in Betty Grable's 26 year movie career. Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe, then on her way to major stardom, became friends during filming with Betty Grable, who said to her "Honey, I've have mine. Go get yours."

When Lauren Bacall's character, Schatze, says, "I've always liked older men... Look at that old fellow what's-his-name in The African Queen. Absolutely crazy about him." She is referring to Bacall's real-life husband, Humphrey Bogart.

When Betty Grable listens to her then-husband Harry James on the radio in Maine, the song playing is "You'll Never Know," which then becomes the love theme for Miss Grable and Rory Calhoun. The Oscar-winning song of 1943 (music by Harry Warren, lyrics by Mack Gordon) had been sung by Alice Faye in two musicals, Hello Frisco, Hello and Four Jills in a Jeep, and then sung by Betty Grable in Diamond Horseshoe, and also sung by Ginger Rogers in Dreamboat.

Before becoming a major Hollywood success, Lauren Bacall worked as a model for several years of her teenage life while auditioning for roles on Broadway. The modeling she did is exactly like that of her character Ms. Paige, showing pieces for clients.

In one scene the three women are talking to each other about who they would like to marry. Marilyn Monroe's character says she wouldn't mind marring Mr. Cadillac. Lauren Bacall's character replies "No such person, I checked". There was a Mr. Cadillac. He was the French governor of Canada (founded the city of Detroit and in 1710 was named the governor of Louisiana). The Cadillac was named for him and his surname lives on in the form of his descendants.

Signed to Twentieth Century-Fox since October 35, 1939, Betty Grable informed the studio chief Darryl F. Zanuck during production that she would not commit to the remaining three years of her latest contract. On June 3, 1953, a studio press release announced the official split. Returning only once to Fox, Betty would star in How to Be Very, Very Popular, a vehicle in which Marilyn refused to appear and was replaced by Sheree North. Two unfulfilled proposals to have Miss Grable film again at Fox were the mother role (subsequently played by Ginger Rogers) in Teenage Rebel and then in 1964, another mom part in a project ultimately canceled named "High Heels."

This film's plot is similar to The Greeks Had a Word for Them, in which 15-year-old Betty Grable showed up briefly as a hatcheck girl, and also to Moon Over Miami, one of Miss Grable's most popular Technicolor vehicles.

The on-screen orchestra at the beginning plays music that was composed by Alfred Newman for the 1931 film Street Scene. The music was also used in 20th Century-Fox's I Wake Up Screaming, also with Betty Grable, and in Gentleman's Agreement.

While Betty Grable received top billing as the credits rolled -- a contractual promise made to her by Twentieth Century-Fox -- Marilyn Monroe was promoted to first place in the trailer and poster art.

David Wayne (January 30, 1914 – February 9, 1995) was an American actor with a career spanning nearly 50 years. Wayne's first major Broadway role was Og the leprechaun in Finian's Rainbow, for which he won the Theatre World Award and the first ever Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.

While appearing in the play, he and co-star Albert Sharpe were recruited by producer David O. Selznick to play Irish characters in the film Portrait of Jennie (1948).

 It was in 1948 as well that Wayne became one of those fortunate 50 applicants (out of approximately 700) granted membership in New York's newly formed Actors Studio. He was awarded a second Tony for Best Actor in a Play for The Teahouse of the August Moon and was nominated as Best Actor in a Musical for The Happy Time. He originated the role of Ensign Pulver in the classic stage comedy Mister Roberts and also appeared in Say, Darling, After the Fall, and Incident at Vichy.

Later career In films, Wayne most often was cast as a supporting player, such as the charming cad opposite Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn in Adam's Rib (1949). He portrayed the child killer, originally played by Peter Lorre, in the remake of M (1951), a chance to see him in a rare leading role, even rarer as an evil character.

 He costarred in The Tender Trap (1955) with Frank Sinatra, Debbie Reynolds, and Celeste Holm. Wayne also appeared in four films with Marilyn Monroe (more than any other actor): As Young as You Feel (1951), We're Not Married (1952), O. Henry's Full House (1952) (although he was not in the same scene as Monroe), and How to Marry a Millionaire (1953).

Wayne appeared in the late 1950s on ABC's The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom and the Twilight Zone episode Escape Clause. He starred as Darius Woodley in two 1961 episodes of NBC's The Outlaws television series with Barton MacLane. Wayne was also noted for his portrayal of Dr. Charles Dutton in the 1971 film version of Michael Crichton's The Andromeda Strain.

He also played the Mad Hatter, one of the recurring villains in the 1960s TV series Batman. In 1964, he guest-starred in the series finale, "Pay Now, Die Later", of CBS's drama, Mr. Broadway, starring Craig Stevens as public relations specialist Mike Bell. In the story line, Wayne's character, the wealthy John Zeck, hires Bell to prepare Zeck's obituary before his death.

1951 In the 1960s, Wayne was a radio host on NBC's magazine program Monitor. Wayne appeared as Uncle Timothy Jamison in the NBC sitcom, The Brian Keith Show. He co-starred with Jim Hutton in the 1970s television series Ellery Queen (as Queen's widowed father).

 From 1978 to 1979, Wayne played Digger Barnes on the CBS hit drama Dallas. He left that show to star in the television series House Calls with Lynn Redgrave and later Sharon Gless in the role of Dr. Weatherby, Keenan Wynn replaced him as Digger Barnes. He played "Big Daddy"—Blanche's father on The Golden Girls—after the death in 1986 of Murray Hamilton, the first actor to play that part.

 In 1975, Wayne starred on Gunsmoke in the episode "I have Promises to Keep" as a controversial reverend who brought a church to Indian territory with ambitions of a school. The episode addresses many emotions of the post Civil War period where the horrors of the Indian wars were fresh. Met with a vengeful townspeople the reverend is confronted by an unsupportive town. While coming back from delivering a prisoner in a nearby town, US Deputy Marshal Festus Hagen (played by Ken Curtis) gets involved and defends the reverend's mission. Wayne is in a lead role in this episode, considered one of his best performances.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes(1953).

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes(1953). A film adaptation of the 1949 stage musical, released by 20th Century Fox, directed by Howard Hawks. Cast: Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, with Charles Coburn, Elliott Reid, Tommy Noonan, Taylor Holmes and Norma Varden. The screenplay by Charles Lederer. Music By songwriting teams: Hoagy Carmichael and Harold Adamson and Jule Styne and Leo Robin. The songs by Styne and Robin are from the Broadway show, while the songs by Carmichael and Adamson were written especially for the film. Monroe's song, "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" and her pink dress have been copied by Madonna, Geri Halliwell, Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman, Anna Nicole Smith, Christina Aguilera and James Franco.

It is not long after gold-digger Lorelei Lee and down to earth Dorothy Shaw finish their nightclub act, when Lorelei receives an engagement ring from her wealthy boyfriend Gus Esmond, Jr., much to the amusement of her best friend, Dorothy. Gus's father, does everything he can to prevent his son from marrying her.

Gus sends Lorelei and Dorothy, ahead on the ocean liner Isle de Paris, headed for Paris, cautioning Lorelei to stay out of trouble. As the girls board the ship, the American men's Olympic team comments that "neither would drown if the ship sank".

Dorothy, has her eyes set on the athletes, while Lorelei searches the passenger list looking for a man for her best friend. Gus's father has hired private detective Ernie Malone, to keep an eye on Lorelei. While on the job, Malone, falls for Dorothy and bribes the headwaiter for a place at Lorelei and Dorothy's table.

That afternoon, while Malone is getting to know Dorothy better he questions her about Lorelei. While Lorelei, is busy with Sir Francis "Piggy" Beekman, who owns a diamond mine in South Africa. Lorelei, is beside herself when Piggy's wife, Lady Beekman, shows off her tiara.

After dinner, Malone tells Lorelei that he "clips coupons," and she mistakenly believes that he is wealthy. As the days pass, Dorothy falls for Malone, even though he does not seem to like her best friend.

One afternoon, Dorothy catches Malone taking pictures through the porthole of her and Lorelei's cabin and rushing inside, she sees Lorelei pretending to be a goat while Piggy, demonstrating how pythons encircle their prey. Now, knowing that Malone is a spy, the girls need to find a way to get his damaging film.

While Dorothy talks with Malone at the bar, Lorelei searches his cabin but cannot find the film. Trying to escape through the porthole, Lorelei gets stuck, but the little boy they had dinner with comes to her rescue.

The girls are able to get some strong drinks and sleeping pills down Malone and snoop through his clothes where they find the film. After developing the pictures, Lorelei shows them to Piggy, who is so grateful that he gives her Lady Beekman's tiara.

After they leave the cabin, Dorothy catches Malone, red handed retrieving his tape recorder that he had planted in their room. Malone, promises Dorothy that his feelings for her are real, but.. she does not believe him.

After arriving in Paris, Dorothy and Lorelei go on a spending spree and when they try to check into their hotel room, they discover that Gus, who has received Malone's report, has cancelled their reservations and credit.

With nowhere left to go, the women land jobs at a local nightclub and soon after, Gus comes looking for Lorelei. Hurt Lorelei, wants to make him jealous with her dance number, "diamonds are a girl's best friend."



 After Lorelei's number, the authorities arrive to retrieve Lady Beekman's tiara, but.. the jewelry has been stolen. Dorothy, wearing a blonde wig, then impersonates Lorelei in court while her friend tries to find Gus.

Will they ever find the tiara and will Lorelei ever convince Esmond, Sr. that she would be the perfect wife for his son?

Fun Facts:

Originally bought by Fox as a vehicle for Betty Grable. After the success of Niagara (which featured Marilyn Monroe), however, the studio believed they had a more potent and far less expensive sex symbol than Grable (who was earning around $150,000 per picture vs. Monroe's $18,000).

Marilyn Monroe kept insisting on retakes despite approval of takes by director Howard Hawks. When Fox asked Hawks how production could be sped up he retorted: "three wonderful ideas: Replace Marilyn, rewrite the script and make it shorter, and get a new director."

Marilyn Monroe wears a gold lame evening dress previously worn by Ginger Rogers in Dreamboat.

 In the "Ain't There Anyone Here for Love?" sequence, Jane Russell's fall into the pool was an accident. When Howard Hawks saw the dailies, he kept it in the film.

When told she was not the star of the film, Marilyn Monroe was quoted: "Well whatever I am, I'm still the blonde."

The ship model shown is the one used previously in Titanic and was refurbished to resemble the SS Ile de France, which is clearly named in the film. The model (2009) resides in a Marine Museum in Falls River, Massachusetts. Some of the ocean liner sets used were also left over from "Titanic".

According to Marni Nixon, the studio initially wanted Marilyn Monroe's entire voice dubbed, as they thought her voice was silly. Nixon thought that was "awful", as she felt Monroe's voice suited her persona so beautifully. Nixon told The New York Times in March 2007 that she ended up only dubbing the operatic "no, no, nos" at the beginning of the song and the phrase "these rocks don't lose their shape".

This was Jane Russell's only film with Marilyn Monroe. They got along well. Russell called Monroe "Blondie" and was often the only person on the set who could coax Monroe out of her trailer to begin the day's filming.

 The story was based on an ocean voyage to Europe that Anita Loos took on the same boat taking the US Olympic Team. Whichever ship she actually took, the liner that is mentioned in this film was the SS Ile de France. The famous liner was actually used in the film The Last Voyage, but it has a more heroic place in history. It was the SS Ile de France that played a major role in the rescue of the passengers from the Italian liner Andrea Dorea in 1956, after the latter ship collided with the Swedish ship Stockholm off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts. The SS Ile de France was decommissioned shortly before the filming of "The Last Voyage," in which she was partially sunk for several key scenes. When filming was completed, she was towed to the scrap docks.

Marilyn Monroe reportedly suggested the line "I can be smart when it's important, but most men don't like it."

Judy Holliday turned down the role of Lorelei Lee because she felt no actress other than Carol Channing (who played the part on Broadway) should be cast.

The teaming of Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe proved to be so successful, critically and commercially, that Fox wanted to re-team the duo. A December 1954 item in the Hollywood Reporter's "Rambling Reporter" column indicated that the studio wanted Russell and Monroe to star in the film How to Be Very, Very Popular. Monroe passed on the project because she didn't like the script. In January 1955, the studio cast Sheree North as Curly (the part intended for Monroe) and Betty Grable as "Stormy Tornado" (originally intended for Russell).

For this film Gwen Verdon coached stars Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe in both their dance and walk - Monroe with less sex, Russell with more. It's rumored that at one point in the film, Verdon dubs both Monroe's and Russell's swaying bottoms.

The film showcases Monroe's bubbly personality… in this light-hearted story about when a woman goes bad and men do not seem to really care… The dance numbers are what make this film so popular. I also loved the wardrobe in this film..

Norma Varden (20 January 1898 – 19 January 1989) she trained as a concert pianist in Paris and performed in England before deciding to take up acting. She studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and made her first appearance as Mrs Darling in Peter Pan.

She acted in rep and made her West End theatre debut in The Wandering Jew in 1920.

 From Shakespeare to farce, she established herself as a regular member of the Aldwych Theatre company where she appeared in plays from 1929 to 1933.

She then began to appear in British films, usually in haughty upper class roles. Visiting California with her ailing mother in the 1940s, she decided to settle permanently there and began her American film career.

She appeared in Casablanca (1942), The Major and the Minor (1942), The White Cliffs of Dover (1944), National Velvet (1944), The Green Years (1946), Forever Amber (1947), Strangers on a Train (1951), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and The Sound of Music (1965). She had a recurring role in the 1960s sitcom Hazel as Harriet Johnson, the Baxters' dotty neighbour.

 She also appeared on I Love Lucy as "Mrs. Benson", the next door neighbor.

Marilyn Monroe.

Fun fact: "Very few of my friends know I can play the piano." (Marilyn Monroe)

Norma Jeane's, successful modeling career brought her to the attention of Ben Lyon, a 20th Century Fox executive, who arranged a screen test for her. Lyon believed, that she was Jean Harlow all over again. She was offered a standard six-month contract with a starting salary of $125 per week. Lyon did not like the name Norma Jeane and chose "Carole Lind" as a stage name, after Carole Lombard and Jenny Lind, but he soon changed his mind.

Monroe was invited to spend the weekend with Lyon and his wife Bebe Daniels at their home. It was there that they decided to find her a new name. Following her idol Jean Harlow, she decided to choose her mother's maiden name of Monroe. Several variations such as Norma Jeane Monroe and Norma Monroe were tried and initially "Jeane Monroe" was chosen.

Eventually, Lyon decided Jeane was too common and he suggested "Marilyn", saying that she reminded him of Marilyn Miller. Monroe, at first did not like it because Marilyn, was the contraction of the name Mary Lynn, a name she did not like. Lyon, felt that the name "Marilyn Monroe" was sexy, had a "nice flow", and would be "lucky" due to the double "M".

 Video: Norma Jean:

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Comet Blogathon Gone Too Soon: Marilyn Monroe.

Marilyn Monroe (1 June 1926 – 5 August 1962) was a actress, singer, model, and one of the most famous Hollywood icons who ever lived. Marilyn Monroe, returned to Hollywood in August 1958 to star in the film, Some Like It Hot. Wilder had already dealt with Monroe's tardiness, stage fright and not remembering her lines during filming of the film, The Seven Year Itch.

This time was no different, she refused to participate in filming with her outbursts. Even with all her bad behavior, Some Like it Hot was nominated for six Academy Awards. Monroe won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Wilder commented that the film was the biggest success he had ever been associated with.

She then went on to perform in the film, Let's Make Love, which was to be directed by George Cukor, but she was not happy with the script, and Arthur Miller rewrote it. Monroe, began to leave the film set early and on several occasions failed to show up, but her attitude improved after being confronted by Montand.

Monroe's health continued to deteriorate and she began to see a psychiatrist, Dr. Ralph Greenson. Where she complained that she had trouble with insomnia.

In 1956, Arthur Miller wrote a story about a divorced woman and a aging cowboy. By 1960 he had written the screenplay and thought it would be a perfect role for Monroe. It became her last completed film. The Misfits, directed by John Huston and starring Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, Eli Wallach and Thelma Ritter. Shooting began in July 1960 and in August, Monroe was rushed to Los Angeles where she was hospitalized for ten days.

Monroe returned to Nevada to complete the film. Making the film also took it's tole on the other the actors: Montgomery Clift had frequently been unable to perform due to illness, and by the final day of shooting, Thelma Ritter was in hospital suffering from exhaustion. Gable, also said that he felt unwell. Within ten days Gable had died from a heart attack. Gable's widow, Kay, blamed it on the "eternal waiting" on the set of, The Misfits.

Monroe received the 1961 Golden Globe Award as "World Film Favorite" in March, 1962, five months before her death. Huston later commented that Monroe's performance was taken from her own experiences, rather than a character.

During the following months, Monroe's dependence on alcohol and prescription medications began to take a toll on her health and in February she voluntarily entered the, Payne Whitney Psychiatric Clinic.

She phoned Joe DiMaggio and he traveled from Florida to New York to help transfer her to the, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. She remained there for three weeks. She underwent surgery to correct a blockage in her Fallopian tubes and in May underwent gallbladder surgery. She returned to California and rented an apartment.

In 1962, Monroe began filming Something's Got to Give. It was to be directed by George Cukor, and co-starred Dean Martin and Cyd Charisse. She was ill with a virus as filming was about to begin, and suffered from high temperatures. Henry Weinstein recalled seeing her being physically ill as she prepared to film her scenes.

On May 19, 1962, she attended the early birthday celebration of President John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden, at the invitation of Kennedy's brother-in-law, actor Peter Lawford. Monroe performed "Happy Birthday". Kennedy said, "Thank you. I can now retire from politics after having had 'Happy Birthday' sung to me in such a sweet, wholesome way."

Monroe returned to the set of Something's Got to Give and filmed a scene in which she was nude in a swimming pool. Commenting that she wanted to "push Liz Taylor off the magazine covers", she gave permission for several partially nude photographs to be published by Life.

Having only reported for work for a total of 35 days of filming, Monroe was fired. The studio 20th Century Fox filed a lawsuit against her for half a million dollars. Monroe was replaced by Lee Remick, and when Dean Martin refused to work with any other actress, he was also threatened with a lawsuit.

Soon after, Monroe gave an interview to Cosmopolitan and was photographed at Peter Lawford's beach house sipping champagne and walking on the beach. She next posed for Bert Stern for Vogue that included several nude photos. Published after her death, they became known as 'The Last Sitting'. Richard Meryman interviewed her for Life, in which Monroe talked about her fans and her uncertainties as a "star" and "sex symbol".

In the final weeks of her life, Monroe continued negotiations on the film, Something's Got to Give. Among her other projects was a biography of Jean Harlow filmed two years later with Carroll Baker. Starring roles in Billy Wilder's Irma la Douce and What a Way to Go! were also discussed. Shirley MacLaine eventually played the roles in both films. Kim Novak replaced her in Kiss Me, Stupid, a comedy in which she was to star opposite Dean Martin.

A film version of the Broadway musical, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, and an unnamed World War I-themed musical co-starring Gene Kelly were also discussed, but the projects were never to be because of her death.

Her dispute with 20th Century Fox was resolved, and her contract renewed into a $1 million two-picture deal, and filming of Something's Got to Give was scheduled to resume in early fall 1962.

Also, there was an Italian four film deal worth 10 million giving her script, director, and co-star approval. Allan "Whitey" Snyder who saw her during the last week of her life, said Monroe was looking forward to her future and that she never looked better.

On August 5, 1962, LAPD police sergeant Jack Clemmons received a call at 4:25 am from Dr. Ralph Greenson, Monroe's psychiatrist, proclaiming that Monroe was found dead at her home in Brentwood, Los Angeles, California. She was 36 years old. At the autopsy, Dr. Thomas Noguchi of the Los Angeles County Coroners office recorded cause of death as "acute barbiturate poisoning,". Many theories, including murder, circulated about the circumstances of her death.

On August 8, 1962, Monroe was interred in a crypt at Corridor of Memories, at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Lee Strasberg delivered the eulogy. Joe DiMaggio took control of the funeral arrangements which consisted of 31 close family and friends. Police were also present to keep the press away. Her casket was solid bronze and was lined with champagne colored silk. Allan “Whitey” Snyder did her make-up which was supposedly a promise made in earlier years if she were to die before him. She was wearing her favorite green Emilio Pucci dress. In her hands was a small bouquet of pink teacup roses. For the next 20 years, red roses were placed in a vase attached to the crypt, courtesy of DiMaggio.

I highly recommend watching on YouTube: Marilyn: The Last Sessions, a very revealing documentary, based on tapes made during psychoanalysis sessions in the months prior to her death. I would post the videos here, but.. it is recommended for mature audiences..

Beep beep'm beep beep yeah!

The following is a list of the cars that Marilyn Monroe owned, as well as the cars that she drove or was driven in.

1. The Bolenders' Model-I Ford-Hawthorne, 1926-32.

2. Jim Dougherty's blue 1940 coupe.

3, Jim Dougherty's 1935 Ford sports car-which Norma Jeane kept after the divorce.

4. A 1948 Ford convertible-which MM purchased when she began to make money and which was soon repossessed.

5. A 1950 Pontiac convertible.

6. A black Cadillac convertible-probably the Cadillac that MM received for appearing on "The Jack Benny Show," 1953-54.

7 Joe DiMaggio's black Cadillac.

8. A black Thunderbird sports car-the car MM drove when she moved to New York in 1956.

9. Arthur Miller's Jaguar-New York, circa 1957.

10. A white Cadillac-the car MM drove during the 1960 location shooting of The Misfits. It was probably rented.

MY WEEK WITH MARILYN

 Written by Adrian Hodges

Directed by Simon Curtis

Starring Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh and Judi Dench

Marilyn Monroe: All people see is Marilyn Monroe. As soon as they realize I'm not her, they run away.

In 1956, one of the biggest stars and sex symbols the world has ever known travelled to England to make a movie with one of the world’s most respected stage actors. Somewhere in the middle of the inevitable chaos and drama that ensued, a young man named Colin Clark was embarking on his first job in the movie business. The star was Marilyn Monroe; the actor was Sir Laurence Olivier; and the movie was THE PRINCE AND THE SHOWGIRL. Clark’s budding film career never took off but his unique experience would one day become a book (“The Prince, the Showgirl and Me”), which in turn has now become a movie called, MY WEEK WITH MARILYN.

The shoot itself actually went several weeks long but when it comes to spending time with Monroe, the experience is so fleeting that it can feel like an instant that has ended long before it should. There was nothing Clark, portrayed here by fresh faced, Eddie Redmayne, could have done to prepare himself for the magnitude of Monroe’s magnetism. And as the splendid Michelle Williams demonstrates with her finely nuanced performance, there was very little Monroe could do to tame that pull either. Though Clark is just a glorified gopher on set, his innocence and honesty grab Monroe’s attention and before long she latches on to him to use as a shield from the multitude of things that frighten her in general. Her near crippling fear and anxiety in turn threatens the success of the shoot, which causes a serious rift with Sir Laurence, who is played with great exuberance by Kenneth Branagh.

Director, Simon Curtis and writer, Adrian Hodges, both relative unknowns in the world of Hollywood feature filmmaking, infuse MY WEEK WITH MARILYN with a delicate subtlety that allows for simple but sympathetic insight into the mind of the infamous starlet. Bolstered by the almost always brilliant Williams, Monroe comes across here as part frightened little girl, lost in a world she barely understands and part experienced woman, aware of her position and unafraid of abusing her power if it means alleviating her own distress temporarily. She enjoys the attention but also doesn’t know what to do with it when she has it. Most importantly, she is aware that she is more commodity now than person, yet seems more or less content to play along. This might perhaps be because she has no idea how to change the direction of her life or it might be because she no longer remembers who the real Marilyn is anymore.

REVIEW: La Dolce Vita

(dir. Federico Fellini, 1961)

Over and over again, La Dolce Vita has been vetted as a masterpiece and as Fellini's most outstanding work.  Entertainment Weekly thought so much of it, that Dolce landed at #6 on their list of the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time, behind the likes of Raging Bull, Chinatown, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, and The Godfather.  Pretty good company, huh?

It stars Marcello Mastroianni, one of Italy's great actors and the recognizable face from Fellini's equally famous follow-up, 8 1/2, as journalist and Man About Town Marcello Rubini.  The film is broken down into a series of 7 days complete with dawn, afternoon, and night; often, and most interestingly, the blurry line between the transition of these times is jumped.  In true Fellini fashion, the audience is told to accept the minute magical elements, and trust that it's part of the theme.  The most wonderful of these moments feature Mastroianni and Swedish-cum-Marilyn Monroe look-a-like Anita Ekberg (as film superstar, paparazzi magnet, and resident life-loving bimbo Sylvia) wading in the Trevi Fountain in the middle of the night.  Sylvia seemingly christens Marcello with a trickle of water, and boom suddenly we go from night to dawn.

The film focuses on the new (new as in, late 50s early 60s) moral standard of Italy, and often finds juxtapositions with the prior moral standard of the ruling Catholic Church.  The Church's presence isn't surprising, given that somewhere in most Fellini film you're bound to stumble on the Catholic Church and probably Catholic Guilt.  But nevertheless, the film opens with the second coming of Christ, or as Fellini frames it, a helicopter flying a statue of outstretched Jesus through Rome.  

Marcello and Sylvia in the fountain

But what's so fascinating about the film is how well the new moral order comes to order, and how unaffected Marcello seems by it.  For starters, he cheats on his fiancée in the first scene of the film, tries to seduce Sylvia, participates in a quasi-seance, and is seduced by a self-proclaimed whore.  If his actions weren't enough, he is surrounded by immorality, from his fiancée nearly overdosing to one of his dearest friends committing suicide.  And as we settle in for the final scene of the film, we see that Marcello's moral wall has come crashing down when   trying to liven up a late-night party   suggests a striptease and public sex take place.  In this final scene, he proceeds to literally feather a drunk girl as he violently tell her to sober up.

As smart, rich, and clever as it was, I couldn't make myself love it.  It didn't have the heart most other Fellini films have, and I thought it unusually cold.  Sure the ending may be hopeful, but it's also one of total doubt for the future not only of this man, but of the Italy he represents.  The segments never totally blended together for me, and I found it rather difficult to know when a new one has landed.  I imagine that's no mistake on Fellini's end, since giving the film a fluidity could suggest a mirroring of Marcello's lifestyle.  One aspect of the film I did adore, though, were the Oscar-winning costumes (a rare feat in that category for a modern-day film, the award is usually taken by heavy period pieces).  Marcello's suits were killer, and Sylvia's dress was...breathtaking, for a myriad of reasons.  If you like this, or want to test the waters with other Fellini works, I suggest 8 1/2, I Vitelloni, and Satyricon.  GRADE: B

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