Happy Birthday, Marilyn Monroe! A Look Back at Her Life

Monroe got second billing as a burlesque chorus performer in the film musical Ladies of the Chorus. Her big singing numbers were “Every Baby Needs a Da Da Daddy” and “Anyone Can See I Love You."

After Monroe received good reviews for playing the mistress of a corrupt lawyer in a John Huston’s film noir The Asphalt Jungle, Joseph L. Mankiewicz cast her in his 1950 Oscar-winning drama All About Eve starring Bette Davis. Monroe played a hopeful actress and graduate of the Copacabana school of dramatic art. The critically praised films helped Monroe land seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox.

Monroe appeared in her first Life magazine cover in April 1952 and was called "The Talk of Hollywood." She looked ravishing in her white ruched off the shoulder dress. One year later, legendary Life photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt shot her at home on her patio in Hollywood. She would appear on the magazine’s cover a total of six times.

The same year, Yankees superstar Joe DiMaggio asked a friend to set him up on a date with Monroe. It is said that she was two hours late. But the actress stole the slugger’s heart when she said, "There's a blue polka dot exactly in the middle of your tie knot. Did it take you long to fix it like that?"

Monroe starred with Jane Russell in the film musical Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, based on the long-running Broadway smash that starred Carol Channing. Playing Miss Lorelei Lee, Monroe famously sang "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend,” which became her standard. And she was dressed to the hilt in William Travilla’s strapless shocking pink satin number with long gloves to match.

In How to Marry a Millionaire, Monroe co-stared with Lauren Bacall and Betty Grable. Playing Pola Debevoise, a model for a department store who was nearsighted but refused to wear glasses, Monroe showed off her flair for comedy. The film was a box-office sensation.

The very first issue of Playboy debuted in December 1953 with Monroe on the cover as the first Playmate of the Month. The inside shot of her was from a 1949 photo shoot for a calendar that she'd posed for under the name "Mona Monroe.” (At the time she posed nude, she had hit a dry spell in her work; she had only received $50 for the shoot.)

On January 14, 1954, DiMaggio and Monroe married at San Francisco City Hall. She wore a fetching chocolate-brown suit with a white Peter Pan collar and held a bouquet of three white orchids. It is said that DiMaggio donned the same blue polka-dot tie that he wore on their first date. The couple divorced 274 days later.

In February, Monroe did a USO tour of Korea to entertain 100,000 soldiers. Performing in 10 shows, she sang “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend,” “Bye, Bye Baby," and "Do It Again," She later said, "Standing in the snowfall facing these yelling soldiers, I felt for the first time in my life no fear of anything. I felt only happy." DiMaggio stayed in Japan coaching Japanese baseball teams.

Billy Wilder’s classic film The Seven Year Itch debuted, featuring Marilyn’s unforgettable dress-billowing-over-the-subway-grate scene. During filming, the massive crowd that formed on New York City’s Lexington Avenue created a major disruption. The actual scene in the completed movie was filmed on a Hollywood soundstage. In 1974, actress Debbie Reynolds ended up buying the the famed William Travilla ivory halter dress that Monroe wore the scene for a reported $200. In 2011, Reynolds sold the dress at auction for $4.6 million.

On June 29th, 1956, Monroe married Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Arthur Miller at Westchester County Court House White Plains, New York. The ceremony lasted about four minutes. (They had a Jewish wedding ceremony at Miller's agent’s house a few days later.) Earlier that day, they held a press conference on the property of his Roxbury, Connecticut home. Miller assembled the press to answer a few questions, give the media a photo op and further avoid paparazzi mayhem so they could marry in peace. When asked what kind of wedding she wanted, Monroe replied, “Very quiet, I hope.” The couple were married for five years.

William Inge’s hit play Bus Stop was adapted for the screen with Monroe as its star. Monroe played Cherie, a sweet bar room singer who longs to head to Hollywood to be discovered. She received some of the best acting reviews of her career.

Arthur Miller wrote the film The Misfits as a tribute for his wife. The movie was directed by John Huston and starred Monroe, Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, and Eli Wallach. Sadly, soon after filming in November, 1960, Miller and Monroe announced their separation. (It was also to be Clark Gable’s final film, as he died the month the film wrapped.)

On August 5, Monroe was discovered dead in her Brentwood home. She was just 36 years old. Joe DiMaggio planned the funeral service. Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony and Judy Garland version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" were played. Her solid bronze antique-silver-finished casket was lined with champagne-colored satin-silk. It was a fitting tribute for the woman who thrived on being original. As she once said, "Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."

On June 1, 2014, Monroe would have been 88 years old. Her legacy continues to inspire and amaze. She’s been immortalized by Elton John, Joyce Carol Oates and Andy Warhol. Even in death, she’s still a force. Her Facebook page has more than 12 million likes. As she once said, "I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the devil. I am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love." If she only knew how much she was loved and continues to be adored.