orig. Norma Jean Mortenson
born June 1, 1926, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.
died Aug. 5, 1962, Los Angeles
U.S. film actress.
She endured a loveless childhood and a brief teenage marriage. After working as a photographer's model, she made her screen debut in 1948 and won bit parts in The Asphalt Jungle (1950) and All About Eve (1950). She achieved stardom as a blonde sex symbol in the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), and The Seven Year Itch (1955). After studying at the Actors Studio , she starred in more-ambitious films, including Bus Stop (1956), Some Like It Hot (1959), and The Misfits (1961). Her private life, which included marriages to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller , was widely publicized. She died at age 36 of an apparently self-administered barbiturate overdose. Her vulnerability and sensuousness combined with her death raised her to the status of an American cultural icon.
Marilyn Monroe.
Brown Brothers