A new exhibition exploring Marilyn Monroe's complex relationship with stardom has opened at the Academy Museum in Los Angeles, featuring intimate belongings never before available for public viewing. The exhibition, titled Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon, includes a restored audio recording of her final interview, in which she reflects on fame and public perception.
Curated by Sophia Serrano, the exhibition presents costumes, letters, notes, and personal effects alongside dramatic multimedia displays. Highlights include the pink dress from Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend, which has rarely been shown publicly, and items such as a dress from Love Happy and several letters and photos that have never been exhibited before.
Among the most striking exhibits are Monroe's handwritten musings, including notes such as 'I'm finding that sincerity is often taken for stupidity,' and a letter declining a role in a film about Sigmund Freud. Also on display are telegrams between director Billy Wilder and Monroe's then-husband Arthur Miller, revealing tensions on set.
The exhibition is one of several this year marking Monroe's centenary, with others at the British Film Institute and National Portrait Gallery in London. The Academy Museum show runs alongside displays of Monroe's jeans, which helped popularise women's denim, and other personal belongings that offer insight into her private life.
