Marilyn’s visit to Warrensburg, New York, during her Love Happy promo tour in June 1949 will be featured in the town’s museum program today at 1 pm, reports the Post Star.
Town Supervisor Lee Orton, left, offers a ‘welcoming key to Warrensburg’ to Marilyn at the Colonial Arms Hotel
“In 1949, Hollywood stars Marilyn Monroe, Don DeFore, Lon McCallister and Donald Buka arrived in Warrensburg to award a big prize — a house — in a contest sponsored by Photoplay magazine.
The fully equipped home was on a lot chosen by Virginia Bleeker McAllister, the woman who won first prize in the contest. McAllister had been recently widowed and had a young son, Gordon (‘Rusty’), and she chose to build the house in Warrensburg, her hometown.
The prize home, still standing on James Street, was fully furnished and included all appliances, all of which received national publicity at the award ceremony.
The ‘Dream House’ as it appears today
The celebrities stayed at the Colonial Arms Hotel, now the location of Rite Aid pharmacy.
The event will be the topic of a program and exhibit, sponsored by the Warrensburgh Historical Society, at the Warrensburgh Museum at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Photos of Marilyn Monroe and the other celebrities, as well as of Lee Orton, the town supervisor at the time, will be on display, along with copies of Photoplay magazine articles.
Homemade refreshments will be offered.
At 2 p.m., the 1948 movie Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House will be shown. The Photoplay contest related to the Mr. Blandings movie starring Cary Grant and Myrna Loy.
Sunday’s program is free and open to the public.
The Warrensburgh Museum is located in the VFW Building (with the Warrensburgh bicentennial and American flag murals) at 3754 Main St.”
