Tag Archives: Feminism

Why Marilyn’s Back in Fashion

Writing in the Financial Times, Carola Long has investigated why Marilyn’s unique style is so popular right now… ‘ “People aren’t trying to be shocking, now they are trying to be elegant,” explains Elizabeth Saltzman of  Vanity Fair. “I dress a lot of … Continue reading


Posted in Fashion and Beauty | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Unheralded Marilyn Monroe

Over at The Hairpin, Anne Helen Peterson writes an insightful analysis of Marilyn, considering both her film roles and the way her persona was depicted in the fan magazines of the day: “The gossip industry’s other tactic was to explain … Continue reading


Posted in Blogs, Magazines | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Eva Wiseman on ‘The Myth of Marilyn’

In today’s Observer, columnist Eva Wiseman casts a critical eye on Marilyn mania: ‘The myth of Marilyn washes over our culture like a Hipstamatic app – this bleached, beached tragedy; a woman too feminine to live; a wiggle-hipped symbol of objectification … Continue reading


Posted in Magazines | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Legend and the Tragedy

  In her blog at the Jewish Daily Forward, Elisa Strauss responds to a recent New York Times piece, ‘The Marilyn Obsession’ by Austin Considine, on the current boom in nostalgia and ABG’s plans to capitalise on Marilyn’s image. Interestingly, Strauss … Continue reading


Posted in Blogs, Memories & Anecdotes | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Opening Shots: Bus Stop

A further extract from Richard Dyer’s Heavenly Bodies, considering Marilyn’s first scene in Bus Stop. Screencaps by likeabalalaika “The first shot of Monroe, as so often in her films, is a point-of-view shot. But it is not Beau, the hero’s, point … Continue reading


Posted in Acting, Books, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What a Girl Wants…

    Another extract from film critic Richard Dyer’s essay, ‘Monroe and Sexuality’, published in his 1986 book, Heavenly Bodies: Film Stars and Society, focuses on Cherie’s speech to Elma (Hope Lange) in Bus Stop (1956), and also her performance in … Continue reading


Posted in Acting, Books, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Marilyn and the Pin-Up Grrrls

This 1952 shot of Marilyn exercising at home, taken by Philippe Halsman, is discussed in Is the Pin-Up Feminist?, a blog post by Rebel Grrrl Italiana. “The Marilyn Monroe poster exudes sexuality, which was threatening during the time period (and some … Continue reading


Posted in Art and Photography | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Ms. Magazine Cover Essay Contest

 Ms. Magazine, co-founded by the American feminist author, Gloria Steinem, celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Marilyn graced their cover in August 1972, ten years after her death. Steinem’s essay, ‘The Woman Who Died Too Soon’, would later form the basis … Continue reading


Posted in Magazines, Writing | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

‘The Feminist Betrayal of Norma Jeane’

The Secret Knowledge: The Dismantling of American Culture is a new collection of essays by the dramatist David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross, Wag the Dog.) The central theme of this book is Mamet’s disillusionment with the liberal left. One of … Continue reading


Posted in Books | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Finding Marilyn: Mary Ann Lynch

On International Women’s Day, here are some works by the artist Mary Ann Lynch, who has been photographing Marilyn in unusual places for many years. She hopes to publish her work in time for the 50th anniversary of Monroe’s death … Continue reading


Posted in Art and Photography, Awards and Polls | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment