Marilyn with Rock Hudson at the Golden Globes, 1962
Marilyn’s 1962 Golden Globe – as World Film Favourite – was sold for $250,000 at the Julien’s Icons & Idols auction yesterday – making it the highest selling Golden Globe to go under the hammer, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Additionally, Marilyn’s black Ford Thunderbird sold for $490,000; the black silk blouse worn at her 1956 Los Angeles Airport press conference for $43,750; and her checked trousers, worn in an early photo shoot with Andre de Dienes, reached $31,250. Surprisingly, her white beaded dress from There’s No Business Like Show Business went unsold. (And you can check out my favourite auction picks here.)
Marilyn’s black Ford Thunderbird – which she later gave to John Strasberg as a birthday gift – will be auctioned at Julien’s as part of their annual Icons & Idols sale on November 17, with an estimated price of $300,000-$500,000 (approximately £190,000 -£380,000 in British currency.) More details on the auction to follow…
“A published report at the time suggests that Monroe and Miller drove this vehicle to their civil wedding ceremony on June 28, 1956 and likely their private wedding on June 30, 1956. It was a powerful car for its time, with a 225 horsepower V-8 engine and a top speed of 113 MPH. The car features a complete dual, through the bumper exhaust system, giving a deep throaty roar at speed–adding to its ‘va-va voom’ personality.”
The annual ‘Icons & Idols’ sale, set for November 17 at Julien’s, includes a number of interesting Marilyn-related items. Chief among them is this black fur coat, with an interesting back story – and further evidence of Marilyn’s generosity.
Marilyn in her black fur coat, with Mickey Rooney at ‘The Emperor Waltz’ premiere, 1948
“A mid-1940s black colobus coat worn by Marilyn Monroe to the 1948 film premiere of The Emperor Waltz (Paramount, 1948). The coat has broad shoulders, a cordé collar, a satin lining, and a Jerrold’s Van Nuys, Calif. label. Although the black colobus is currently on the endangered species list, it was quite fashionable in the 1940s. Monroe wrote in a letter to Grace Goddard dated December 3, 1944, ‘I found out that its [sic] possible to buy a Gold Coast Monkey Coat. I shall write to you about it later.’ The coat was gifted from Monroe to Jacquita M. Rigoni (Warren), who was the great-niece to Anne Karger, mother of Monroe’s voice coach, Freddie Karger. Monroe had a close relationship with the family, and the coat has remained in their possession. Accompanied by a letter of authenticity from Jacqui Rigoni detailing the family’s relationship to Monroe and the history of the coat.
(The monkey species used to make this Marilyn Monroe monkey fur coat is on the Endangered Species list.)”
As the accompanying letter explains, Jacquita is the granddaughter of Effie ‘Conley’ Warren, who was Anne Karger’s sister. They had performed together in vaudeville as the Conley Sisters. Jacqui was a teenager when Marilyn dated her uncle, Fred Karger, for several months in 1948. Accepted as part of the family (long after the affair ended), Marilyn would often take Jacqui to her apartment and gave her clothes on numerous occasions. Fred and Marilyn also visited Jacqui’s parents, Jack and Rita Warren, at home. By the early 1950s, Marilyn was still regularly visiting Anne Karger with gifts including the monkey fur coat which she requested that Anne give to Jacqui. She also attended Jacqui’s wedding with Anne, while Fred brought his new wife, actress Jane Wyman.
A young Marilyn with Fred Karger
Two intriguing photos are included in this lot. One shows a young Marilyn sitting at the piano with Fred. Never before seen, it is the only known photo documenting one of her most intense relationships. The second shows Marilyn in 1961 with Anne and another lady, perhaps Effie Warren. A cropped version has been published before, but the whole version is extremely rare.
Marilyn visits Anne Karger (left), 1961
Another item which sheds new light on Marilyn’s life is a letter from ‘Uncle Art’, a relative of her legal guardian, Grace Goddard. Sent to the teenage Norma Jeane, ‘So glad you are making satisfactory progress in school. I advise that you be particularly diligent in the cultural subjects … sad is the fate of the young woman who has not the ambition to so model and mold her language and conduct as to have [illegible] herself to the point where she can mingle with cultured people inconspicuously.‘ The letter is written on International Correspondence Schools of Scranton, Pennsylvania stationery, undated and signed ‘Devotedly Yours, Uncle Art.’ One wonders if this high-minded gentleman might have inspired Marilyn in her lifelong quest for self-improvement.
This photo (available in negative) was taken by Joseph Jasgur on the Fox studio back lot during the early days of Marilyn’s acting career, in 1947.
A signed check for $500, made out to The Christian Community, is dated October 11, 1954 – just six days after Marilyn announced her separation from husband Joe DiMaggio. And this photo of Marilyn, taken by Manfred Kreiner on her arrival in Chicago to promote Some Like It Hot in March 1959, is inscribed in red pen by Marilyn herself with the words ‘Kill kill’ – indicating that the photo should not be published.
The auction also includes photos attributed to Bruno Bernard, and some items that appeared in previously last year’s dedicated auction at Julien’s (including Marilyn’s copy of the Breakfast at Tiffany’s script, and her typed skincare regime from the Ernst Laszlo Institute.) And finally, she is featured alongside various other celebrities – including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Carol Channing, and future president Donald Trump – in an Al Hirschfield caricature from 1988.
The personal archive of actress Joan Collins – including a number of Marilyn-related items – was auctioned by Julien’s yesterday, with Marilyn’s signed Conversion to Judaism certificate sold for $70,400, and a metal cast of MM’s hand and foot prints from Grauman’s reaching $57, 600.
La Collins met Marilyn when she was signed to Twentieth Century-Fox in 1954, winning the lead in The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing after MM rejected it. The two women can be seen sitting separately in an audience photo from a preview of There’s No Business Like Show Business.
It’s fair to say Joan is one of Marilyn’s most famous fans (though it must also be noted that her stories about MM have grown more colourful over the years!)
Photos of 19 year-old Norma Jeane Dougherty, taken by Joe Jasgur, have sold at Julien’s for $352,000, reports BBC News. Profits will be used to pay off debts incurred by Mr Jasgur’s estate. (One thing I found odd about this auction is that several of the photos attributed to Jasgur have been credited elsewhere to different photographers. But that was also an issue in Jasgur’s 1991 book, The Birth of Marilyn.)
Scott Fortner takes a look at the upcoming Icons and Idols auction at Julien’s on his MM Collection Blog today, featuring this gorgeous signed photo of a young Marilyn.
While you’re visiting Scott’s website, why not enter the MM Notable Quote Competition, stating your favourite ‘Monroeism’ and explaining why – there are My Week With Marilyn posters up for grabs, plus a copy of Colin Clark’s book.
Art Dailyhas covered the upcoming ‘Icons and Idols’ sale at Julien’s Auctions, focussing on Marilyn-related items, including an 8pp letter, handwritten by the teenage Norma Jeane to Grace Goddard; the ‘Theda Bara’ costume used in Avedon’s ‘Fabled Enchantresses’ shoot; and the framed Beaton triptych given to Marilyn by director Josh Logan.
Full listings for the Icons and Idols auction (December 1-2) are now online at Julien’s Auctions. A print catalogue – featuring a cover shot of the young Marilyn by Joseph Jasgurs – can be ordered (for $100.)
On the subject of Marilyn-related items, collector Scott Fortner has been lucky enough to acquire the ivory cotton coat she wore throughout 1961, and has posted more details on his MM Collection Blog. (She was photographed in the coat while leaving New York’s Polyclinic Hospital in July, having undergone gallbladder surgery.)
