ES Updates

June 28, 2019June 28, 2019

Manfred Kreiner’s Widow Remembers Marilyn

Manfred Kreiner visits Marilyn on the *Misfit*s set, 1960

An archive of material by the German photographer Manfred ‘Linus’ Kreiner was recently sold at Julien’s Auctions, including many images of Marilyn. His widow Sally Kreiner (Manfred died in 2005, aged 78) has shared her memories of Marilyn with Stephanie Nolasco for Fox News.

“‘[My husband] met Marilyn through a friend who turned out to be her publicist for [1959’s] Some Like it Hot,’ Sally told Fox News about the encounter. ‘This publicist told him one day, “How would you like to photograph Marilyn Monroe?” My husband said, “Of course I would love to.” And that’s how it all started.’
The German native soon found himself in Chicago face to face with Monroe. And she was far from a Hollywood diva.
‘He thought she was really lovely,’ said Sally. ‘He really liked her. He was a little bit nervous about shooting her because she was just so famous. And he was really delighted to become part of her entourage and photograph her. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and he was really happy to tag along.’
As for Sally, she decided to stay behind.
‘No I certainly didn’t tag along,’ Sally chuckled. ‘I would have been more of a hindrance … She was really happy with [then-husband] Arthur Miller. She was just in awe of him. Arthur was an intellectual and she was not. And for the same reasons, he saw something in her, obviously.’
However, when it came to anyone capturing Monroe’s image, the actress had one request. ‘She had the right to select the photos he could print and the ones he could not,’ said Sally. ‘She had a final say when it came to her pictures. And it worked out because she selected the ones he wanted to print of her. There was no argument there.’
While Kreiner went on to pursue a thriving career, Monroe would be plagued with tragedy … Sally said Kreiner was heartbroken by the news [of Marilyn’s death.]
‘He said it was too bad something like this happened to her,’ said Sally. ‘Even at that time, there were a lot of rumors and questions. He certainly didn’t have an answer for it. And I don’t know if anyone ever really did get an answer for what happened to her and why … She became such a celebrity overnight. And that just became so much bigger than her.’
‘But despite everything that was said about her, she did have a certain quality, a remarkable quality,’ continued Sally. ‘You just see her and you wish you could have known her. She’s ethereal, but earthy too. And she possessed a certain charm, an American charm. You think of all the celebrities in Hollywood today, how many of them have exactly what she had. I don’t think people can ever really totally figure out her magic. She’s still mystical.’
‘What you see is what my husband saw in her,’ she said. ‘He really didn’t see her as a sex symbol. He saw her as a lovely person with a great smile.'”

June 15, 2019June 15, 2019

Marilyn’s Costumes and Jewellery Sold at Julien’s

The results are in for this year’s Legends sale at Julien’s Auctions. A number of photos from the Manfred ‘Linus’ Kreiner archive (see above) were sold, with the Marilyn-related lots fetching up to $3,800. These photos were recently featured in Parade magazine (see here.)

Marilyn at the Fox luncheon for Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev (Manfred Kreiner, 1959)

Within the fan community, biographer Gary Vitacco-Robles won a telegram from Lauren Bacall congratulating Marilyn after her wedding to Joe DiMaggio, for $1,582.50. The biggest Marilyn-related sales, however, were her costume from A Ticket to Tomahawk (sold for $22,400), and her bathrobe from How to Marry a Millionaire (which fetched $28,800.) Here are some more highlights:

A rare ‘Page 3’ copy of Playboy‘s first issue, signed by Hugh Hefner ($16,00)
A cast of Marilyn’s hands and feet from Grauman’s Chinese Theatre ($25,600)
A black chiffon overblouse ($19, 200)
A six-strand, iridiscent crystal necklace in purple and green ($11,250)
A pair of rhinestone clip earrings ($28,125)
Marilyn’s script for Something’s Got to Give, dated August 30, 1961 ($12,800)

And finally, I’ve added the maximum bids for each item featured in my previous posts – learn more about this fascinating auction here.

Marilyn’s *How to Marry a Millionaire* bathrobe today

May 25, 2019June 15, 2019

Manfred Kreiner’s Marilyn at Julien’s Legends

Following reports that the bathrobe worn by Marilyn in How to Marry a Millionaire will be auctioned at the annual Legends sale at Julien’s on June 13-14 (see here), the full listings are now available online here. I will review Marilyn’s personal and business correspondence in a future post, but today I’m looking through the archives of German photographer Manfred ‘Kreiner’ Linus.

UPDATE: I have now added the final bids for each item.

Marilyn opens the Time-Life building in New York, July 1957 (*SOLD* for **$640**)

This group of photos includes images from the Time-Life building (bottom, centre), and with Arthur at the Crystal Awards, where Marilyn received an award for *The Prince and the Showgirl* at New York’s French embassy in February 1959 (top left, and bottom right) ***SOLD*** for **$1,280**

Arriving in Chicago, March 1959 (***SOLD*** as part of set for **$625**)

Meeting the press at Chicago’s Ambassador Hotel (***SOLD*** for **$3,840**)

Arriving at the New York premiere of *Some Like It Hot*, March 1959
(***SOLD*** as part of set for **$625**)

This group of photos includes an image of Marilyn attending the Hollywood reception for Russian premier Nikita Khrushchev in September 1959 (top right) ***SOLD*** for **$320**

This slide shows Manfred Kreiner with Marilyn during filming of *The Misfits*, 1960 (***SOLD*** for **$320**)

May 22, 2019June 15, 2019

Marilyn’s ‘Millionaire’ Bathrobe at Julien’s

A bathrobe designed by Travilla and (briefly) worn by Marilyn over a bathing suit in the ‘fashion show’ scene from How to Marry a Millionaire will be auctioned in the annual Legends sale at Julien’s on June 13-14, as Chris Jenkins reports for Arts and Collections International. Among the other items on offer will be an archive for photographer Manfred ‘Linus’ Kreiner, including his images of Marilyn on her publicity tour for Some Like It Hot in 1959 (as seen here gracing the catalogue cover.) More details to follow….

“June 1st marks the 93rd birthday of Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe. included in the auction are her iconic bathrobe worn in one of her most famous roles as Pola Debevoise in How to Marry a Millionaire (20th Century, 1953) (estimate: $20,000-$40,000); her pair of rhinestone ear clips with three strands of teardrop-shaped rhinestones (estimate: $30,000-$40,000) and her six-stranded iridescent crystal necklace in purple and green (estimate: $10,000-$20,000); the two piece period costume she wore in one of her earliest roles in the film Ticket to Tomahawk (20th Century, 1962) (estimate: $40,000-$60,000); a ‘Rudi Gernreich Design for Walter Bass’ black chiffon overblouse with dolman sleeves and elastic waistband (estimate: $15,000-$20,000); Marilyn Monroe’s personal copy of the script for her film Something’s Got To Give (20th Century, 1962) (estimate: $10,000-$15,000); a cast of Marilyn Monroe’s hand and foot prints from Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood when she and her Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (20th Century, 1953) co-star Jane Russell immortalized their hand and foot prints on June 26, 1953 (estimate: $10,000-$20,000); a collection of rare large format photographs taken of Marilyn Monroe dressed in various swimsuits, negligees and dresses by Harold Lloyd (range of estimates: $600-$800); a collection of 33 vintage Marilyn Monroe lobby cards including How to Marry a Millionaire (20th Cent. Fox, 1953), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (20th Cent. Fox, 1953), River of No Return (20th Cent. Fox, 1954), The Seven Year Itch (Warner Bros., 1955) and more (estimate: $800-$1,200); colour slides of Monroe’s visit and 1954 performance for the troops in Korea (estimate: $600-$800) and more.”

UPDATE: Marilyn’s bathrobe from How to Marry a Millionaire has sold for $2,400. More results from the Legends sale here.

September 25, 2017September 25, 2017

Marilyn at Julien’s: Icons & Idols ’17

‘Marilyn in Korea’ screen print by Russell Young

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.

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.

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.

June 8, 2015June 23, 2019

Marilyn’s a ‘Hollywood Legend’ in June

The latest Hollywood Legends sale will take place at Julien’s Auctions on June 26-27, reports the New York Daily News. As reported previously on ES Updates, Marilyn graces the catalogue cover in the floral print dress she wore in Something’s Got to Give – one of many Monroe-related items on offer.

1) An employment card dated June 8, 1950 (when Marilyn was filming All About Eve at Twentieth Century-Fox); and a change of rate card from the same studio dated November 5, 1953, noting her salary increase from $750 to $1,250 weekly (she was by then starring in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.) Another letter from Fox’s casting director, Lew Schreiber advises Marilyn that filming of Time and Tide will commence on April 14, 1959. (Her role was ultimately played by Lee Remick in the renamed Wild River.)

2) A ‘Golden Dreams’ calendar from 1953; a ‘New Wrinkle’ lithograph by Tom Kelley; and the first issue of Playboy, signed by Hugh Hefner.

3) Candid photos of Marilyn dining with troops in Korea, 1954; and behind the scenes of Let’s Make Love (1960.) Also, a photo of Marilyn with Manfred Kreiner on location for The Misfits, and 3 photographs taken by Gene Daniels at the Golden Globes ceremony, 1962.

Marilyn with photographer Manfred ‘Linus’ Kreiner, 1960

4) A scrapbook commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Princess Cafe, Iowa Falls, in November 1955. A telegram from Marilyn to actress Margery ‘Madge’ Meredith (once a waitress at the cafe, she gained notoriety in Hollywood after being jailed for complicity in an assault on her former manager – but was freed in 1951 after the court concluded she had been framed) and referring to the cafe’s owners, Harry Pergakis and Ernie Karrys, reads, “AM JEALOUS YOU INVITED INSTEAD OF ME. I STRUCK OUT WITH JOE AND CAN’T EVEN GET TO FIRST BASE WITH HARRY AND ERNIE =MARILYN MONROE=”

5) A drawing of a nude woman signed by Marilyn, who inscribed and gifted the drawing to Broadway set designer Boris Aronson. Sanguine on paper, inscribed in blue ink “For Boris -/ Waiting – Wondering -/ Woman – Marilyn Monroe Miller” mounted to matteboard and undated. The drawing has been referred to as ‘an erotic self-portrait.’

Arthur Miller worked with Aronson on A View From the Bridge around the time of Miller’s divorce and budding relationship with Monroe. Aronson, when he first met Monroe, is quoted by Elia Kazan as having said, ‘That’s a wife?’ Kazan shared that quote and evidently its sentiment by answering the question in his autobiography as, ‘Hell no!’

6) Marilyn’s own copies of Doctor Pygmalion by Maxwell Maltz, and The Unfinished Country by Max Lerner. A copy of John Huston’s 1930 script, Frankie and Johnny, with the inscription, “Marilyn dear/ All those years ago/ when you were hardly/ born I wrote this for/ you – the perfect Frankie/ Johnny (himself)/ Huston.” (So much for my theory that it was connected to the Elvis Presley movie!)

7) Personal letters to Marilyn from Jean Negulesco, Inez Melson and William Inge; documents regarding Marilyn moving to Milton Greene’s Connecticut home in 1954;

8) A lidded Wedgwood Jasperware trinket box owned by Marilyn, and assorted hair and make-up items, including a container of Erno Laszlo face powder.

9) The chaise longue featured in the title song from Let’s Make Love.

10) Limited edition etchings of Marilyn by Al Hirshfeld.

11) An expense form from Marilyn Monroe’s public relations agency, Arthur P. Jacobs Company Inc., dated June 11, 1962, for costs incurred through long-distance calls made to Monroe by Pat Newcomb in April 1962. Accompanied by a black and white photograph of Newcomb with Monroe at John F. Kennedy’s birthday gala held in May 1962.

12) A Mexican tapestry purchased by Marilyn for her final home in Brentwood, Los Angeles; her script for Something’s Got to Give, marked ‘revised screenplay’, from February 1962; a letter from Westwood Memorial Park to Marjorie Plecher (future wife of Allan ‘Whitey’ Snyder), thanking Plecher for helping to dress Marilyn for her funeral; and the original grave marker, which has been replaced.

13) Photos by Joseph Jasgur, Andre de Dienes, Phil Burchman, George Barris, Bruno Bernard, Milton Greene, Philippe Halsman, John Bryson, Sam Shaw, Jack Cardiff, Lawrence Schiller.

November 12, 2014June 19, 2019

Julien’s Reveal Marilyn’s ‘Lost Archive’

Julien’s Auctions have announced details of their next auction, ‘Icons and Idols: Property from the Life and Career of Marilyn Monroe‘, set for December 6. Already the subject of many news articles, the auction items can be viewed here.

With Joe in Japan, 1954 (photo cut in half)

It is quite simply a treasure trove for biographers. Some of the items are from the collection of Lois Banner, author of MM Personal. However many have never been seen before, and are listed simply as being from ‘the lost archive of Marilyn Monroe’.

“Monroe…willed ‘The Lost Archives’ to her mentor, the legendary acting coach Lee Strasberg,” the Hollywood Reporter writes. “He gave it to a friend he trusted would take proper care. That friend’s family, which Julien said wants to remain anonymous, obviously met Strasberg’s expectations. Many of the letters look as pristine as the day their authors wrote them.”

Photographed by Manfred Kreiner in 1959, while promoting *Some Like it Hot* in Chicago

At an American Friends of Hebrew University dinner, 1959

Among the 300 items on offer are photos by Andre de Dienes, Joe Jasgur, Milton Greene, and Manfred Kreiner; photos taken during filming of Let’s Make Love and The Misfits; a home movie from the set of The Misfits; photos taken during Marilyn’s trip to Japan and Korea in 1954, and at the American Friends of Hebrew University dinner in 1959; love letters from Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller; correspondence from Sam Shaw, Pat Newcomb, May Reis, actors Tom Neal and Delos Smith Jr., Cary Grant, Jane Russell, Sid Ross (the journalist brother of photographer Ben Ross), Lotte Goslar, Henry Rosenfeld, Cheryl Crawford, Amy Greene, James Haspiel, Dr. Margaret Hohenberg, Garson Kanin, Peter Leonardi, Norman Rosten, Jerry Wald, and many others; the black velvet dress she wore to a press conference at New York’s Plaza Hotel in 1956; a favourite overcoat; a photo of Ginger Rogers, signed ‘to Norma Jeane Baker’; and assorted homeware.