Barbie as Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Doll

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Narratives of Monroe’s life, whether they’re based in fact or fiction, tend to focus on her trauma at the expense of her hard work and dedication. The myths surrounding her life have obscured what originally helped make her famous: her craft as an actress. Marilyn’s death is] the gift that keeps on giving,” says Cohan, “because there’s no smoking gun. The autopsy continues to be raised, but it never answers any questions. … And the fact that she died in her [mid-30s] meant that she never grew old. … It’s another reason that she remains forever, forever young” in the public imagination. In 1953, when Playboy magazine published nude photos of Monroe without her consent, she kept her career intact by turning the images into free advertising. (Monroe hadn’t posed for Playboy; the photos dated to 1949, when the aspiring actress took part in a nude shoot with a pin-up photographer.) A May 1952 interview with the Chicago Tribune reveals how Monroe cannily responded to the situation: “When an interviewer recently asked her why she posed in the nude for calendars, she replied, ‘I was hungry.’ That’s a stopper if I ever heard one.” Pink Jubilee Barbie: Released in 1989 to mark the 30th anniversary of Barbie. The doll wears a beautiful pink/silver dress. For Blonde’s lead actress, de Armas of Knives Out fame, the role was an emotional and spiritual revelation. “I truly believe that [Marilyn] was very close to us, she was with us,” de Armas tells Deadline . “… She was all I thought about, she was all I dreamed about, she was all I could talk about.” The actress adds, “I knew I had to let myself open and go to places that I knew were going to be uncomfortable, dark and vulnerable. That’s where I found the connection with this person.”

So, who was Marilyn Monroe? Once upon a time, she was a real person, a childhood dream come true—the dream of a little girl named Norma Jeane Mortenson. Who was Norma Jeane Mortenson? Despite Monroe’s ascendance in the film industry, the final years of her life were marked with professional difficulties. Her last movie, The Misfits, was written by her third husband, Miller, as an allegory of their declining relationship. Playing a thinly veiled stand-in of herself was a particularly taxing experience for Monroe, and the movie turned out to be a commercial failure. The 1960s is when the essence of Barbie dolls began taking shape after its initial release in 1959. There are a couple of Barbie dolls that stand out from the 60s, including the "Swirl" Barbie, the "Twist 'n Turn" Barbie, and, of course, the original Barbie. Marilyn Monroe’s final interview is a heartbreaker. Published in Life magazine on August 3, 1962—just a day before the actress died of a barbiturate overdose at age 36—it found Monroe reflecting on her celebrity status, alternatively thoughtful, frank and witty.Barbie undeniably changed the modern toy industry and influenced the upbringing of many young girls, who could role-play with a doll and was given over 180 career choices. Moreover, over the years launched a number of collectible limited edition Barbies, that are highly sought after by collectors and individuals all over the world.

For more than 60 years, Barbie has captivated generations by always being relevant in pop culture. There are few brands that are more well-known than Barbie. The vintage Barbie dolls are a symbol of the ongoing trends and fashion rules of its time. Looking at vintage Barbie dolls is like looking at a summary of fashion trends from 1959 until today, in 2023. During the 1970s, the Barbie dolls became less proper and more relaxed in their outfits and appearances. For instance, the 1971 "Sunset Malibu" Barbie, which is dressed for the beach.

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Despite Barbie’s initial success, many parents were concerned about the mature appearance of Barbie’s body, but Ruth Handler saw it as important to give young girls a distinctly adult role model to look up to and aspire to. She was a doll that represented a modern, well-rounded woman who could be anything from a mother to a doctor to an astronaut. Created by Mattel co-owner Ruth Handler, the inspiration for Barbie was born when Handler saw her daughter play with paper dolls and realized that there was a need for more physical dolls. The idea was that young girls would be able to see themselves in the dolls, which wasn’t as easy with a two-dimensional doll. With a three-dimensional doll, you can feel it, hug it, and brush its hair, and the user gets a better attachment to it.

Born in Los Angeles on June 1, 1926, the future Monroe grew up far from the trappings of luxury and fame she’d one day enjoy. Her mother, Gladys Pearl Baker, was a film cutter who struggled to make ends meet. Her father was nowhere to be found. Barbies fame began with the launch of the first doll, named Barbie Millicent Roberts, which was introduced in 1959. Since then, with every new edition of the doll, new accessories and outfits were added, reflecting the times the Barbies were produced. Despite the liberties taken by Blonde, Dominik sees his film as an attempt to portray what he deems the “real” Monroe. “I’m trying to relate to someone else’s life experiences in an authentic way,” Dominik tells Vanity Fair . “I wanted to detail her childhood trauma and then show her adult life through the lens of that trauma. If you look closely at Marilyn Monroe, she’s the most visible woman in the world, but she’s completely unseen.” While her public image is known to many, it is her private life that has always held our attention, and thus is the focus of the Marilyn Monroe Collection. Scott continues to seek items to add to the collection, a never ending quest to celebrate and remember the life of a truly amazing woman.

Why should we still care about Monroe?

It wasn’t easy to make it big as an actress in 1950s Hollywood. At the time, the film industry was dominated by the “ studio system,” an arrangement through which the “ Big Five” studios—Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Brothers, Paramount, 20th Century Fox and RKO—monopolized movie production, distribution and exhibition. These male-dominated companies quashed the independent studios where women actors, directors and producers had previously found success. Monroe’s career soared as her romantic life foundered, with two successive husbands failing to understand the woman she wanted to be. Baseball hero Joe DiMaggio balked at the sexuality of his wife’s public image. Playwright Arthur Miller was disgusted by her cult of celebrity. “Marilyn Monroe desperately wanted to be loved,” said film historian Karina Longworth in a 2017 episode of the “ You Must Remember This” podcast. “But she never had the courage to figure out that she could choose who to love.”