Marilyn Monroe (1926 – 1962)   
    
    
   

Norma Jeane Mortenson—who would later become better
known around the world as the glamorous actress and sex
symbol Marilyn Monroe—was born on June 1, 1926, in Los
Angeles, California. She was later given her mother’s name,
and baptized Norma Jeane Baker.

After a tumultuous childhood—both maternal grandparents
and her mother were committed to mental institutions, and
she lived with a string of foster families. Norma Jeane married
one of her neighbors, James Dougherty, when she was 16. He
later joined the Merchant Marines and was sent to the South
Pacific during World War II. A photographer “discovered” the
naturally photogenic Norma Jeane while she was working in
a California munitions factory, and she was soon launched
into a successful modeling career. She divorced Dougherty
in June 1946 and soon after signed a film contract with 20th
Century Fox.

1961

The Seven Year Itch, a 1955 romantic comedy film
directed by Billy Wilder.