Norma Jeane Mortenson—who will 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.

It was the ultimate All-American romance: the tall, handsome hero
of the country’s national pastime captures the heart of the beautiful, glamorous Hollywood star. But the brief, volatile marriage of Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio–the couple wed on January 14, 1954–
barely got past the honeymoon before cracks began to show in
its brilliant veneer.

In 1952, the New York Yankees slugger DiMaggio asked an
acquaintance to arrange a dinner date with Monroe, a buxom
blonde model-turned-actress whose star was on the rise after
supporting roles in films such as Monkey Business (1952) and
a leading role in the B-movie thriller Don’t Bother to Knock (1952).

The press immediately picked up on the relationship and began to
cover it exhaustively, though Monroe and DiMaggio preferred to
keep a low profile, spending evenings at home or in a back corner
of DiMaggio’s restaurant. On January 14, 1954, they were married
at San Francisco City Hall, where they were mobbed by reporters
and fans. Monroe had apparently mentioned the wedding plans to someone at her film studio, who leaked it to the press.

Luigia "Gina" Lollobrigida (4 July 1927 – 16 January 20230)

ROME (AP) — Italian actor Gina Lollobrigida, who achieved
international film stardom during the 1950s and was dubbed
“the most beautiful woman in the world” after the title of one
her movies, died at a clinic in Rome on Monday. She was 95.

The agent, Paola Comin, didn’t provide details. But Lollobrigida
had surgery in September to repair a thigh bone broken in a fall.

She returned home and said she had quickly resumed walking.

1961

1957

Jayne Mansfield (Vera Jayne Palmer) (April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967)

Actress and singer Jayne Mansfield appeared on Broadway in Will Success Spoil
Rock Hunter? in 1955. Her numerous Hollywood credits include The Girl Can’t
Help It (1956), and The Wayward Bus (1957).

As a child, Jayne was a talented pianist and violinist who often gave impromptu
concerts in her family’s driveway. She died at the age of only thirty-four in an
automobile accident.