The American dream girl
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Almost 50 years after her death from a much-contested overdose of barbiturates, Marilyn Monroe remains the ultimate blonde bombshell: at once overtly sexual and hopelessly romantic, ruthlessly ambitious and heartbreakingly vulnerable. Her size 16 curves, platinum blonde curls and penchant for fur and diamonds provided the world with a new benchmark for glamour - one that remains to this day.
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Born Norma Jean Mortenson but baptised Norma Jean Baker in 1926, Marilyn\'s early years were a confusion of life with her mentally ill mother, Gladys, and a succession of foster homes. Having been married off to a neighbour at the age of 16 to free her mother of responsibility for her, Norma Jean was encouraged to apply to a modelling agency while her husband, Jim, was away fighting during World War II. It didn\'t take long for her to become a successful model, file for divorce and set her sights on the ultimate prize, Hollywood.
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She would go on to marry twice more, to legendary ball player Joe DiMaggio and the playwright Arthur Miller, as well as being romantically linked to various other men in the public eye, most controversially, then US president JFK. But from the moment she died her naturally brunette hair to blonde in the early \'40s to meet the demand for light-haired models, Marilyn was on track to fulfil her most famous role of all, that of an enduring fashion icon.
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From that white dress in The Seven Year Itch to the pink satin gown of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (as parodied by Madonna in her Material Girl video), Marilyn\'s on-screen looks are the stuff of film and fashion lore. Off-camera, however, her style was just as on-the-money, whether she was posing in swimwear, glammed up for a premiere or working a casual look at home.
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\"I don\'t want to make money,\" Marilyn famously declared. \"I just want to be wonderful.\" Read on to see her in the outfits that prove she achieved exactly that.
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Picture: Marilyn poses poolside in a blue halterneck swimsuit and cork wedges in 1949.
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Puppy love
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
A young Marilyn in a bikini with a cute four-legged friend at Hollywood agent Johnny Hyde\'s Beverly Hills home in May 1950.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
She\'s got the look
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn the fledgling starlet in 1948, applying her make-up for the camera in a knotted print blouse and high-waisted white trousers.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Button it
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Chatting - with typical allure - at a party in 1952, wearing a button through, collared, linen halter dress.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Pool party
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
In early promotional photo from 1951, Marilyn wears a ruched, strapless one-piece and heels to pose by a pool.
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Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Boudoir babe
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Wearing a red negligee trimmed with black lace, Marilyn sits surrounded by fan mail in 1952, shortly after her film The Asphalt Jungle had been released.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Striking out
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Taking part in a 20th Century Fox Studio baseball league game in 1952, wearing a thoroughly impractical outfit of head scarf, short-sleeved knit, high-waisted shorts and high heels.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Off-duty chic
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
A bare-footed Marilyn works it in a classic black roll neck and white pedalpushers at an informal 1953 photo session in the garden of her California home.
Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Hello, boys
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn the icon is born. Photographed here in 1953 at the home of director Jean Negulesco after the premiere of his film, How to Marry a Millionaire (in which she starred), Marilyn looks ultra-glamorous in a lace evening gown and white fur stole.
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Top 10 best dressed women of all time
All the world\'s a stage
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Wearing some impressive platform heels, a mermaid gown, silk wrap and black opera gloves, Marilyn gingerly descends the steps outside London\'s Comedy Theatre with her husband Arthur Miller in October 1956. The couple had just watched a performance of Miller\'s play A View from the Bridge.
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Top 10 best dressed women of all time
That\'s a wrap
marilyn monroe,Fashion icon
Marilyn Monroe
Preparing to fly out of La Guardia for Chicago to attend the presentation of Some Like It Hot in 1959 wearing a fabulous fur and white round-toe pumps.
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Top 10 best dressed women of all time
Beachside chic
marilyn monroe, marilyn monroe style, marilyn monroe fashion
Beachside chic marilyn monroe
In a 1953 promotional picture for the film studio, Marilyn demonstrates how a turtleneck is completely appropriate attire for the beach. Her high-waisted hotpants and strappy sandals make her the perfect pin up (and prove you don’t have to wear a skimpy bikini to be drop dead gorgeous)
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Fashion icon: Bianca Jagger
\r\nFashion icon: Marianne Faithfull
\r\nThe fashion books you need to read
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Bobby dazzler
marilyn monroe, marilyn monroe style, marilyn monroe fashion
Bobby dazzler marilyn monroe
That dress! Marilyn wore a lot of iconic frocks throughout her career but this cheekily risqué number from Some Like It Hot (1959) is undoubtedly one of the greatest dresses of all time. Nude mesh and strategically placed sequins ensured all eyes were on Marilyn and her two co-stars (Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, of course.)
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Fashion icon: Bianca Jagger
\r\nFashion icon: Marianne Faithfull
\r\nThe fashion books you need to read
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Forever young
marilyn monroe, marilyn monroe style, marilyn monroe fashion
Forever young Marilyn Monroe
In the weeks just prior to her untimely death in 1962, Marilyn was still radiantly beautiful. Wearing her hair in her trademark tousled platinum curls and an elegant black suit Ms Monroe was a highly successful actress poised to go on to even greater things, with fans all around the world. Her inimitable image has made her one of the most iconic stars of all time.
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Fashion icon: Bianca Jagger
\r\nFashion icon: Marianne Faithfull
\r\nThe fashion books you need to read
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