June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962
It has been 50 years since the woman born as Norma Jeane Mortenson (later changed to Baker) passed away. Known as Marilyn Monroe, she died at the young age of 36. A recently published book, The Empty Glass, analyzes the ongoing conspiracy surrounding Monroe’s death.1
Ms. Monroe had left most of her estate to her acting coach, Lee Strasberg, who in turn left the estate to his wife, Anna Strasberg. In October 1999, Mrs. Strasberg set a large portion of the estate up for auction at Christie’s auction house in New York.2
In 2008, it was ruled that since Monroe was a resident of New York at the time of her death, the rights of publicity ended at death. This would not have been the case had she been deemed a resident of California, which allows publicity rights to continue after death.3 However, the demand for Marilyn is still strong. She has been on the cover of Vanity Fair within the past four years and has been the subject of the big and small screens in My Week With Marilyn and NBC’s Smash.4
Marilyn Monroe garnered the fascination and attention of much of the world in life and she continues to do see even 50 years after her death.
1 Marilyn Monroe’s Death Remains Mysterious: Interview
2 Bombshell Auction Christie’s Sale of Monroe’s Belongings May Rival Jackie O’s
3 Marilyn Monroe’s Estate Loses Rights To Photos After Fighting To Make Her A New Yorker
4 Marilyn Monroe’s legend lives on 50 years after her death
