| Washington, D.C.
Marilyn Monroe, a legendary symbol of bygone
Hollywood glamour, whose recent humanitarian
efforts and human rights
advocacy have brought her back into the spotlight, celebrates her seventy- second birthday today. In a rare televised interview
with Barbara Walters, Monroe shared plans to quietly celebrate the event with her husband, eighty-three year old baseball
legend Joe DiMaggio, their adopted children and grandchildren. Monroe, who alternates in semi-retirement between a ranch in
Carmel-by-the-Sea and a Manhattan townhouse, is being honored at the Kennedy Center Friday night by a retrospective of her
motion picture career and humanitarian work.
In attendance will be President Clinton and Mrs.
Clinton, director Billy Wilder, Gloria Steinem, Jack Lemmon and
Steven Speilberg. Life magazine is preparing a commemorative cover issue in tribute to Monroe's milestone birthday,
and Hugh Heffner has been persuading her to re-create her famous 1962 front and back cover poses for Playboy Magazine.
The Academy Award winning actress is probably best remembered for her charity work for persons with AIDS, children survivors
of abuse and neglect, and for human rights issues. Monroe's organization, Marilyn's Kids, places children with special needs
in adoptive families.
In 1995, Monroe and actress Glenn Close co- produced "The Normal Heart" for HBO which earned an Emmy Award. Monroe is
currently writing a sequel to her 1980 autobiography "Survivor!" a frank memoir describing her turbulent years in Hollywood
during the studio system era, chaotic childhood spent in foster homes and orphanages, sexual abuse, and battle with depression
and addiction. Monroe said the second edition will focus on her transition from national sex symbol to dramatic actress and
later as director of independent films. The volume is expected to be released in December by Doubleday.
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Once active in the early Women's Movement, Ms. Monroe has represented to women of her generation triumph
over the the oppression of women in post-war America. Her journey to recovery was chronicled by Gloria Steinem in a
best-selling 1986 biography. "My professional goal was always to eventually become a marvelous--excuse the word marvelous--
character actress like Marie Dressler and Will Rogers," Monroe told Walters. "They've lived, they've learned. Aging enabled
me to portray wonderful supporting roles and to enjoy longevity in a fickle business that has always focused on youth and
beauty. Until I turned forty, I was typecast mercilessly as the Blonde. I've spoken to acting students at UCLA and The Actor's
Studio who seem drawn to my early films, and this surprises me. My grandkids now watch these films on video, but I seldom
watch them...they bring back too many painful memories. "
Monroe achieved critical success in films such as "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," "The Seven Year Itch," "Bus Stop," "Some
Like It Hot," "The Misfits," and "Something's Got To Give." In recent years, she starred in successful films such as "Terms
of Endearment," "Steel Magnolias," and "'Night, Mother." She approached nearly every major motion picture studio with plans
to direct "A League of Their Own" and was refused financing for the project. Steven Speilberg eventually produced the film
in exchange for Monroe's cameo role in his Oscar-winning "Schindler's List." Both films were critical and financial successes.
"The people made me a star, no studio, the people," Monroe asserts. "And they kept me a
star for many years. But
I know find peace in my life with my husband, f amily and pets."
Monroe is rumored to have as many as one hundred cats
and dogs on her ranch. She refuses to disclose the exact number. "I take
in every stray in Carmel. The word has spread
among the animal community that there is
always room at Marilyn's house! Joe doesn't seem to mind. I even have a raccoon
named Lorelei Lee."
Monroe has been applauded for not attempting to artificially preserve her beauty and youth through modern
cosmetic surgery so popular among her contemporaries. "Facelifts take the character out of a face, " she said. "I want to
grow old gracefully." To many of her fans, has.
[This is a fictional article suggesting Marilyn's life had she lived and is not intended to offend her
memory or minimize her actual accomplishments].
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