Marilyn Monroe

by Barbara Leaming

Book Overview

The bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Katharine Hepburn now delves beneath the legend to discover what made Marilyn Monroe one of the most fascinating women of the century. Photo insert. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517702606
• ISBN13: 9780517702604
• Release Date: October 1998
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 464 Pages
• Weight: 1.87 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.7" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

bravo leaming!

i am a huge fan of barbara leaming, she is the one the best writers and she has managaed to humanize marilyn as no one has before, the book was fluid and wasn't over-whelming as most marilyn books are, hurrah! barbara! if there is a chance that you are reading this, i would love if you wrote about dorothy dandridge, i think she'd make a great subject for you!

best book on monroe, finally some logic.

For the reader who claims that this book repeats the old stories about Monroe, the problem is that you seem to want this fantastic thorough writer to create/fabricate stories that never have happened, such as perhaps murder conspiracy theories, people want a soap-opera life for Monroe, whereas the truth is much more simple. She died by an overdose. Why can't people accept that? Perhaps suicide or even accidental suicide is not enough for some people's imaginations. But this book makes Monroe's life and death come as a reality and not another "let's make money on Monroe book" by making up stories. She was depressed, unhappy, and she died by her own hand. That's all.

No one respected Marilyn,

least of all Marilyn! Here was a sad and tragic woman who just wanted to be loved, but even when she was loved, she was unable to believe it or accept it. This book is so sad and heartbreaking. It left me wanting to comfort the little girl inside Marilyn Monroe. She longed for respect, but also did not believe she deserved it. Marilyn should have had therapy when she was a young girl. By the time she was in therapy, it was too little, to late. This book is fascinating. I loved that Barbara Leaming gave us a lot of details, because it helped me to really get a feeling for Marilyn and her life. I also enjoyed reading about other people such as Arthur Miller, Joe DiMaggio, Elia Kazan and Lee & Paula Strasberg. (To name just a few!)This book gives you a very clear picture of Hollywood and all of its selfish, greedy and self-oriented people.This book makes me feel that Marilyn did not get a fair shake in this world. It is also apparent, though that Marilyn made some big mistakes that hurt her badly. She was a lost girl and she needed help and guidance that she never really got. Most of the people she received 'help' from had their own agendas and so their 'help' focused more on them than it did Marilyn. There was a huge part of Marilyn that never grew up. She was fragile and was unable to stand the harshness of this world, and so, she self-destructed.Excellent book - sad book - intriguing book - absolutely worth reading!

Great Book

I have just recently read this book and I must say it is one of the most comprehensive biographies ever done on the actress. Leaming takes it to a new level, leading us to the real woman, not just the celleloid goddess. Marilyn Monroe was a real person, just like the rest of us, with all the problems we mortals have. I must say that some of the reviews I've seen on this page have been scathing. I'd really like to see you guys write a 400 page bio on someone as complex as Monroe.

Marilyn Monroe As You've Never Seen Her Before!

Neither sensational, nor scandalous, nor trashy, Leaming's extremely well-documented tome concentrates on Marilyn Monroe's struggles with her studio, 20th Century Fox, and her relationship with the various men and women in her professional life (agents, producers, directors, partners, etc.) and in her personal life (boyfriends, husbands, ex-husbands, mentors, psychiatrists, acting teachers, etc.) Monroe wanted to be in charge of her own career, but was perceived by many (notably Daryl Zanuck)to be talentless and empty-headed. She was anything but talentless and empty-headed, but it was an uphill battle trying to convince those in the positions of helping or hindering her career. Her growing paranoia (there was mental illness in her family and Leaming says she feared she was next in line)and her increasing performance anxieties finally did her in, and she was fired by the studio. Her reputation as someone who was difficult to work with and undependable made producers leery of hiring her. Growing ever more dependent on her acting teachers (the Strasbergs) and her psychiatrists (Marianne Kris and Ralph Greenson) and drinking and doping to excess most probably led to her suicide. She'd attempted to kill herself several times before. Her relationship with her husbands Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller is explored in a fascinating new way. All you ever thought you knew -- from the tabloids and the gossip columns -- may have just skimmed the surface of the complex reality. A must-read for anyone interested in the Marilyn Monroe phenomenon, the big Hollywood studios, and the movie biz in general. Leaming's research and documentation are truly impressive.Essential for any library/personal movie collection.