This book was first published in 1964 and was the first book to examine Marilyn Monroe’s film career in depth. It was published all over the world, translated into several languages and continued to be reprinted over the next thirty years retitled The Complete Films of Marilyn Monroe from 1990 onwards.
It starts off with a touching tribute from Lee Strasberg, Marilyn’s acting mentor, in the form of the personal eulogy he read at her funeral. Followed by a brief but informative biography by Mark Harris and essay by Michael Conway tracing Marilyn’s career against the background of her times.
Each of the films in this book is represented with a synopsis, cast, credits, film stills, of which there are many and reviews; in particular any notices Marilyn received for her screen time are included. Twenty nine films are reviewed from Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! (her scene was edited out) to her last finished work, The Misfits. There’s also a small section on Something’s Got To Give, which is where the book ends.This is an essential reference book to anyone interested in viewing Marilyn’s films, it’s easy to read and a fitting tribute to her body of work and is respectful to her accomplishments as a comedienne and how she was developing into a fine dramatic actress too.
Originally the book formed part of a series focusing on the films of many of the classic films stars of the Hollywood golden era & I myself have always found them the first point of reference when researching someone’s career.
By Fraser Penney
