Every few years or so, the latest Hollywood ingenue will start making the rounds, and inevitably some entertainment reporter will start throwing around the phrase “the next Marilyn Monroe”. What remains unrealized is that there is no such thing. So many women have come and faded away, and yet Marilyn endures like no other will. She has a rare magic, a captive hold over the public, that will remain unparalleled.
Before her, there was Jean Harlow, who did in fact manage to capture that fine line between sweetness and seductress. Harlow also had a comparably young and tragic death. However, she has not achieved anywhere near the momentum that Marilyn has had. Marilyn had imitators during her lifetime, too- Jayne Mansfield desperately wanted the kind of adoration Marilyn had but failed to attain it. When Marilyn started causing trouble for Fox, they touted out their own blonds and tried to market them as “the next Marilyn”- Sheree North, Mamie Van Doren- and nowadays, who aside from old movie fans even know who they are?
Which brings us to now. I’ve heard the term bandied about Scarlet Johansson, who is an undeniably beautiful woman, but is lacking Marilyn’s playful, effervescent personality- which was half her charm. Any reference to Anna Nicole Smith makes my blood boil- my apologies to any of her fans, but it’s like comparing a can of Bud Lite to a bottle of Dom Perignon. Anna was a sloppy imitator, and I’ve seen drag queens do Marilyn better justice. Lindsay Lohan is desperate to have her name mentioned in the same vein as Marilyn, going so far as to recreate Marilyn’s famous Bert Stern photo shoot, which seemed to me to be screaming for attention.. The difference is, Marilyn could take off her clothes-and did often- and still maintain her class and dignity. Lohan’s nude shoot is a neon sign saying “LOOK AT ME” whereas Marilyn’s pleadingly whispers “Look. At me.” As soon as Norma Jeane made the transformation into Marilyn, she never had to scream for attention again- she just got it.
There will never be another Marilyn. There will never be another James Dean, there will never be another Elvis. There are a few rare stars that shine so much brighter they can block out the light of any others-so don’t try to outshine them.
By Marijane Gray
