Documents papiers
(Day 2) Lot 1147. Marilyn signs an early contract for the Charlie McCarthy show with a morality clause after nude photo debacle threatened to derail her fledgling career.
Document Signed, “Marilyn Monroe” and additionally, “MM” (ten times), four pages, 8.5 x 11 in. (with two 8.5 x 2 in. slips attached to pages three and four), Los Angeles, October 7, 1952, countersigned “Edgar Bergen,” who also adds his initials, “EB” ten times (each below Monroe’s). The contract concerns Monroe’s radio appearance on The Charlie McCarthy Show, recorded on October 18, 1952. A morality rider, attached to page four, addresses Monroe’s legendary sex appeal, in which she agreed Bergen could cancel the appearance, “… if I conducted or do conduct myself without due regard to public conventions and morals or have done or do anything which will tend to disgrace me in society or bring me into pubic disrepute, contempt, scorn or ridicule, or that will tend to schock [sic], insult or offend the community or public morals or decency or prejudice agency or sponsor or the entertainment industry in general …” This rider was especially important in light of the recent controversy over her nude photographs that had surfaced earlier in the year and threatened to derail her fledgling career. The same rider also evokes the “red scare” sentiment of the time. Not only did Monroe agree not to offend any moral sensibility during the program, she also agreed that her appearance could be terminated in the event she was “… held in contempt by any Congressional committee or other governmental body and any refusal to testify before any such committee or governmental body, whether for legally justifiable reasons or otherwise.” The language refers to the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), which had become infamous after it began investigating Hollywood in 1947. Monroe’s appearance with Charlie McCarthy was an enormous hit. During the program, the pair announced their engagement, much to the consternation of Edgar Bergen who “admitted that losing Charlie would be like having his pocket picked.” McCarthy, for his part, assured listeners that he would allow Ms. Monroe to continue her screen career. “Certainly I’m gonna let her work. I love the girl. I don’t want to interfere with her career—or her income.” Exhibiting file holes at top, stapled at left, very light soiling. In vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $12,000 - $15,000
(Day 2) Lot 1148. Marilyn Monroe’s personally hand-annotated original shooting script from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. (TCF, 1953)
Marilyn Monroe’s personally-used and annotated script from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. An incomplete script, being a block of revisions delivered by the production to Marilyn Monroe comprising 69 pages total (numbered 48 through 117, missing page 93) plus a pink title cover-sheet printed “26 November 1952, ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ (Revised Final Script…13 Nov. 1952),” plus “TO ALL SECRETARIES: Please place these ADDITIONAL PAGES at the back of your script of the above date. THIS IS IMPORTANT! Majority of the prompts for Marilyn’s character “Lorelei Lee” are circled variously in graphite and non-repro blue pencil, with approximately 22 pages annotated in various inks and pencil in Monroe’s hand with amendments and additions to the script and notes on how she proposes to deliver lines and portray Lorelei’s character, with several other pages showing line deletions and other demarcations. Highlights of notes include: pg. 56, when Lord Beekman finds Lorelei stuck in Malone’s porthole, next to Lorelei’s line “Oh yes--Tea with Lady Beekman. Why, she must of forgot. She didn’t show up,” with Monroe adding an alternative line, “Well, I just wanted to see the view. It’s better from here”; pg. 58, Monroe changes the line “Piggie, will you run down to my cabin and get my purse?” to “Maybe I should have that Sherry - will you get me some”; pg. 79, Monroe has written a note to herself in the margin “Feeling that feeds the words, know the lines, go over it inteligently [sic]”; pg. 92, also to herself, “sense the feeling with the body” plus several dialogue changes; pg. 94, again to herself, “grit my teeth and forget it must have my,” “all of feeling in my words,” and “build pull back, don’t stop mutual conflict between partners.” Also, the following page (95) although bearing no notations, features the scene for Monroe’s classic musical number “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend.” In generally very good condition, with expected handling wear, soiling, and creasing, and some small edge tears and damp-staining to cover page and a few internal margins throughout. Marilyn’s unique, revealing personal notations in this script reveal her private thought processes and fleeting self confidence. On set, she was haunted by her controlling acting coach Natasha Lytess, constantly striving for her approval and insisting on retakes even when director Howard Hawks had already approved. Co-star Jane Russell looked after Marilyn on set and was often one of the only people able to coax her out of her trailer during her bouts of self doubt. Despite her anxieties, it was the role of Lorelei Lee that first fabricated her ‘dumb blonde’ persona—a genius mixture of comedy and sexiness which Marilyn personified on screen, all the while taking her acting very seriously, as evidenced by her occasional heartfelt self-motivational notes in the margins. Monroe biographer Donald Spoto once said: “She put a twist on sexiness. It was not something wicked and shameful...it was something which was terribly funny. And Marilyn enjoyed it.” A remarkable and deeply personal artifact both from Marilyn’s aura imbued within it, and of Hollywood history in general. Provenance: Christies, New York, June 22, 2006, Lot 160.
Estimate: $30,000 - $50,000
(Day 2) Lot 1150. Marilyn Monroe historic signed RCA recording contract from the year of the release of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. (1953)
Vintage 4-page 8.25 x 11 in. contract signed in blue ink, “Marilyn Monroe on onion skin paper leaf, between Monroe and RCA with mention of Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation, dated October 8, 1953. Among Hollywood historians, it’s generally agreed that 1953 marked Marilyn Monroe’s ascent to legend. Though she’d inked a seven-year deal with Twentieth Century-Fox previously, she didn’t achieve super stardom until the 1953 release of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. That mid-summer release, with its box office acclaim, served as the momentum for her signing this singing recording contract with RCA. There’s no mention in the agreement about Monroe’s compensation except her cut of resultant royalties. Monroe was obliged to record not fewer that “16 sides,” or single tunes on two sides of a record album. Text of the contract makes frequent reference to Twentieth Century-Fox. At the conclusion on page 4, the signatures of the principals appear, “Emanuel Sacks” for RCA, “Joseph Schenck”, Executive Director of Twentieth Century-Fox, and of course, “Marilyn Monroe”. Monroe is assumed to have faithfully fulfilled this contract – to include tunes from her two ensuing films, River of No Return and There’s No Business Like Show Business. Retaining 2-hole punch at upper boarder, white tape at the upper margins, and staple holes in the lower left and in the upper left corners. In vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $8,000 - $10,000
(Day 2) Lot 1192. Pat Newcomb handwritten letter giving support to Marilyn Monroe during her pending divorce from Arthur Miller. 1-page, Quarto, on “In Flight – American Airlines” letterhead stationery, dated December 31, 1960, written “Personal” at the lower left corner. As Marilyn’s personal friend and publicist, she writes to support Marilyn as her marriage to playwright Arthur Miller was coming to an end. Newcomb pens, in part: “Dear Marilyn,…I hope you will take good care of yourself. I know and understand what you are going through – but you will make it! Just take it ‘nice ‘n easy’. It will all work out – because you want it to and you have the capacity to make it work! Start with the nurse this week and please call me anytime during the night or day that you feel like talking…This week will be a rough one – but it’s worth it and very important for you. Thank you so very very much again for the wonderful ‘lifetime gift.’ I adore it!!! I can only give you one ‘lifetime gift’ – and that’s my friendship – which you know you already have! Love, Pat. See you on the 19th.” At the time this letter was written, Marilyn was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She had separated from Arthur Miller in October, and their divorce was announced to the press on November 11th. Newcomb’s closing phrase in this letter, “See you on the 19th”, is a direct reference to the divorce proceedings that had already been scheduled. The divorce was finalized on January 24, 1961. Accompanied with original transmittal envelope. In fine condition. Estimate: $800 - $1,200
(Day 2) Lot 1193. Arthur Miller passionate love letter in which he bears his soul to his new love and future wife, Marilyn Monroe. Miller, Arthur [to Marilyn Monroe]. Incredible Five Page Typed Letter Signed, “Art”, Quarto, five pages, dated May 17, 1956, and written to “Dear Heart; My Own Wife; My Very Own Gramercy 5; Sweetheart:” Miller writes (in part):
“I am enclosing a letter I got today from the first woman I ever knew in my life. My mother. Now maybe you will understand where I learned to write and to feel.
I know I am liable to get very sentimental and maudlin about this, but today is one of the most revelatory days of my life. I could write many pages even a volume, about what this letter brings to my mind. I think that had I died without ever receiving it, I should never have known some unbelievably simple but important things.
You see, Poo, I often try to tell you that you mean things to me beyond your body, beyond your spirit, beyond anything you can know about yourself, and it is hard for another person to understand what she –or he—really signifies to one who lovers her. I will try to tell you a few of the things you mean to me, and which became absolutely clear to me when I got this letter today. (I got it today, Thursday, by the way, because I was in Reno for my passport business, and picked up my mail at the post office.)
First let me say what I feared. They are very conventional people. That doesn’t mean they’re stiff—far from it. But they believe in family virtues, in wives being wives and husbands being husbands. They are not especially scandalized by infidelity, but neither do they forget that the big happiness is family happiness. Above all, they know how to love their children, and truly, if I ever needed anything they would die to get it for me. At the same time, my father could take advantage of me and my brother, if we let him, but he would do that as a father’s privilege; which sounds strange, but when he was a young man it wasn’t until he was twenty five or so that his father let him keep his own paycheck. Everything went into the family pot. It was the European way. So I rebelled in many ways against both of them and for many of the usual reasons, but the time came when I began to write successfully, when once again we were friends. I had established my independence from them; they understood it, and we created the necessary adult distance between ourselves, my parents and I, and yet a friendship of grown people, more or less…
Now I receive this letter. (All the above thoughts came as a result of receiving it.) I sat in the public square outside the post office in Reno reading it and my whole life suddenly seemed so marvelously magical. I had saved it! Darling, I had done the right, the necessary, the gloriously living thing at last! For suddenly I saw many questions answered, and many weights lifting off my heart.
It is not that I would hesitate to marry you if they disapproved. Truly, sweetheart, that was not it. It was that somewhere inside me I wanted their love to flow toward both of us because it would give me strength, and you too. It is not that they are my judges, but the first sources of my identity and my love. I know now that I could enjoy seeing my mother. She becomes a pest after too long with her, but that’s another thing. And it is not her, so much—not her corporeal, real being, but what she represents that I can now hold up instead of trampling on it. It is my own sexuality, do you see? I come to her with you, and to my father, and in effect I say—I am a lover. Look, I say, look at my sweet, beautiful, sexy wife. I can see my father’s pleasure at the sight of you—if only because he loves clothes, having been in that business all his life, and he will go mad seeing how you wear them! And if it will only be possible—I can see us with Bob and Jane and all of us joined with one another in joy. I see blue, clear air for the first time in my life when I think of myself and my wife and my children in the house of my parents…
Every time I had trouble with Mary, the worst threat she thought she could make was to go to my parents and tell them I had been unfaithful…She simply cannot conceive that my mother will accept you and my marriage, with you because you are a sexual being, and therefore I am, and parents are by their nature, in her mind, the punishers of sexuality not its helpers and allies…
Wife, Dear, Dear Woman—I have been thinking crazy thoughts. For instance, a wedding with maybe fifty people. Maybe in Roxbury, maybe somewhere else in a big house. And Bob and Jane there. And just a little bit of ceremony. Not fancy, but maybe my old friend Reverend Melish, a courageous and wonderful fighter for fine causes; or a Rabbi of similar background—I know one. Or maybe just somebody who can marry people. I want to dress up, and I want you dressed up; I want all my past looking on, even back to Moses. I want the kids to see us married, and to feel the seriousness and honorableness of our marriage, so that nothing Mary can say to them will ever make them believe we have sneaked away to do this, or that I have hidden myself and what I wanted to do. And I want this for their sakes as much as for my own pride and my joy; so that they will see their Grandma and Grandpa full of happiness—and crying too, of course. (Isn’t it strange?—I didn’t have my parents to my first marriage, which was in Cleveland. It could have been arranged, but I felt better not to have them there. That time I felt untrue, you see? This time I feel true, and if the world wanted to come I would embrace them all.)
Do you see why I say I am proud of you? You have given me back my soul, Darling. And thank god I knew it always; always and always since the hour we met, I knew there was something in you that I must have or die. And the revolution it implied for me was so much more than uprooting my household, my life; facing my own damning curse for depriving the children of my—as I thought of it then, and so on. The revolution was of another sort. It meant that I must face myself and who and what I am. It meant that I must put down those fearfully protective arms of reticence and blushing and all that stupidity, and put my arms around the one I loved and face the startling, incredible, simply glorious fact, that I am a tender man and not the fierce idiot I have tried—and failed—to become. How could you have known that, Darling? How I bless you that you knew it! I am near tears this minute at the miracle you are to me. How happy I will make you! What beautiful children I will give you! Oh, I will watch over you, and pest you, and worry about you.
I feel something today that marks it, like an anniversary, or more truly, my real day of birth. I have reached a kind of manhood I never really knew before. I tell you dear, I am afraid of nothing in this world. The soul of my talent is coming up in me as it has been these past six months, but now I feel it like bread in my hands, like a taste in my mouth. Because I am touching its source and not turning away from it anymore. Believe in me, Darling—I am certain enough of myself to tell you that. And worry nothing about yourself. You are beyond all danger with me because I love you like life itself. Truly, you are my life now.
Your husband, Art
[in Miller’s hand]
“Some more ----------------
PS…If we got married before you had to leave, I could then come and live openly with you and we could maybe tour around on your free time and have some fun. The problem is the lack of time before you have to leave. I’ll be back from Michigan on the 17th. The kids, by our agreement, have to be back with Mary by the 22nd, in order to have a week’s time—(a little less)—to prepare for camp, shopping, etc. Assuming I have a divorce by June 1 or a few days after—as in now planned—we would either have to do it between June 1 and June 15th; or between June 17th and July 7th…The whole problem is to juggle the time I have with them, and the time you’ll be around to attend the ceremony. Don’t worry about it, though. I’m just warning you, however,--you’ll be the most kissed bride in history when my family is there. I’ll have to fight the bastards off. I’m going to put up a sign, “ONE KISS TO A RELATIVE!” (Don’t worry, there won’t be that many.)
How I love you. My heart aches when I think of you being so tired. But you’ll perk up here right off, dear wife. OH, AM I GOING TO MAKE LOVE TO YOU, BEGINNING WITH THE SOLES OF THE FEET AND GOING DUE NORTH, UNTIL SLU-U-U-SH!—RIGHT INTO GRAMERCY PARK!
The World’s Luckiest Man Since Adam Art”
Arthur Miller was introduced to Marilyn Monroe by Elia Kazan in 1951. After the introduction, they had a brief affair to which Miller admitted to his wife, college sweetheart, Mary Slattery. Miller and Monroe were married on June 29, 1956, only days after he divorced Slattery. In this fascinating and revealing letter, Miller chronicles his deteriorating marriage and divulges deeply personal family issues. In this incredible letter, Miller lays bear issues which mirror some of the central themes his characters wrestled with in his dramas: personal and social responsibility, moral conviction, betrayal and the issues of guilt and hope.
Moderate toning, otherwise vintage very good to fine condition. Provenance: From the estate of Marilyn Monroe’s NYC attendant Mrs. Fanny Harris. With original transmittal envelope of this letter addressed to Mrs. Harris with TLS on Marilyn Monroe Productions letterhead signed by Mrs. Fanny Harris releasing Monroe of any salary claims or demands.
Estimate: $25,000 - $35,000
(Day 2) Lot 1194: The Misfits autograph book with cast signatures including Marilyn Monroe and others. (United Artists, 1961)
Vintage board and paper bound 40+ page 5.5 x 4 in. young girl’s autograph book. The commercially made book contains the clipped and affixed autographs of cast members of The Misfits. Including Marilyn Monroe, (2) Montgomery Clift, Arthur Miller, Eli Wallach, stuntman Chuck Roberson, (2) John Huston, and 1-unidentified. Interspersed throughout the book are charming youthful entries from schoolmates and teachers. The irregularly clipped signatures by celebrities are in pen, with one of the 2 Montgomery Clift signatures on a page torn from another autograph book and folded in quarters. Exhibiting signs of age and handling. Overall in vintage very good condition.
Estimate: $1,000 - $1,500
(Day 2) Lot 1202: Marilyn Monroe Something’s Got To Give final-draft script for her uncompleted last film. (TCF, 1962)
Vintage 143-page March 29, 1962 final-draft incomplete (as issued) “planning” script for the uncompleted project from which Marilyn was fired, partly owing to her “dereliction of duty” by leaving production to fly to New York for JFK’s birthday celebration. Bound in studio labeled cover and period brads, printed entirely on green revision paper, and marked with [illegible] cast or crew member’s name. Preface page boldly states “THIS SCRIPT SHOULD BE TREATED AS CONFIDENTIAL AND REMAIN IN THE POSSESSION OF THE PERSON TO WHOM IT HAS BEEN ISSUED.” Minor handling to cover extremities; interior remains in vintage very fine condition.
Estimate: $600 - $800
Objets Divers
(Day 2) Lot 990. Lucille Ball as “Marilyn Monroe” mink cuffs from I Love Lucy. (DesiLu Prod., 1951-1957)
Vintage original pink mink fur sleeve cuffs worn by Lucille Ball when she dresses up as “Marilyn Monroe” in Season 4: Episode 5, “Ricky’s Movie Offer” of I Love Lucy. The slip-on cuffs are lined with cotton mesh netting and crème-colored cloth. The fur remains full and supple. Highly visible in the glamorous ensemble seen in the episode. In vintage very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000
(Day 2) Lot 1112. Marilyn Monroe lobby card for her first film appearance Dangerous Years. (TCF, 1948)
Vintage 11 x 14 in. portrait lobby card with the earliest appearance of Marilyn Monroe on any known movie paper. Glowing image of a fresh-faced young Marilyn as a diner waitress. Tiny trace of handling, in vintage fine to very fine condition.
Estimate: $400 - $600
(Day 2) Lot 1122. Marilyn Monroe vintage original “Golden Dreams” nude calendar earliest sample variant. (circa 1952)
Vintage 12 x 16.5 in. color chromo-litho calendar-salesman’s sample “Golden Dreams” of Marilyn Monroe, being the earliest known variation of the infamous Tom Kelly nude photo sessions. All known subsequent variations of the Tom Kelly/Marilyn nudes list her name with the alternating titles (“Golden Dreams” or “A New Wrinkle”), and only a handful of examples prior to her name addition are known to survive. Virtually unhandled, in vintage very fine condition.
Estimate: $300 - $500
(Day 2) Lot 1123. Marilyn Monroe vintage original censored calendar artwork variant. (circa 1952)
Vintage 9.75 x 16.5 in. calendar-salesman’s sample artwork interpretation of Tom Kelly’s “Golden Dreams” Marilyn Monroe pose, with screened-over bra and lace panties for conservative communities. Artwork is in the style of Earl Moran or Zoe Mozert, but is uncredited here. Just a trace of handling and corner creasing, in vintage very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1124. Marilyn Monroe in revealing halter-top oversize vintage original salesman’s sample pin-up calendar. (circa 1952)
Vintage 12 x 16.5 in. color chromo-litho calendar-salesman’s sample of Marilyn Monroe, being an exceptionally rare variation in revealing halter-bra and open-sided skirt, with printing that illuminates Marilyn’s blonde hair, blue eyes, and crimson lips. Virtually unhandled, in vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1127. Marilyn Monroe lobby card #5 for The Fireball with exceptional early image in revealing sweater. (TCF, 1950)
Vintage 11 x 14 in. lobby card of Marilyn Monroe with Mickey Rooney in their Roller Derby epic. Young fresh Marilyn was asked to provide her own personal wardrobe on some of her earliest films, and this lovely form-fitting sweater makes a few appearances on her exceptional frame at this point in history. Tiny marginal tear, otherwise in vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1130. Marilyn Monroe calendar. (1952)
Vintage original 16 x 34 in. color chromo-litho calendar with complete date-pad depicting an interpretation of Tom Kelly’s “Golden Dreams” Marilyn Monroe pose, with screened-over bra and lace panties for conservative communities. Entitled here “The Lure of Lace, Posed by Marilyn Monroe In The Nude, With Lace Overprint”. Just a trace of marginal wear and slight internal creasing, in vintage very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $400 - $600
(Day 2) Lot 1137. Some Like It Hot Italian one-panel poster. (United Artists, 1959/ ca. 1970)
Italian 39 x 55 in. one-panel poster for the Billy Wilder and Marilyn Monroe comedy. Featuring Monroe and co-stars Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis. Folded as issued. Overall vivid color in vintage, very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1149. Travilla historic vintage original costume sketch of Marilyn Monroe’s iconic pink satin dress for the “Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend” number in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. (TCF, 1953)
Vintage 15 x 20 in. pencil, gouache and India ink sketch on double artist’s board of one of the most memorable and timeless gowns in film history, the pink satin strapless evening gown with matching opera gloves and poof derriere bow worn by Marilyn Monroe as “Lorelei” for the “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” number in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. William Travilla’s sketch also includes copious jewelry to highlight the “Diamonds” element of the title. Signed by Travilla just below the figure, with his notation at upper right “Marilyn Monroe ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend’ #17”. A long clean diagonal surface-slice which bisected horizontally just below her knees has been archivally filled and retouched making it virtually undetectable, and the restorer also cleaned and enhanced the notations including light airbrushing to blank background, while leaving the sketch itself virtually untouched. One of the most spectacular original artifacts not only from the legacy of Marilyn Monroe, but from the entire artistic span of the silver screen. In vintage very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $20,000 - $30,000
(Day 2) Lot 1153. Marilyn Monroe screen-used water pitcher from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. (TCF, 1953)
Vintage “R.Wallace” silver-plate 3-pint water pitcher 8 x 8.5 x 4.5 in., screen-used by Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. Prominently handled by the lovely ladies when they entrap Elliott Reid in their cabin and pour water from this pitcher all over his pants in order to get them off him expeditiously. Engraved on side as an original artifact “U.S.N.” with Navy anchor and rope symbol, plus engraved on bottom by Fox properties dept. “32-2-21422 20th-C-Fox”. In vintage screen-used fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1154. Marilyn Monroe 1-sheet poster for How To Marry a Millionaire. (TCF, 1953)
Vintage U.S. 27 x 41 in. poster for one of the very first wide-format Cinemascope films. An overt attempt to liven up the film-going experience against the onslaught of TV. Pleasing artwork of the three “golddiggers” Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, and Betty Grable. A curious footnote here is that TCF had been grooming Marilyn specifically to replace Grable, who had been their #1 stable star over the prior decade. Japan-paper backed without retouching to folds, consequently in vintage very good condition.
Estimate: $1,500 - $2,000
(Day 2) Lot 1156. Marilyn Monroe screen-used table from How to Marry a Millionaire. (TCF, 1953)
Vintage metal and acrylic table 29 x 18 in. screen-used by Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, and Betty Grable. Most prominently viewed (with its matching twin, not offered here) as all three girls meet to compare “millionaire date” notes in the powder room of the swanky restaurant where they have their first official dates. A period copy/translation of famous designer Andre Arbus’s late art-deco tables “Paire de Gueridons”. Painted silver over its original gold/bronze color for re-purposing in Young Frankenstein (TCF, 1974) in which it is quite prominently viewed (once again with its now-absent twin) at end of film in Madeline Kahn’s bedroom. Beneath the silver paint is barely visible the property dept.’s “20th-C-Fox-32-1-22278”. In vintage screen-used very good condition.
Estimate: $800 - $1,200
(Day 2) Lot 1157. Marilyn Monroe screen-used (3) table lamp bases from How to Marry a Millionaire. (TCF, 1953)
Vintage (3) glass with metal fixture 10 x 4.25 in. table-lamp bases, screen-used by Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, and Betty Grable. Most prominently viewed at each table of the swanky restaurant as all three girls have their first official dates, Marilyn with Alex D’Arcy, Betty with Fred Clark, and Lauren with William Powell. Etched in base by the Fox property dept. “20th-C-Fox-32-1-25416” followed variously by “V”, “F,” and “N”. Each retains what appears to be its original wiring and lamp-socket, though circuitry not tested. In vintage screen-used fine condition.
Estimate: $400 - $600
(Day 2) Lot 1170. The Seven Year Itch 3-sheet poster. (TCF, 1955)
Vintage 41 x 78.5 in. U.S. 3-sheet poster. Arguably the best poster for Marilyn Monroe’s most popular film, as it comes closest to a life-size depiction of the iconic subway skirt-blowing scene, one of the most famous in all Hollywood history. Linen-backed with older simple retouching to folds and creases; would benefit greatly from a fresh restoration, though is certainly presentable as is. In vintage good to very good condition.
Estimate: $4,000 - $6,000
(Day 2) Lot 1175. Marilyn Monroe screen-used Lamp from Richard Sherman’s apartment in The Seven Year Itch. (TCF, 1955)
Vintage carved wood with metal fixture 31 x 7.25 in. table-lamp base, screen-used by Marilyn Monroe and Tom Ewell. Carved as a classical Roman male bust, it is most prominently viewed (with its female counterpart, not offered here) in Tom Ewell “Richard Sherman’s” apartment, which is where nearly the entire course of action between Marilyn and Ewell takes place. Etched in rear of base by the Fox property dept. “20th-C-Fox-8-36588” then later on bottom of base for the 1971 Sotheby’s sale, “TCF 1200”. Retains what appears to be its original wiring and lamp-socket, though circuitry not tested. In vintage screen-used fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1176. The Seven Year Itch German A1 poster. (TCF, 1955/ R-1966)
Vintage original 23 x 32 in. German A-1 one-sheet poster for the Marilyn Monroe comedy. Featuring the central image of Monroe done in colorful pop-art style after Andy Warhol. Folded as issued. Exhibiting minor corner bumping and wrinkling from storage. In overall, very good condition.
Estimate: $300 - $500
(Day 2) Lot 1177. Marilyn Monroe uncommonly scarce vintage original “Topless Cowgirl” pin-up calendar. (1948/1955)
Vintage 8.25 x 12.25 in. 4-page chromo-litho spiral-bound cheesecake pinup calendar of Marilyn Monroe in (3) highly suggestive topless cowgirl poses, plus the familiar Tom Kelly “Golden Dreams” nude pose with lace overlay. The cowgirl poses are variously titled “Southern Exposure” (a rear-view), “Caught Short” (arms wrapped round her chest) and “Coming Out On Top”. An extraordinarily scarce artifact from Marilyn’s naughty history, especially being intact with all four pages (each of which displays three months of 1955). Two spiral loops broken with a trace of wear at perforations, otherwise in vintage fine to very fine condition.
Estimate: $600 - $800
(Day 2) Lot 1181. Marilyn Monroe Bus Stop 1-sheet poster. (TCF, 1956)
Vintage original U.S. 27 x 41 in. 1-sheet poster. Linen-backed, in vintage very fine condition.
Estimate: $400 - $600
(Day 2) Lot 1184. Bus Stop French grande 1-sheet poster. (TCF, 1956/R-1980s)
French 47 x 63 in. grande-format poster for the circa 1980s reissue poster for the Marilyn Monroe classic drama. Folded as issued. Minor, nearly undetectable age. Vivid colors. In overall very fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1186. The Prince and the Showgirl vintage original painting of Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier by Francis R. Flint. (Warner Bros., 1957)
Vintage 20 x 30 in. oil or acrylic on canvas painting of Marilyn Monroe joining Laurence Olivier. Executed at the time of the film’s production by Francis Russell Flint, the son of famed illustrator Russell Flint, who is a respected and collected artist in his own right. Acquired from the artist’s estate, and retains his pencil-inscribed title on stretcher-bar verso “Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier in ‘The Sleeping Prince’” (the film’s early working title, hence evidence documenting this painting’s early status). Also shows artist’s London address notations on stretcher bar verso, with framing notes. In vintage very fine condition.
Estimate: $600 - $800
(Day 2) Lot 1199: Marilyn Monroe in The Misfits approx. 48 minutes of unseen 8mm footage sold with copyright. (UA, 1961)
Original unpublished approx. 48 minutes of color 8mm documentary film footage captured throughout the entire location shoot for Marilyn Monroe’s final [completed] film, The Misfits. Shot by uncredited extra Stanley Killar (with help from an assistant, as Killar appears occasionally on camera interacting with the cast and crew). Killar and his camera were clearly accepted with full access, judging from the intimacy of the hand-held camera with Marilyn, Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, John Huston, and others. Filming begins in Reno on the casino strip filled with flashing neon signs, and around the “Mapes Hotel and Casino” which was official headquarters for the production while on location. Includes Marilyn first in the legendary cherry dress, truly radiant, then throughout the footage in a few different outfits preparing for and rehearsing scenes like the courthouse (consulting with her coach Paula Strasberg), the rodeo and the tavern; Gable riding horses, practicing roping with a lasso, getting in and out of his beautiful personal Mercedes 300SL Gullwing, rehearsing the drunken tavern scene with Marilyn, and much more, and nearly always with cigarette in holder; real stunt cowboys rehearsing the bull-riding and bulldogging scenes (at obvious great peril) as doubles for Montgomery Clift, who we then see practicing falls as inserts into the filmed stunt action (his nose injury seen in the film was genuine from earlier rodeo rehearsing); and numerous shots of director John Huston and his camera crew at work, and near the end, at play in the Virginia City, Nevada camel races. Also includes occasional shots of Eli Wallach, Thelma Ritter, producer Frank Taylor, Arthur Miller, and other cast and crew. The Misfits is widely considered Marilyn’s finest dramatic acting role, as well as being one of the best for both Clark Gable and Montgomery Clift. Reasonably professional (at least to a certain degree) in nature and shot from start to finish as a sequential “film in production” documentation, with apparent working title On Sets: The Misfits. To the best of our knowledge, this footage has not been previously published or broadcast (apart from its acquisition at auction from Killar’s heirs in 2008), and is offered here with full rights and assignment of copyright to its entire content. The original 8mm film stock has been properly transferred to (2) 7 in. reels in the process of recording its entire contents onto (2) different types of DVDs, while the original metal reels and cardboard Bell & Howell boxes are retained for posterity. Film stock itself is not inspected off the reels for condition, but no problems are apparent from viewing the DVD transfer. An extraordinary and absolutely unique previously missing puzzle piece in the brief, convoluted history of Marilyn Monroe on and off screen. In vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $20,000 - $30,000
(Day 2) Lot 1206: (2) books from the personal property of Marilyn Monroe. (1947, 1957)
Vintage (2) 8vo cloth-bound self-help/ psychology books from the personal library of Marilyn Monroe, with Christie’s “The Personal Property of Marilyn Monroe” auction special bookplates. Entitled Hypnotism Today by L. M. Le Cron and J. Bordeaux, and The Tower and the Abyss by Erich Kahler, both retain original dust-wrappers, and one of which exhibits a pencil notation presumed in Marilyn’s hand, “The conditioning has in some cases created a new, independent quantity—The person, who proceeds to condition himself.” Dust-wrappers chipped and stained, otherwise books themselves are in vintage fine condition.
Estimate: $800 - $1,200
(Day 2) Lot 1207: (2) books from the personal property of Marilyn Monroe including Joseph Campbell’s The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology. (1948, 1959)
Vintage (2) 8vo cloth-bound self-help/ mythology books from the personal library of Marilyn Monroe, with Christie’s “The Personal Property of Marilyn Monroe” auction special bookplates. Entitled The Open Self by Charles Morris and The Masks of God: Primitive Mythology by Joseph Campbell, the latter retaining original dust-wrapper and exhibiting a pencil notation presumed in Marilyn’s hand, “x: After all, what are you [I] here for but pleasure. But is it pleasure. When the actress is kissed and feels the warm breath of her lover on her neck—can you feel it? No. It is not pleasure you’ll find here but it’s as if it were. We are [pretending?] it is our pleasure. The real pleasure you can only take at home, when tonight [illegible] in your bed.” Dust-wrapper shows only a trace of marginal handling, otherwise books themselves are in vintage very good to fine condition.
Estimate: $800 - $1,200
(Day 2): Lot 1208: Marilyn Monroe extensive vintage original (40+) press file including obituaries. (1961-1965)
Vintage (40+) news clippings and full sections encompassing the last year of Marilyn Monroe’s troubled life, her obituaries, plus revelations and theories to follow. A treasure trove of information contemporaneous to the time of her questionable death, including a magazine article blaming (without naming) JFK. In vintage aged, archived condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1209: Marilyn Monroe (8) half-sheet posters including Dangerous Years, Bus Stop, River of No Return and others. (Various, 1948-1960)
Vintage (8) U.S. 22 x 28 in. half-sheet posters for films featuring Marilyn Monroe throughout the entire span of her career, including Dangerous Years, Home Town Story, Let’s Make it Legal, Monkey Business, Clash by Night, River of No Return, Bus Stop, and Let’s Make Love. Each is card-stock paper-backed to correct folds, marginal losses, or other wear, though none shows extensive repair much beyond marginal and fold retouching. Overall in vintage very good condition.
Estimate: $800 - $1,200
(Day 2) Lot 1210: Marilyn Japanese “B2” poster. (TCF, 1963)
Japanese 20 x 28 in. “B2” poster for the post-mortem documentary by Fox to capitalize on the Marilyn cult sweeping the world after her untimely death. Highlighted by the climactic moment in the “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” number. Unfolded, in vintage very fine condition.
Estimate: $200 - $300
(Day 2) Lot 1211: Andy Warhol signed “Marilyn” Castelli Gallery invitation. (1981)
Vintage original invitation to the Castelli Gallery’s Andy Warhol print retrospective (1963-1981). The 12 x 12 in. colorful invitation with Warhol’s iconic original “Marilyn” silkscreen print (1967). On the occasion of her death in 1962, Warhol chose the Gene Korman publicity photo of Monroe as “Rose Loomis” from the film Niagara as the basis for his instantly recognizable Pop Art treatment of the Hollywood sex symbol. Featuring printed red text on hot pink background in the lower left and right corner reading, “Andy Warhol” and “Castelli Graphics”. The legendary artist has signed boldly, in black pen, “Andy Warhol” vertically, to the left of the image. Show information, gallery address, November 21 through December 22, 1981 date and original print info: “Illustrated: Marilyn, 1967, silkscreen, 36 x 36 inches, edition of 250, published by Factory Additions” on the verso. With very minor signs of age. In vintage, very fine condition.
Estimate: $10,000 - $12,000
(Day 2) Lot 1212: 20th Century Fox “Marilyn Monroe” CineSimplex Model D Camera #6.
The CineSimplex Model D was truly built as a better choice than the heavily-blimped Mitchell cameras at other studios. It was extremely light. Indeed, the camera was so revolutionary that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded it a Class One Technical Academy Award. The camera cost $140,000 to build in 1940, a time when a Mitchell could be purchased for $15,000! Of the 17 CineSimplex Model D cameras designed and built for 20th Century Fox, only six still exist today. This #6 camera is the only example with its complete set of Bausch & Lomb Baltar lenses (25, 30, 35, 40, 50, 75 and 100mm) built specifically for this camera, matched to be optically perfect. Of particular importance, this #6 camera photographed more Marilyn Monroe films than any other, including, How To Marry A Millionaire, Let’s Make Love, Bus Stop, River of No Return, Monkey Business, and her last film Something’s Got To Give. 20th Century Fox assigned cameras to specific Directors of Photography. This #6 camera was assigned to Charles G. Clarke, ASC by the studio. Mr. Clarke’s camera was the very first used to photograph in CinemaScope. All tests for the new process were done with #6 and it worked with Leon Shamroy’s camera on The Robe. Comes with Mitchell head and wooden tripod with spreader, 20th Century Fox wooden lens box, (1) Bausch & Lomb CinemaScope lens and wooden case full of camera accessories with “Hugh Crawford Camera” (Clarke’s assistant’s) name painted on the lid. Comes with a letter of provenance from Roy H. Wagner, ASC. From the collection of Debbie Reynolds.
Estimate: $30,000 - $50,000
(Day 2) Lot 1220: All About Eve screen-used prop “Sarah Siddons” award.
(TCF, 1950) Vintage original gold-lacquered cast acrylic 5.5 x 5.5 in. sculpture of 18th Century actress Sarah Siddons (based upon Sir Joshua Reynolds 1784 portrait of her as “The Tragic Muse”) which is a key integral plot element in the Bette Davis, Anne Baxter and Marilyn Monroe classic film of backstage imbroglios. On 3.5 x 5.75 in. black-painted wooden base. Bette Davis as “Margo Channing” portrays the consummate stage actress and object of idolatry and envy in newcomer Anne Baxter as “Eve Harrington”, who manipulates Channing in order to usurp her crown as queen of the theatre, with the “Sarah Siddons” award being the badge of that distinction. This is one of the most recognized and revered “award” props ever featured in any film, not only from its importance in the story, but even more so from the continually growing fame and respect this extraordinary film garners. One of only three Sarah Siddons Award props visible during the ceremony, the statues are not only the object of specific attention through the opening sequence but one is then visible prominently throughout the film displayed on Margo Channing’s mantle. Years of storage have left the figure bereft only of its hands, with just a few tiny paint chips and bumps to figure and base, which is also missing the name placard. A truly fantastic, indelible icon from the golden-age of Hollywood. In vintage very good condition.
Estimate price: $4,000 - $6,000
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