My hair had much more Marilyn-vavavoom before it (and I) was destroyed by the heat and humidity of the day (PA humidity, these were my last pictures in PA before Ireland). By the time I took these pictures most of my curls had collapsed, but I like to think there's still a little Marilyn Monroe style lurking underneath it all. While I've always enjoyed her comedies, Marilyn Monroe has never been much of an icon for me, although as I get older and read more about her I'm definitely more intrigued. When I was younger I never knew what a prolific reader she was; that for all of society's desire to label her as a dumb blonde she loved James Joyce and Walt Whitman among others. Nor was I aware of her quiet activism, like the way she supported Ella Fitzgerald's career by getting a nightclub to book the singer when the owner didn't want Ella Fitzgerald to perform there based on her race (Marilyn called the owner up and said she would sit front row every night Fitzgerald sang). While her beauty was a big part of what made Marilyn famous, it is interesting how much more depth there is to her than what we typically remember. We all have secret worlds inside of us that people can only guess at.
CONVERSATION