Marilyn Monroe

[[File:JFK and Marilyn Monroe 1962.jpg|thumb|right|165px|(l-to-r): Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, John F. Kennedy, Harry Belafonte, ﻿﻿Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. on 19 May 1962]]
{{conspiracynav}}
'''Marilyn Monroe''' (born '''Norma Jean Mortensen''') {{lived|1926|1962}} was an [[American]] film actress, model, and signer best known as a sex symbol from her comic roles and now immortalized as a glamorous icon of Hollywood's "golden age". Near the end of life, Monroe's career began to crater after years of being cruelly abused by the film studio executives that made her famous before leading to a downward spiral that culminated her tragic demise in 1962. Given her status within American pop culture and the circumstances surrounding her death, it was no suprise that Monroe became catnip for conspiracy theorists who claim she was murdered by [[John F. Kennedy]], [[Robert F. Kennedy]], [[J. Edgar Hoover]], the [[FBI]], the [[CIA]], [[organized crime]], the [[Illuminati]], etc, etc.<ref name=sfgate>[https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/the-wrap/article/7-Conspiracy-Theories-About-Marilyn-Monroe-s-11189934.php 7 Conspiracy Theories About Marilyn Monroe's Death From Murderous Kennedys to UFOs], ''SF Gate'', 1 June, 2017</ref>

==Her death==
Monroe died on or about August 5, 1962, and her body was found at her home in Brentwood, Los Angeles, [[California]]. The official story is that she died from an overdose of prescription drugs: chloral hydrate and pentobarbital (Nembutal) were found in her body. In the day before her death, she had received a few visitors: one of her doctors Ralph Greenson, photographer Lawrence Schiller, and publicist Patricia Newcomb. Her housekeeper Eunice Murray stayed overnight and found her body. An autopsy was performed by deputy coroner Thomas Noguchi. The Chief Coroner, Theodore Curphey, decided that Monroe had committed [[suicide]]: the drugs were taken quickly and apparently all at once, she had made previous suicide attempts, and various circumstantial factors indicated depression.<ref name=wpdeath>{{wpa|Death of Marilyn Monroe}}</ref>

Due to conspiracy theories, the [[police]] reopened the case in 1982 but found no evidence of murder. There was no evidence that the drug had been forcibly administered (no needle marks). One discrepancy raised by later writers is over the lack of barbituate in her stomach, surprising with an oral overdose, which as well as conspiracies has led to theories that the drug may have been administered as an enema.<ref name=lewis>''Hard-Boiled Hollywood'', Jon Lewis, University of California Press, 2017</ref> Aside from that, the only real doubt was whether it was accidental or deliberate overdose, but evidence pointed to the latter.

Conspiracy theories involved various totemic and probably mythical objects, including her missing "red diary" and recordings of her talking, which she had possibly made for her psychiatrist Ralph Greenson. Purported transcripts appeared 40 years after her death, but the tapes have never been found.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/2005/aug/05/entertainment/et-marilyn5 New Chapter in the Mystery of Marilyn: Her Own Words?] by Robert W. Welkos (August 05, 2005) ''Los Angeles Times''.</ref>

==The suspects==
* '''[[John F. Kennedy]]''' was [[President of the United States|President of the US]] at the time.  No proof has ever been provided that he had been having an affair with Marilyn; but on May 19, 1962, a few weeks before her death, she had "crashed" the public birthday party of the President and gave a very sexy performance of a song, "Happy Birthday, Mr President", which did amuse the president.<ref>{{wpa|Happy Birthday, Mr. President}}</ref><ref name=lewis/>  This event has fueled the rumor of an affair.  Archived White House records of the daily and hourly minutes of the President, along with all phone call records (24/7), have never corroborated any additional synchronized meetings or opportunities where he could have met with Marilyn.  This conspiracy theory is one of the most popular. 
* '''Jackie Kennedy''', John's wife, whose motive would be jealousy.
* '''[[Robert F. Kennedy]]''', John's brother RFK, who, according to Evan Thomas's well researched RFK autobiography, and using daily minutes and schedules from White House and Congressional archives, notes that RFK could not have had an affair with Marilyn since his whereabouts does not coincide at anytime with hers. Thomas also notes that RFK only met Marilyn three times, all of which were public or semi-private attended functions.  When Marilyn died, RFK was 400 miles distant, in San Francisco, with his wife and entourage for a public function held that evening.  Fueling this conspiracy, RFK's sister Jean Kennedy Smith hinted at a possible affair in a letter published in 2016<ref>[https://nypost.com/2017/10/27/rfk-fbi-were-warned-about-book-detailing-marilyn-fling/ RFK, The FBI were warned about book detailing Marilyn fling], ''New York Post'', October 10, 2017</ref>.
* '''{{wpl|Peter Lawford||''',}} an actor, husband of John F. Kennedy's sister Patricia, and an associate of Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack. He spoke by phone to Monroe on the day she died.
* '''Frank Sinatra''', getting really improbable here, but there were circumstantial facts to delight conspiracy theorists: he and Monroe were both being treated by Greenson, and Sinatra had links to the mob as well as to Lawford (with whom he had a well-publicised falling-out in 1962).<ref name=lewis/>
* '''[[Fidel Castro]]''', whom she also had a relationship with according to the serious nutters. She didn't.

==The conspiracy theorists==
* '''Frank A. Capell'''. ''The Strange Death of Marilyn Monroe'',<ref name=capell>[https://archive.org/stream/CapellFrancisAlphonseTheStrangeDeathOfMarilynMonroe/Capell_Francis_Alphonse_-_The_strange_death_of_Marilyn_Monroe_djvu.txt The Strange Death of Marilyn Monroe], Frank A Capell, online text at archive.org</ref> self-published in 1964, set the template for future conspiracy theories. He claimed that Robert Kennedy was responsible, to protect his own reputation after an affair which Monroe had taken more seriously, but he also wove it into a larger story of a [[red scare|communist plot]] involving the Kennedys.<ref name=sfgate/> Capell didn't appear to have much in the way primary sources: some information came from the notoriously [[right-wing]] gossip columnist {{wpl|Walter Winchell||,}} although he also received information from Los Angeles police sergeant Jack Clemmons (see below). Like Clemmons, Capell was a fervent anti-communist, editor of ''Herald of Freedom'', a self-described "national anti-Communist educational bi-weekly"; he claimed to "maintain files on two million people who have aided the International Communist Conspiracy."<ref name=capell/> In 1965, Capell pled guilty to spreading false stories that liberal senator Thomas Kuchel had been caught in a [[homosexual]] act; Clemmons was also involved in the case but escaped charges after resigning from the police force.<ref name=wpdeath/>
* '''Jack Clemmons''' was the first police officer on the scene. His account changed considerably over the years after Monroe's death, with claims that he could just tell there was something suspicious about Monroe's death. Clemmons was a member of anti-communist group The Police and Fire Research Organization, and his fervent anti-communism probably explains why he got on so well with Capell.
* '''Norman Mailer''', the larger-than-life American novelist, claimed in ''Marilyn: A Biography'' in 1973 that Monroe was killed by the CIA or FBI following an affair with Robert Kennedy.<ref>''Marilyn: A Biography'' by Norman Mailer (1973) Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0340181044.</ref> It wasn't even clear why they had her killed — not to protect Kennedy but to get some kind of leverage over him.<ref>{{wpa|Marilyn: A Biography}}</ref> He drew his account from earlier biographies by Fred Lawrence Guiles and Maurice Zolotow, leavened with his own interpretation; legendary ''[[New York Times]]'' film critic Pauline Kael accused Mailer of performing "character assassination with the freedom of a novelist who has created fictional characters".<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/05/04/reviews/mailer-marilyn.html Marilyn: A Rip-Off With Genius], Pauline Kael, ''New York Times'', July 22, 1973</ref> Mailer rapidly retracted his allegations, which was probably taken by many people as a sign not of their ridiculousness but that somebody had got to him and he had been silenced.
* '''Robert F. Slatzer''' published an account based on Capell's, which was chiefly notable for one incredible claim — that he had been married to Monroe in [[Mexico]] in 1952.<ref name=lewis/>
* '''Anthony Scaduto''', a music [[journalist]], made similar claims writing under the pseudonym Tony Sciacca in soft [[porn]] magazine ''Oui'' in 1975. He added another key detail to future theories with his claim that Monroe kept a secret "red diary". There was no evidence for the existence of the diary, or any of his other claims. But doesn't the fact that the diary has never been found prove how important it was?
* '''Milo Speriglio''', a private detective hired by Slatzer, published his own book in 1982. ''Marilyn Monroe: Murder Cover-Up'' claimed she was killed by union leader Jimmy Hoffa (who had conveniently vanished in 1975) and gangsters.<ref>''Marilyn Monroe: Murder Cover-Up'' by Milo Speriglio (1982) Lawman Press. ISBN 0930990773.</ref> He drew heavily on earlier books but also published claims by Lionel Grandison…
* '''Lionel Grandison''' was an actual near-witness who might have had knowledge of Monroe's death due to his work at the Los Angeles County coroner's office. He claimed in Speriglio's 1982 book that he had seen her body and she was badly bruised. Tarnishing his reliability, he was fired from his job for stealing from dead bodies.<ref name=wpdeath/> There was also the long delay between her death and his comments.
* '''Anthony Summers''', a British [[tabloid]] journalist investigated the case in the 1980s and wrote ''Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn'' (1985).<ref>''Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn'' by Anthony Summers (1985) MacMillan. ISBN 0026154609.</ref> In his story, Robert Kennedy and Peter Lawford were keeping her drugged, to shut her up about her and Robert's affair, but she was given too much and died on the way to hospital. Her body was brought home and set up to look like suicide.
* '''Jeanne Carmen''', who claimed to be a friend of Monroe, and was used as a source by Summers. There is debate over how well she knew Monroe.
* '''Donald Spoto''' wrote a 1993 biography which sought to debunk earlier conspiracy theories while introducing a little one of his own.<ref>''Marilyn Monroe: The Biography'' by Donald Spoto (1993). Chatto & Windus. ISBN 0701140259.</ref> He claimed that she died accidentally and her death was covered up by her doctors Greenson and Engelberg: Engelberg had prescribed Nembutals and Greenson a chloral hydrate enema administered by the housekeeper Murray, which together had killed her. The men wanted to cover up their mistake and lied about her mental state. A large part of Spoto's book is devoted to criticisms of Summers, although critic Mark Lawson reckoned Spoto focused on the minutiae without discrediting some of Summers' main points.<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/book-review-some-like-it-hot-some-like-it-dull-marilyn-monroe-donald-spoto-chatto-1799-pounds-1455971.html BOOK REVIEW / Some like it hot, some like it dull: 'Marilyn Monroe' - Donald Spoto: Chatto, 17.99 pounds], Mark Lawson, The Independent, 17 April 1993</ref> In addition, there is no evidence that Murray acted as Monroe's nurse or administered enemas.<ref name=wpdeath/>
* '''John Miner''', a prosecutor involved in the original investigation into her death, stated in the 2000s that her death was the result of an accidental overdose from an enema given by the housekeeper Murray (there was some question over the lack of drugs in her stomach). Miner claimed that there were irregularities with the autopsy and that most of her important internal organs had mysteriously disappeared.<ref name=latimesminer>[http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/04/local/la-me-john-miner-20110304 John Miner dies at 92; investigator of Marilyn Monroe's death], LA Times, March 4, 2011</ref> He also claimed to have transcripts of tapes Monroe had made just before her death for her psychiatrist Ralph Greenson, which proved she had not committed suicide because she was planning for the future. He said that Greenson had destroyed the actual tapes, and there is no evidence that they ever existed apart from Miner's claims.<ref name=latimesminer/> It isn't clear when exactly the transcripts were made. He made the transcripts available shortly after being declared bankrupt, and had a chequered career before then.<ref name=wpdeath/>
* '''Matthew Smith''' in ''The Men Who Killed Marilyn'' claimed the CIA killed Monroe as revenge on Robert Kennedy for the Bay of Pigs fiasco. It seems like  a lot of trouble to go through. His later book ''Victim: The Secret Tapes of Marilyn Monroe'' drew on Miner's transcripts to elaborate the theory. He also published claims that John F. Kennedy was killed by the CIA.<ref>[http://spartacus-educational.com/JFKsmithM.htm Matthew Smith], Spartacus</ref>
* '''Normand Hodges''', a CIA agent, made a deathbed confession to the murder, according to the satirical publication ''World News Daily Report''. [[Snopes]] has debunked this claim, which is linked to spurious rumors that she had sex with [[Fidel Castro]].<ref name=snopes>[https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/seven-year-snitch/ Seven Year Snitch], ''Snopes'', 16 April 2015</ref>
* '''[[Unacknowledged|Steven Greer]]''' claimed Monroe was killed because she threatened to reveal evidence of the existence of [[UFO]]s, which she had learnt from the Kennedys. This claim featured in the 2017 film ''Unacknowledged'' that was directed by Michael Mazzola.<ref>[https://io9.gizmodo.com/a-new-ufo-documentary-suggests-marilyn-monroe-was-kille-1795435826 A New UFO Documentary Suggests Marilyn Monroe Was Killed Because She Knew About Aliens], io9, 22 May 2017</ref>

==See also==
* [[John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theory]]
* [[Marilyn Manson]]
==External links==
*[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000054/ Marilyn Monroe on IMDb]
*[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Creator/MarilynMonroe Marilyn Monroe] on [[TV Tropes]]
==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monroe, Marilyn}}
[[Category:Actors]]
[[Category:California]]
[[Category:Ufology]]

Categories: Actors, California, Ufology