I first became a fan of Marilyn Monroe some twenty years ago. I built up an impressive collection of books, postcards and other memorabilia, but in the 1990s, I had my children and Marilyn became less important in my life. I sold some of my collection, lost other pieces between house moves and until last year, I only had a few items left.
Then last year, my interest in Marilyn was reignited. I joined some Marilyn yahoogroups and soon became as big a fan as I ever had been. I decided to start collecting again and after seeing some of Douglas Kirkland's photos on the groups, I looked for his work on Amazon. I bought his hardback book - An Evening With Marilyn - which was published in 2005. It cost £6.59 from Amazon and arrived quickly.
It is a lovely looking book. Hot pink with a gorgeous Marilyn photo on the cover, it is a smallish hardback, around 8" x 7" in size. There are 126 pages, which include text but mainly photos in both colour and black and white.
The book is very stylish. Often a page only contains a few sentences or a quote, using a bigger font. It is well-presented, has a modern look to it and makes for a quick read.
If you are looking for a biography full of information on Marilyn, this won't be what you want. Kirkland met Marilyn three times in 1961 and this book recounts his memories of those meetings and displays the photos he took on the night of November 17th.
He was around ten years younger than Marilyn at the time and doing a photographic assignment for Look magazine. The film star was thirty-five at the time and had less than nine months to live.
Kirkland set the room carefully for the photo shoot. It featured a low bed, unmade, with white silk sheets. Marilyn had asked for 'chilled Dom Perignon and Frank Sinatra LPs' which he supplied.
The room also contained a balcony, on which Kirkland draped himself over to get some of the photos. There are a few pictures of this in the book, which I found interesting as a keen amateur photographer myself. It is fascinating to compare the positions Kirkland was in with the resulting photographs.
The photos are usually presented in chronological order, which enhances the text. They are stunning. Marilyn is angelic, radiant, sexy and beautiful - but never in a cheap way. She comes across as a fun-loving woman, a natural in front of the camera and a classy lady.
Douglas Kirkland describes his feelings as he takes the photos and how the atmosphere that evening was 'quiet, soft and enticing'. He also makes it obvious he was sexually attracted to her - which is understandable really! He was alone in a room with a nude Marilyn, cavorting on a bed in nearly see-through sheets! But he also suggests she wanted to sleep with him, but he resisted her advances because he was married with children.
Now, to me, this bit didn't ring true. I don't believe she was like this and it sounds to me as though it's a story Kirkland concocted, to make himself look good to his friends ("Hey, you know Marilyn Monroe? She wanted to sleep with me!") and to his wife "Yeah, she did, darling, but I said no. My love for you is stronger.")
After the photo session is completed and Marilyn leaves the studio, Kirkland feels a sense of loss and misses her. But the next day, he gets the photos developed and takes them round to Marilyn's flat to show her. She cuts up the ones she doesn't like, in front of him! This bit made me wince. I love taking photos and would be devastated if anyone destroyed them.
Marilyn chose her favourite image, which then takes up the next two pages of the book. I liked this idea, as it is interesting to know which picture she liked the best. Her explanation why is also one that offers up plenty of food for thought.
Kirkland was in France working for Coco Chanel, when the news was announced that Marilyn had died. He found out by seeing the headline 'MARILYN EST MORTE!' This is displayed across two pages of the book, having an impressive impact on the reader, even now. It is in big bold type, white on black and capital letters.
The book ends with a page long afterword, with his theories about Marilyn's death and the circumstances surrounding it. It is a good way to conclude the book.
Overall, I would say this book is definitely worth a place in any Marilyn's fan's collection. It is beautifully presented and the photographs are stunning. Some are rather hazy or grainy, but they are all worth seeing, as each one displays an aspect of Marilyn role-playing herself for the camera. As Kirkland says, on each of the three occasions he met Marilyn, 'she had always become a different woman than the one whom I'd expected to meet." During his photographic shoot, she was definitely being Marilyn Monroe, film star and goddess.
So, the disadvantages of the book? Well, it's a bit disappointing as far as content goes. It is hardly in-depth. I wanted to know more. I'm aware it was a long time ago, but I think if I had met Marilyn, I could have written several books quite happily.
The text is sometimes quite pale, which makes it hard to read. But then again, you will probably only want to read this once or twice. But expect to return to the pictures, as these are worth repeated viewings.
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available worldwide. International Delivery Rates much lower than most sellers on Abe - Delivery just ** 2 - 3 ** days on this book - DISPATCHED FROM THE UK - AI...
