The Seven Year Itch Apartment

In Vanity Fair’s October 2008 cover story, photographer Mark Anderson asks “Who ever forgets the first time they saw Marilyn Monroe?” Such a great quote! I remember exactly where I was the first time I saw Miss Monroe – sitting in my apartment watching The Seven Year Itch just a few short months ago. As soon as I watched the scene where Marilyn leans out the window of her New York City summer sublet, hairdryer in hand, and exclaims “I just washed my hair!”, that was it for me! I was a goner! 🙂 So this past week, while in New York, I just had to stalk the apartment building where that scene was filmed.

Needless to say the apartment building featured in The Seven Year Itch looks extremely different today than it did back in 1955 when filming took place. But thankfully it is still, for the most part, recognizable as the residence where Tom Ewell and Marilyn Monroe spent one hot summer in Manhattan. In The Seven Year Itch, MM’s character, “The Girl”, moves into a non-air-conditioned apartment for the summer. That apartment just happens to be located directly above married man Tom Ewell, whose wife and son are spending their summer in the country. “The Girl” befriends Tom and spends many an evening in his apartment, which is equipped with an “air conditioner in every room!” Hilarity ensues, of course, as Tom tries, very unsuccessfully I might add, to avoid falling under Marilyn’s spell.

The apartment building is featured several times in the film. It’s most notable appearance is at the very end of the movie when Tom realizes how very much he loves his wife and spontaneously decides to spend the rest of the summer with her in the country, leaving his air-conditioned pad to MM. How cute is that! Anyway, in the pandemonium, Tom runs out his front door, barefooted, and heads towards the train station. The ending shot of the movie is of Marilyn leaning out of Tom’s first floor window as she tosses him the forgotten loafers. 🙂

I was SUPER excited to stalk this location! The Seven Year Itch building was pretty much the top “must-see” locale of my New York vacation. It was amazing to realize that movie magic been made at this very spot a little over fifty years ago. And that Marilyn Monroe herself had once leaned out the window of the small, non-descript building I was now staring at.

For those of you in the market for a New York apartment, The Seven Year Itch building currently has a vacancy. 🙂 Let’s hope the apartment for rent has air conditioning! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Seven Year Itch apartment is located at 164 East 61th Street in New York.