Marilyn Monroe’s Former Doheny Drive Apartment Building

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Another day, another Marilyn Monroe location.  🙂  Last month, fellow stalker and major Drew Barrymore aficionado Ashley, from The Drewseum website, tipped me off to The Marilyn Monroe Collection Blog which had just published a post about an apartment building where my girl had lived at two separate times during the 1950s and 1960s. Amazingly enough, for whatever reason, I had never heard of that particular apartment building in relation to Marilyn Monroe before and I immediately added the address to my list of must-see locations!    So, while were out in Hollywood doing some Oscar Weekend stalking earlier this month, I finally dragged my fiancé right over to Doheny Drive in Beverly Hills to stalk Marilyn’s former residence.  YAY!

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I was especially excited to stalk this particular former residence of Marilyn’s because The Marilyn Monroe Collection Blog had posted a photograph of the actress which had been taken while she was parked in front of the building!  So darn cool!  As you can see in the photographs above, while there have definitely been some changes to the property since the picture of MM was taken – including the addition of garage doors and the removal of the vent-like structures above the carport area – the building is still very recognizable from the time when the actress lived there.  Love it!

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Marilyn first moved into the Doheny Drive apartment building, which had been constructed just one year prior, in 1953 and lived there for about a year before marrying baseball legend Joe DiMaggio on January 14, 1954.  The actress, who was already wildly popular at the time thanks to starring roles in both Niagara and Gentleman Prefer Blonds, lived in Unit #3 of the building, a one bedroom, one bathroom dwelling which measured a scant 648 square feet!  It is incredibly hard to imagine one of the world’s most popular movie stars living in such tiny digs, but she must have liked the place because in April of 1961, after her divorce from playwright Arthur Miller was finalized, the actress left New York and once again leased the very same unit in the very same building.  She stayed there until March of 1962, at which point she moved into the Brentwood area home she had purchased a few months prior, the same home in which she would sadly pass away on the night of August 4th, 1962 (or in the early morning hours of August 5th, 1962, depending on which report you believe).   Marilyn’s former apartment building is now a made up of individually owned condominium units.  

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According to my buddy E.J. over at The Movieland Directory, Marilyn’s former building, the front entrance of which is pictured above, is no stranger to celebrity.  Other stars who have lived on the premises include actor James Coburn, pinup girl Jeanne Carmen, French actress Bella Darvi, and actress Viola Mertz.

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Big THANK YOU to Ashley from The Drewseum for tipping me off to this location!  🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  🙂

Stalk It: Marilyn Monroe’s former apartment building is located at 882 North Doheny Drive in Beverly Hills.  The actress lived in unit #3.

Marilyn Monroe’s Catalina House

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The most important item on my Catalina Island stalking list was the home where a very young Marilyn Monroe lived with her first husband James Dougherty during the years 1943 to 1944.  This was long before Miss Monroe became a Hollywood icon and household name, back when she was just a girl who was known simply as Norma Jeane Baker.  Norma married James in 1942 at the tender ago of 16.  Yes, you read that right – 16!!!  The family who was taking care of her at the time was moving out of state and rather than take Norma with them, opted to basically marry her off to one of the neighbor boys.  After only one short year of marriage, James was shipped off to Catalina Island to begin his basic training with the Merchant Marines.  Marilyn moved to Catalina with him and remained on the island for about a year and a half.  So, as you can probably imagine, I was absolutely busting at the seams to find her former home – a task that proved to be much easier than I had anticipated. 

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While waiting at the Catalina Island taxi station yesterday, I happened to notice a flyer for a movie called Hollywood’s Magical Island: Catalina with a picture of Marilyn on it posted on a wall.  So, of course, I just had to ask the taxi operator if he knew anything about the movie, which he, sadly, didn’t.  So, I said, “Shoot!  I was hoping it might have information about where Marilyn’s Catalina house was located.”  Well, lo and behold, the cab operator got this funny look on his face and said “I know where her house is – it’s at 310 Metropole Avenue!”  I totally thought the guy was pulling my leg, as what would be the odds that the very first person I ask about her house would know its exact location???  Well, I must have some seriously good stalking karma because the guy really did know the correct address.  He told me that just about a year ago a Japanese film crew had descended on the island to make a documentary about the starlet and they actually filmed part of it at her house!  Turns out the taxi guy knew the location, because it’s located just three blocks up the street from his little taxi stand and he saw the filming!   Honestly, what are the odds?????  🙂 

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So, of course, I immediately dragged my parents and my fiance right up the street to stalk Marilyn’s former residence.  🙂  Marilyn’s house is an adorable little beach bungalow that looks pretty much exactly like I pictured it would!  So darn cute!!!!  The home is actually a duplex, I believe, rather than a single family residence, as there seem to be two separate front doors, as you can see in the above photograph.

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But, being the overly-anal person that I am, I just had to ask around town for further verification that the house I had just stalked was definitely Marilyn’s former home.  I hate putting information on my blog unless I know with absolutely certainty that that information is correct.  And all I had to go on for this one was the word of a random cab operator.  So, I wanted further verification.    Well, as it turns out there are COUNTLESS stories floating around out there as to where the starlet’s former house is located.  While most locals I talked to had no idea that Marilyn had even lived on the island LOL LOL LOL, those few that did had differing stories.  I heard everything from “She lived somewhere on Whitley Avenue” to “No, no, no, her house is on Descanso Avenue between Beacon and Third Streets” to “Marilyn Monroe lived here?  Are you sure?”   And that last one came from a guy who WORKS AT THE CATALINA ISLAND MUSEUM!  LOL LOL LOL  Needless to say I was just a tad bit frustrated over all of the differing theories.  I mean, come on people!  This is Catalina history!  Someone  should know where MM lived!!!!  Finally, I ended up locating two different books about the history of the island, both of which said Marilyn’s former home was located on Metropole Avenue – just like the cab guy had said!  🙂  So, while I can’t say with absolute certainty that Marilyn Monroe did at one time live at 310 Metropole Avenue on Catalina Island, I am going to go out on a limb here and trust the word of two history books, a local taxi operator, and a Japanese film crew.  🙂

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!  🙂

Stalk It: Marilyn Monroe’s Catalina house is (most likely) located at 310 Metropole Avenue in Avalon.

Marilyn Monroe’s First, and Last, Home

UPDATE – this house is currently for sale.  You can see interior photographs of it on the Curbed LA site. 

Just finished another excellent book about the life and times of Miss Marilyn Monroe. The book, Goddess , was recommended to me by a staff member at Vroman’s – even though it is currently out of print – who said it was the definitive biography about the star. See why I love that bookstore?!? 🙂

Anyway, reading the book reminded me that a couple of years back, on our annual Haunted Hollywood tour, my boyfriend and I did a little stalking of the house where Marilyn Monroe took her final breath. This was actually the first, and last, home Miss Monroe every owned. She purchased the house in 1961, but didn’t officially move in until March of 1962, just six months before her death.

While shopping for homes in 1961, Marilyn decided she wanted a place close in both proximity and looks to her therapist, Dr. Ralph Greenson’s, home. The Spanish style home on Fifth Helena Drive fit the bill, as it looked very similar to Dr. Greenson’s home and was located only a few short miles away. According to Goddess, Marilyn actually cried while signing the final papers as she said she never imagined she would be purchasing a home alone. Ironically, after moving in to the home, Marilyn had a plaque placed above her door which read “Cursom Perificio”. Translation – “My Journey Ends Here”. How right she was.

Sadly, there isn’t a whole lot to see of the home from the street as there is a huge wall surrounding it. But it was still very cool to visit, and I highly recommend stalking it if you are at all Marilyn fan. According to Goddess, Marilyn absolutely loved her little Spanish bungalow and was personally handpicking all of the furnishings before her death. She even made a trip to Mexico shortly before her death to pick up some decorations for the home. (In the above photo a large green home is visible above Marilyn’s gate – that is a neighbor’s house, not hers.)

Remember to be courteous when stalking and not to disturb the home’s current residents. From what I have read they do not take kindly to tourists taking pictures in front of their house. Which begs the question – Then WHY in the heck did they buy one of the world’s most famous houses?? LOL

You can read a brief history of Marilyn’s home here.

UPDATE: 

Are you a Marilyn Monroe fan? Visit BarrysTickets.com for Marilyn Tickets to see a play based on the legendary Marilyn Monroe.

Marilyn Monroe fans visiting the L.A. area will be excited to hear that tickets to a new stage show chronicling the starlet’s life are currently available at Barry’sTickets.com.  Marilyn – the Story of the Silver Screen Goddess, A Dance Musical, comes to Los Angeles from London’s West End and recounts the tragic behind-the-scenes life of the world’s most iconic blond.  The musical, which was choreographed and directed by the Oliver and Evening Standard award-winning director Peter Schaufuss, provides audiences a glimpse of the private world Marilyn rarely shared with the public – the world of a woman who achieved every success imaginable, except for true happiness.  The show features a cast of fifteen remarkable actors and showcases fifteen lively song and dance numbers including Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind”, which the singer originally wrote in honor of Marilyn in 1973, “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” from the hit movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and “My Heart Belongs to Daddy” from the 1960 movie Let’s Make Love.  Don’t miss Marilyn – The Story of the Silver Screen Goddess, A Dance Musical.   

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Marilyn’s final home is located at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood. The house can be difficult to find as there are many streets in the area with the name “Helena”. Take South Carmelina Avenue past First, Second, Third and Fourth Helena Drive and then you will see Fifth Helena, where Marilyn’s home is located.

Marilyn Merlot

I am still very much in the throws of my Marilyn Monroe obsession, and it is definitely true what they say – the more you think about something, the more you attract that thing to you. My father happened to be going through his wine collection last week and discovered a bottle of “Marilyn Merlot” wine that he had purchased almost a decade ago. No one in my family has ever been a big Marilyn fan, so it was a fairly random purchase. My dad says he came across the wine one day many years ago in a grocery store and he grabbed it thinking it might one day be a collector’s item. Due to my recent obsession, he of course gave the bottle to me and I quickly put it on display in my kitchen. Flash forward to this past weekend, when my parents were vacationing in Monterey, California. They made a visit to their favorite wine shop there, Terranova Fine Wines, and lo and behold, sitting on a shelf in the store was a vast collection of the Marilyn Wines, including the one my father had just given me. It’s present day worth? $225!! Guess he was right about it one day being a collector’s item. 🙂

Bob, the owner of Terranova, filled my dad in on the history of the Marilyn Wines. Apparently, in 1985 two Napa area brothers gained exclusive rights to Marilyn’s name and certain images of the starlet and decided to use them on bottles of wine. Beginning in ’85, the brothers released a new vintage of Marilyn Merlot each year on her birthday – June 1 – each with a different photograph of the screen legend. The wine was not extremely popular until its fourth vintage when it caught the attention of a Japanese businessman who formed a partnership with the brothers. They agreed that 60 percent of each year’s vintage would be sold exclusively in Japan, as Marilyn is still a huge icon there. They also agreed to only release a limited quantity of each year’s wine, so as to prevent overflooding of the market. Today the wines are hugely successful, with some vintages costing upwards of thousands of dollars. The brothers have branched out and now also produce Marilyn Cabernet, Norma Jeane Wines, the Velvet Collection, and Blonde de Noirs, their latest creation of sparkling wines. All royalties from the sales of the wines go to Anna Strasberg, the wife of Marilyn’s beloved acting coach, Lee Strasberg, to whom Marilyn left everything in her will. Anna allocates the money to the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and the Anna Freud Fondation in London.

That same day that my parents learned the history of the Marilyn Wines, my boyfriend and I were actually stalking the Beverly Hills home Marilyn shared for a few short months with husband Joe DiMaggio. Monroe and DiMaggio rented the house in April of 1954 while Marilyn was in town filming There’s No Business Like Show Business. The home, which is most often referred to as Joe and Marilyn’s honeymoon home, is a very cute, but nondescript Elizabethan style house. It is amazing to me to that she lived in such a normal home at the height of her career.

On October 6, 1954 a distraught Marilyn held a press conference on the front lawn of this home announcing her divorce from Joe DiMaggio. The press were out in force that day, camped out in Marilyn’s front yard, to document the event. Marilyn vacated the home shortly thereafter. You can see a slide-show of the press conference that took place that day here. Although it is a very long slide-show, there are quite a few photographs where you can see the home in the background.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Marilyn and Joe’s honeymoon home is located at 508 North Palm Drive in Beverly Hills, just off Santa Monica Boulevard. Terranova Fine Wines is located at 315 Calle Principal in Monterey, California. If you visit the store, be sure to ask for Bob, who has a vast knowledge of Marilyn Monroe and the Marilyn Wines. You can also visit the Terranova website here.