Through the words and photographs of celebrated photographer Sam Shaw, Dear Marilyn offers newly discovered correspondence and never-before-seen images of the most famous woman Hollywood has ever created.
Dear Marilyn offers a fresh insight into the life of the most-famous woman Hollywood has ever created. Through the stunning photography of Monroe’s close friend and confidant, the photographer, journalist and filmmaker Sam Shaw, this book brings Marilyn Monroe to life in a spectacular celebration of the centenary of her birth. In Shaw’s own voice, through his diary entries and intimate correspondences with Monroe, we learn of their close friendship and an insider-view that charts her rise to stardom, the challenges she faced and her quest to find artistic authenticity. For the first time, Shaw also tells the origin story of his iconic ‘blowing skirt’ series from The Seven Year Itch. Stunning digitally remastered photographs from the original 1940s–1960s archival material include some of the most famous images ever taken of Monroe: from behind the scenes of The Seven Year Itch to candid images of her on the streets of New York City and in love at the beach in Amagansett. Including never-before-seen images, Shaw’s work favors improvisation and shows Marilyn Monroe at her most spontaneous and radiant. “Marilyn was born out of time, still she became a superstar, a myth, and a legend.” —Sam Shaw
Part 1
The origin story of how Sam Shaw met Marilyn Monroe in
1949.
Part 2
The obstacles Monroe faced in building her career in Hollywood
Monroes public persona
The making of The Seven Year Itch (1954 to 1955)
Monroes rise to global fame
The full story behind the flying skirt photograph developed and
photographed by Shaw.
Part 3
Monroes New York Years
Her artistic and intellectual education through art, theatre and books
Monroes private life with Arthur Miller (1957)
Finding her own voice and asserting herself in the Hollywood system.
Part 4
Historical and cultural analysis of Monroe
Monroe as a metaphor for America
Monroe seen through a contemporary lens
Monroes continued inspiration for new generations.
A native New Yorker, Sam Shaw (1912 to 1999) began his photography career in the 1940s with Colliers magazine, photographing the everyday life of ordinary people. He travelled the USA creating reportages on such subjects as jazz musicians in New Orleans, farmers and coal miners in West Virginia, WWII, and the burlesque, before going on to work with film studios in New York, Los Angeles and Europe as a stills photographer.
As well as photographing Marlyn Monroe throughout her career, Shaw shot many other film industry personalities such as Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, Audrey Hepburn, and Alfred Hitchcock. His work was regularly published in Life, Look, Paris Match, Europeo, Harpers Bazaar, among others.
