Breaking Down Marilyn Monroe's Most Iconic Costumes & Film Moments

Hinzugefügt: 2026-06-07

[00:00:00]You can see Marilyn everywhere, and everybody nods to >> [music] >> iconic moments. Is it the right size?

[00:00:06]>> Well, they can never be too big.

[00:00:08]>> Kate Hudson sharing her love for Marilyn Monroe on a what have been her 100th birthday today. Marilyn [music] tragically passed in 1962 at the age of only 36.

[00:00:18]>> Yes, but of course her legacy as an actress, singer, model, and cultural phenomenon lives on. To celebrate her, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has an incredible new exhibit called Marilyn [music] Monroe: How to Be an Icon. And I got an exclusive preview from Brian Johnston, co-founder of the Icon Collection, who loaned [music] many of the items on display.

[00:00:38]>> Gentlemen prefer blondes, diamonds are a girl's best friend. Tell us everything about this look from that iconic number.

[00:00:48]>> [singing] >> This has an interesting story. When she was filming Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, they first had her decked out for that number in a costume that was was quite skimpy. You can actually see part of it here. And it was just the time when that red velvet nude calendar broke. And Fox Studio said, "You have to cover her up."

[00:01:08]First they tried to get her to deny it was her in the calendar, and she said, "No, I'm proud of it." And so, William Travilla, the costume designer, literally had, I think, between a week and two weeks to come up with some alternative designs, and that was the birth of the pink dress. It's been emulated countless times. Everybody from Margot Robbie to Madonna.

[00:01:29]>> [music] >> So, I think it's probably the most copied film costume there is.

[00:01:34]>> All right, this is [music] one of my favorite gowns. I think I'm manifesting it.

[00:01:38]>> [laughter] >> The gold lamé gown was also designed by William Travilla for Marilyn to wear in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. But ever the provocateur, she had quite the moment in the dress before the movie even came out.

[00:01:50]>> Marilyn actually took it out of the wardrobe department to wear it to the Photoplay Awards in 1953.

[00:01:55]>> Really?

[00:01:56]>> And she didn't wear underwear either, and so evidently when she walked up the aisle to receive her award, it caused a huge sensation. So, this was a substantial part of her rocketing to stardom. And then the studio said, "We cannot have her wear that. It's too skimpy." So, when she appears in the film, they only show her from the back.

[00:02:16]>> Really?

[00:02:16]>> Yes.

[00:02:17]>> While at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Sophia Serrano, who curated the exhibit, [music] showed us other legendary relics including an illustration and fabric swatch of the dress Marilyn wore to sing Happy Birthday to President [music] John F. Kennedy in 1962.

[00:02:32]It was her last public performance before her untimely death at age 36.

[00:02:37]>> Happy birthday Mr. President.

[00:02:42]>> Well, just this little bit of fabric is enough to take us back to this iconic [music] dress. Of course, >> The really interesting thing about the Happy Birthday, Mr. President dress is that she [music] had seen a similar dress being worn by Marlene Dietrich, an early Hollywood star, and she commissioned Jean Louis to make her a similar dress. And so, [music] this really iconic moment you can see is that she comes out and she has a fur stole and she sheds it, and [music] it looks like she's wearing nothing but rhinestones.

[00:03:09]>> One of the most recognizable and valuable pieces of Hollywood history is the white flowy halter dress Marilyn wore in The Seven Year Itch.

[00:03:17]>> Oh, do you feel the breeze from the subway?

[00:03:20]Isn't it delicious?

[00:03:21]>> This is an original William Travilla copy of the dress that Marilyn wore.

[00:03:26]>> [music] >> Um he made this later because it was such a phenomenon. It's only in the movie for a few seconds, but they did a huge publicity shoot around it. And they invited hundreds of photographers to [music] come film her on the subway grate in New York, and she knew how to seize the moment.

[00:03:42]>> That kind of feels like she'd be the ultimate influencer. How do we feel she'd fare in today's age of social media?

[00:03:47]>> I think Marilyn would have been great [music] at social media because she knew how to give the public just a little bit enough so they wanted more.

[00:03:56]Marilyn on TikTok would have been everything.

[00:03:59]And you can see the exhibit at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures now through February.

[00:04:10]>> [music]