Customer Reviews

The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe

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As a huge fan of MM I thought I knew just about all there was to know about this fascinating lady, but Taraborrelli proved me wrong. Using fresh research, including some files recently released by the government, the author adds more color to the affair between Marilyn and President Kennedy, info supplied by an FBI agent who was documenting the affair at the time it occurred! He also interviewed many of the main players from Marilyn's world (many no longer with us) and he was able to review unpublished notes of reporters who covered Marilyn when she was alive. Taraborrelli `s extensive research pays off with one of the most insightful books on Marilyn ever produced. The reader learns of the role Marilyn's mother actually played in her life; I won't give anything away but it is much more extensive than the public ever knew. I was also shocked to learn of the depth of Marilyn's mental problems, I mean any one familiar with her life story knows she had issues, but I never suspected how sick she truly was. This is not just a rehash of old material and I highly recommend it to all interested in this icon's story. For more fascinating Marilyn Monroe reading, do check out "Misfits Country" Marilyn brought to life during the filming of her final movie.

This is a detailed, fairly complex biography of Marilyn Monroe. I may not necessarily agree 100% with the conclusions that author reached, particularly towards the end of Marilyn's life, but there is a lot of interesting, intriguing information in this new biography. As an avid, avid fan of Miss Monroe, I have read just about every biography there is (that I know of!--I have over 75 books about MM as of my last count), as well as of other significant players in her life. So the idea of a new, comprehensive biography is something that I always look forward to.

The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe is extremely well written and researched, and gives the reader a new appreciation of Marilyn--particularly as relates to her early life and the events that helped shape her personality. The analysis of Marilyn's early life as Norma Jean Baker is perhaps the best overall assessment I have read yet. The author has taken time to put into perspective her early relationships with her foster families and relatives involved in her upbringing. The sad story of Norma Jean's mother, Gladys, is related in poignant detail throughout the book. The overall premise that Norma Jean/Marilyn was descending into the same schizo-paranoid type personality towards the end of her short life is the basis for many of the author's conclusions about MM. After reading about Marilyn's early life (Norma Jean) up to the point where she divorced Jim Dougherty, you truly get a sense of the uncertainty and insecurity of a girl who was shuffled from home to home and who was searching for family caring and love. Stories related in other biographies, particularly of childhood molestation, are pretty well put to rest according to author Taraborelli. Norma Jean's transition into Marilyn Monroe is plausible and well-covered, including a sympathetic look at MM's relationship with agent Johnny Hyde.

Where I run into a sense of frustration with this book is at the point in Marilyn's life where she begins to date Joe DiMaggio. Indeed, the major events of their lives together, and subsequently her relationship with Arthur Miller, are chronicled, but at this point there seemed to be a bit of a loss of direction regarding the relationships of Marilyn and her second and third husbands. The chemistry between MM and Joltin' Joe is well defined; their later relationship especially after he rescued her from Payne Whitney, less so. The early romance with Arthur Miller is well-done; the disconnect between him and Marilyn after she found his journal notes is poignant. Less informative is information regarding the end of their marriage and divorce.

Marilyn is described in the early 1960's as either quite charming and lucid, or totally drugged and 'out of it.' The same witty, attractive and clever woman who could charm JFK or his brother Robert seems to bounce back and forth almost daily as being between being lovely and clear -- or deranged and delusional, depending on the drugs she is deemed to be taking. This poses a problem in this reader's mind, as it seems a bit unlikely that both personas could be present depending on the circumstances. It also is interesting to note that, in her mid 30's, Marilyn was more beautiful and sexy than ever, and the many thousands of photos from various photographers, such as Bert Stern, or outtakes from Something's Got to Give, show this. After all, the camera doesn't lie--even for Marilyn Monroe. Sure, she had approval of her photos and it's certainly true that not every shot was spectacular, but in a series of photos shot at the same time there are always great shots and so-so/bad ones. Her look, during this time, was trimmer and even lovelier than she was 10 years before.

The Cal-Neva lodge incident is detailed far more clearly and cleanly than in any other bio of MM that comes to mind. Indeed, the relationship of friendship between MM and Pat and Peter Lawford makes sense, at last. The apparent great friendship between MM and Pat Lawford is given great credence here.

Perhaps there is no way to have a 'definitive last word' about the events in MM's life. This book unequivocally states that Marilyn met John F. Kennedy in 1962. Other books, also seemingly well researched, put their relationship as beginning much earlier. Another current book, In the President's Secret Service, clearly states that MM and JFK had an ongoing affair and met many times in many places in New York City.

The eternal question about Marilyn's death (suicide or murder) is not clearly resolved, although the author indicates that he believes it was by a likely unintentional overdose of drugs. That said, the timelines which have been offered over the bios of the last 25 years do not really mesh with this conclusion, especially regarding the time of death and the chaos at MM's house in the hours after her death was known.

Little things, like whether Eunice Murray actually lived with MM (in this book it is stated she did--in some other well-researched books it is indicated that the only night she EVER spent at MM's Brentwood home was on August 4, 1962), lack of mention of some major players in Marilyn's life (Arthur Jacobs comes to mind) and a brusque sentence in which all the angst of Marilyn's firing by Fox over Something's Got to Give is resolved in a statement to the effect that suddenly MM had a brand new $1 million contract with Fox and the movie was going to be finished after all--with absolutely no detail as to how this came about -- left me feeling a bit uncertain and wondering about the information available on issues like these.

Overall, this is by far one of the better biographies of Marilyn Monroe to come out in awhile. Definitely worth a read for the MM fan, and for the movie fan who wants to try and understand a bit more about the mystique of the one and only Miss Marilyn Monroe.

I have recently found myself reawakened by the mystique of Marilyn Monroe, perhaps because of the recent "Vanity Fair" article about her and the release of "Fragments." As such, I have entered into a research frenzy, gobbling up as much information about her as possible, reading new books, reviewing old biographies, etc. I read Taraborrelli's bio on Elizabeth Taylor years ago and enjoyed it, so I believed that his study of Marilyn would be equally intriguing, especially since the "kudos" and "bravos" on the back cover talked about how ingenius and ground-breaking his research was. Um... not really.

Not only have I read many other bios that have more fully investigated and humanized the tragic and iconic figure that MM has become, but basically everything he offers up has been communicated before. The only new information I was surprised by was his revelations about Marilyn's own symptoms of BPS (borderline paranoid schizophrenia) and her relationships with her mother, Gladys, and half sister, Berniece. Other than that, the book is only exceptional in its total lack of information. In his appendices, Taraborrelli even states that he didn't include a record of his source materials simply because he thought it tedious and "no one really checks that anyway." Again, really? Nearly every piece of new "evidence" that he introduces, which is consequently refuted in nearly every other preceding Marily bio, isn't backed up by any proof. He simply says, "this is the real truth, and the other claims were false." Well, why? If you're right, prove it to me.

He also fails to approach the damning evidence that authors such as Donald H. Wolfe, for example, bring against the Kennedys and their association with MM. He refutes years of speculation and testimony that Marilyn was engaged in a torrid affair with the president (and maybe even his brother) by saying, "No, it wasn't true." And their participation in her death? "No, that's not true either." Well, why then?! Shoddy. Shoddy, at best. Not to mention that he contradicts himself every other page, saying that JFK slept with Marilyn once and then wanted nothing to do with her but then insisted that she appear at his birthday party at Madison Square Garden. INSISTED. And Bobby too. Yeah, really sounds like he wanted that whack-job out of his life.

And "whack-job" is just how Taraborrelli presents Marilyn. Oh, he has sympathy for her by God, but he portrays her as a drug-addled lunatic. This is exactly the stigma that has been slanderously attached to her even prior to her death and that so many researches have been diligently trying to cut through. It's almost like Taraborrelli is trying to enforce the incorrect image of Marilyn and protect those who so apparently contributed to her death, such as the Kennedy brothers, her shrink Dr. Greenson, and her other assorted "friends." I don't believe that Marilyn was a completely innocent figure, no one is, but she had a little help finding her way to self-destruction. If Taraborrelli had backed his claims up with solid evidence, I could accept it, but since all he does is say, "This is what happened, trust me," I'm sorry, but no. Come on.

Stay as far away from this book as possible, unless you like witnessing someone spit on an sad woman's grave.

I too am a huge Marilyn Monroe fan and have read every known book about her or those close to her that I could possibly dredge up. This is a good read and does have some new information. The author did find the one area about Marilyn nobody has paid enough attn to, her mother. Pretty heartbreaking. How Marilyn remained patient and loving towards Gladys as long as she did is beyond me. I did find irritating errors in the book tho. Gladys received in Marilyn s will $5000 per year, not $5000 per month. Paula Strassberg was paid $2500 a week to coach Marilyn for The Prince and the Showgirl, not $25,000 per week. It makes you wonder what else he got wrong!

I dont know what to make of the mental illness theme running thru the book.
To me the author kept trying to find cause and effect and I hope Marilyn s mental problems werent really to the degree suggested, altho I think borderline personality is accurate, schizophrenia, may be stretching it.

Marilyn s half sister, Bernice Miracle s book, My sister Marilyn was heavily sourced for background. The one thing I dont get is in that book Bernice said Marilyn met her father towards the end of her life. Why didnt the author discuss this and also try interviews with either Berniece or Mona Miracle on the subject? The author implies that Stan Gifford was the biological father but states in the book that Stans son vehemently denies this.The author doesnt exlain this at all. The author also actually at one point got confused as to possible fathers, including Jap Baker among the candidates. This was Bernice s father and long out of the picture when Marilyn was conceived. It would seem to me the 2 likliest candidates are either Stan Gifford or Edward Mortensen. Both lived to old age and were in and out of hospitals towards the end of their lives, Im surpised no one has tried to find blood types of all or DNA to put it to rest once and for all. Finally, it seems to me no author has tried hard enough in getting Patricia Newcomb to spill the beans as to exactly what happened the night of Aug 4th 1962, shes the last one still alive that has direct knowledge I believe.

Having said all that, its still a good book worth the read for sure and its refreshing the author stayed away from sensationlism regarding the Kennedys, it was a 1 night stand with 1 brother..............which is more or less what I all along thought.

Confession: I will read all things Marilyn, which I will not admit under all circumstances. This book, like so many others, seemed more skeletal than flesh and blood. Like others writing here, I wonder how Marilyn could be in a constant stupor yet be vibrant and engaging at dinner, as well as articulate and shrewd in business yet always impoverished. People are complex and self-contradictory, true, but here I think it was the text.

As with so many Marilyn books, issues are raised and dropped without completion. The whole intimation that the Kennedy brothers were toying with Marilyn, mocking her, making her into a parody of herself with the "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" fiasco was left to twist in the wind. (Trust me, that shocked the nation when it happened, and at the same time was deeply, deeply embarrassing: the can't look/must look image was exactly right.) She felt she was being laughed at....more?

Some details were wrong, as well. Thorazine is an anti-psychotic, not a narcotic. That isn't that hard to fact check, so it left me wondering about the rest. The same for the doctor's house call the night of her death. What about that?

I thought all had been written about her. There is still more to be done. She is said to have been nice and lovely. Some examples would help. In what way was this so? She did tend to her mother, true, but how else did she demonstrate caring for others? Surely not through the contempt she displayed by squandering others' time on set. This was yet another remark casually tossed in without being sufficiently amplified.

I liked this book because there was a lot of good details toward the begining of the book. He did well on his research about her childhood and MOST of her past, but when it got to the point about Bobby and JFK, he vaguely discussed it. Said she loved Bobby and probably slept with JFK as well one night, but that it was only one night that the two had an affair and that people thought there was much more to it then there really was. I think he was VERY wrong about that. He also didnt do very much research about her death, he basically says, yeah it was probably suicide, when after a lot of the research Ive done, its hard to tell with the way Bobby was involved this her the day before her death and how mad he was at her for threatening to tell people about them. How he went to her house twice and asked her maid and her maids son to leave and when they came back the first time she was cry hysterically and when they came back the second time she was comatouse. I think a good author would have included both theories of her death and went into better depth about her and the Kenndy's and the fact that Greenson (her psychiatrist) was found riding around in the car with Bobby the day she was found murdered. It was a good book to learn more about her. Great details, Seemed very accurate for the first half of her life, but the last half really sucked in my opnion. Most of it seemed like a good read to me, some of it was bologna though!

Marilyn Monroe was, without question, one of the most intriguingly beautiful women of the 20th century. Not only was she attractive, but she was deeply complex and had a sincere desire to become a great actress.

"The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe" is an examination of her life from beginning to end, opening with an account of Marilyn's foster mother, Ida Bolender, and how Marilyn came to be a part of her family. The book then goes on to chronicle the histories of Marilyn's grandmother, Della; mother, Gladys; and finally the birth and childhood of Norma Jeane (Marilyn's birth name).

The author's style of writing is uncomplicated and gives the reader a clear and honest portrait of the most sensual actress of our time.

Some chapters are:
*The Voices Return
*Norma Jean in an Orphanage
*Norma Jean Marries
*Marilyn Tries To Meet Her "Father"
*Joe DiMaggio
*Marilyn's Rebellion
*Sinatra
*Arthur Miller
*Why Marilyn Was Investigated By The FBI
*Marilyn Is Committed
*How Dare You Betray Me!
*Kennedy Style
*An Overdose Because of JFK?
*many more chapters throughout this 576 page biography.
(And there's always the question of whether Marilyn committed suicide, died of an unintended overdose, or was murdered. The book will give the reader solid clues into the mystery.)

If you are a Monroe fan or just want an interesting read, this will probably be one the most talked about books of 2009. I enjoyed the book, and found out many things about Marilyn that I had not previously read by other writers.

One would think that of all the billions of words written about Marilyn Monroe everything had been made public - at least twice. Not so we discover in The Secret Life Of Marilyn Monroe. Celebrity biographer Taraborrelli who is known for digging deeper than most for collecting data about his subjects really went over the top with this one. He interviewed innumerable sources, all documented in his itemized 30 pages of interviews; everyone from James Dougherty, Marilyn's first husband, to Arthur Miller, whom he found "Maddeningly difficult and not at all open, to Peter Lawford to Mitzi Gaynor.

Perhaps some of the most revelatory information found in this book comes from the files released in 2006 under the Freedom of Information Act. The author details a "truly extraordinary" 3-page document containing information by an FBI agent describing the relationship between Marilyn and Robert Kennedy.

This volume (and it is a volume - 560 pages with previously unpublished photographs) will probably stand as the ultimate word on the ill-fated star. Unfortunately, it is a sad story, sadder than many of us knew. Gladys Baker, her mother who was denied in many publicity releases, was mentally ill suffering from severe paranoid schizophrenia. Marilyn's early years were spent at the Los Angeles Orphans' Home. To come from those circumstances to become one of the most famous movie stars in the world is quite a feat. Regrettably, it seems to have taken a dreadful toll as Marilyn began to deteriorate mentally.

For those who want the definitive story of the woman called the world's greatest sex symbol, here it is, filled with details and minutia from the day she was born until the hour of her untimely death. Taraborrelli has completed a yeoman's task in presenting the story of Marilyn Monroe. One only wishes it could have had a happy ending.

- Gail Cooke

Fantasy has always played a part in the fixation people have when they deal with the subject of Marilyn Monroe. This overfed fixation we have with the woman has basically kept her alive - vividly so - for fifty years. This, when you consider that the woman's screen career barely covered 15 years, is quite a feat. What is more astonishing is that even after five decades, there seems to be no stopping the eerily charismatic attraction Marilyn Monroe holds over the world.

Her movie roles were varied and, looking at them clinically, a bit on the sorry side. Yes, of course there was her compelling portrayal of a common girl with too-big aspirations in BUS STOP and nobody can deny the hypnotic power of her nameless character in THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH. Even in a minor role as she parlayed in SOME LIKE IT HOT, the Monroe magnetism was strong - so much so that it overpowered everything else. But her acting was shaky and, because of her larger-than-life persona, without good material, Ms. Monroe's explosive presence served to undermine her; without a solid story, she overshadowed the script causing the audience to see the weaknesses in both the film and her own stilted, although enjoyable, performances. Even when presented with a solid piece of work like THE MISFITS, the amateurish attempts at acting (this time not delegated solely to Marilyn Monroe but to the entire cast) turn what should have been a deeply emotional tale into a curiosity.
THE SECRET LIFE OF MARILYN MONROE by J. Randy Taraborrelli strangely reflects the imperfections in the machinery that made Marilyn Monroe both a star and an enigma. To his credit, Mr. Taraborrelli retells the Monroe legend in a surprisingly fresh way. As Marilyn is one of the most popular subject matters in non-fiction literature, that is quite a feat and the author neatly sidesteps all the mawkish traps others have fallen prey to . . . but, again like in Marilyn Monroe's habit of turning her positives into negative, this works against the author and the retelling of the story.

The pleasure in reading THE SECRET LIFE OF MARILYN MONROE is that the reader so wants Marilyn Monroe to be the sweet victim and Mr. Taraborrelli fulfills this wish. Others have cited her as a simple woman who tried vainly to rise above her means or as just a glamorous adornment that started out as a fad but mysteriously became ingrained into society. How the author accomplishes this is by portraying her as a vulnerable and easily overwhelmed character in her own life. Marilyn Monroe comes off as a savory but muddled persona who only thinks she knows what she wants. Her vulnerability, which supposedly Marilyn Monroe played to the hilt and Mr. Taraborrelli uses as his trump card, takes the hard edge off her indecisive behavior and feebly explains how she ultimately set out to foil her own career (constant lateness, continual absences from the set). Instead of seeing a person filled with vices, as well as virtues, the author is a bit too enamored with his subject matter to see the unexplained flaws. His way of dealing with this is by gilding the lily, so to speak: without much proof, he creates (as opposed to recreates) conversations and thoughts that the subject (and those surrounding her) had at any given critical point in her life. In doing so, Mr. Taraborrelli makes Marilyn Monroe seem a bit too godly to be appreciated but you are suppose to accept her as a sweet, albeit confused, woman. However, as it is doubtful if there is any way he can get inside the minds of people who have been dead for decades and it is a certainty that nobody stopped to write down, "and the thought that crossed my mind was" or what Marilyn thought when she saw her mother or step-sister, the entire hook that the book is based upon quickly crumbles.

So, this is entertaining reading and you put the book down with a new, and refreshed, appreciation of the screen legend. But how much of it is on point? I doubt if anybody will ever know the entire story leading up to the death of Marilyn Monroe so, until then, this is as good a filler as any.

I was very happy with this book. Although I have only read a few other MM bios, I like this one the best. Some other books hint at scandals or unprovable things, while I feel this author has merely tried to stick to the facts as he found them. I too was a bit surprised to find out how disturbed she seemed to be but it only adds to her vulnerability. Fans will never agree en m asse about what happened "that night" but overall I strongly recommend this book. It is even good as a first bio for those unfamiliar with her life. And I still don't like Arthur Miller any better after reading this!