The Jackie - Ethel...Friendship

If you’re a Kennedy fan like me, then you’re well aware of the (hmm, how best to say it…) friendship / contrast between Jackie and Ethel Kennedy. Scrolling through my newsfeed one day, I happened upon this pic of the two of them.

For me, so many things come to mind. First off, they both look genuinely happy with each other’s company and as though they’re having a pleasant conversation. Don’t worry. Jackie and Ethel weren’t the kind of ladies who would brawl or scrap, but apart from their roles as Kennedy wives, they had a hard time finding common ground.

Ethel was quick to tease Jackie and to make fun of her, especially around the other Kennedy women. Ethel, and eventually a few of the other Kennedy gals, enjoyed ribbing Jackie for her Debutante of the Year title, her ‘big feet’, and her taste for fine things, which included art and French cuisine.
Ever the graduate from Miss Porter’s finishing school, Jackie wasn’t one to return the jabs. She endured the comments and remained the quiet one among the Kennedy clan. The other ladies often mistook her demeanor as being snobbish. But there are three things to always remember about Jackie Kennedy: Her kindness never faltered; she was a near-perfect wife, mother, and full-blooded American patriot; and she had a sharp, quick wit.

However, Jackie struggled to fit in, or more precisely, to be accepted for who she was, in the Kennedy family. They were boisterous, enjoyed heated debates during dinner and physical games after, and believed in public service. Challenging qualities for Jackie, who was reserved, notoriously private, and had no passion for politics. You’d have a hard time remembering Ethel wasn’t Kennedy-born, as she was a natural fit: she gave birth to 11 children (surpassing family matriarch Rose and her 9 children), once jumped into a swimming pool during a dinner party, and desperately wanted to be first lady.

But in the picture above, another interesting element is Ethel’s ensemble. Jackie became known for her fashion choices, but in this photo, Ethel’s dress has a better fit–and she’s accessorized with gloves and pearls! Is she mocking Jackie? (Probably not, but it’s too fun NOT to say it.)
And who knew they would have the same taste in handbags? When you think of alligator bags, it definitely takes you back to a long-gone era, where ladies mopped all day, shopped, and watched soap operas. (Are alligator bags still stylish, or has PETA outlawed them?)

If you’re interested in reading more about Jackie, Ethel, and their conflicts, check out my novel, O! Jackie , where they clash over more than dinner etiquette and accessories.

Marilyn Monroe and James Dean

I recently posted a few pictures / paintings that featured Marilyn with James Dean. While it was obvious that most were photoshopped (the pics, that is), it did get me wondering, What was the relationship between Marilyn and James, and did they ever date???

Here's what I found:

(via Answers.com)

Marilyn Monroe and James Dean never dated. They never even met each other when they were alive. Monroe was several years older than him. While Dean was starting to establish his career and status in Hollywood, his life ended abruptly. Monroe died several years later as well. They each lead their own lives.

 However, both Monroe and Dean are considered icons in Pop Culture.
Both died very young. They are often depicted in art indicating that their beauty and tragic lives.

Monroe and Dean allegedly met once during the premiere of his debut film East of Eden(1955) and apparently disliked each other over 'Hollywood differences' (she enjoyed the spotlight and he hated it). They would've made an attractive couple though.

-----

Interesting, isn't it? And for some reason, it almost makes sense that they knew each other and dated briefly. But, didn't happen.

Just something else to dream about.....

Marilyn's Lost Loves, pt. 2

Arthur Miller

(most info from HistoryToday.com)

Marilyn Monroe married Arthur Miller on June 29th, 1956. The marriage lasted five years. In the early months of 1956 Marilyn Monroe was preparing to star in Bus Stop, discussing with Laurence Olivier a role in The Prince and the Showgirl and romancing Arthur Miller, who was divorcing his wife, Mary. She was also formally changing her name from Norma Jeane Mortenson to Marilyn Monroe and being attacked by red-baiters for associating with the playwright, an alleged Communist sympathizer.

In February Walter Winchell broadcast an item about ‘America’s best-known blonde moving picture star’. Said to have been directly inspired by J. Edgar Hoover himself, it described her as ‘now the darling of the left wing intelligentsia, several of whom are listed as Red fronters’. The filming of Bus Stop was completed by the end of May. Miller’s Reno divorce came through in June and Marilyn joined him in New York, besieged by swarms of pressmen. On June 29th they held a press conference at Miller’s house in Roxbury, Connecticut, whose local newspaper had dryly announced the day before, ‘Local Resident Will Marry Miss Monroe of Hollywood’, adding, ‘Roxbury Only Spot in World to Greet News Calmly’.

Once the 400 pressmen had gone away, the couple sneaked off to the Westchester County Court House in nearby White Plains, where they were married by Judge Seymour Rabinowitz shortly before 7.30 pm in a ceremony that lasted all of four minutes. The bride was thirty years old to the groom’s forty. Miller’s cousin, Morty Miller and his wife, were the witnesses and there was not a solitary pressman or flash camera in sight. This was the civil ceremony out of the way. A traditional Jewish rite was planned for July 1st at the home of Miller’s agent, Kay Brown, near Katonah, which went ahead although Marilyn was now having severe misgivings and almost refused to go through with it. The wedding rings were inscribed ‘Now is forever’ and the bride was given away by her acting teacher and guru Lee Strasberg. There were twenty-five guests and the ceremony was performed by Rabbi Robert Goldberg. The writer George Axelrod made a witty speech congratulating the happy couple and adapting George Bernard Shaw to wish that their children would have Arthur’s looks and Marilyn’s brains: which was uncomfortably near the knuckle.

The newlyweds soon went off to London for the filming of The Prince and the Showgirl. Some days later, Marilyn happened to come across Miller’s notebook lying open on a table, looked at it and discovered that he was disappointed in her, feared that his own creativity would be threatened by this pitiable, dependent, unpredictable waif he had married and was seriously regretting the union. Marilyn told friends that he also wrote, ‘The only one I will ever love is my daughter’, though Miller could not recall having written that. It was a blow from which the marriage would never recover. Things went steadily from bad to worse and although Miller wrote the script of The Misfits for Marilyn, the pair separated in 1960 and divorced the following year.

I think Marilyn sincerely tried in her relationship with Miller. For him she was a prize, but for her, she was hoping that she'd found what she needed all along--a father figure. Reportedly, both had affairs during the marriage, perhaps a sure sign that divorce was inevitable. Plus, I think Arthur grew bitter toward her, felt that she was more work than he wanted, and that few perks manifested from being her husband. But once again, Marilyn was on the hurting end, having endured painful remarks from Arthur. Of all people, Marilyn was most fragile when it came to criticisms.

She deserves credit for trying and for surviving yet another broken heart.

Marilyn's Lost Loves, pt. 1

James Dougherty

(most info from about.com)

How Jim and Marilyn Met:

Marilyn's foster mom was a good friend of Jim's mother.

Wedding Date and Info:

On June 19, 1942, Marilyn and Jim were married at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Chester Howell in Westwood, California. The short wedding ceremony was officiated by Reverend Benjamin Lingenfelder of the Christian Science Church. Their reception was at Florentine Gardens in Hollywood. Marilyn was 16 years old when they married and James was 21 years old. They did not have a honeymoon.

"To avoid another orphanage stay a family friend orchestrated a marriage proposal when she was sixteen years old."
Source: Official Marilyn Monroe Website

James: "Norma Jeane wore a pure white, long silken dress, with a short veil attached to her thick, curly hair. It was a borrowed dress, but that didn't matter to either of us."
Source: Jim Dougherty. To Norma Jeane with Love, Jimmie. 2001. pg. 31.

Divorce:

James and Marilyn were divorced on September 13, 1946. She took up residency in Nevada on May 14, 1946 so they could be divorced there.

 

Later in life, James said, "I never knew Marilyn Monroe," referencing the fact that she became a superstar after they separated and divorced. To him, she would always be Norma Jeane.

 

Anyone else think she resembles Judy Garland in this picture?

A Jackie-Marilyn 'encounter'

Interesting article from Everlasting Star.... #marilynmonroe #oldhollywood #jacquelinekennedyonassis

http://blog.everlasting-star.net/2011/07/art-and-photography/jackie-kennedy-and-marilyns-allure/

Jackie Kennedy and Marilyn’s ‘Allure’

Posted on July 5, 2011 by marina72

Diana Vreeland, the formidable editor of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, included this photo of Marilyn (taken by Cecil Beaton in 1956) in her 1980 book, Allure.
Vreeland worked with Jackie Kennedy on the project, as William Kuhn recounts in Reading Jackie, a new study of the one-time First Lady’s career in publishing.

“Marilyn Monroe had a brief affair with JFK, and by 1980, when Vreeland’s Allure was published at Jackie’s behest by Doubleday, this was well-known…Monroe had committed suicide during the very week that Vreeland was taking over the editorial position at Vogue. She began work just as the outgoing editor was putting together the finishing touches on an issue which, by chance, included an article with a tribute to Monroe and several photographs. Vreeland’s colleague wanted one of the photos taken out. It was too ‘triste’ in light of what Monroe had just done. Vreeland replied, ‘You can’t leave that out! You cannot! It’s got all the poignancy and the poetry and the pathos of the woman in it!’ That was in 1962. In the late 1970s, Vreeland explained what she loved about this photo…‘Marilyn Monroe! She was a geisha. She was born to give pleasure, spent her life giving it – and knew no other way’…What did Jackie say to Vreeland about the Monroe photograph? Probably nothing, but the fact that she silently allowed Vreeland to include it shows Jackie content to acknowledge Monroe’s ur- sexiness, a quality that Jackie did not think she shared with the screen icon.
It seems as if Jackie was able to separate her editorial self from the woman whose husband had a public fling with Monroe. She was thrilled, about the same time she was working with Vreeland on Allure, when a proposal came from Doubleday that promised pictures from Bert Stern‘s last photographic session with the actress. ‘Marilyn Monroe!!!’ Jackie wrote in a memo to her colleague Ray Roberts. ‘Are you excited?’…Vreeland’s treatment of Monroe was probably like this for Jackie too: a publishing opportunity rather than a moment to reflect on a personal injury. In any case, if injury there had been, she was able to rise above it.”

Later in the book, Kuhn reports an interview with biographer David Stenn, who wrote about two Hollywood sex symbols pre-dating MM – Clara Bow and Jean Harlow – with Jackie’s support:

“Stenn also recalled a conversation he had with Jackie about Marilyn Monroe, a topic that he had avoided touching upon. That’s why he was surprised when she brought it up. Jackie didn’t mention Monroe in the context of JFK but rather as part of a continuum with Jean Harlow: both of them were blondes who made their sexual appeal the center of their screen personalities. As with Vreeland, Jackie was willing to discuss Monroe with Stenn in a completely dispassionate, even admiring way.”

Readers' Club

For those who have enjoyed (or will after reading this!) my series of short stories, The Kennedy Chronicles, I have good news. You can get all FIVE stories for FREE when you sign up and join my Readers' Club. Only four of the stories are available online. The newest addition, "Bouvier Afternoon" is meant as a special thank you gift for new members to the club.

In case you aren't familiar with the stories yet :) , here's a brief description of each:

"Encounter"--short, short story where JFK and Jackie cross paths on a train.

"Party Favors"--you're invited to attend the dinner party where JFK and Jackie officially met through mutual friends.

"Before the Proposal"--both JFK and Jackie face their doubts about marriage and consider what they'll sacrifice in exchanging 'I Dos'.

"Arrangements"--Joe and Rose Kennedy join Janet and Hugh Auchincloss for dinner to discuss each family's 'expectations' for the pending nuptials.

"Bouvier Afternoon"--Jackie is at the final fitting for he wedding gown and is determined to wear a dress she loves, but can she convince her mother?

Visit mercedesking.com to find out more or click HERE to join the club.

Thank you!

Still not sure? You can read Encounter for FREE.

 

Thanks!