Marilyn Monroe's evening gown and shawl

Marilyn Monroe wore a flesh colored skintight gown and shawl by Studio City Emeson’s. Monroe later gave the gown to her close friend, a noted Hollywood columnist and socialite May Mann who was known to ask for clothing worn by her celebrity friends as a symbol of friendship.

Monroe's dress was a strapless satin-lined floral cotton and linen dress accompanied by a matching long ruffled shawl. The gown was originally purchased around the 1950's by Monroe during the height of her career.

Design

The satin-lined gown, designed by Studio City, California: Emeson’s, is a strapless, floor-length skintight evening gown. The gown is decorated with floral embroidery all over the gown.The gown is complemented by a long ruffled shawl made of the same fabric to match. The gown is flesh coloured with a pinkish beige hue. There is a zipper at the back of the bodice and the gown is in a style that is very common for what socialites would wear to dinner parties in the 1950's. Marilyn would have worn this with a few jewels to compliment herself and still not to take the focus away from her face. After Marilyn Monroe gave the dress to May Mann it was altered by Mann so she could wear it out as a result the gown became threadbare in some areas from May Mann's continuous use. It only recently has been restored to the original seam-lines from Mann’s alterations. The gown has suffered from the years of Mann's use. There are some short snags end minor fabric tears but it is in good condition overall. It has been reported by the owner of the gown and as well as by the auction house that the gown has become ecru because of its age and it would have been due to May Mann's regular use that contributed to the state of condition that it is in now. Wear is clearly visible upon closer inspection of the gown. More specifically, along the bodice and zipper there are numerous snags of the cotton fabric.

History

After Marilyn Monroe gave May Mann the gown as a gift Mann had it altered to wear herself. She would wear it out to parties and social functions. Mann would later give the gown and shawl to Arline and Milt Larsen to exhibit at the Variety Arts Center. When the gown was exhibited at the Variety Arts Center (remembered as the Friday Morning Club) and the Magic Castle Museum during the 1990's it was one of the very first times that the public was able to see an item worn by Marilyn Monroe as this happened before the 1999 Christie's Auction selling the personal effects of Marilyn Monroe. May Mann had gowns owned by Jayne Mansfield and Mary Pickford that were also featured in the exhibition. The funds that were raised by exhibiting the gowns helped Milt Larsen’s non-profit organization "Society for the Preservation for Variety Arts" (situated in the Variety Arts Center). But due to problems with the IRS, the Center closed in the later years. The gown was later bequeathed to the Magic Castle a few years before Mann passed away at the age of 87. She bequeathed the gown (April 24, 1992) to the Larsen's because she knew that they had a vast archive of celebrity memorabilia and it would go to a good home where it would be properly displayed for people to come and see the dress owned by Marilyn Monroe. She believed that this dress would be the only time people would be able to see Marilyn Monroe's personal clothing as there were a very small amount of auctions and exhibitions that showed authentic Marilyn Monroe memorabilia. After the VAC closed, instead of selling the gown, the Larsons put the dress into storage for 22 years (1995) before putting it up for auction at the start of 2017. At auction the description of the gown was short and not descriptive enough. As a result it had never achieved the full public interest that it would have achieved had the auction house added more information and history. The description of the gown was:

An Evening Gown and Shawl Owned and Worn by Marilyn Monroe. Studio City, Calif.: Emeson's, 1950s. Strapless satin-lined floral cotton and linen dress and a matching long ruffled shawl, having been a gift from Monroe to the noted Hollywood columnist and socialite May Mann. Recently restored to the original seam-lines from Mann's own alterations. Accompanied by the present consignor's inventory sheet of items received from the Mann Collection, dated April 24, 1992, identifying the dress as Monroe's. One of the first items to ever be exhibited as being owned by Marilyn Monroe. Scattering of minor fabric tears and short snags, but very good overall.

It was not revealed at the time who the consignor was but after it found its way to an young Australian collector it was thoroughly investigated and authenticated. There was only one photograph that exists of Marilyn Monroe wearing this gown but after years of being in a private collector's collection the photo that depicts Marilyn has been lost.

See also

• White dress of Marilyn Monroe
• Marilyn Monroe's pink dress
• Marilyn Monroe
• May Mann

Bibliography

• Meyers, Jeffrey (2009). The Genius and the Goddess: Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe. America:University of Illinois Press
• Banner, Louis (2012). Marilyn: The Passion and the Paradox. New York: Bloomsbury Press
• Feuerherd, Peter (2017). The Many Meanings of Marilyn Monroe. America: Blue Hang Gulider
• Mayne, Judith (1987). Feminist Film Theory and Women at the Movies. United Kingdom: Modern Language Association
• Potter and Potter (2017). Movie & Music Memorabilia. Chicago Potter and Potter Auctions