Blonde Ambition: Marilyn Monroe & the Rise and Fall of the Hollywood Studio System

American History would be incomplete without the country’s prominent film making industry; in fact the word
“movie” has become almost synonymous with the film-making capital of the world, Hollywood, California. Throughout the
past two centuries, Hollywood has been credited with the introduction of some of the world’s most recognised faces,
constantly cranking out actor after actor and earning itself the title “the Dream Factory” (Powdermaker, 1950) due to its
almost assembly-line production of not just films but actors and actresses groomed to become “stars”. The height of
Hollywood’s tyrannical rule, dubbed The Golden Age of Hollywood, (Williams, 2005) has given way to some of the most
iconic actors and actresses in human history. Among these Hollywood legends, one name stands out among the rest. Now
considered a timeless icon, Marilyn Monroe has become one of the world’s most recognised celebrities of all time.
In a time when Hollywood’s biggest studios controlled virtually every single aspect of the film making process,
including the meticulous management of the actors and actresses careers, (Powdermaker, 1950) Monroe’s was both a
blessing and a curse to her associated studios. Her adoring fans guaranteed soaring box office receipts, yet as her time in the
spotlight progressed, and her star steadily rose she became increasingly difficult to work with, the studios were left with an
unnerving dilemma. Monroe’s later career overlaps the end of Golden Age Hollywood. Was Marilyn Monroe’s immense
popularity, coupled with her stubborn and headstrong attitude, a factor in the deterioration and eventually death of
Hollywood’s infamous Studio System?
Through the examination of her somewhat brief, yet eventful, life and focusing on two major milestones in
Monroe’s career: the 1953 film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, denoting the peak of her popularity; and her 1956 dramatic
effort Bus Stop, often hailed as her finest performance; (Summers, 1985) it becomes possible to somewhat trace the rise and
fall of Hollywood’s notorious Studio System, all through the eyes of one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, in hopes of
discerning her contributions to its downfall.
The Marilyn Monroe the world knows and loves today is a far cry from her early beginnings. Born Norma Jeane
Mortensen on June 1, 1926 at LA General Hospital to a struggling single mother, Monroe’s early life was an unhappy one.
(Glatzer, 2008) Plagued with mental illness and financial instability, Norma Jeane’s Mother, Gladys left her child in the
care of Ida and Albert Bolender, with the promise that she would visit on weekends, while she worked as a film cutter for a
Hollywood studio. (Taraborrelli, 2009) After suffering a mental breakdown however, Gladys was deemed an unfit parent
and Norma Jeane, who had been declared a ward of the state, was adopted by her mother’s best friend. (Guiles, 1969)
Monroe would later recall her time with Grace McKee as one of her happier moments in her troubled life.
(Monroe, 2007) An avid fan of the silver screen, Grace McKee was particularly fond of the sensational blonde bombshell of
her era, Jean Harlow. (Taraborrelli, 2009) With Norma Jeane in her care, McKee took it upon herself to groom and primp
her new charge, teaching her proper etiquette, and introducing her to various styles of dress, but perhaps the most
significant influence McKee had on the young Norma Jeane was her introduction to the great stars of the time, such as
Vivien Leigh, Ginger Rogers, and of course, Jean Harlow. (Glatzer, 2008) McKee, founded on her love of actresses like
Jean Harlow, would wash Norma Jeane’s hair with lemon, transforming her hair from its dirty blonde colour to a more
brilliant, pale gold that would go on to become her signature, a look that women everywhere would envy and emulate.
(Taraborrelli, 2009) It was perhaps McKee who implanted the idea of stardom in the young girl’s head, often telling her
that she would one day be a big star. (Glatzer, 2008) At the tender age of 8, young Norma Jeane was already on her way to
becoming a timeless legend – an unwitting pawn in the illusory scheme of Hollywood’s studio system.
Like most of the positive moments in Norma Jeane’s life, her time with Grace McKee would not last for long.
Grace McKee would marry Ervin “Doc” Goddard and, after Goddard repeatedly attempted to sexually assault Norma
Jeane, she was sent to live in an orphanage. (Taraborrelli, 2009) Throughout her early teens, Norma Jeane went from family
to family, being unable to be officially adopted due to her mother’s refusal to sign adoption papers. (Guile, 1969) Finally, at
the tender age of 16, Norma Jeane married her neighbour James Dougherty to save her from having to return to an
orphanage. (Monroe, 2007)
In 1944, Jim Dougherty was shipped off to war and Norma Jeane began working at a plane munitions factory.
(Guiles, 1969) It was during this period in her life that Norma Jeane would begin her unsteady foray into the entertainment
industry. After having been photographed by a military magazine for an article on plane manufacturing, Norma Jeane was
persuaded by the photographer to take a shot at professional modelling. (Summers, 1985) Upon joining the prestigious Blue
Book Agency, Norma Jeane was told that the market was more interested in blondes. Norma Jeane, whose childhood
blonde ringlets had now matured into a deep chestnut brown, found inspiration in Aunt Grace’s movie idol, Jean Harlow.
(Guiles, 1969) She began studying Jean Harlow and Lana Turner, two of the biggest blonde stars at the time, and, taking a
page out of their style book, decided to bleach her hair a golden blonde, not quite the platinum blonde look she would be
remembered for but a definite step in that direction. (Taraborrelli, 2009)
As a model, Norma Jeane found immediate success, booking magazine covers and advertisements. (Mailer, 1973)
The Blue Book Agency taught her how to better herself, how to make herself more marketable. They told her to smile with
her upper lip slightly relaxed, so as to hide the gums that protruded with her full smile, a trick she kept all throughout her
career, they corrected her posture, informed her of the angles that best suited her, and how to straighten and style her
naturally frizzy hair among other things. (Taraborrelli, 2009) In short, the agency had groomed and sculpted the small town
girl into a figure worthy of the public’s attention, a woman who conformed to the period’s standards of beauty.
On the year of his return, 1946, Jim Dougherty and Norma Jeane Baker were officially divorced.Her husband’s
refusal to permit Norma Jeane to pursue a modelling career forced Norma Jeane to end their marriage. Norma Jeane was
finally free to push through with her childhood dream of movie stardom. (Monroe, 2007)
Norma Jeane’s success as a model attracted interest from studios. Encouraged by a contact in a talent agency,
Norma Jeane paid a visit to the Fox studiohead of the casting at the time, Ben Lyon. (Taraborrelli, 2009) A prominent actor
once himself, Lyon saw potential in the young Norma Jeane, noting her resemblance to the late Jean Harlow, who he had
also helped years earlier (Summers, 1985)and, convinced that Norma Jeane had something special, set up a screen test
immediately. Upon seeing her screen test, Darryl Zanuck, the production chief at Fox, demanded she be offered a contract.
(Guiles, 1969)
Ben Lyon immediately started working on making Norma Jean a star. The first order of business would be to find
a suitable stage name for her as Norma Jeane Baker hardly seemed like a name fit for a movie star. Inspired by her idol Jean
Harlow, Norma Jeane decided to use her mother’s maiden name, Monroe (Taraborrelli, 2009) and Lyon suggested Marilyn,
the name of a popular Broadway singer in the 1920s. (Guiles, 1969) Ben Lyon would go down in history as the man who
created the name that would soon be on everyone’s lips, and Monroe would never forget it. Marilyn Monroe was born.
 Despite her seemingly exciting early start, her contract with Fox was short-lived and uneventful. Her contract with
rival studio Columbia Pictures would also lead to a dead end. (Mailer, 1973) In 1950, however, she appeared in a film that
would signal the beginning of her head-spinning rise to prominence. (Feeney, 2006) The Asphalt Jungle, a film noir
production helmed by renowned director John Huston had Monroe in a small but significant role. Up to that point, Monroe
was hardly what one would consider a movie star. Her small roles in previous films meant that she was unknown to the
movie-going public. (Summers, 1985) Despite being unbilled for her role in The Asphalt Jungle, the film suddenly put her
on the map. Monroe found herself with the attention of Fox studios yet again and a contract was negotiated. (Guiles, 1969)
America had finally been introduced to one of its biggest stars.
The mere mention of Marilyn Monroe’s name invokes images of her platinum blonde locks, luscious red lips,
sultry voice, and the voluptuous figure that drove the public wild. A wide eyed, “sexy-without-even-knowing-it”
demeanour set her apart from all the other aspiring starlets hungry for their fabled 15 minutes of fame. Yet the Marilyn
Monroe the world knew and adored was a fabrication, the creation of a woman desperate for fame and recognition and the
perpetuation of Hollywood studios hungry for their next big money maker. (Glatzer, 2008)
To those who knew her before her dizzying rise to fame, Norma Jeane and Marilyn Monroe were two completely
different people. Monroe’s half-sister Berniece Miracle would later recount a moment in Norma Jeane’s life, before
Monroe, where already, inklings of Marilyn Monroe could be seen. Monroe was constantly attempting to repair her
relationship with her absentee mother. While dining with her mother and half-sister, Monroe put on an exaggerated air of
confidence and charm, making herself more flirtatious and lively. Her mother seemed to greatly enjoy the “show” her
daughter had put on, and, for the first time in weeks, was smiling and laughing as Monroe roamed the restaurant chatting
with other diners and even singing and dancing with the live band. (Taraborrelli, 2009) Monroe herself seemed to like this
new persona, a far cry from her shy and humble roots, and perhaps decided to undertake the persona in her creation of her
movie star self. (Summers, 1985)
Recalling her time with Grace McKee Goddard, Monroe’s introduction to film stars like Jean Harlow and Lana
Turner had created an image of the kind of star she sought to be. Studio pressure and the standards of the time convinced
her that in order to fully embrace her path as a movie star she had to forget her old life and reinvent herself. (Summers,
1985) In fact, during her first contract with Fox, her entire history was rewritten for press releases. Her introduction to the
press introduced her as an orphan whose parents had both passed away, in an attempt to garner sympathy and hide a life
that the public may have deemed unappealing. It can be concluded, then, that Marilyn Monroe was a fabrication of the
studios that controlled her, dictating her background, her physical appearance, her characteristics through press control,
acting coaches and even, as is rumoured, cosmetic surgeries. (Guiles, 1969)
Monroe’s role in The Asphalt Jungle established her as the sultry, blonde bombshell she had patterned herself
after. While this may have seemed like a step in the right direction for her at the time it would inevitably lead to her
struggle with typecasting. (Summers, 1985) The studios immediately saw money making potential in their budding talent
and, in a move that only served to support their infamous reputation, put Monroe in roles that perpetuated the stereotype,
exploiting the blonde bombshell persona they had created, (Powdermaker, 1950) and like Betty Grable’s famous “Million
Dollar Legs”, Monroe had become synonymous with platinum blonde.
 Three years after Monroe’s breakthrough in The Asphalt Jungle, Fox released a musical comedy named
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, a film remake of the Broadway musical of the same name. (Davis, 1983)Monroe took on the
role of Lorelei Lee, a young entertainer who embarks on a cruise to Paris with her best friend, Dorothy Shaw, played by
Jane Russell, where she plans on marrying her extraordinarily rich, yet lovably awkward, fiancé. The plot takes a humorous
turn when her fiancé’s suspicious father has the two ladies followed by a private investigator, who aims to catch her in the
wrong. The film was a certified box office smash. It would signify a major turning point in Monroe’s career, going down in
history as her signature role. (Feeney, 2006)
Lorelei Lee seemed like the perfect part for Monroe’s blonde bombshell persona, and throughout the film Lee’s
various traits and characteristics would later go on to define the characters Monroe would be forced to portray. (Summers,
1985)From the film’s start, it is made known that Lorelei Lee is a woman who prioritises the materialistic things in life,
perfectly illustrated in a line by best friend Dorothy Shaw, uttering—“You know I think you're the only girl in the world
who can stand on a stage with a spotlight in her eye and still see a diamond inside a man's pocket.” Lorelei Lee’s show
stopping performance, “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend”; a performance that would go on to become Monroe’s
signature, (Davis, 1983) cements her gold-digging personality.
Lorelei’s obsession with wealth aside, the characteristics Monroe imbued in her character would set the tone for
most of her succeeding characters. Monroe put on a breathy, sultry voice that would become her trademark, a remarkable
change from the serious and classical enunciation she used in her previous films. Monroe perfected the wide-eyed,
innocently foolish, almost vapid character she would soon be known for, perfectly embodying the naivety of her character,
Lorelei Lee. A constant source of humour throughout the film was Lorelei Lee’s apparent stupidity, often leading to
embarrassing situations, illustrated in a scene where she attempts to wear a tiara around her neck. Coupled with her
seductive baby voice, innocent eyes, and quivering smile, she had undoubtedly achieved the desired effect, she was
irresistible. Employing techniques she had acquired in the modelling industry in conjunction with her natural charm and
charisma, Monroe had succeeded in embodying the character of Lorelei Lee, a role that she played so well and would find
difficult to escape.
Prior to Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Monroe had been given parts that flexed her dramatic talent. Fox used the
1951 film, Don’t Bother to Knock, as a test of Monroe’s ability to lead a dramatic piece. In a role that chillingly mirrored
her own mother’s character, Monroe played Nell, a recovering mental hospital patient who baby sits for a wealthy family.
The thriller was a minor success and was well received, proving Monroe’s capabilities as a serious dramatic actress to the
studio. (Guiles, 1969) The outstanding success of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, however, led the studio to forget her dramatic
talent and instead focused on cashing in on the sensational, sexy image that they had struck gold with. (Glatzer, 2008)
In an attempt to recapture the success of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Monroe was given roles that echoed her
character of Lorelei Lee. Her succeeding film, the ensemble comedyHow to Marry a Millionaire, had her playing a role that
was almost entirely identical to that of her character in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, returning to the air-headed, gold-
digging, sultry, blonde bombshell that she had captivated audiences with. In How to Marry a Millionaire, Monroe played
Pola Debevoise, who, along with Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall, attempts to find and, as the title suggests, marry a
millionaire. Though her character would end up with a man without any money, the damage was done and the role only
helped encourage Monroe’s typecasting.The film was a box office success and it seemed the studio had found the perfect
formula and were unwilling to allow Monroe the chance to expand her range, proof of their tyrannical control over not just
the film making process but of their stars. (Powdermaker, 1950)
Monroe’s succeeding roles were slight variations of the character that had propelled her to superstardom. She
played an ex-saloon singer in 1954’s River of No Return, and the musical There’s No Business Like Show Business, released
the same year, had her in the shoes of an aspiring entertainer, a role she only agreed to take on the condition that she would
be guaranteed the female lead in Billy Wilder’s The Seven Year Itch. (Glatzer, 2008)
Though Monroe’s success was a dream come true, she was incredibly unhappy with the direction her career had
taken. (Barris, 1995) Constantly seen on screen as an empty-headed, vapid blonde, all face and no talent, Monroe felt the
need to prove herself. Monroe longed for the respect and recognition given to the popular dramatic actresses of the time.
She yearned for the chance to prove to the public that she was more than just a beautiful face, that there was more to her
than what meets the eye. (Monroe, 2007) The studios preferred to stick with the tried and true formula they had spent years
perfecting. (Taraborrelli, 2009) Perhaps then, the words of Monroe’s character, Lorelei Lee, ring true “I can be smart when
it's important, but most men don't like it.”
Upon her completion of the film The Seven Year Itch, Monroe was given a role in the comedy film How to be
Very Very Popular which also starred her How to Marry a Millionaire co-star, Betty Grable. (The role was, yet again, that
of a blonde showgirl. According to Monroe, the script “was awful!” and she refused to take part in the film. (Guiles, 1989)
It was then that Monroe decided that she had had enough of 20th Century Fox and she declared that she had severed all ties
with the studio.(Taraborrelli, 2009)Marilyn Monroe had begun her rebellion against Fox and, perhaps on a larger scale, the
entire studio system.
Monroe decided that she needed a break from Hollywood (Barris, 1995) and, determined to hone her dramatic
skills, sought the help of renowned acting teacher, Lee Strasberg. Monroe moved to New York, where she enrolled in the
prestigious Actor’s Studio, notably counting some of Hollywood’s best actors among its alumni, headed by Lee Strasberg at
the time. (Mailer, 1973) At the Studio, Strasberg introduced Monroe to Method Acting, an acting technique that involved
the internalisation of the character, drawing upon personal experiences to bring depth to one’s portrayal of a character.
Strasberg was especially hard on Monroe; he believed in her talent and encouraged her to use her troubled childhood as a
source for inspiration, a place to draw emotion from. (Taraborrelli, 2009) For the public, Monroe’s desire to undertake an
education at the Actor’s Studio was unbelievable. Her classmates at the Studio would come and watch Monroe’s
performances and, though many were initially only there to witness her lack of talent, would leave shocked and clearly
impressed with her performance. (Glatzer, 2008) She had convinced the Actor’s Studio that she was a worthy and capable
actress.
Lee Strasberg was determined to help Monroe succeed as a dramatic actress and while his intentions have been
questioned by historians, many believed his desire to help Monroe stemmed from the challenge it presented and the
renown he would gain if he succeeded, (Guiles, 1969) he would become a catalyst for change. Emboldened by her time at
the Actor’s Studio and at the encouragement of her mentor, Monroe stated her intent to play more serious roles, and
divulged her desire to play the role of Grushenka in the Dostoyevsky classic The Brothers Karamazov. (Taraborrelli,
2009)Monroe was determined to turn her career around and finally be recognised as a serious actress.
 It was Monroe’s good friend, the photographer Milton Greene, who convinced her that she would be more
successful without Fox. (Guiles, 1969) Under her original contract, Monroe was earning a startlingly small amount
considering her success and popularity. For Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Monroe earned a mere $18,000, a far cry from her
co-star Jane Russell’s $400,000 pay cheque, despite Monroe having an equal amount of screen time and top billing.
(Taraborrelli, 2009) In addition to the fact that the roles being offered to Monroe were of substandard quality, she decided
to establish her own production company with the help of Milton Greene. (Summers, 1985)
In the 1950s, an actress starting up her own production company was practically unheard of, at least not since
Mary Pickford’s foray into film production.(Doll, 2007) Marilyn Monroe Productions was to guarantee Monroe freedom,
the chance to play the roles she wanted to play, the way she wanted to play them. (Taraborrelli, 2009) Fox, unhappy with
Monroe’s unwillingness to cooperate,threatened to sue Monroe for breach of contract. On How to Be Very Very Popular,
Fox replaced Monroe with the younger Shiree North as if to threaten Monroe, but the film itself was a box office failure.
(Guiles, 1969) In 1955 Fox finally released The Seven Year Itch. With the release of the film, Monroe’s popularity had
reached an all-time high, and the infamous “subway scene”, involving Monroe’s skirt being blown up by the rush of the
subway trains, was on everybody’s lips. (Davis, 1983)
The tremendous spike in Monroe’s popularity meant that Monroe had become a force to be reckoned with. 20th
Century Fox could no longer ignore her ever rising star and decided that they had to have her back. After months of
negotiation Marilyn Monroe was back in business under a new and improved contract. (Guiles, 1969) She was granted
production rights to all her films through Marilyn Monroe Productions. She would have script and director approval and her
production company would be paid $100,000 for each film it produced. (Taraborrelli, 2009) This turn of events would
prove to be a huge step for Monroe, and, more importantly served as a contribution to the downfall of the studio system.
Monroe had won this battle, returning to work on her own terms, with her own production company intact and fully
functional.
Monroe’s first film under her new contract would mark a momentouschange for the actress, a significant departure
from the clichéd character she had been confined to since Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Bus Stop, a film adaptation of
William Inge play of the same name, was the first of two films produced by Monroe’s short-lived Marilyn Monroe
Productions. Though Marilyn Monroe Productions shared the production company credit with 20th Century Fox, Monroe’s
creative control over the production itself was far greater than she had ever experienced in any other film, (Taraborrelli,
2009) In fact, it was Milton Greene, Monroe’s business partner, who secured and purchased the rights to the film
exclusively for Monroe herself. (Glatzer, 2008)
Since it was her production company that secured the film rights Monroe had a certain degree of script approval
and, more importantly, was given the power to select the film’s director, whose influence and direction would shape what is
commonly referred to as Monroe’s greatest performance. (Summers, 1985)
For Bus Stop, Monroe would select director Joshua Logan. Logan was the only American Director to study under
Konstantin Stanislavsky, a theatre director whose concepts would form the basis of Method Acting, (Taraborrelli, 2009) the
technique Monroe had studied in New York and would employ for the rest of her career. Monroe’s choice illustrated her
desire to work with someone she felt could relate to her acting technique, someone who was on the same wavelength.
(Guiles, 1969) Monroe took her newfound freedom and power to heart and immediately immersed herself in the creative
process of the film’s production by attending script meetings, contributing her ideas of how the characters should be,
(Summers, 1985) and making her voice and opinion heard. She attempted to be as much a part of the film’s creative process
as she could and it is perhaps these elements of freedom of expression that would lead to her dramatic transformation.
Set in a small, somewhat backward town, Bus Stop put Monroe in the role of Cherie, a struggling and naïve lounge
singer with big hopes and dreams, who is whisked away, by a young and immature cowboy in an attempt to force her into
marriage. Witnessing Monroe’s portrayal of Cherie is evidence in itself of the transformation Monroe had undergone. Gone
was the wispy squeak that characterised her earlier roles, replaced with a rough and thoroughly unattractive southern drawl.
Her sole musical number, a weary rendition of the jazz standard “That Old Black Magic”, forwent the extravagance of her
previous performances, replacing lavish stage sets with the interior of a seedy, rundown bar. She performed the song in a
terrible, struggling voice which lent itself strongly to her character’s abused and confused character which, coupled with a
shockingly awkward stage presence, was a far cry from the velvety voice and charismatic performances that heated up her
earlier films. Her charming, sensual demeanour was also nowhere to be seen, instead we are left with a girl weary from a
life of failure and dead-ends, yet filled with delusions of grandeur, fully convinced of the “instant” success Hollywood was
sure to bring her. Cherie, therefore, can be seen as the complete opposite of Lorelei Lee. She is a pale imitation perhaps; a
sad, almost pathetic wannabe of Lorelei Lee and on a deeper level, Cherie can be seen as a parody of the wannabe star,
desperate for her chance at fame, possibly Monroe herself in the days before her overwhelming success.
Monroe’s commitment to her role was clearly visible throughout the film’s production. Following what Strasberg
had taught her, she had internalised the character, perhaps drawing on her own humble beginnings as inspiration.
(Summers, 1985) Monroe took control of most of the aspects in her portrayal of Cherie. Unhappy with the lavish costume
designs, she felt that the costumes were far too lavish. She perused the studio’s wardrobe department, attempting to find
worn, battered costumes that she felt were better suited. She intentionally ripped holes in her stockings, which she felt
correlated strongly with her worn out character. (Guiles, 1969) Director Joshua Logan would later note how impressed he
was with her commitment and her “incandescent talent”, commending her ability to cry at will, as well as, the depth she
was able to bring to the character. He would even go so far as saying that she had the potential to become one of
Hollywood’s greatest stars, a stance he would maintain long after Monroe’s death. (Summers, 1985) In a scene where
Cherie is supposed to slap the male lead with piece of her dress, Monroe, overcome by such strong fury, hit her co-star with
such force that he drew blood. Attempts to get her to apologise were met with furious screams and tears of anger,
suggesting Monroe had taken her character to heart, she had become her character in following what Method Acting had
taught her. (Summers, 1985)
At first glance the part itself is very similar to the roles she played in her previous films, and unsurprisingly, many
critics dismissed the film, assuming her character would be the sexpot she had become synonymous with. (Guiles, 1969) In
fact, even the film’s director Joshua Logan initially refused to helm the film, believing Monroe to be lacking in talent, and
incapable of convincingly portraying the role she was set to play. (Summers, 1985) Yet the premiere left many of the critics
eating their words, claiming that Monroe had achieved a breakthrough in her career, giving the performance of a lifetime,
proving that she was indeed a talented actress.(Taraborrelli, 2009) Monroe had achieved what she set out to do in the first
place. She had proven to the world that she was a worthy actress.
 Marilyn Monroe was the creation of not just a young woman seeking her chance at stardom but of a system that
held an almost absolute control of the entertainment industry. Growing up immersed in Hollywood culture, the idea of the
ideal star, and even perhaps the ideal woman, was inculcated in her from a startlingly young age. This stage in Monroe’s
life, and later on her early career, correlates strongly to the zenith of the Studio System’s power. She was the unwitting
product of the System and as such was the perfect pawn for the perpetuation of the star system’s dominant control. From
her image to her background, she was manufactured and tailored according to the system’s specification and she would play
her part perfectly, something that would eventually lead to a turn in the tide.
Using her later career as a guide, it becomes possible to illustrate Monroe’s distinct contributions to the Studio
System’s downfall. Monroe was able to use what the popularity her studio had given her as a weapon of sorts, allowing her
to achieve a certain degree of freedom that was uncommon during her time, and suggests the waning power of the once
almighty studio system. Monroe used the benefits her creation had given her in order to pursue her deeper aspirations,
enabling her to negotiate her contract more than one occasion, allowing her to return to work each time bigger and better
than before. In comparing Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the film that signifies the height of Monroe’s blonde-sexpot image,
and Bus Stop, the film that would later be hailed as her greatest dramatic opus, the difference between the characters that
Monroe, under control of 20th Century Fox, was forced to portray and the character that Monroe had created on her own
terms becomes startlingly apparent. Behind her achieved dramatic breakthrough however, the path through which she was
able to achieve such freedom undoubtedly confirms Monroe’s role as a catalyst in the eventual downfall of the Studio
system.
The very fact that she was able to establish her own production company marked a pioneering moment for
Monroe, a definite blow to the studio system’s grasp on Hollywood. While it was relatively unheard of during her time,
many would follow in her footsteps and it has become a common practise for modern day movie stars to establish
production companies, with Drew Barrymore’s Flower Films and Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions as clear
examples of this common occurrence.
The very things that Monroe had fought for, a semblance of creative control, the freedom to pursue a path that
appealed to her and not her controlling studio, have nowadays become commonplace in the modern movie-making
industry. While studios still hold a certain amount of control, actors are no longer bound to a certain studio; they are
capable of pursuing any role that interests them, regardless of the film’s studio. A stark contrast to the period Monroe lived
in. Her achievements in attaining the freedom and control during the studio system’s reign mark her as an indisputable
contribution to the weakening of the studio system that would eventually meet its ultimate demise in the 1960s. Perhaps
with an understanding of her contributions towards an industry free from the confines of the studio system, one’s
appreciation for Monroe can go deeper than the lurid affairs, scandalous life, (Anger, 1975) and the beautiful face that
many have come to associate her with. It offers a different facet to her numerous images, one that portrays her as powerful
force to be reckoned with who, despite the unending presence of her studio’s limitations, was capable of achieving a degree
of freedom virtually unheard of during her time, and attempted to rebel against the typecasting that plagued the careers of
many of her contemporaries. Her achievements would undoubtedly serve as a stepping stone and inspiration to future
generations. Marilyn Monroe proved, once again, that there is indeed more to her than what meets the eye.
Jose Basilio M. Sebastian
064037
American Cinema: Analytical Paper #2
January 28, 2011
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