Astrid Franse - Before Marilyn: The Blue Book Modeling Years

BEFORE

Marilyn

THE BLUE BOOK MODELING YEARS

ASTRID FRANSE AND
MICHELLE MORGAN

Thomas Dunne Books
St. Martins Press
New York

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For Marilyn Monroe and Emmeline Snively, with much love and thanks.

Astrid: For my mother and my family.
Michelle: For Suzie Kennedy: You will always be Blanche to me. xx

The authors would like to thank the following people:

Memory Monroe and Marco van der Munnik, who introduced us and planted the seed for this remarkable project. We would also like to thank Marco for providing some photographs from his collection.

Those wonderful people who provided photographs, interviews, information or support for the project, including: Suzanne Van Leendert, Christopher Ryan, Frank Van Osch, Chuck Murphy/One West Publishing, David Conover Junior, Margaret Miller/Richard C. Miller Estate, Roland and Chris Hueth, Kim Goodwin, Greg Schreiner, Melinda Mason, Dionne Abraham, Eric Patry, Michael Reynard, Eduardo Caballero, Livia Vidicki, Debra Holden, Annabelle Stanford, Steve Hayes, Bill Pursel, Maria Musikka, The Estate of Joseph Jasgur, Joyce Black, Beverly La Belle, Paul Jordan, Noreen Nash, Paula Knotter, Darren Julien of Juliens Auctions, Matt Butson, Irvin Gelb, Mamie Van Doren, Claartje van Dijk, Fiona Maynard, Eric Woodard, Christina Rice, Tara Hanks, Marijane Gray, Fraser Penny, April VeVea, David Wills, Polly Haas, Laura Wagg, Beth Watson, Christine Mas, Scott Fortner and Andrew Hansford.

Also the Marilyn fans who have supported us, and specifically those who have joined the Blue Book Project Facebook page over the past year and helped us identify and find rare photographs. There are too many members to thank each and every one personally, but you all know who you are!

We would also like to thank our agent, Robert Smith, and publisher, The History Press, for believing in this project and giving us the opportunity to tell Marilyns Blue Book story.

Finally we would like to say a huge thank you to Emmeline Snively. If she had not kept her files for all those years, this project would never have come to fruition. We are both extremely grateful to her.

Michelle would like to thank:

My family, especially Richard, Daisy, Mum, Dad, Paul, Wendy and Angelina. My friends Claire, Helen and Mandy, and my readers, who have always been so supportive. I cant thank you enough; you all mean the world to me.

Astrid would like to thank:

My mother Miep van Anrooy-Biesthorst, who raised me by herself and died, aged 47. My husband Ben Franse. My sons Sargon Franse and Maroen Franse, and their families. Noor Johnson. My business colleagues at Bennies Fifties, who assisted me: Richard Westdijk, Anais Constandse, Rana Stuivenberg, Jack van der Meulen and Julie Schulting (www.benniesfifties.com/www.fiftiesstore.com).

The front and back cover images have been supplied courtesy of Kim Goodwin.

Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyrighted material. The authors apologise for any errors or omissions and will be happy to correct future reprints or new editions.

Marilyn Monroe is probably the most written about movie celebrity of all time. Countless biographies have delved into her life with varying accuracy. Her difficult childhood, early film success and her eventual stardom are chronicled through endless tomes. But one critical area has been only superficially covered her years early in her career with the Blue Book Modelling Agency. When Norma Jeane walked through their doors on that fateful day on 2 August 1945 her life would forever change.

So much of what Marilyn learned from the Blue Book Modelling Agency would carry her through her entire life, and literally opened many doors for her that allowed access to a film career. Her blonde hair, unique, quivering smile and famous walk were attributes directly related to her education with the agency and its director Emmeline Snively. Adding to all this was a growing confidence in herself and her abilities to function as a model and eventually an actress. Marilyn was obviously destined for greatness, but this could have been all lost to the world if she had not had this turning point in her life. Miss Snively took her under her wing and nurtured and guided her and believed in her abilities. She also may have been responsible for getting Marilyn her first screen test at Twentieth Century Fox Studios.

The most ironic part is that all of this history might have been lost if not for the concern of Miss Snively to save all of the photos, papers and other articles relating to this time. The eventual loss and recovery of these files provides a fascinating story in itself.

The authors, Astrid Franse and Michelle Morgan, have done extensive and exhaustive research into this relatively unknown area of Marilyns life, and given us tremendous insight into how Marilyn transformed herself from a simple hometown girl into the worlds greatest movie star. The book is loaded with unseen photos of Marilyn from this period, as well as other documents and letters. This is certainly a must-have book for Marilyn fans; at last the complete history of this so important part of Marilyns life will be filled in. But this is also a book to give hope to anyone who dreams big and strives to achieve a better life. Be prepared to fall in love with this glamorous, sensitive, adorable woman.

Greg Schreiner
President, Marilyn Remembered
www.marilynremembered.org

Twenty years ago, Astrid and Ben Franse were in a vintage store in Los Angeles, buying items for their shop, Bennies Fifties. As they spoke to the shopkeeper, a man walked in with a box in his hands and mumbled something about finding it in a locker. Nobody seemed aware of the exact contents contained inside, but, despite that, the store owner bought the item to sell in his shop. Astrid and Ben overheard the conversation and took an immediate interest in the mysterious contents of the box. They negotiated a deal with the owner and then took the box back home to Europe.

The couple were convinced that what they had just bought was a box of pictures, old newspapers and press clippings mentioning Marilyn Monroe. Thinking the items had probably been collected by a fan, they stored the box under a desk and temporarily forgot about it. In the years ahead Astrid thought often that she should take a good look through to see exactly what was in there, but one year led to another, and before she knew it, two decades had passed and the box remained untouched.

In 2012 fifty years since the death of Marilyn Monroe a dealer telephoned from the United States on behalf of a collector, who was interested in buying one of the couples jukeboxes (a rare 1943 prototype of the Wurlitzer 1000). During the course of the conversation, he happened to mention that his client was a huge Marilyn Monroe fan, who had previously tried to buy the dress the actress had worn when singing Happy Birthday to President John F. Kennedy. It was at this point that Ben remembered the box under his desk. He told the dealer, and then received a call later that night to say that the Marilyn collector was definitely interested in buying the box.