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For this episode of All Things Marilyn, we interview Emmy award winning journalist Marvin Scott, who at 15 years of age photographed Marilyn Monroe on March 31, 1955. She was making her first public appearance following her divorce from baseball great Joe DiMaggio. The event was a charity opening of the Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Listen as Mr. Scott tells us how he gained access to the event and what it was like to be there. Also, hear the story of the personal interaction he had with American's reigning sex goddess. Mr. Scott has received countless awards for the nearly 15,000 reports and interviews he's completed throughout his career. This is the very first time he's ever been interviewed about his experience with Marilyn Monroe. 

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In this episode, we announce and discuss the discovery of an undated get well greeting card to Marilyn Monroe from her father, Stanley Gifford. For years it was believed that Gifford was her father, and it was proven definitively through DNA testing earlier this year. However, there was never any evidence that father and daughter had any kind of relationship. The discovery of this greeting card rewrites history. There was indeed some kind of personal relationship between them, and this card proves it.

"I discovered the card purely by chance while I was preparing Marilyn's personal archives for auction at Julien's Auctions," said Scott Fortner, Marilyn Monroe historian/collector and co-host of the All Things Marilyn podcast, as quoted in a PEOPLE.com news article.  "This is the only known documented evidence of a relationship between Monroe and Gifford, which solves the mystery of whether or not she knew or had contact with her biological father."

In today's discussion, Scott and Elisa cover many topics:

• What did Marilyn believe and know about her father when she was a child? 
• How did Stanley Gifford and Gladys Mortensen meet, and what was the status of their relationship?
• Why did Gladys list  husband Edward Mortensen on Norma Jeane's birth certificate when she knew Gifford was the father?
• Who discovered that Gifford actually was Marilyn's father?
• What were the sources for the DNA testing?
• How did Scott Fortner discover the card in Marilyn's archives, and where has it been for all of these years? 
• Did Marilyn Monroe ever meet her father? 

Marilyn Monroe's "Get Well" greeting card will be offered for auction at Julien's Auctions in Beverly Hills on December 17-18, 2022. 

This episode covers many fascinating and revealing aspects of Marilyn Monroe's life and personal history. Don't miss it! 

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Elisa @la_woman_tours

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It’s been widely reported that Marilyn Monroe catapulted jazz great Ella Fitzgerald’s career by personally calling the owner of the Mocambo Club in Los Angeles to demand that Ella be booked there. Evidently, Fitzgerald couldn’t get her own gig at the club, and Marilyn promised that if she was booked, Marilyn herself would show up every night and sit in the front row, ensuring massive press for the Mocambo. Even Ella herself has told this story. It’s been used as the storyline for what a great civil rights activist Marilyn was. 

But did it actually happen? Did Marilyn Monroe really call the owner of the Mocambo Club to get Ella Fitzgerald a job there? Did she promise to show up for Ella’s show every night and sit in the front row? Tune in to find out.  Spoiler alert: It couldn’t possibly have happened the way it’s been reported.

 On this episode of All Things Marilyn, Scott and Elisa are joined by Hollywood Historian and author April VeVea. April has authored a book on Jayne Mansfield titled Puffblicity: An Appreciation of Jayne Mansfield: The 50s Pictures, and on Monroe, Marilyn Monroe: A Day in The Life. As part of April’s research through the years, she’s discovered some very interesting facts about old Hollywood, including the truth behind the infamous story about Monroe, Fitzgerald and the Mocambo Club. 

April’s website is www.classicblondes.com. You can follow her online on Twitter and Instagram. 

Twitter: @classicblondess

Instagram: @classichollywoodwomen

 Buy April’s books on Amazon.com here. 

ATM Podcast: @allthingsmarilynpodcast
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Elisa @la_woman_tours

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On this episode of All Things Marilyn, our very special guest is internationally acclaimed make-up artist Erin Parsons.  

Erin is one of the industry’s most sought-after makeup artists, doing makeup for the world’s most famous fashion models, including @gigihadid, @bellahadid, @kendalljenner, @gisele, @adrianalima and @emilydidonato. Erin and her work have been featured in Chaos, Harper’s Bazaar, Purple, and V Magazine, along with the American, British, Italian and Japanese editions of Vogue. Her clients include Schiaparelli, Reebok, Tommy Hilfiger, Ermanno Scervino Zara, and Calvin Klein. Parsons keyed Jean-Paul Gaultier's final runway show in Paris in 2019, and she was also celebrated as a beauty trailblazer with her inclusion on the British Fashion Council’s New Wave: Creatives 2019 list, which acknowledges the most innovative and inspiring young creative talent from around the world.

Of course, we talk all things Marilyn.

• How did Marilyn inspire Erin? 
• How did Marilyn create her iconic looks, and how did they change over time? 
• What were Marilyn’s beauty secrets?
• How can someone recreate Marilyn’s classic look? 

 Follow Erin Online! @erinparsonsmakeup on IG and TikTok. See her portfolio at www.erinparsons.com. 

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All Things Marilyn is pleased to present our next episode, which focuses on Marilyn’s final home, located at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood, California, an exclusive suburban neighborhood in the Westside region of Los Angeles. 

In this podcast, we review the story of Marilyn purchasing what would become the first and only home she’d ever own by herself at the age of 35: 

• What was it about the Brentwood house that drew her to it?
• What role did former husband Joe DiMaggio play in Marilyn buying the home?
• How did Ralph Greenson influence her purchase decisions, and her interior design style?
• Why was the house, and Marilyn’s bedroom in particular, in such a disarray as seen in police investigation photos?  

 We also dive into some of the persistent rumors that have surfaced over the years following her untimely death in her Brentwood house:   

• Was the water to the home really turned off the day she died?
• Was there really evidence of the house being wire tapped and bugged?
• Was housekeep Eunice Murray really doing laundry the morning of August 5 when police officers arrived at the home? 
• Did Marilyn even own a washer and dryer? 

Joining us for this episode is noted author and historian Gary Vitacco-Robles. Gary has written two exceptional books on Marilyn: Cursum Perficio: Marilyn Monroe’s Brentwood Hacienda, The Story of Her Final Months, and Icon: The Life, Times, & Films of Marilyn Monroe. 

Cursum Perficio is the only book ever published on Marilyn’s Fifth Helena Drive home. Gary conducted extensive research into all aspects of Marilyn’s time there, much of which we touch on in this episode. 

This episode of All Things Marilyn is a “must listen,” so don’t miss it. 

 Pick up your copies of Gary’s books here:

 Cursum Perficio: Marilyn Monroe’s Brentwood Hacienda, The Story of Her Final Months   

Icon: The Life, Times, & Films of Marilyn Monroe Volume I  |  Volume II

Visit Gary’s website at www.behindtheicon.com and follow him on Facebook here. 

ATM Podcast: @allthingsmarilynpodcast
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We’re going back to Marilyn’s Hollywood roots with our first guest on the All Things Marilyn podcast. We're thrilled to interview Jean Harlow author, historian and collector Darrell Rooney.

• How much do you know about Harlow? 
• Was Harlow a childhood idol of Marilyn’s? 
• How did Marilyn discover Jean Harlow?
• What were the similarities between the two film stars?
• Was Marilyn the first “platinum blonde,” or was it actually Jean Harlow? 
• Did Marilyn recreate many of Harlow’s famous photographs?
• Did Marilyn actually want to be the new Jean Harlow? 
• Did the two paths of these screen legends ever cross, even though they died 25 years apart? 

Marilyn even collected Jean Harlow memorabilia! As a child, young Norma Jeane gathered cigarette cards with photos of movie stars from the golden age of Hollywood. She saved them in an album issued by John Player & Sons tobacco company. Celebrities included in the album are Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Gary Cooper, Greta Garbo, Robert Montgomery and many others. Marilyn saved this item from her childhood. Today, the album, which is fully complete with all cards, is a cherished artifact owned by the Marilyn Monroe Collection.

About Darrell Rooney

Darrell Rooney is an award-winning Animation Director, his most notable credit being “Lion King 2: Simba’s Pride." He has worked on everything from “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin” at Disney, to “Family Dog” and “The Brave Little Toaster,” and  recently, all of the “Hotel Transylvania” movies at Sony.

His interest in Jean Harlow began in the late 60s - early 70s when there was a big nostalgia boom. John Kobal glamour photography books introduced him to the radiant Jean Harlow. He thought she had a face like sunshine. He started collecting photos and anything he could find on Harlow, never dreaming that someday he would own objects that actually belonged to her. The Ignatieff mural was a 1932 gift to Jean from husband Paul Bern. He is now considered to be the custodian of this important artifact. In 2017, he rescued the long lost 1937 Harlow painting “Farewell to Earth.”

Jean Harlow’s 100th birthday was celebrated with the release of Harlow in Hollywood in 2011, which he co-authored with the talented Mark Alan Vieira. His crowning glory was mounting two popular exhibitions of Jean Harlow memorabilia at the Hollywood Museum in the historic Max Factor Building. Harlow in Hollywood is just about to be re-released in a new updated edition coming out sometime in October, 2022.

Follow Darrell online on Facebook and Instagram!

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Trigger Warning: In this podcast, issues of rape, sexual violence and abuse, abortion and other topics of a sensitive nature are discussed.  

All Things Marilyn hosts Scott Fortner and Elisa Jordan share their thoughts and feedback on the new Netflix film Blonde, a fictional story based on the Joyce Carol Oates novel of the same name. 

What did we like? What did we dislike? What’s true and what’s fiction?

Tune in to find out all the details. 

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We’re excited to post our IntroCast! Get to know your hosts for All Things Marilyn, Scott Fortner and Elisa Jordan. How did we meet? When did we first discover Marilyn? Why are we launching a podcast? What are some of the experiences we’ve had through Marilyn? Listen and find out!

Stay tuned for our next episode: Our take on the new Netflix film Blonde. 

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ATM Podcast: @allthingsmarilynpodcast
Scott @marilynmonroecollection
Elisa @la_woman_tours

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Coming Soon! A new podcast about Marilyn Monroe!

Join Marilyn Monroe historian and collector Scott Fortner, together with author, historian and founder of LA Woman Tours, Elisa Jordan, for "All Things Marilyn." Topics discussed will focus on any and all things related to Marilyn, including her life, career, celebrity, and legend. Scott and Elisa will be joined by special guests who also share a passion for Marilyn. 

Be sure to follow our channel, and stay tuned for our introductory episode.  After that, we'll kick off with our first topic: "Blonde," directed by Andrew Dominik and starring Ana de Armas, currently in theaters and airing on Netflix. You can bet we'll have a lot to say on this film based on the 1999 novel of the same name penned by Joyce Carol Oates.

Follow us on Instagram! @allthingsmarilynpodcast

We hope you'll join us for "All Things Marilyn!"  

ATM Podcast: @allthingsmarilynpodcast
Scott @marilynmonroecollection
Elisa @la_woman_tours

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Artwork by @marilynmexico
Soundtrack by @silver_technicolor