The self-made Marilyn Monroe
5/31/202649 min
Marilyn Monroe is synonymous with glamour, beauty and stardom – but scratching the surface of her public image reveals another story. Author and professor of film philosophy Lucy Bolton reveals the career-driven and consistently ambitious side to Monroe that fuelled the creation of her star image. Speaking to Charlotte Vosper, Lucy guides us through Monroe's personal and professional life, unveiling the hard-working woman behind the glamorous facade.
GO BEYOND THE PODCAST If you'd like to find out more about women such as Marilyn who fought back against the exploitative studio system, check out this brilliant podcast episode with Helen O'Hara about the women who challenged Hollywood: https://bit.ly/4eCn9FE Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSpeaker 10:00
[gentle music] When we think of Marilyn Monroe, many of us will conjure up an image of beauty, fame, and tragedy. But on the centenary of her birth, we're re-evaluating that image. Speaking to Charlotte Vosper for this episode of the History Extra podcast, Lucy Bolton reveals that Monroe's ascent to Hollywood icon actually took an extraordinary amount of work and effort. Together, they reconsider Monroe's personal and professional life, unveiling the career-driven, hardworking side to Marilyn Monroe.
Charlotte Vosper· Host0:36
Today, the 1st of June, 2026, is the centenary of Marilyn Monroe's birth, and we're going to be talking all about her career, relationships, and ambitions. But before we dive into her story, Lucy, could you sum up who Marilyn Monroe was in a nutshell?
Lucy Bolton· Guest0:53
I mean, in a nutshell, the greatest movie star of all time. Epitomizes Hollywood stardom and glamour, beauty, femininity, sexuality. Just the most powerful star image that Hollywood ever produced.
Charlotte Vosper· Host1:07
Okay, so let's start our story at the beginning. Marilyn was born in 1926, and she had quite a difficult, unstable upbringing, didn't she?
Lucy Bolton· Guest1:16
Oh, yes, she really did. I mean, her mother was basically very unwell. So although initially her childhood started off quite happily, her mother suffered from severe mental illness, which led to her being taken