How Monroe started her career: rare pictures of the diva are up for auction

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Collectors and fans of Marilyn Monroe are in great excitement. The first pictures of the star as a model are being put up for sale. The photographs were taken in 1946, and so far the public has never seen anything like it.

The photographs were taken by photographer Joseph Jasgour, who was working for the Blue Book modeling agency at the time. In 2009, Jasgur died, the Florida court declared him bankrupt and ordered to put up the photographer's property for sale in order to pay off debts.

Last month, a copy of "Marilyn's porn film" was exhibited at an auction held as part of the first International Collectible Film Fair. The 7-minute film was filmed around 1946-47: at that time, 20-year-old Norma Jeane was not yet popular and was only "trying on" her future pseudonym, signing a contract with 20th Century Fox Film as a statistician. A fragment of this tape, released in 1997, sparked fierce controversy as to whether the young diva actually starred in the film.

Julien's auction, which will show buyers the first professional photographs of 20-year-old Norma Jeane (the actress has not yet taken a pseudonym), will be held in December.

The representative of the auction house Darren Julien noted that these pictures are practically unknown to the public. The fact is that for almost 20 years they were part of the property of Jasugr, which was under arrest by the decision of the bankruptcy commission. Julien also does not report a preliminary estimate for a unique lot.

“This is a very rare rarity that can interest not only collectors … These are perhaps the most important images of Marilyn of all that are now on the market. They were made so early, at the very beginning of her career. Nothing of the kind has been put up for sale for a long time,”said a Julien's employee.