Marilyn Monroe Was Spotted on a Factory Floor. Here's How Norma Jeane Became a Legend
Before the white dress and the Golden Globe, she was a teenager spraying airplane parts in a wartime factory.
In 1944, an 18-year-old named Norma Jeane Dougherty was working at the Radioplane Company in Van Nuys, California, a factory that made small target drones for the military. Her husband was overseas with the Merchant Marine, and she spent her shifts spraying parts and inspecting parachutes.
The photo that changed everything
That year, an Army photographer named David Conover visited the factory to take morale-boosting pictures of women working for the war effort. He noticed Norma Jeane right away. The photos led to modeling work, and by 1945 she had signed with the Blue Book Model Agency.
A new name
In 1946 she signed her first contract with 20th Century Fox. The studio wanted a new name. She chose Monroe, her mother's maiden name, and an executive suggested Marilyn. Norma Jeane would keep using her birth name in private for years.
Becoming Marilyn
Small roles turned into big ones. By 1953, with Niagara, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, she was one of the biggest stars in the world. In 1960 she won a Golden Globe for her comedic role in Some Like It Hot.
She also fought for more control of her work, starting her own production company in 1955, a bold move for an actress at the time. More than 60 years after her death in 1962, she is still one of the most recognized faces on earth.
This story is based on the stars' own interviews and memoirs and on widely reported history. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it.
