She was a ripe, curly-haired brunette named Norma Jeane.
With distinct spunk of a budding woman, she signed on to help America win World War II.
Nine-to-five at a wartime factory Norma Jeane inspected parachutes. (Wearing starched skirt and rolled-up sleeves, of course.)
One day, an army photographer spotted her.
He snapped an industrious-looking pic, and pleased by the results, suggested she become a model.
At once, she dyed her hair blonde and found an agency.
Norma Jeane became Blue Book's most successful model ever, stealing the spotlight on scores of covers.
Via modeling, Norma Jeane caught the eye of Fox executive Ben Lyon, who immediately dealt her a contract.
Norma Jeane changed her name to Marylin Monroe, busted onto the big screen and climbed her way to the top of the film chain.
With sex appeal aplenty and powerful girlish charm, Marylin Monroe soon became Marylin Monroe.
What you may not know about her:
*Monroe was an illegitimate child. She had no father, and her mother was mentally unstable, eventually moving to a psych ward. Monroe grew up in foster homes.
*To pay the bills as a young actress, Monroe posed nude for photos–she's featured in the first issue of Playboy. The pics surfaced later and made for a notably public scandal.
*On set, Monroe was hard to work with: she was tardy, moody and forgot her lines.
*Monroe had severe stage fright. One director described her fear as "sheer primal terror."
*She got pregnant twice; she had miscarriages both times.
*She studied literature and art history at UCLA.
*She was never a natural blonde.
Watch her sing the birthday song here:
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