Perhaps it was her girlish, whispery voice; or the way her eyes danced when she smiled; or how she seemed to have an unearthly glow about her. Whatever the reason, Marilyn Monroe remains one of the most glamorous, seductive, and charming women in Hollywood history. Worshipped for her sexuality, adored for her vulnerability and innocence, Marilyn is a celebrated movie icon whose persona continues to enthrall and delight her loyal fans. Marilyn's ethereal beauty and irrepressible charisma are captured here in a sequence of ...
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Perhaps it was her girlish, whispery voice; or the way her eyes danced when she smiled; or how she seemed to have an unearthly glow about her. Whatever the reason, Marilyn Monroe remains one of the most glamorous, seductive, and charming women in Hollywood history. Worshipped for her sexuality, adored for her vulnerability and innocence, Marilyn is a celebrated movie icon whose persona continues to enthrall and delight her loyal fans. Marilyn's ethereal beauty and irrepressible charisma are captured here in a sequence of sensual portraits taken over the course of one extraordinary evening in 1961 when she was thirty-five, just a year before her tragic death. On assignment for Look magazine to photograph the movie star for its twenty-fifth anniversary cover, Douglas Kirkland shot Marilyn in the intimate confines of an unmade bed. The result is a series of some of the most spontaneous and flirtatious photographs ever taken of this film legend. Moody, grainy, and evocative, these images are accompanied by Kirkland's own recounting of the story behind the photo shoot. Together his words and pictures tell the seductive tale of a brief and unforgettable encounter between a handsome freshman photographer and the sexiest woman in Hollywood history.
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Seller's Description:
Fine in Fine jacket. Book is as-new: covers have sharp corners, no edge wear, binding is solid, text/interior is unmarked in any way. Dust jacket shows very light shelf wear only, no tears.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good in Very Good jacket. Book Hard bound in dust jacket. Jack shows some minor edge wear, otherwise very good. First English edition. Signed and inscribed to previous owner by photographer Douglas Kirkland on dedication page.
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Seller's Description:
Signed by photographer Douglas Kirkland on the title page with a brief inscription to the previous owner. Stated First Edition, first printing with full number line in fine / like new condition. The pages are clean and crisp with no bent corners. Boards are as new, and the spine is square and tight. The dust jacket is clean and undamaged. The book is in excellent condition inside and out with an unclipped DJ, and no remainder mark. All items guaranteed, and a portion of each sale supports social programs in Los Angeles. Ships from CA.
I had the privilege to meet Mr Kirkland a few years ago, when I worked for a well-known image licensing company negotiating the rights to these very images of Marilyn Monroe, and this book was a must-have for many reasons. Apart the sentimental value it holds for me from that meeting, this book is a self-indulging memoir of a moment of Douglas Kirkland's life (then just a young and mostly innocent starting photographer) that definitely defined his career. The images will most certainly seem "grainy" and "amateurish" to some readers, but it certainly has an indelible aura, shot on real film; they still stand the passage of time and reveal a certain fragility and sadness of a Marilyn very few got to know. The best part of the book is the candid approach Mr Kirkland used to capture Marilyn, putting aside the myth and focusing on her "human" self - although there is a more initially explicit sensuality and languid tone to the whole series. The text is like an excerpt from the photographer's journals, almost like a peek into his secret thoughts. Overall, a very intimate account of that magical evening between photographer and subject, a true gem of a memoir.