This photo of Marilyn at Niagara Falls – taken by Jock Carroll – led to a lively discussion among members of a local Facebook group, as Don Redmond reports for the In Niagara website.
“A photo of then-starlet Marilyn Monroe at Niagara Falls for the filming on the 1953 murder mystery Niagara brought back plenty of memories for Facebook readers.
On the ‘Niagara History and Trivia’ page [see here], one member posted an old photo used by the local newspaper during the June 1952 filming almost 70 years ago and the recollections came flooding onto the post.
While she and the film crew were only in the city for two weeks, older Niagara Falls residents seem to remember it as though it were yesterday.
‘When she was down at the Falls, promoting the movie, our family went down there and my Dad sent me to ask for her autograph (he was a huge fan),’ said one. ‘She graciously agreed (who can resist an adorable 5-year-old little girl?) He kept that in his wallet for years. He died at 40 and I have no idea what ever became of that autograph.’
‘I still remember her sitting near the railing by the Falls, even at my young age. She was so beautiful!’ she continued.
Monroe stayed in Room 801 of the General Brock Hotel, now called the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Niagara Falls. When 20th Century Fox filmed Niagara, Monroe and co-stars Joseph Cotten and Jean Peters all stayed at the Brock.
The hotel, built in 1929, remains filled with pictures of Monroe and the film itself as they line the hallways of the eighth floor. Visitors can still request Room 801 at the Crowne Plaza but as you can imagine, its availability might be limited given the suite’s star-power.
On a humorous note, another poster said, ‘My grandfather was crossing the border in one of his big trucks. She crossed the road in front of him, posed for a pic in front of his truck and kept going. He never knew who took the pic or if anyone ever saw it.’
Two posters knew two of the extras quite well. ‘My uncle (Donny Thompson) played a sailor. He had one line,’ said one. We’re not sure if this was the case at the time but if you have even a single line in a modern movie, you are automatically paid scale. Said another: ‘My Dad got to be one of the extras in the movie.’
And finally, said another, ‘A story I heard in my family for years was when my parents and me went down to see her, she came over to them, looked at me in my buggy and said how cute I was! They, too, said she was lovely and pleasant.'”
The Marilyn Report 