Chris Morgan has listed Marilyn’s ‘most memorable’ movie roles on the Yardbarker website, including some interesting picks from her early years. Ladies of the Chorus (1948) gave Marilyn her first lead role (in her first musical), although as a B-feature, it went largely unnoticed at the time; and four years later, her beauty queen role in the anthology comedy, We’re Not Married!, found her on the cusp of superstardom. In 1953, she set the blueprint for her cinematic legacy with Niagara, which Morgan describes as a ‘classic noir’ and her best dramatic work; and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, ‘the pinnacle of Monroe as a movie star.’ Later on, she made good on her serious aspirations in Bus Stop (1956); while The Misfits (1961), initially perceived as a footnote to her career, has grown in stature since her death.
The Marilyn Report 