On Tuesday, August 5th – the 63rd anniversary of Marilyn’s death in 1962 – fans gathered at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles for the annual service hosted by Marilyn Remembered. In his introduction, the fan club’s president, Greg Schreiner, reflected on how the event has grown since the first service in 1982.
Looking ahead to the centenary of Marilyn’s birth in 2026, Greg mentioned upcoming exhibitions in Los Angeles (including a major retrospective at the Academy Museum, and a Virtual Reality showcase, Marilyn: The Immersive Experience); London (at the National Portrait Gallery), and Paris. Further celebrations are also being planned in Spain and the Netherlands.
The guest speakers at this year’s service are listed below – and you can watch a full video recording, streamed by co-president Scott Fortner, here.
- Elisa Jordan, author of Hello, Norma Jeane: The Marilyn Monroe You Didn’t Know, discussed the concept of genius in relation to Marilyn.
- Françoise Kirkland, widow of photographer Douglas Kirkland, was unable to attend. An excerpt from her late husband’s book, An Evening With Marilyn, was read by Mikael Sharafyan of Marilyn Remembered.
- Kamran Pasha spoke about his upcoming documentary, Goodbye, Norma Jeane, focusing on Marilyn’s first marriage to Jim Dougherty.
- Tom McLaren, co-author of Styling the Stars, talked about his restoration project based in the former dressing rooms (now office space) at Twentieth Century-Fox.
- Claudia Moriarty, niece of Marilyn’s stand-in Evelyn Moriarty, recalled that her late aunt (also buried at Westwood) kept the sparklers she had purchased for Marilyn’s last birthday with a cake from Farmers’ Market.
- Sophia, a first-time speaker, examined the composition of Elton John’s tribute to Marilyn, ‘Candle in the Wind‘.
- Juliet Hyde-White, daughter of the British actor Wilfrid Hyde-White, shared her father’s own words on working with Marilyn in Let’s Make Love.
- Debra Levine, whose biography of choreographer Jack Cole will be published in 2026, revealed how he learned of Marilyn’s death.
- Rick Carl of Marilyn Remembered read messages from the family of River of No Return producer Stanley Rubin and his widow, Kathleen Hughes, who passed away in May. The family of Terry Moore, who was unable to attend, sent their regards; and Harrison Held shared his condolences for actress Loni Anderson, who also died recently.
- Karin Grant and Kristin Grant, widow and daughter of photographer Allan Grant, were joined by Chris Flannery and Jason Greene to discuss their new project, Marilyn’s Lost Photos: The Last Interview, with a new book and exhibition in the works.
- George Chakiris, the Oscar-winning actor and choreographer, recalled dancing with Marilyn in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and There’s No Business Like Show Business.
- Luke Yankee, son of Marilyn’s Bus Stop co-star Eileen Heckart, read from his play, Marilyn, Mom and Me, with actress Alisha Soper.
- Jane Guy, who founded an Australian fan club before moving to California, recalled meeting Daniel Taradash, screenwriter on Don’t Bother to Knock; Alex D’Arcy, Marilyn’s dinner date in How to Marry a Millionaire; and blonde bombshell Angelyne, whose billboards across Los Angeles made her an original influencer.
Harrison Held’s report on this year’s event is published in the August issue of Magic Image Hollywood magazine.
Street photographer Amy Gaskin, who also attended this year’s service, is currently writing a book on the Monroe fandom. Her work was recently featured in National Geographic, and includes images of the Forever Marilyn sculpture in Palm Springs and Australia’s Marilyn Jetty Swim alongside the Marilyn Remembered gatherings in LA.
Sergio Serrano, who based this year’s Marilyn Remembered artwork on test shots from Something’s Got to Give, turned to Marilyn’s appearance at the 1962 Golden Globes for his Marilyn Mexico tribute.
In Germany, the Some Like It Hot Fan Club published the latest issue of its quarterly fanzine, Marilyn Today, celebrating the 70th anniversary of The Seven Year Itch.
And finally, French artist Olivier Coulon posted a new illustration (after a Lawrence Schiller photo from Let’s Make Love) to Instagram on the anniversary of Marilyn’s death.
The Marilyn Report 