Earlier this week, a ‘midcentury mansion’ at 1326 North Rose Avenue in Palm Springs, California went on the market for $3.3 million.
“Located in the iconic Vista Las Palmas neighborhood of Palm Springs, this internationally recognised architectural residence known as the Marilyn Monroe Doll House occupies a rare elevated lot with sweeping mountain vistas. Designed by Charles DuBois and built by the Alexander Company, the home is a celebrated example of Palm Springs Midcentury Modern design. Encompassing just under 3,000 square feet, the residence features four bedrooms and four bathrooms with thoughtful updates that respect and preserve original architectural elements. Marilyn Monroe remains one of the most recognised figures in the world, and this home connects people to that legacy in a tangible way … A rare offering of architectural significance, cultural provenance, and timeless design located minutes from downtown Palm Springs and one of the desert’s most vibrant dining, hospitality, and lifestyle destinations.”
It’s notable that the property listing from Coldwell Banker Realty doesn’t specify what its actual link to the late star might have been. Nonetheless, within hours Marilyn Monroe’s ‘former home’ appeared on the gossip website TMZ – and before long, the story was picked up by the Desert Sun, New York Post and Daily Mail.
The ‘Marilyn Monroe Doll House’ was built in 1961, a year (at most) before Marilyn’s death in August 1962. There is no documentation of her buying or renting a property in Palm Springs among her extensive personal files.
In her final year, Marilyn maintained a New York apartment that she had rented since 1956; and moved into a relatively modest second home in Los Angeles, the only property she ever owned. She paid the deposit with a loan from ex-husband Joe DiMaggio, and when she died, had only a few hundred dollars in her bank account. Her estate remained insolvent for several years after her death. Therefore, it’s highly unlikely that Marilyn could have bought or even leased a third property.
And furthermore, she had no strong links to Palm Springs, other than a few brief trips. She visited the Racquet Club with her agent and paramour, Johnny Hyde, in the spring of 1949, and again on New Year’s Eve. She would return to the same venue in 1954 with Milton Greene, soon to become her business partner. All other stories of Marilyn’s Palm Springs escapades – including a rumoured tryst with President John F. Kennedy in 1962 – remain unproven.
The ‘Doll House’ was last sold in 2020, when it was purchased for $1.8 million by Nick Adler, founder of clothing company MStar Studios. But the urban myth of a house on North Rose Avenue being Marilyn’s ‘secret hideaway’ may have arisen from little more than an elderly neighbour’s anecdote about a glamorous blonde having once lived there.
Perhaps it’s the controversial Forever Marilyn statue that has put Palm Springs firmly on the map of Monroe lore. Photographer Lawrence Schiller recently staged his Marilyn Turns 100 exhibit at the Intersect Palm Springs art fair; and on June 1st, Marilyn 100, a city-wide ‘high-glamour centennial fan festival,’ will be hosted by Palm Springs Pride.
And so a very lucrative myth was born…
The Marilyn Report 