Marilyn Monroe’s love life has long been a subject of fascination, as legendary and mysterious as her tragic death in 1962. Her close friend and photographer, Sam Shaw, once joked that if she had slept with every man who claimed to have been with her, she would never have had time to make a single movie. Still, the stories of her relationships, both real and rumored, have endured for decades.
Her first marriage came when she was just 16 years old and still known as Norma Jean Baker. She wed Jim Doherty, a high school sweetheart, but the couple drifted apart when he joined the merchant marines during World War II while she pursued modeling. They divorced in 1946. Doherty later told People magazine that if it had not been for his wartime service, she would still have been Mrs. Dougherty.
In 1947, Monroe was linked to Charlie Chaplin Jr., son of the legendary silent film star. The alleged fling ended when Chaplin reportedly found Monroe in bed with his brother, Sydney. Both Chaplin’s autobiography and Anthony Summers’ book “Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn Monroe” mentioned the affair.
Comedian Milton Burl entered the picture in 1948 while filming “Ladies of the Chorus.” Even though he was dating Adele Jurgens at the time, Burl later claimed a short-lived romance with the young actress. In his autobiography, he described her as someone on the climb in Hollywood, but said there was nothing cheap about her.
Monroe’s drama coach, Natasha Lytas, became inseparable from her both on and off set for seven years. Their bond was so strong that Monroe refused to film scenes without her present. Speculation intensified when Monroe moved in with her coach to prepare for “Don’t Bother to Knock” in 1952.
Rumors also circulated about possible relationships with Barbara Stanwyck and Marlene Dietrich. In her 1954 autobiography, Monroe addressed the topic directly. She wrote about a man who had kissed her and suggested she might be a lesbian because she had no response to him. She said she did not contradict him at the time because she did not know what she was. But after falling in love, she knew she was not a lesbian.
Director Elia Kazan, one of Hollywood’s greats, confessed to a brief affair with Monroe while he was married to playwright Molly Thacker. In private letters, he described her as a little stray cat and said he felt no guilt for being attracted to her. Kazan was also close to Monroe’s future husband, Arthur Miller, and wrote about baseball player Joe DiMaggio in his correspondence, claiming DiMaggio had roughed up Monroe on multiple occasions.
The most scandalous alleged romances of Monroe’s life involved President John F. Kennedy and his brother, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Some have even suggested these relationships played a part in her untimely death. Gossip was fueled by her steamy rendition of “Happy Birthday” for JFK at his 45th birthday celebration in May 1962, just months before she passed away. Biographer James Spada has said there is no evidence the Kennedys caused her death, though he noted it was obvious Monroe had been intimate with both brothers.
Before the Kennedys, there was baseball legend Joe DiMaggio. He described meeting Monroe as being like a good double play combination. They met on a blind date in 1952 when she was 26. Despite their differences, they married in January 1954 at a small ceremony in San Francisco. But cracks appeared as DiMaggio struggled with her growing fame. They divorced just nine months later, with her famous billowing skirt scene from “The Seven Year Itch” often cited as the last straw. Still, they remained friends, and DiMaggio sent roses to her grave three times a week for 20 years after her death.
Monroe was also rumored to have briefly dated Marlon Brando in 1955 after her split from DiMaggio. The two attended the premiere of “The Rose Tattoo” together and stayed friends until her final days.
Arthur Miller entered her life in 1950 while she was filming “As Young as You Feel.” They did not cross paths again until 1955, after her divorce from DiMaggio and her move to New York City. They began dating in secret and married in 1956. Monroe gushed about him at the time, saying they were perfect together and that he had an amazing sense of humor. She embraced a more ordinary life, cooking, cleaning, and caring for Miller’s children. But when she returned to work on “The Misfits,” written by Miller himself, their relationship began to fall apart. Her struggles with addiction caused issues both on set and at home. They divorced in 1961, before the film premiered. Monroe died just 19 months later.
After separating from Miller, Monroe found comfort with Frank Sinatra. Their brief romance cooled by 1961 when Sinatra proposed to Juliet Prowse, but the two remained friends until Monroe’s death.
In a 2011 interview with GQ, comedian Jerry Lewis made a shocking claim. He said he had a secret affair with Monroe and insisted that rumors about her involvement with Kennedy were false. Lewis said Monroe sought intimacy and needed that contact to feel real.
Marilyn Monroe was married three times, and each marriage ended in divorce. She was linked to many love affairs, some real and some created by public imagination. Much of what is known about her love life is only hazily based on truth. But the essence is clear: Marilyn loved men, and men idolized her in return. Unfortunately, the lives of true icons are often short-lived, and Monroe was no exception. She passed away at the age of 36 in 1962.