Marilyn Monroe’s Personal Style Was Very Different From What You’d Expect—Inside the Hollywood Icon’s ‘Well-Worn’ Wardrobe
This year would've been Marilyn's 100th birthday—and a new exhibit is putting her real-life outfits on display
Key Takeaways
- This year marks what would've been Marilyn Monroe's 100th birthday.
- An upcoming exhibit at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in L.A. will showcase her style.
- Marilyn's personal style was much more low-key than you might expect, given her onscreen glam.
Marilyn Monroe’s name is synonymous with Hollywood glamour, and the costumes she wore, from her fabulous pink gown in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes to her billowing white dress in The Seven Year Itch, remain among the most iconic in pop culture history.
Soon, Marilyn’s Gentlemen Prefer Blondes dress and other screen-worn costumes will be on display at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in L.A., as part of their blockbuster exhibit Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon, on view from May 31, 2026, to February 28, 2027. The exhibit, which commemorates what would’ve been the star’s 100th year, will feature a captivating collection of Marilyn’s costumes, as well as pieces from her wardrobe, posters, photographs and rarely seen personal materials.
Marilyn Monroe’s real-life personality was known to be very different from the sassy sex symbol she so perfectly embodied onscreen, and her personal style was also distinct from her bombshell image. Woman’s World recently had the opportunity to check out a press preview of the upcoming museum show, and the clothes we saw from Marilyn’s closet surprised us with their simplicity. Many of the items in the exhibit come from the ICON Collection, a private archive of Hollywood history, and the collection’s owner, Bryan Johns, shared his insights on how Marilyn dressed in her private life.
From Norma Jeane Mortenson to Marilyn Monroe: A study in contrasts
Monroe was far smarter than she was given credit for, and she acted as a savvy architect of her own screen image—an image quite distinct from who she really was. The actress, born Norma Jeane Mortenson in 1926, had a troubled childhood, and notoriously battled personal demons throughout her too-short life. The movie star persona she created was somehow both liberating and oppressive, for it allowed her to revel in glamour and show off her sense of humor while also leading her to be subject to sexist stereotypes and be unfairly boxed in as a “dumb blonde.”
“The shy and down-to-earth Norma Jeane studied every aspect of style, makeup, movement, acting and dance to create ‘Marilyn Monroe,’ the glamorous screen goddess,” Bryan Johns says. Rather than wearing flirty outfits offscreen, “In the ’40s and ’50s, Norma Jeane or ‘the private Marilyn,’ loved to wear simple slacks, skirts, sweaters and loose-fitting blouses—both sleeveless and long-sleeved in silk, cotton and corduroy—and she favored black, white and beige,” he says. “Norma Jeane and Marilyn’s style changed over the years as she became a fashion icon, and as she became famous, she’d set trends instead of following them.”
Marilyn Monroe’s unexpected fashion philosophy: ‘She favored comfort’
Walking through the display of Monroe’s clothes and accessories at the preview event at New York’s swanky Waldorf Astoria hotel, one thing immediately stood out—most of the garments weren’t in the pristine condition you’d expect from an A-lister. “Norma Jeane favored comfort and thrift, so her clothing was well-worn,” Johns explains. “Marilyn Monroe, on the other hand, wore mostly silk and velvet figure-hugging dresses and cocktail gowns by her favorite designer, Ceil Chapman, as well as fashion creations from the studio costumers.”
In the years before her death at 36 in 1962, Monroe’s style evolved. “In the ’60s, Marilyn favored thin silk dresses, skirts and tops by her preferred designers, Jax and Emilio Pucci. Marilyn was in great shape, having lost weight after she filmed Some Like it Hot, and she wanted to show off her toned figure. She loved wearing Pucci pieces in bold patterns and she favored colors like green, pink and orange,” Johns says.
Given her famed “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” number in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, you might think that Marilyn had a decadent diamond collection, but this wasn’t actually the case, as Johns says that she rarely wore jewelry, finding it too fussy for her everyday style. In keeping with this streamlined approach to fashion, she gravitated toward pieces that were sleek without being constricting or overly embellished, and she often wore pants.
Marilyn may have kept her off-camera style fairly simple, but she also enjoyed a touch of provocation. At the exhibit preview, a large mirror from the actress’ home was on display, and Johns says that she frequently studied herself in the nude as she went through potential outfits. “Most often, she wore no underwear, not wanting to be ‘uncomfortable’ or show her bra or panty lines,” he says. “She has been quoted as saying, ‘If I could be nude all of the time, I would be.’”
Clearly, Marilyn Monroe was a woman who played by her own sartorial rules, and the fact that she took such a distinctive and often unexpected approach to personal style makes her even more compelling. 100 years after her birth, her fashion inspiration shines bright as ever.
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