The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe by J. Randy Taraborrelli, J. Randy Taraborrelli

From Barnes & Noble

More years have now passed since the death of Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) than the span of her life, but her aura seems not to have faded at all. Indeed, pop culture tributes and remembrances continue to emerge. To the 300-plus Marilyn biographies in English alone, celebrity biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli (Jackie, Ethel, Joan; Elizabeth; Madonna) adds this full-length, 576-page life of a sex symbol who still speaks to us today. Timeless memories and new information.

From the Publisher

When Marilyn Monroe became famous in the 1950s, the world was told that her mother, Gladys Baker, was either dead or simply not a part of her life — depending on the publicity campaign of the moment. However, that was not true. In fact, her mentally ill mother was very much present in Marilyn's world. The complex family dynamic that unfolded behind the scenes as Miss Monroe blazed a path to iconic glory is a story that has never before been told...until now.

In this groundbreaking book, Taraborrelli draws complex and sympathetic portraits of the powerful women so influential in the actress' life:

• Her mother, Gladys Baker, who gave up her daughter, Norma Jeane (Marilyn) after having two others kidnapped from her.
• Her foster mother, Ida Bolender, who raised Norma Jeane for seven years — a woman whose brash but powerful approach to parenting has been completely misunderstood.
• The legal guardian, Grace Goddard, who helped create "Marilyn Monroe."

Publishers Weekly

Robert Petkoff's diligence as a narrator matches Taraborrelli's accomplishments in generating a fresh analysis of the iconic Marilyn Monroe. With Petkoff's Midas touch, the cast of characters comes to life with crisp clarity and attention to nuance. While there are too many good vocal characterizations to allow for a complete listing, some of the standouts include the mercurial husbands Arthur Miller and Joe DiMaggio as well as such Rat Pack figures as Peter Lawford and Frank Sinatra. Petkoff's delivery of DiMaggio and Sinatra's ill-fated attempt to spy on Monroe and her romantic companions creates palpable dramatic tension. And as Monroe herself, Petkoff creates a sublime breathy persona that shifts effectively from the girl-next-door Norma Jean to the glamorous Marilyn. Bonus features include a downloadable photo slide show. A Grand Central hardcover. (Aug.)

Rosellen Brewer - Library Journal

Taraborrelli has had a long career writing juicy biographies of celebrities (e.g., Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Ross, Frank Sinatra, Princess Grace, and the Kennedy women). Here, he promises never-before-told facts about Marilyn Monroe's family dynamic, the identity of her father, and her relationship with the Kennedys. And he delivers. Taraborrelli also reports that Marilyn's mother, Gladys Baker, suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and that Marilyn struggled with her own mental deterioration. Taraborrelli's style is sometimes over-the-top as he assumes the feelings and motivations of his subjects, but this device makes his books readable and mesmerizing. He had access to newly released documents that were not scrutinized for other biographies, and he researched family and medical files and personal correspondence and interviewed countless family members, friends, costars, Secret Service agents, and others. He also provides previously unseen photographs. This will probably stand as the definitive Monroe biography; highly recommended for all public libraries.

Kirkus Reviews

The miraculous but short and tragic life of Norma Jeane Mortenson (1926-1962). Taraborrelli (Diana Ross: A Unauthorized Biography, 2007, etc.) delves beneath the legend of Marilyn Monroe to uncover the stark facts of the life and times of a singularly vulnerable woman woefully unequipped to deal with the quotidian business of "normal" life, much less the pressures of a Hollywood career and international celebrity. The author devotes much attention to Monroe's mother, Gladys Baker, who suffered from severe mental illness and was institutionalized for most of her adult life. A paranoid schizophrenic, Baker was emotionally distant and unpredictable, necessitating Monroe's years in foster care and, for a short period, an orphanage. Baker's mother, who also suffered from mental illness, committed suicide, and Monroe was haunted by the idea that her own mental health would inevitably fail. Tragically, her fears were well-founded, and, according to Taraborrelli, her entire adult life was a constant struggle to maintain some semblance of emotional equilibrium. Further complicating matters were Monroe's insatiable appetite for various prescription medications; deeply flawed marriages to baseball great Joe DiMaggio, who allegedly beat her, and playwright Arthur Miller, who condescended to her; callous treatment by movie studios; and a disastrous dalliance with President John F. Kennedy (and subsequent obsession with his brother, Robert), which, writes the author, precipitated the emotional spiral that ended in her fatal overdose, an event still shrouded in mystery and the subject of wild speculation. Taraborrelli clearly sympathizes with the beleaguered star, and his reliance on verifiable factsand copious interviews with Monroe's intimates supports his view of Monroe as a hapless victim of heredity and circumstance, an unwanted child who-by dint of an alchemy of physical beauty and sexual allure she herself did not fully understand-became the most wanted woman in the world. A painful and engrossing account of the profoundly damaged personality at the heart of the world's greatest sex symbol.

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