Joe Dimaggio attends the funeral for Marilyn Monroe on August 8, 1962. The two were married in January 1956 and divorced 256 days later, only to reunite just prior to her suicide. For 20 years after her death, Dimaggio had a half-dozen red roses delivered to her crypt three times a week.
Authorities at Monroe's house didn't know what to do or who to call, as Monroe had no family. So they called DiMaggio. DiMaggio stepped in and orchestrated his ex-wife's funeral. DiMaggio barred the public and almost all the Hollywood glitterati — producers, directors and actors — from the funeral.
'" "I always knew who killed her, but I didn't want to start a revolution in this country," DiMaggio allegedly told Positano. "I'll go to the grave regretting and blaming myself for what happened to her." The baseball star, whom the book says Monroe loved to the end, is the one who arranged her funeral.
Though he wasn't buried with her as originally planned, Marilyn was still on DiMaggio's mind when he left this world. According to Morris Engelberg, Joe's lawyer, his final words were, “I'll finally get to see Marilyn.” Peruse all the entries in our Grave Sightings series here.
What was Arthur Miller's reaction to Marilyn's death?
Arthur Miller's anger at the death of his second wife Marilyn Monroe is expressed in an excoriating and never before published essay from 1962, in which the playwright attacks the “public mourners” who “stand there weeping and gawking, glad that it is not you going into the earth, glad that it is this lovely girl who ...
Marilyn Monroe's Funeral Embalmer speaks! Joe DiMaggio's involvement- Scott Michaels Dearly Departed
Why did Joe DiMaggio stop sending roses?
In 1982, DiMaggio stopped sending roses because it was causing too much sensation. Hilgenstuhler, who now produces one-act television plays on a local cable channel, said the DiMaggio flower story was not his best nor the one he is proudest of. But, he admits, it's the one that attracted the most attention.
No. Although Marilyn was married three times (first to James Dougherty, followed by baseball star Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller), she did not have any children before her death in 1962.
Lawford says that in "slurred" speech Monroe told him she was "tired and would not be coming" to dinner. Then, as her voice became less audible, she told him, "Say goodbye to Pat. Say goodbye to Jack [President Kennedy]. And say goodbye to yourself, because you're a nice guy."
According to Biography, DiMaggio organized to have roses delivered to Monroe's Los Angeles crypt three times a week for 20 years after her death. “I'll go to my grave regretting and blaming myself for what happened to her,” DiMaggio is quoted as saying after her passing.
According to DiMaggio's attorney Morris Engelberg, DiMaggio's last words were "I'll finally get to see Marilyn." However, Joe's brother Dominic challenged Engelberg's version of Joe's final moments and his motives.
Years ago, Marilyn Monroe had taken a promise from Joe DiMaggio that she wanted roses sent to her every week, and he kept that promise. Until he died in 1999, he would send fresh roses to her grave a few times a week. She had said, “Six fresh long-stemmed red roses, three times a week … forever.”
And his control over funeral planning meant that three key figures in Monroe's life were nowhere to be seen at the service. DiMaggio reportedly banned Frank Sinatra, John F. Kennedy and Robert “Bobby” Kennedy from attending the star's funeral.
Here's a fascinating fact: The name plate on the grave has to be replaced periodically, because the lipstick kiss marks that fans leave on it cause oxidation and wear over time! Marilyn Monroe's tomb is available for the public to see!
Why did Marilyn Monroe look bruised when she died?
Lividity can mimic bruises. If she was found face down, or even on her side it would discolor her face. Post-mortem lividity is the pooling of the blood, caused by gravity, in the lower or dependent areas.
Iconic American actor Marilyn Monroe lived and died in the same home in Brentwood. In 2023, the home's new owner was listed as Glory of the Snow LLC. It is a company managed by Dan Lukas, who is an Emerald Lake hedge fund manager, and his wife Anne Jarmain.
Kennedy is one of the most talked-about affairs in history. Monroe and JFK were first introduced in 1954 by Peter Lawford, JFK's brother-in-law. According to biographer James Spada, “When Kennedy tired of her, he passed her off to his brother” in 1962.
And Marilyn=s mother, confined to a sanitarium, never learned of her daughter=s death. In fact, she seemed after some time not even to be sure who Norma Jean had been. Exiting the chapel into the sun‑drenched afternoon, mourners walked in silence behind the brand-new hearse.
The "Man with an Eternal Smile?" Joe DiMaggio had purchased two crypts in Westwood Cemetery for he and his famous wife, and while divorcing in 1954 sold his to Richard Poncher. The crypt Poncher bought was located directly above that which would eventually hold the remains of Marilyn Monroe (in 1962).
Grave stone of Marilyn Monroe at Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery, 1218 Glendon Avenue, Los Angeles, California | Library of Congress.
He gave $1.5 million to his great-grandchildren. DiMaggio also left $100,000 to his nephew Joseph, the son of his deceased brother Mike. DiMaggio's only son, who was estranged from the elder DiMaggio, was willed a trust fund of $20,000 per year.
Book overview. Peter Lawford starred in films like "Easter Parade" and "The Picture of Dorian Gray", and was known for his involvement with many of Hollywood's top names. But he is best remembered for his connections with the Kennedy family and as the man who introduced John F. Kennedy to Marilyn Monroe.
