Movie meme (Week 9) Favourite actress

Hannah at Metal Mummy has set the theme for this week as your favourite actress. HHmmmm now let me think, as far as actresses go certainly no modern day acting ability springs to mind.

I was going to choose Bette Davis as she is an absolutely stand out actress but as I choose one of her films in the black & white week I am going to move to someone I think was a very clever and totally underrated actress - this week my favourite actress is the epic, iconic Marilyn Monroe.

The late great Marilyn

I am sure many people associate Marilyn with the drug fuelled, sleeping tablet addicted blonde that died in some would say suspicious cirsumstances in 1962, but for me Marilyn was a clever and savvy woman who took her choosen professional so seriously that she studied acting for years off her own back and not at the request of her studio bosses.  I don't believe in the beginning her roles were anything to shout about at all but for me that chnaged when she played Miss Caswell in 'All about Eve' with you guessed it Bette Davis.

Marilyn (in white) in a very early role

She was far from anything except a bit part but she seemed to bring the screen to life with her timid and sweet natured acting - far from the actress she is remembered as.

I fantastic 'must see' film of hers is Don't Bother to Knock where Marilyn plays a disturbed babysitter in charge of 2 children in a hotel where she meets a pilot (played by Richard Widmark) who soon discovers from her strange behaviour that she would be the last person suitable to look after children. Marilyns portrayal was edgey and realistic and showed a new side to the blonde bombshell the studios showed the world.

Here's a taster of Don't Bother to Knock

For those of you that prefer the bubbly blonde version of Marilyn you simply can't beat Gentleman prefer Blondes or better still the classic Some Like it Hot where she plays Sugar Kane a drinking, going nowhere musician that dreams of better things...check them all out or catch up on the ones you haven't seen and see for yourself the many different sides to her acting.

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