Candle In The Wind

When Marilyn was found dead at the age of 36, it was a shock for America.  The model/movie star that had been such a huge icon in the spotlight for all to see, was no longer living.  However, that did not mean that her legend did not live for years to come.  

Today, Marilyn's life is still talked about with great reverence to who she was and the impact she had on society.  She impacted fashion, movies, the modeling industry, and individuals.  She empowered women to be okay with the natural curves of their bodies.  The tragedy that struck America when Marilyn died was not only the loss of a person who gave herself and changed society, but also the chance to help Marilyn see just how valuable a person she was.

Although there is controversy about the way Marilyn died, it is believed it was a suicide.  When you look at the facts of this women's life it is not hard to believe that is what happened.  She poured her whole self  into society and it took over her being.  No longer was she sweet, innocent, Norma Jeane, she was the sex goddess, movie star, she was Marilyn Monroe.  When you look at the life this lady lived, it seemed full, but it was so empty.  She had no one "on her side".  She ended her life, in my opinion, because she had no one and nothing left to live for.  She had made her way to being famous and it did nothing more than cause her pain.    

Elton John said it perfectly in his song dedicated to Marilyn Monroe, Candle In The Wind.  He saw her as being more than something sexual, he saw her as a women who was hurt and scared and never had anyone she could truly cling to.  

"I knew I belonged to the public and to 

the world, not because I was talented or 

even beautiful, but because I had 

never belonged to anything or anyone 

else."   -Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn, Before The Spotlight

Growing up she was known as Norma Jeane Mortenson.  She was born into a troubled home full of chaos and confusion.  For myself, growing up in a well balanced home, I can't even imagine the pain this little girl must have endured. 

Her mother, Gladys Baker, was mentally as well as financially unstable making her unable to care for her daughter.  This caused young Norma Jeane to be transferred from foster home, back to her mother, to another foster home, to an orphanage, and to multiple more foster homes throughout her childhood. 

One day when Marilyn was still with her first foster family, her mother, Gladys, decided to take Marilyn back.  When Grace McKee, the foster mother, wouldn't let her, Gladys took matters into her own hands.  She persuaded Grace to come into the yard then outran her back to the house and locked herself indoors.  She then preceded to stuff 2-year old Marilyn into a duffel bag and walked out of the house with her.  A horrified Grace ran to save the little girl and found her almost suffocating inside the bag.  The courts then relinquished all rights from Gladys and Marilyn continued switching residences for 13 years.  

During these years she suffered from physical and sexual abuse on multiple accounts.  Finally, so as not to be sent to another foster home or orphanage, she married young, at the age of 15, to a friend of her last foster family.  His name was James Dougherty and he was 5 years older than her.  As anyone can see this is a terrible environment for a child to be raised in, with never any stability or love.  

Despite all the hardships little Marilyn endured she continued to follow her dreams of "making it big" and she did, in Hollywood.  Although she fulfilled the dream of becoming a star she never got what anyone truly desires. . .love.  In her life Marilyn looked for love from many sources: foster families, the men she married, producers, fans etc.  She lived her life based on appearance and how the world viewed her.  It was what kept her going.  Marilyn was never able to find this love she so desperately wanted because no one ever taught her how to love herself.  

"I was never used to being happy, so 

that wasn't something I ever took for 

granted. You see, I was brought up 

differently from the average American 

child because the average child is 

brought up expecting to be happy." -- 

MARILYN MONROE, 1954

Exploring The Spotlight

Hi, my name is Angelina VanWetten and I started this blog to investigate a topic that interests, excites, scares, or amuses me.  I found the topic of actors and actresses "stuck in the spotlight" so to speak, do all those things for me.  I will be investigating the lives of actresses, Marilyn Monroe and Judy Garland, as well as actor, Gene Kelly.  I chose these people because each one is different yet have similarities in their: careers, childhoods, and personal lives.  Each of these American icons have influenced society during their times and long after, people are still affected by who these people where and what they stood for.

When people think Marilyn Monroe they usually think: gorgeous, sexy, troubled, beautiful disaster. . .

Words, are they what define us?  To Marilyn it was all about what people thought of her, the words they used to describe her.  Although she was a very sad and troubled person, she had to appear perfect to others, for her own sake.  She was scared that if she showed even the smallest bit of hurt and pain that was caused be her childhood situations people would not like her.  She needed the approval from men so she allowed herself to be made into a sex symbol and get attention for her body and appeal.  She let the words be her definition instead of defining herself.  Marilyn became excellent at masking her sadness.  Despite all the sadness we see from how her life really was, we also see the greatness of this woman and how to chased her dreams and created dreams for many more to follow! “Marilyn played the best game with the worst hand of anybody I know.” ~Edward Wagenknecht, author

In this blog we will spend time on each of these three stars and see how they were defined by themselves and by society.

When looking at Judy Garland, we see a girl who was raised in show business.  She started her career at the age of two by signing in her father's movie house and theater.  She was cast in her first major role when playing Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.  When looking at her life we see that the pressure created by not only her family, but also by the public driving her to become an alcoholic as well as a drug addict.  We will be looking more in-depth at how Garland came to this state as well as how she influenced the movie and music industry, she was described by Fred Astaire as "being the greatest entertainer that ever lived".



The last person we will be looking at in this blog is Gene Kelly.

Starting from nothing Gene Kelly, worked his way into the spotlight with hard work and determination.  He became one of the most well known choreographers, producers, actors, singers, and dancers.  He had it all.  Thanks to Gene Kelly, there was a revolution throughout Hollywood, the dancing style in musicals changed and because of him dancing became a very popular activity!  Gene Kelly not only was very educated in dance, voice, and acting, he also had a degree in economics.  While his mother supported his theatrical passion, she was determined for him to get an education as well and consistently encouraged him to continue throughout his schooling years.  


Each one of these great talents had so much to offer and with a little research we will see how the spotlight effected each of their lives.