On June 1, 1926, Gladys Pearl Baker gave birth to a baby girl she called Norma Jean Mortensen, the family name of her estranged husband. Gladys never told her daughter the name of her real father, but later the young starlet would make the discovery on her own. Gladys had a family history of insanity and was committed to a mental institution shortly after Norma Jean's birth.
Passed from foster home to foster home, Norma Jean suffered abuse and neglect. She turned to movies and daydreams as an escape. By 12, she began wearing tight clothing, accentuating her rapidly developing figure. Her craving for attention coincided with her emerging beauty. At 16, Norma Jean's aunt decided she was of marrying age, so she was engaged to the boy next door, a factory worker named James Dougherty.
Norma Jean's husband joined the Merchant Marines in World War II, and she went to work in an airplane factory. While working on the assembly line, she was photographed for a war magazine. Soon, she was offered a modeling contract, which she quickly accepted. Her success ruined her marriage, the first of many to be torn apart by her status.
In 1946, she was contracted by executives at 20th Century Fox. Armed with a star's look and name, Marilyn Monroe (Gladys's maiden name), she was introduced to the world. But the world didn't notice. She later signed on with Columbia Pictures. However she failed to impress studio heads and was dropped.
Desperate for money, she posed nude for a calendar, a job that paid $50 an hour. As a result she was introduced to Hollywood's most powerful agent, Johnny Hyde. He was instantly impressed by her and persuaded director John Huston to test her for a part in "The Asphalt Jungle." Her years of perseverance paid off as she won the part of Angela. She only had a few lines but displayed her talent as an actress. She caught the attention of Joseph Mankiewicz who cast her in "All About Eve," her biggest break yet. Her star was rising quickly.
Although she achieved great film success, her private life was not so lucky. Tragic miscarriages and bad marriages plagued the star. The public never knew her private anguish until it was too late.