Though Marilyn Monroe was one of the most famous stars of her time, her funeral had a surprisingly low turnout after her sudden death on August 4, 1962 after a suspected overdose. The Something’s Got To Give star was found dead the following day after a highly publicized battle with mental illness and substance abuse. Her former husband, New York Yankees baseball star Joe DiMaggio was quick to step in and retrieve her body before planning her funeral. With no surviving family and a complicated backstory, DiMaggio was one of few people in the star’s inner circle when she died. 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. The three men were linked to Monroe at various points in her life which probably played a large role in DiMaggio alleged reluctance to allow them to pay their respects but he was also incredibly diligent in not wanting the funeral to become a media circus. According to PBS, DiMaggio barred many members of Hollywood from attending, including producers, directors and other actors. Reportedly, when studio executives tried to convince the former sports star to allow some of these people to attend, this is what he responded: “Tell them,” said DiMaggio, “if it wasn’t for them, she’d still be here.”
Monroe and DiMaggio married in January 1954 after a brief romance but ended their romantic relationship in October of the same year — reportedly because of DiMaggio’s anger over THIS iconic movie scene. The former couple developed a friendship once again after Monroe separated from Arthur Miller in 1961 and were even rumored to have rediscovered a romantic connection, though this remains unconfirmed. According to PBS, DiMaggio’s former teammate Jerry Coleman claimed to have seen the two during Monroe’s final years. “I was doing shows in New York and I was walking down Park Avenue to get to my car. And I saw this couple coming down and Joe’s got his head up in the air and his arm around Marilyn. And they’re just day-dreaming along and never even saw me. And so, I didn’t bother to stop and say ‘hello.’ I thought he was happy as he was, leave him alone,” Coleman allegedly claimed.
Monroe’s rumored affairs with President JFK and, later, his younger brother is one of the greatest mysteries of the 20th century and while there are many conflicting reports about what exactly happened in this bizarre love triangle, many sources insist Monroe had romantic relations, in some capacity, with both brothers in the 1960s and may have even been continuing one with Bobby up until her death.
As for Sinatra, he was linked to Monroe in 1961. DiMaggio and Sinatra were once close friends. Sinatra allegedly even accompanied DiMaggio on a home invasion mission to catch Monroe with another man after the baseball star’s divorce. This went terribly wrong and became a widely publicized report known as the Wrong Door Raid. Thus, Sinatra and Monroe’s fling was probably a sore point for a heartbroken DiMaggio.
According to PBS, a New York Times account of Monroe’s funeral described a grief-stricken DiMaggio bending down to his ex-wife, saying “I love you. I love you.” For the next two decades, DiMaggio reportedly arranged for weekly flower deliveries to be sent to Monroe’s grave. “I firmly believe,” said actor Brad Dexter, “that all the years that [DiMaggio] made those visitations to her grave site and left flowers. . . he was still in love with her, but also [did it] out of a great sense of guilt. Because I think he helped contribute to her demise. I’m firmly convinced that if he had behaved differently, they would have had a good marriage. He destroyed it—and he felt that guilt.”
Before you go, click here to see photos of Marilyn Monroe’s too-short life.
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