Fans paid tribute to Marilyn Monroe on Sunday — on the 50th anniversary of her death.
The movie star died of an overdose at the age of 36 in her Brentwood home.
In the decades since her death, Monroe has remained a pop culture and film icon, as well as a quintessential American sex symbol.
Fans will pay tribute to Monroe at a ceremony at her final resting place at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.
The event was scheduled to take place at noon, and is sponsored by the Marilyn Remembered Fan Club.
A reception following the memorial service was planned at the Westwood Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall.
A Hugh Hefner-signed Marilyn Monroe painting of the first cover of Playboy will be on sale.
The proceeds will benefit Holygrove — a home for neglected children, where Marilyn once lived.
Born Norma Jean Mortenson on June 1, 1926, Monroe spent much of her childhood in foster homes.
She began her career as a model, which led to a film contract with Twentieth Century-Fox in 1946.
She garnered attention with her performances in “The Asphalt Jungle” and “All About Eve,” both released in 1950.
In 1952, she landed first leading role in “Don’t Bother to Knock,” followed up by a lead in the film noir “Niagara” in 1953.
Her “dumb blonde” persona was played up to comedic effect in subsequent films like “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1953), “How to Marry a Millionaire” (1953) and “The Seven Year Itch” (1955).
Monroe subsequently studied at the Actors Studio to broaden her range, and her dramatic performance in “Bus Stop” (1956) earned her a Golden Globe nomination.
Her production company, Marilyn Monroe Productions, released “The Prince and the Showgirl” (1957), for which she received a BAFTA Award nomination and won a David di Donatello award.
She received a Golden Globe Award for her performance in “Some Like It Hot” (1959).
Monroe’s last completed film was “The Misfits,” co-starring Clark Gable with screenplay by her then-husband, Arthur Miller.
In the final years of her life, Monroe was plagued by illness and personal problems.
She acquired a reputation for being unreliable and difficult to work with.
The circumstances of her death — from an overdose of barbiturates — on August 5, 1962 have been the subject of much conjecture.
Her death was officially classified as a “probable suicide.” The possibility of an accidental overdose, as well as of homicide, haven’t been ruled out.
