Marilyn Monroe's first contract showed her modest income (10 photos)

Marilyn Monroe's first film contract put up for auction movie. Then, in 1946, 20th Century Fox made a deal with aspiring actress six-month contract. It turned out that the first income The Monroes were very meager by acting standards.





Marilyn Monroe's first contract put up for auction actress signed with 20th Century Studios (20th Century Fox) in 1946 year. Then 20-year-old Norma Jean Dougherty worked as a model several times, and was a relatively unknown aspiring actress. The studio entered into her modest six-month contract, under which for filming her paid $150 a week - the approximate equivalent of $2,350 for today's money. By acting standards, this quite a small amount. Later, during the heyday of the late 1950s, she earned $500,000 per film, which is today's equivalent more than 5 million dollars.



Monroe's first contract, original, signed by hand and dated July 25, 1946, will be sold at Christie's in New York. Its approximate cost, according to appraisers, is up to 35,000 dollars. Initially, the head of the film studio Darryl Zanuck did not was delighted with the screen test of the actress, but decided to offer her a six-month contract - to prevent her from signing with a rival studio RKO. It was under this contract that Norma Jean took the famous pseudonym Marilyn Monroe on the advice of director Ben Lyon.



After the expiration in February 1947, the contract was extended. Then Monroe had small roles in The Dangerous Years (1947), where she played the waitress, and "Skudda-U! Skudda-Hey!" (1948). But in August 1947 the film studio fired her, and the actress played minor roles in theater and found odd jobs - until she was noticed by Columbia pictures.



Collaborating with Columbia Pictures, she starred in one film - Glee Lady (1948) and then re-started with 20th Century studios. This time, Monroe received not 150, but 500 dollars a week. IN In 1953, her career took off: the films "Niagara", "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "How to Marry a Millionaire" brought her fame.