1954 Marilyn Monroe & Joe DiMaggio Autograph Display With Photo - 12 x 18" Framed Display (PSA/DNA)

1954 Marilyn Monroe & Joe DiMaggio Autograph Display With Photo - 12 x 18" Framed Display (PSA/DNA)

January 1954 saw the story book marriage of the era’s two greatest icons, Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio. Marilyn was at the peak of her career and considered the most desired woman in the world while Joe had just retired from baseball and regarded by all as the greatest ballplayer of his generation. For a time, the pair seemed to be the perfect match with Monroe’s sociable nature seeming to bring the normally shy DiMaggio out of his shell as the pair travelled the globe and visited the hottest nightspots. However, by the end of the summer the marriage was on the rocks. Being married to the world’s biggest sex symbol made DiMaggio into a jealous wreck and Marilyn chaffed under her husband’s increasingly controlling behavior.

On the night of September 15, Marilyn was in New York working on the film The Seven Year Itch. As part of the film’s publicity, Marilyn famously posed for photographers standing on a subway grate as the air blew her white dress up over her hips. For two hours cameras flashed as Marilyn playfully struggled to retain her modesty before a crowd of onlookers numbering in the thousands. In among the spectators was the one man who was not excited by the performance – Marilyn’s husband, Joe DiMaggio. Mortified by the spectacle of his wife being leered at by throngs of strangers, this was the last straw for DiMaggio. The couple argued bitterly and Marilyn filed for divorce a month later. This display pairs a photograph of Joe and Marilyn during happier times, along with a sheet of paper signed by the couple. The blue ink signatures are on a page of National Airlines stationary. The page shows overall toning from age along with edge wear. A horizontal fold runs through both Marilyn and Joe’s signature, though this does not affect the legibility or display quality. An unknown hand has written, “Sept 15, 1954” in blue ink, this date being significant in that it was the day of the famous subway grate photo session. Both pieces have been professionally mounted and framed to 12 x 18-inch display. The piece comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA (Y03350) for the signatures.