Of course Kim Kardashian wants to dress up like Marilyn Monroe, I did it and have never felt sexier and more powerful
“A WISE girl knows her limits, a smart girl knows that she has none,” Marilyn Monroe once said.
Nearly 60 years since her death, that empowering message still resonates with women.
Famous for her killer curves, red pout and “blonde bombshell” characters, the actress was the epitome of femininity and glamour.
But she was more than just a sex symbol, she was a force to be reckoned with who thrived on being a strong, independent woman in a man’s world.
Thanks to her wit, charm and tenacious personality, she remains an icon who celebrities are still desperate to emulate.
This week Kim Kardashian slipped into Marilyn’s legendary £4million “naked” dress for fashion’s biggest night out, the Met Gala in New York.
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It is the first time the gown has been worn publicly since Marilyn serenaded President John F Kennedy in it at his glitzy birthday bash in 1962.
“Happy birthday, Mr President,” she famously purred, while dazzling head to toe in the mesh and marquisette number, embellished with 6,000 crystals.
Kim’s decision to resurrect the frock ruffled more than a few feathers, with some critics cruelly calling the 41-year-old reality TV regular a “poundshop” version.
But Kim was right to wear it, as there’s no sexier look than Marilyn. I know, because I’ve dressed up as her too.
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After an array of her outfits and movie scripts fetched millions at auction last summer, I spent the day as Marilyn.
I felt like a million dollars as I transformed from dowdy mum into the ultimate Hollywood siren, and I loved recreating her famous black and white ballerina poster.
I had become obsessed with Marilyn after watching Gentlemen Prefer Blondes when I was 11.
I loved her beauty, grace and style. I’d raid my mum’s wardrobe trying to dress up as her.
As I grew older I realised she was just as fascinating off-screen. She was a rebel who wasn’t afraid to break the mould in an era when women were supposed to be seen, not heard.
In my 20s I could also relate to her colourful love life. Like her, I had a few affairs and messy relationships.
She wasn’t perfect but she was never boring. And I’m far from being alone in my love for Marilyn — or for dressing up like her.
Christina Aguilera has copied her numerous times on the red carpet, as well as on her Back To Basics album cover in 2006.
In 2012 Rihanna dressed up as Marilyn for her music video Pour It Up. The 34-year-old also talked about Marilyn’s influence in her 2012 song Love Without Tragedy, in which she sings: “Red lipstick, rose petals, heartbreak, I was his Marilyn Monroe.”
Britney Spears reportedly visits Marilyn’s grave when she is in Los Angeles and often carries books about her.
American actress Michelle Williams morphed into Monroe for her 2011 film My Week With Marilyn.
The role had almost gone to Scarlett Johansson, who in 2009 had posed in a series of seductive Marilyn-inspired poses in bed to advertise make-up.
In 2008 Lindsay Lohan paid homage to Marilyn by stripping off for New York magazine recreating her final photoshoot before her death in August 1962.
Former Strictly pro dancer Kristina Rihanoff, supermodel Eva Herzigova and Page 3 beauty Rhian Sugden have all done a Marilyn too.
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But while lots of famous women have tried to be her, there will only ever be one Marilyn Monroe.
Although as she herself once said: “We are all of us stars, and we deserve to twinkle.”
