Marilyn Monroe
Photographer: Sam Shaw
Date: September 15, 1954
Location: Lexington Avenue & 52nd Street, New York City, USA
Sam Shaw photographed Marilyn Monroe during the filming of a publicity scene for Billy Wilder's film 'The Seven Year Itch' on September 14–15, 1954, on Lexington Avenue at 52nd Street in New York City. Monroe stood on a New York City subway grate as the draft from passing trains below blew her white pleated halter dress upward. The scene was staged as a publicity event in front of an assembled crowd, photographers, and press. Monroe's then-husband Joe DiMaggio, who was present, was reportedly furious at the spectacle. The actual film version of the scene was shot in a studio in Los Angeles because the New York shoot was too disruptive. Shaw's photographs became some of the most iconic images in Hollywood history. The dress Monroe wore was later sold at auction in 2011 for $5.6 million, becoming one of the most expensive items of clothing ever sold.
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