Joe DiMaggio

"I was surprised to be so crazy about Joe. I expected a flashy New York sports type, and instead I met this reserved guy who didn't make a pass at me right away! He treated me like something special. Joe is a very decent man, and he makes other people feel decent, too." - Marilyn Monroe

In 1952, Joe DiMaggio asked an acquaintance to arrange a dinner date with Marilyn. She was on the rise after supporting roles in films such as Monkey Business (1952) and a leading role in Don’t Bother to Knock (1952). 

The press immediately picked up on the relationship and began to cover it exhaustively. On January 14, 1954, they were married at San Francisco City Hall, where they were mobbed by reporters and fans after wedding plans were leaked. 

On September 15, 1954 Marilyn, as a publicity stunt for the filming of The Seven Year Itch, stands over a subway grating at Lexington Avenue and 52nd Street, the breeze blows up her white pleated dress. Two hundred photographers record the scene while mostly male fans watch and cheer and Joe DiMaggio becomes furious and leaves the set. Reportedly he & Marilyn would get into a huge fight later and some suspected physical abuse. 

Shortly after on October 6, 1954, Marilyn steps out in front of the press to announce she was seeking a divorce from Joe DiMaggio on the grounds of "mental cruelty." Marilyn said, "I didn't want to give up my career, and that's what Joe wanted me to do most of all."

© All Rights Acknowledged. Marilyn Monroe & Joe DiMaggio on their wedding day at San Francisco City Hall in January (1954).