Marilyn Monroe Rare Live Television Appearance - "Person To Person" Interview 1955

Good evening, I'm Ed Murrow. The name of the program is Person to Person. It's all live, there's no film. Tonight we'll be going first to Weston, Connecticut, where photographer Milton Green, his wife, and their friend and house guest Marilyn Monroe will be waiting for us. Then we'll come back to the city for a visit with the conductor Sir Thomas Beecham and Lady Beecham. We'll be ready in exactly 20 seconds. Long distance, Maine to Florida. The American Oil Company, the drillers who produce oil, the scientists who refine it, the seamen who transport it, the men who deliver it, and the Amoco dealers who serve you, all the Amoco people calling you person to person. Milton Green is a photographer. For years, millions of us have seen his pictures on the covers of Look, Life, Vogue, and others. And inside, his pictures have been illustrating advertisements. But few people outside magazine and advertising offices ever heard of Milton Green until he became vice president of Marilyn Monroe Productions, Incorporated. Milton, who is 33, his wife and their year-old son, live in this 150-year-old home in Weston, Connecticut. It's about an hour's drive from his studio in Manhattan. It used to be a barn and a stable, but Milton and his friends have been converting it. He added a garage and that studio you see there at the left. It's here on 11 acres and 16 rooms that Marilyn Monroe has been spending some of her time since she came to New York. Evening, Milton. Hello, Milton. Ed, hello. How are you? Fine, thank you. And you? Good. What are you doing there? Well, we're just going over some pictures. Tell me, what part of the house are we in now, Milton? This is the studio. And where is Mrs. Green and Marilyn? They're in the kitchen right now. Well, we can go in and meet them in a minute, I imagine. All right. While we have you in the studio, could we take a better look at it? Yes. We have a camera and some posters. I gather those pictures on the wall must be your work, aren't they? Yes. Let's see, that one would be Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, wouldn't it? That's right. And the next one over, Grace Kelly? Yes. Oh, and that's Janet Leigh alone, isn't it? That's right. And Ava Gardner? Right. Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher? That's right. And Audrey Hepburn? That's it. And those are all covers of yours, aren't they? Yes. Do you have any more pictures about Milton? Yes, we have some over here. We have some pictures here of my son, Josh. And how old is he, Milton? Well, Josh is one year. And then right above Josh is Jimmy Durante. Oh, wonderful. And then is Dorothy and Dick Rogers. Yes. Oh, that's wonderful of them. Thank you. And then Marlena Dietrich. Oh, I like that. And then we have Jay Cantor's Judy and Amy Cantor's Amy Cantor. Yes. And then this one. Yes, that's Marilyn Monroe, isn't it? That's right. Tell me, how many of your photographs of Marilyn have been on magazine covers, Milton? Only one. Was it difficult to take that one? Do you have any trouble with it? No, that was done with two or three photo floods and the Roloflex in Look Office in California. And what does she think of it? Well, why don't we go inside and ask her? All right, good. Milton, tell me, did you study photography at school? Yes. And what sort of camera did you use when you first started taking pictures? It was a Kodak that my sister had. An old-fashioned collapsible one, was it? Yeah, with a leak in the bellows. Ed, this is my wife, Amy. Good evening, Marilyn. Good evening, Mr. Merrill. Good evening, Marilyn. How do you do, Mr. Merrill? Marilyn, I was asking Milton what you thought of that Look cover that he did of you. I liked it very much, although I like most of Milton's pictures. Well, now, your picture has been on the cover of almost all popular magazines, hasn't it? No, not the Ladies Home Journal. That you would like, would you? Yes. Why? Well, I used to long for it. I used to appear on, when I was modeling, on men's magazine covers, such as, I don't know, Squint, Peep, Take a Peep. But not the Ladies Home Journal? No. Marilyn, tell me, how did you three meet? Well, we met in California. I really met Milton first. I was working on a set in Hollywood, and one of the Look writers came over to the set one day and asked me if I'd like to look at some pictures in a portfolio. And I said, yes, I'd like to. And I saw the most beautiful pictures I'd ever seen. And I said, I'd like for this photographer to photograph me. And he says, well, here he is. And I turned and looked, and I said, but he's just a boy. And what did you have to say to that, Milton? Well, he's just a girl. Amy, that looks like a large dining room and kitchen. Are you the cook? No, I'm not. We have a wonderful girl by the name of Sadie Ingram. She's not with us tonight, but we're very proud of this kitchen, Ed. Milton built the table. Amy, tell me, does Marilyn know her way around the kitchen? Is she very much help around the house? Well, yes, she is. She's sort of an ideal guest. She's not trouble to anyone, and she picks up after herself, and she's just fine. You don't even know she's around. Does she make her own bed? Yes, she does, and she helps me with the baby to bathe him. And cleans her own room? Yes, she does. Has she ever come in handy as a babysitter? Well, that's it. Quite a number of occasions. Yes, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. Milton, about this matter of Monroe Productions. Yes? Have you and the president of the company had any offers yet? Excuse me, why don't we go into a more comfortable room? All right. Where are we going now, Amy? This is our den with the books and television set and a nice warm fire. It's chilly tonight. Well, Milton, I was asking you just before you moved about Monroe Productions. Yes? Have you and the president had any offers yet? Oh, there's a telephone edge. That's another offer. Yes, we've had quite a few, Ed. We had some for TV and the theater in Europe and here. Movies, books, real estate. But you haven't decided on any one yet, is that it? No, we've got a few things in mind, but nothing definite as yet. Marilyn, tell me, what's the basic reason for this corporation? Primarily to contribute to help making good pictures. Well, would it be fair to say that you got rather tired of playing the same kind of roles all the time and wanted to try something different? Well, it's not that I object to doing musicals or comedies. In fact, I rather enjoy it, but I would like to do also dramatic parts too. Amy, are you in the corporation too? No, I'm not. I sort of take care of Milton, who's very important, and Josh, and Marilyn. That's even more important, isn't it, Joy? He's sound asleep, by the way. Marilyn, what's the best part you ever had in a movie? Well, one of the best parts I've ever had was in the Asphalt Jungle, John Huston's picture, and then Seven Year Itch, well, Billy Wilder's picture. You think that's going to be a big one too, don't you? Pardon? You think that's going to be a big one too, don't you, the Seven Year Itch? Yes, I think it'll be a very good picture, and I would like to continue making this type of picture. Well now, what's the smallest part you ever had? Um, two I can think of. One in a picture called Ticket to Tomahawk. I had one word, well, not exactly a word, it said, hmm, and then, uh, scut-a-who, scut-a-hey, scut-a-who, scut-a-hey. Was that all you had to say? No, no, in a picture called scut-a-who, scut-a-hey, I had one word to say. I said, hello, but it went fast. In fact, I cut it out. Who's helped you most in your movie career, Marilyn? Well, a number of people have contributed greatly. Um, I think when John Huston wanted me for the part in Asphalt Jungle, and I think when Billy Wilder wanted me for the part in Seven Year Itch, I think that was very important. Also, working with my coach, Natasha Lyteff, she's helped me very much from the very beginning, and I also got a great deal from attending classes with Michael Chekhov. I noticed you mentioned two directors. Have you found Huston and Wilder important to you? Yes, very much so. Well, Marilyn, now that, uh, uh, how do you mean important? I mean, do you play a part in order to impress them or please them? Definitely. I think when you have a very good director, uh, of course you, in fact, I think the story is very important, but even personally, more important to me than the story is the director, because the director usually has a good story, a good director usually has a good story. Um, a director, I think, can contribute a lot because when you feel that when you're acting and the director is with you and not just sitting by as, um, just as the audience, yes, but he's really with you every moment, everything you do, I think it's very important. It has been to me. Well, Marilyn, now that you're a New Yorker, how do you like this city anyway? Oh, I love it. Everyone's very friendly and it's a very optimistic friendly city. How do you like Connecticut? I like it. It's the first time I've, I've ever seen the woods and I like to walk in the woods with the dogs and enjoy it. Where are the dogs? Well, are you always recognized wherever you go in, in the nearby towns and in New York? No, not really. Um, I can put on a no polo coat and no makeup and get along pretty well. Is that, is that right, Melton? What's that? Is that right, that she can go about without being recognized? Well, sometimes it seems that way. Other times, uh... Oh, the funny thing was, remember that day in the taxi cab? Oh, yes, that's right. Uh, it was when she came to, uh, do the window scene for the seven-year itch. Yes. And we were depositing her back at her hotel and there were about five million people outside and the taxi cab driver turned around to the three of us, Marilyn in the middle, and said, hey, you know who's in there? Marilyn Monroe. Marilyn, I saw some pictures of you the other day, uh, riding an elephant at the circus. Did you have fun? Oh, I loved it. It was wonderful. It was a pink elephant. Uh-huh. Did you have any practice before you rode it? No, I hadn't, but I enjoyed it very much. I became quite fond of the elephant. He was very nice and the people were wonderful, all the crowds and everything. Um, especially the ones way up in the... Yes, that's right. I was telling Amy before about the people up in the balcony, way up in the far, far balcony. They were especially friendly, but, uh, I think it meant a lot because, probably because I hadn't been to a circus as a kid and I like circuses. I think we all do. Thank you very much, Milton, Amy, and Marilyn for letting us come and visit you in, uh, your home in Connecticut this evening. Good night. In just a moment, we'll be taking you for a visit with Sir Thomas and Lady Beecham.