Curtain Call

...a tribute to Marilyn Monroe

Curtain Call

 

 

She was poetry in motion,

with a tenacity to be

whatever the camera wanted.

 

She was “Roslyn” in “The Misfits,”

the quintessential woman

with all the naivety of a child.

Inside, there was a spirit

ever longing to be free,

ever yearning to be more than just

the projected image

reflected in the telephoto lens.

 

She dreamed of perfection,

was desperate to cling to it

like Natalie Wood in “Splendor in the Grass”,

pacifying the reviews of movie critics

and gossipmongers

in an attempt

to validate her soul.

 

The Hollywood lights began to fade.

Her youth was spent

lost in a cocktail of champagne and pills,

of dreams and men

that never fulfilled her.

 

Her life was a stage.

And she was Norma Jeane.     

 

 

 

Author's Note

...she would have been 92 years young!

Reviews

[C. M. Miller]

So sad. If only this or that or that other thing as we look back and wonder if anybody had a clue that a train wreck was coming? They used her and abused her, and could only see the image that sold tickets. Alone, she was.

[Beccy]

We are mostly not built to cope with such adulation, and it both saddens and angers me when so many of the stars that shine the brightest, burn out before their time.

Through a family friend, both my sister and I knew Amy Winehouse, and I was really upset when she died the way she did. So young, so talented, and yet so often betrayed by those close to her, who did little more than live vicariously in her shadow.

Beccy.

[Fabian G. Franklin]

" Sometimes I feel like one of those paper dragons in the Chinese New Year Parade, you know? All frills and color on the outside and inside they're just empty." Marilyn Monroe I enjoyed your tribute to one of Hollywood's more memorable stars. Great job on this.

[Kelly Scheppers]

I appreciate that, Fabian. Thank you!

[Crowley]

I wish I could have hung out with her or any of these women....I know if they just met me we would have been besties!!!! I love this nostalgic walk down Hollywood Boulevard. Great writing!

[Kelly Scheppers]

I feel the very same way, Crowley! Thank you so much.

[Mari' Emeraude]

A lovely tribute for such a complex soul. I think though I was very young when she died, I still felt the sadness of her loss all around me. Nice poem

[Kelly Scheppers]

Thank you, Mari. I believe she lives on!

[Jodash]

This is a great poetic tribute to an American icon. Although I've never really been into her work or her life I've always seen her as very attractive and intriguing. It's good of you to present a fresh perspective on her personality and the human side of a true hollywood star.

[Kelly Scheppers]

Thank you, Jodash. So good to see a new face!

[Jodash]

You're welcome. Happy belated birthday.

[Kelly Scheppers]

...thank you!

[Lydia Shutter]

Kelly, you continue to honor Marilyn Monroe with your beautiful tributes to her. I think a little of Norma Jean is in your soul! Beautifully written...and Natalie Wood was one of the great actresses of that era too! Lydi**

[Kelly Scheppers]

I loved Natalie Wood! She's buried at Westwood Memorial, where Marilyn's crypt is. Thank you for leaving me such a warm compliment!

[Relic]

I remember seeing Brittany Spears flip out from the constant harassment from the press as Diana was. Then I remembered Marylin going through the same thing many years before. She was indeed a candle in the wind. She made a quote on fame saying it was fickle. I think there may have been a sadness in her knowing the attention she didn't get as a child was in some ways was fulfilled in the spotlight for a brief time.

[Kelly Scheppers]

I hope she can see how loved she is to this very day. Thank you, Tim.

[Ken Simm.]

92? Bloody Hell! A true archetype. Ars longa vita Brevis.

[Kelly Scheppers]

It's hard to believe, huh? I'm sure she'd be tickled to know her memory is very much alive and kicking. Many thanks, Ken!

[Pete]

she was so much more than fodder for the lens. thinking of JFK too! great title and pic to accompany such a wonderful, emotional, moving tribute to a beautiful, complex woman. a sad, tragic tale. so difficult to live in the spotlight of the media's eye. too bad not enough was focused on the inside rather than the outside. the only consolation is that her pain is gone for eternity ... :)

[Kelly Scheppers]

...well said, Pete. Thank you!