GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES. Oil on birch panel. 24 " x 28 "   Raised in orphanages and first married at 14,Marilyn Monroe Monroe became a world-famous sex symbol and, after her death, a Hollywood legend. She was noted for her distinctively breathy singing style and seductive film roles. At first patronized by critics, she studied acting and won more challenging roles. Marilyn Monroe's death from a barbituate overdose at age 36, a possible suicide, only increased her mystique. Her films include Niagara (1952), The Seven-Year Itch (1955), Bus Stop (1956), Some Like It Hot (1959), and The Misfits (1960). Monroe's second husband was Joe DiMaggio and her third was Arthur Miller.