WASHINGTON, DC.- A portrait of Marilyn Monroe will be installed in the
Smithsonian National Portrait Gallerys Recognize space, Jan. 22, 2016. The museums historians and curators selected three actresses portraits for voters to choose fromRita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe and Mae Westthree fan favorites who, despite long acting careers, never received Oscar nominations.
Thousands of votes were cast on Smithsonianmag.com, and Monroes portrait received the most votes. Philippe Halsmans photograph of her will be on view on the Recognize wall, near the north entrance of the museum, through March 6, 2016.
Although Jack Lemmon was nominated for an Oscar for Some Like It Hot (1959), his co-star, Marilyn Monroe (19261962), was not, even though some consider her portrayal of Sugar Kane Kowalczyk to be her signature role. In fact, Monroe went her entire 15-year careerduring which she made 29 filmswithout an Oscar nomination. Philippe Halsman took this photograph of Monroe in 1952 for Life magazine. Halsman later said, She smiled, flirted, giggled and wriggled with delight. During the hour I kept her cornered she enjoyed herself royally, and I ... took between 40 and 50 pictures.
Last year, the Portrait Gallery created Recognize as an opportunity for people to select what they would like to see on display. Twice a year, the museum presents three portraits, and the public votes for their favorite. In the last round of Recognize, voters elected to display a portrait of the baseball Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente by Charles Teenie Harris.