One-of-a-kind Colonial Trust Company check register tracking the finances of Marilyn Monroe Productions, Inc., from April 1956 through July 1956, 14 x 9.5, containing approximately 160 pages of check records, all accomplished in an unknown hand. Many of the statements have direct relationships to Monroe's life and career. The records kept include payments to Marilyn Monroe herself; photographer/producer Milton H. Greene; acting coach Paula Strasberg; Twentieth Century Fox; iconic department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales, Lord & Taylor, and Macy's; Hollywood staples such as the Western Costume Co. and the Screen Actors' Guild; hairstylist Enrico Caruso; her physician Mortimer Weinstein; and various living expenses such as gas, telephone, and electric bills. Several entries make reference to her projects, including "Bus Stop" and "Sleeping Prince" (a play which Monroe bought the rights to and adapted for the screen as The Prince and the Showgirl). One blank check is clipped to its associated page. In very good to fine condition.
Monroe and Milton Greene first met in September 1953 when the latter was a photographer on assignment for Look magazine, and the two quickly became friends. Spurred by Monroe's desire to have more control over her career, the pair formed an independent film production company, Marilyn Monroe Productions, in 1955. After making Bus Stop in 1956, the Prince and the Showgirl was the company's second project. However, Monroe's cordial relationship with Greene soon dissolved and Marilyn Monroe Productions folded after making only two films. A rare, fascinating piece of Monroe memorabilia offering a revealing inside look into this period of her career.
