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New Book Unearths Marilyn Monroe Photos & Complete Final Interview: MARILYN: THE LOST PHOTOGRAPHS • THE LAST INTERVIEW
MARILYN: THE LOST PHOTOGRAPHS • THE LAST INTERVIEW publishes May 12, 2026
Marilyn Monroe photographed in her Brentwood home in June 1962
a contact sheet from the Allan Grant photo shoot of Marilyn Monroe, taken July 1962, that is included in MARILYN: THE LOST PHOTOGRAPHS • THE LAST INTERVIEW
Marilyn in Her Own Words: Deluxe Book from Weldon Owen & 1962 MM LLC Celebrates Monroe's Centenary with Complete LIFE Interview and Unseen Allan Grant Photos
Marilyn told me the best and most honest interview she ever had was the one she did for Richard Meryman. He wrote Marilyn’s story just as she told it, just as she wanted her story told.”
SAN RAFAEL, CA, UNITED STATES, May 12, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Marilyn Monroe’s final formal photo session and last interview have never been released in their entirety—until now. Completed in July 1962, just a month before her passing, the interview conducted by Richard Meryman was Marilyn at her most open and honest, and the photos by Allan Grant (the only ones ever taken in her home) reflected those words. Now, for the first time, you can read Marilyn in her own words and see her as the world has never seen her before in MARILYN: THE LOST PHOTOGRAPHS • THE LAST INTERVIEW; published by Weldon Owen and available online and in bookstores everywhere today. — Sam Shaw, photographer, friend, and author of "Dear Marilyn"
In July 1962, Marilyn Monroe was at a crossroads. At thirty-six years old and embroiled in legal battles with the studio over her current picture, Something’s Gotta Give, she was struggling with fame, age, and a studio system in which she no longer fit. When she sat down to give Richard Meryman an interview, she had a lot to say. Originally intended to be an interview about fame, over the course of four hours Marilyn talked about her entire life. Only a small portion of the interview was published in LIFE Magazine. When she died, just two days after the article was published, Meryman put the full transcript and the original tapes in his files, never to see the light of day.
Documenting this landmark interview was iconic photojournalist Allan Grant. His images of Marilyn would be her last formal photo shoot—in her home, in casual clothes, being the glorious, free spirit she was. Grant captured every emotion of the interview in these exquisite images, only eight of which were published alongside the LIFE interview excerpt. Most of the remainder of the twelve rolls of images were stored in Allan’s safe, waiting to be rediscovered.
The project, which was featured on the cover of People Magazine’s May 18, 2026 issue, has been led by Jason Greene and Chris Flannery, founders of 1962 MM LLC. Greene and Flannery acquired Allan Grant’s Marilyn archive, located Richard Meryman’s daughter who had the original audio tapes stored in her basement, and, after more than 50 years, successfully reunited the photographs with Marilyn's words. Among the many initiatives to be unveiled on www.marilynslostphotos.com and @marilynslostphotos on Instagram, the team conceived the idea of bringing this remarkable book to life.
“Discovering the complete session—four hundred plus photos and four hours of Marilyn speaking freely—was like finding a sealed time capsule. We knew immediately this was a story that had to be told, because it changes how we understand Marilyn and how relevant she still is today,” said Greene.
Flannery added, “What Grant and Meryman captured is the Marilyn the world was never permitted to see. Restoring and releasing their work now feels like returning something essential—not just to Marilyn’s story, but to our cultural memory.”
Marilyn: The Lost Photographs • The Last Interview is Marilyn Monroe in her own words—words that haven’t been published, until now. In this recently restored and complete transcript, Marilyn candidly talks about her childhood and life, fame, the studio system, her approach to work, celebrity, being a sex symbol, and more. At times joyous, silly, serious, philosophical and pensive, it is a Marilyn that the world has never experienced. Accompanying the interview are more than 400 of Grant’s extraordinary images, most never published until now, as well as previously unpublished essays on his time with her, and iconic artwork inspired by these images.
As we approach Marilyn Monroe’s 100th birthday on June 1st, this deluxe book is a fitting tribute to one of the most iconic figures in history.
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Blanca Oliviery
Insight Editions
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