Lot 208
A Marilyn Monroe red saloon gown from River of No Return
23 November 2015, 13:00 EST
New YorkUS$300,000 - US$500,000
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A Marilyn Monroe red saloon gown from River of No Return
Twentieth Century-Fox, 1954. 19th century style saloon gown with a red cotton bodice adorned with large black sequins in a swirling pattern with black sequin trim along the neckline and each of the three shoulder straps, a black satin bustled skirt with matching red cotton trim with black sequins on either side of a high slit, and a yellow silk rose at the hip, bearing a label inscribed in black ink, "1-25-1-4413 A713-06 / M. Monroe"; and a matching pair of red cotton panties with red lace and green ribbon trim, bearing a label inscribed in black ink, "1-25-1-4413 A713-06 / M. Monroe" and a Fox cleaning tag. Monroe wears this dress while singing "One Silver Dollar" in the saloon.
Provenance: Purchased by Debbie Reynolds from Fox in 1971; Butterfield & Butterfield, Entertainment Memorabilia, March 14, 2000, lot 5843.
River of No Return stars Monroe as Kay Weston, a singer in a mining tent city in the Northwestern United States. Matt Calder (Robert Mitchum) arrives there in search of his son Mark and meets Kay, who has been looking after the child. Kay and her fiancé (Rory Calhoun) later set off on a rafting trip to Council City, and Matt rescues them after they run into trouble on the river. River of No Return was directed by Otto Preminger and shot on location in national parks in Canada to take advantage of the beautiful appearance of the landscapes on CinemaScope.
Monroe wears this dress in her first scene of the film. As Robert Mitchum enters the tent and walks around the stage, watching Monroe sing and strum a guitar, neither he nor the audience can take his eyes off of her. The image of Monroe in the dress also appears on the original one sheet poster and features prominently in the other promotional material surrounding the film.
A report by leading costume conservator Cara Varnell is available upon request.
Provenance: Purchased by Debbie Reynolds from Fox in 1971; Butterfield & Butterfield, Entertainment Memorabilia, March 14, 2000, lot 5843.
River of No Return stars Monroe as Kay Weston, a singer in a mining tent city in the Northwestern United States. Matt Calder (Robert Mitchum) arrives there in search of his son Mark and meets Kay, who has been looking after the child. Kay and her fiancé (Rory Calhoun) later set off on a rafting trip to Council City, and Matt rescues them after they run into trouble on the river. River of No Return was directed by Otto Preminger and shot on location in national parks in Canada to take advantage of the beautiful appearance of the landscapes on CinemaScope.
Monroe wears this dress in her first scene of the film. As Robert Mitchum enters the tent and walks around the stage, watching Monroe sing and strum a guitar, neither he nor the audience can take his eyes off of her. The image of Monroe in the dress also appears on the original one sheet poster and features prominently in the other promotional material surrounding the film.
A report by leading costume conservator Cara Varnell is available upon request.