Could I summon the spirit of Marilyn Monroe? It’s a question I ponder as I lie in my four-poster bed at the Hollywood Roosevelt, where the actress lived for two years in a cabana overlooking the twinkly pool decorated by David Hockney. It’s not as big a reach as it sounds given that Monroe is said to haunt her former residence.
“Over the years, several guests and staff have reported seeing her reflection in this mirror which was once in her suite,” one of the bellmen says, pointing it out in the lobby when I check in.
I am in Hollywood, the central region of Los Angeles that has become a larger-than-life emblem of showbiz, where Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson on 1 June 1926, and lived until her death in 1962, aged just 36.
I pull the covers up to my chin, close my eyes and will her to appear. Nothing happens. Phew, I’m secretly pleased.
The prospect of encountering Hollywood’s most famous ghost alone in my darkened room felt scarier than I’d thought. Still, it’s a fitting start to my five-night Marilyn Monroe-themed trip around Los Angeles. As a superfan of the actor, I’m visiting during what would have been her 100th birthday year, ahead of the launch of the city’s Academy Museum’s blockbuster exhibition Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon.
Marilyn Monroe was born in Hollywood in 1926 (Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board)
In a way, I had already met her earlier that evening at my first stop – the buzzy Formosa Cafe, a kitschy, crimson-hued Chinese American restaurant. It opened in 1939 opposite “The Lot”, a historic operational Hollywood film studio campus, and fast became a hangout for Hollywood Golden Age mobsters and movie stars, like Monroe, a regular visitor while filming “Some Like It Hot” in 1958.
Read more: Exploring Mexico City in the footsteps of Frida Kahlo
“She loved the chow mien,” says my waitress Kelly Mullis, a fellow Monroe superfan and actress who wrote a one-woman show, “Marilyn: The Last Interview” and performed it at the Hollywood Fringe Festival for several years. “I could talk about Marilyn Monroe all day,” she says, pointing out a photo of the star on the wall above my seat. “This is what we call the ‘Marilyn’ booth’.”
The next morning, I dodge throngs of tourists posing for photos on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, on my short walk to the TCL Chinese Theatre – with its cartoonish 90-foot pagoda-like entrance and orange columns topped with wrought-iron masks, you can’t miss it.
It opened in 1927, hosts big-name film premieres and is famous for its star-studded Forecourt of the Stars, featuring the cemented hand and footprints of over 200 icons including Monroe. “At the last minute, she took out her diamond earring and planted it into the cement,” says my guide, Lacey Noel, on a tour of the theatre.
Later, I lose myself in the underrated Hollywood Museum, which is jam-packed with old Hollywood memorabilia spanning 100 years, from original costumes to movie posters, spread across five floors. It’s also a must-stop on the Monroe trail for its setting inside the beautifully restored Max Factor Studios building. “It’s where her trademark platinum look was developed and styled in the ‘for blondes only’ room painted in complementary pastel blue,” museum founder, Donelle Donigan, explains. Today, it’s a shrine to the icon, filled with Monroe-related memorabilia including annotated scripts, her honeymoon dress and her makeup chair.
From here, I’m conveniently close to classic haunt, Musso and Frank’s Grill, open since 1919 on Hollywood Boulevard. I like to imagine that after a trip to the salon, Monroe would sashay here to drink champagne with her first husband, baseball star Joe DiMaggio, in the restaurant’s “back room”, a private haven for celebrities, executives, and the era’s greatest literary minds. It closed in 1955, so instead I huddle into a dark wood-panelled booth for two in the dining room, where over a martini, I watch in awe at the waiters in red blazers buzzing up and down its storied walkways, balancing trays heaving with steaks and drinks.
The next day, I blow a kiss goodbye to Hollywood and cross over into West Hollywood. This walkable city grew into a nightlife hub where Monroe and other stars escaped Hollywood studio control, at venues on the Sunset Strip – the 1.7-mile West Hollywood section of Sunset Boulevard – I was excited to discover.
The Charlie Hotel was once owned by Charlie Chaplin (Charlie Hotel)
Read more: The best things to do in Los Angeles
I check into The Charlie, a tranquil boutique hotel consisting of a 1920s-era gated collection of cedar-clad English-style cottages. It’s set on a peaceful, tree-lined street and named after previous owner Charlie Chaplin, who once hosted Monroe in a delightful two-bedroom cottage where I’m excited to settle into for two nights.
I easily work up an appetite for dinner with a wander along a stretch of Melrose Avenue, the iconic LA shopping hub two minutes away from my hotel lined with sleek design shops and vintage boutiques. When I arrive at Barney’s Beanery on the Sunset Strip – part diner, part sports bar, and part rock-and-roll refuge – loud cheers spill out from inside the memorabilia-clad bar and restaurant, signalling that it’s game night. I pile into a booth and soak up the atmosphere over a margarita and hearty bowl of the famous beef chilli Monroe loved coming here to eat.
Another day on the Monroe trail, another meal at a legendary Old Hollywood hotspot. This time, a sophisticated breakfast poolside at the elegant Sunset Tower on Sunset Boulevard. It was the chicest place to live during Hollywood’s golden era for stars including Monroe. Nowadays it’s an upscale hotel with nostalgic flair that attracts a cool and connected crowd keen to nab a coveted table in the bar.
Feeling well fed, I’m eager for my next activity: an e-bike tour of the city with local outfit, Bikes and Hikes LA. Pootling along the city’s quiet backstreets and main drags is a thrill – and safer than I imagined, too. I’m in search of yet more Monroe-related pitstops: a former apartment at 882 North Doheny Drive – now a recording studio – and Chateau Marmont, the notoriously private celebrity hotel where she had secret meetings with married playwright Arthur Millar, and the lesser-known Lee Strasberg.
Strasberg was the acting coach to whom Monroe left most of her belongings when she died. “Most people don’t know about the tiny Marilyn Monroe Theatre in dedication to her, hidden inside [Strasberg’s Film Institute],” says my guide, Katie Oliver.
Marilyn Monroe stayed at Hotel Bel-Air many times (Dorchester Collection)
After clocking up a few miles, I devour a burger and fries at the Rainbow Bar and Grill, a famous hangout for heavy metal and rock legends since the 1970s. While “Panama” by Van Halen blasts out, I scan its storied faux brick and wood-panelled walls, plastered in music memorabilia. I also try to imagine it in its former guise: a glamorous Italian restaurant called Villa Nova, where Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio had their first date. “Apparently he sat over three hours waiting for her to arrive,” says my waitress, Samantha Casper, pointing to a curved booth near the entrance.
If the lovebirds were alive today, a nightcap at Bar Next Door in the former office of Monroe’s manager a few blocks away, would be on their list. Playfully named cocktails pay homage to local hotspots and history, like the exotic rum-laced Mocambo I order. “It’s named after a famous old celebrity nightclub on the Strip where jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald secured a career-changing booking thanks to Marilyn,” says founder, Brynn Smith.
For my last two nights, I retreat Monroe-style into a coveted bungalow at the pink-toned Beverly Hills Hotel, which has sat amid 12 manicured palm-filled acres on Sunset Boulevard since 1912. The actor has a long history with the hotel, staying many times, favouring Bungalow 1A – now a Monroe-themed suite – and dining often at table six inside the Polo Lounge, with its forest green walls and old-Hollywood atmosphere.
Nearby, at luxurious sister hideaway, Hotel Bel-Air, where I enjoy lunch on its sunny bougainvillea-shaded terrace, I find more traces of Monroe’s presence. In 1962, it was the setting for what would be her final photoshoot with Bert Stern for Vogue. Several of the photos decorate the two-bedroom suite, 177, lending the space a powerful stillness.
I have a similar feeling when I set eyes on her grave at the little-known Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park: a simple marble wall crypt on the “Corridor of Memories” marked with a brass plaque, away from the glare of the city she once illuminated, forever infused with her spirit. As I pay my respects, I reflect on my adventure and realise with a pang of excitement that she’s been at my side the whole time.
Ellie was a guest of Virgin Atlantic, Discover Los Angeles and Visit West Hollywood.
Read more: Best luxury hotels in LA
How to get there
Virgin Atlantic flies direct between London Heathrow and Los Angeles, with return fares from £532 per person, including complimentary food, drink, in-flight entertainment and taxes. For further information call 0344 8747 747.
Where to stay
Hollywood Roosevelt has rooms from £182 a night.
The Beverly Hills Hotel has rooms from £892 a night.
Hotel Bel-Air has rooms from £795 a night.
The Marilyn Suite at The Charlie has rates from £485 a night.
Ellie was hosted by the Beverly Hills Hotel and Hotel Bel-Air
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.independent.co.uk ’
