{"id":2084515,"date":"2025-10-11T20:30:20","date_gmt":"2025-10-11T20:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2084515"},"modified":"2025-10-11T20:30:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-11T20:30:20","slug":"marilyn-monroes-iconic-subway-grate-photo-has-wwii-roots-and-hidden-history-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/marilyn-monroes-iconic-subway-grate-photo-has-wwii-roots-and-hidden-history-book\/","title":{"rendered":"Marilyn Monroe&#8217;s iconic subway grate photo has WWII roots and hidden history: book"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2025%2F10%2F113267778.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft wp-block-nypost-editor-partner-article-links\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>As a gust of wind from a New York City subway grate sent Marilyn Monroe\u2019s white dress fluttering past her legs, cameras captured what would become the \u201cshot seen \u2019round the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The 1955 comedy \u201cThe Seven Year Itch\u201d \u2014 arguably the star\u2019s most iconic film \u2014 turned 70 this year. The family of photographer Sam Shaw, Monroe\u2019s close friend whose now-famous images cemented her status as a sex symbol, has <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/24\/lifestyle\/marilyn-monroe-photos-revealed-for-first-time-very-young-sweet-and-much-more-innocent\/\">released a new book<\/a>, \u201cDear Marilyn: The Unseen Letters and Photographs.\u201d It reveals the little-known story behind the making of that legendary photograph.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe behind-the-scenes story, the origin story of my grandfather\u2019s \u2018Seven Year Itch\u2019 photographs, is not really well known,\u201d Shaw\u2019s granddaughter, Melissa Stevens, told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt started in 1941 when he was a photojournalist. \u2026 It was during World War II, and he photographed these young women and sailors, who were on a break in Coney Island. He took these photographs of women standing over the grates in Coney Island, and the wind is blowing their skirts up. And one of these images appeared on the cover of a magazine called Friday in 1941.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The family of Shaw released a new book about the making of the iconic subway picture. <span class=\"credit\">Shaw Family Archives<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cSo fast-forward to 1954, Sam was hired to be the still photographer for \u2018The Seven Year Itch,\u2019\u201d Stevens shared. \u201cHe read the script, and there\u2019s a line where Marilyn is coming out of a movie theater. She walks over the grate, and a subway car is passing underneath. And then there\u2019s this wind. The line in the script is something like, \u2018Oh, do you feel the breeze? Isn\u2019t it delicious?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe minute that Sam read that in the script, he remembered the 1941 photograph from Coney Island and how successful it was,\u201d said Stevens. \u201cHe essentially repurposed that photograph . . . which is very joyful and fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt became a bigger event than he had ever anticipated,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Shaw\u2019s granddaughter said that the origin story of his photos is not well known. <span class=\"credit\">Shaw Family Archives<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>According to the book, Shaw asked the movie studio to \u201carrange for an additional number of police officers to handle the crowd that was sure to gather\u201d at New York City\u2019s Lexington Avenue and 51st Street. A technician would operate a wind machine under the spot where Monroe would step on to simulate a passing subway.<\/p>\n<p>On Sept. 15, 1954, thousands, mostly men, gathered to see <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/10\/09\/entertainment\/hair-museum-showcasing-locks-from-marilyn-monroe-and-century-old-celebs-closes-its-doors\/\">the blonde bombshell\u2019s<\/a> dress fly up in front of cameras. With every camera flash, the 29-year-old\u2019s white underwear was visible to the roaring crowd.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe police were completely off guard, more fascinated watching Marilyn, forgetting the mob,\u201d Shaw wrote. \u201cNot one person in the crowd broke through. They were too mesmerized by what they were seeing.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Marilyn Monroe poses over the updraft of a New York subway grating while in character for the filming of \u201cThe Seven Year Itch\u201d in Manhattan on September 9, 1954. <span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Stevens said filmmakers were worried about how far they could go.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople may think today, \u2018What\u2019s the big deal about a woman with her skirt blowing up a little bit?\u2019\u201d said Stevens.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYet it was very controversial at the time. Also, given the censorship and the rules of the Hollywood studio system, those things were not allowed. Sam talks about this in the book. He writes about how they had to tread very carefully in the filming of the scene and the way he was photographing it. Otherwise, it would be cut from the movie. It would\u2019ve been censored.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Thousands of people gathered around to see the making of the photo. <span class=\"credit\">COLL PELE\/STILLS\/GAMMA<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cEven though that seems ridiculous today from the point of view of just how much skin we see daily, I think we have to really understand the context of the time in 1950s America,\u201d said Stevens.<\/p>\n<p>The final cut was modest compared to what everyone saw that evening. In the film, Monroe\u2019s dress isn\u2019t seen going dramatically over her waist. Still, the Catholic Legion of Decency and other morality groups would criticize the scene as indecent.<\/p>\n<p>Shaw wrote <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/07\/11\/us-news\/marilyn-monroe-signed-passport-photo-auctions-for-over-21k\/\">that Monroe<\/a> \u201cenjoyed the whole experience more than anyone \u2014 even more than the man below at the wind machine.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Marilyn Monroe takes the subway in Grand Central Station on March 24, 1955 in New York City, New York. <span class=\"credit\">Michael Ochs Archives<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The scene was reshot in a Los Angeles sound studio where Shaw had control over wind and lighting \u201cwithout thousands of onlookers.\u201d The blowing skirt shot became the key ad image for the film.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Seven Year Itch\u201d made Marilyn Monroe a legend. It also came at a price.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was during the subway grate photo shoot in New York for \u2018The Seven Year Itch\u2019 that [Monroe\u2019s husband] Joe DiMaggio was reported to walk away in anger,\u201d Shaw wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The final cut was modest compared to what everyone saw that evening. <span class=\"credit\">Bettmann Archive<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThree weeks after the shoot, Marilyn told reporters her marriage was over. I never saw her cry except on television the morning she left Joe. \u2026 To the press and the waiting world, all tears. That afternoon, she was on set. Her spirits were high. She was back in the studio working, posing and remembering her lines, take after take. That evening, we went to dinner. She was all laughs and high enthusiasm.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat brought about the divorce? I do not know,\u201d Shaw reflected. \u201cUnfortunately, her [three] husbands never really understood her individuality. Like many men, they wanted to fashion her and remake her to their own standards. Joe \u2026 was known for his high standards and purity off the field.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The film also made Monroe realize her worth in Hollywood.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>During the photo shoot Monroe\u2019s husband Joe DiMaggio reportedly walked away in anger. <span class=\"credit\">COLL PELE\/STILLS\/GAMMA<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cShe demanded more than her starlet salary,\u201d Shaw wrote. \u201cThe costumers, hairdressers and makeup artists were all paid more than Marilyn the superstar. She demanded better scripts and director approval. She broke her 20th Century Fox contract. She declared her freedom. She defied the conventions of her time. She asserted herself as an actress and a woman. \u2026 She was on strike against the most powerful movie studio in the business.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/embeds.nypost.com\/protected-iframe\/ae07a3726bec0fc91a840dddea9d294c\" scrolling=\"auto\" frameborder=\"0\" class=\"\" allow=\"camera; fullscreen;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe studio was furious,\u201d he continued. \u201cThey tried to stop her publicity and fame. But they needed her to sell the film. The very young woman they helped to stardom now declared herself free. She was a star. Her name above the title. Now they had to accept her on her own terms. For Marilyn, it wasn\u2019t a fight for money but for story rights, executive and director approval. Marilyn didn\u2019t need them to publicize her buildup. The press and the world were at her feet and at her whim, and her whim was a whim of iron.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shaw died in 1999 at age 87. Stevens said that her grandfather was fiercely protective of his friendship with Monroe, who passed away in 1962 at age 36. Many of his letters to Monroe are seen for the first time in the book, including one he wrote a year before her death.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Shaw died in 1999 at 87 years old.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe tone of that letter is different than the other letters,\u201d said Stevens. \u201cThe tone is more bittersweet. \u2026 He\u2019s writing right after she separated from Arthur Miller. So, he refers to \u2018the turmoil.\u2019 \u2026 My grandfather says, \u2018Do you want to come to Paris and stay with us? We have an extra room. My wife is asking about you. You\u2019re invited.\u2019 There\u2019s clearly the concern of a good friend about how she\u2019s doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of difficulty in Marilyn Monroe\u2019s life,\u201d said Stevens. \u201cBut Sam referred to something called \u2018the joy of Marilyn.\u2019 \u2026 Sam always focused on this young woman who really was funny, smart, joyful \u2026 Marilyn is always described as a victim and vulnerable. Sam did not describe her that way. Sam described her as tough and strong and that she was able, in fact, to deal and cope well with a lot of the adversity in her life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stevens said fans are still fascinated by Monroe because she embodies \u201cthe American dream.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe started with nothing,\u201d said Stevens. \u201cNo money and a troubled family situation. Yet somehow, she rose to the top. That\u2019s the story Sam tells, the story of a hardworking young woman who really did make it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source celebrity.land \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As a gust of wind from a New York City subway grate sent Marilyn Monroe\u2019s white dress fluttering past her legs, cameras captured what would become the \u201cshot seen \u2019round the world.\u201d The 1955 comedy \u201cThe Seven Year Itch\u201d \u2014 arguably the star\u2019s most iconic film \u2014 turned 70 this year. The family of photographer [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2084516,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25174],"tags":[25538,313460,21741,314148,392246],"class_list":["post-2084515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gossip","tag-actors","tag-celebrity-photos","tag-entertainment","tag-marilyn-monroe","tag-subway"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Marilyn-Monroes-iconic-subway-grate-photo-has-WWII-roots-and.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2084515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2084515"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2084515\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2084517,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2084515\/revisions\/2084517"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2084516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2084515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2084515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2084515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}