The fun starts with the 2001 two-part mini-series "Blonde," which is based on the fictionalized biopic by Joyce Carol Oates.
This one is the Goldilocks of the trio of biopics in this set. It is much tamer than the lascivious theatrical "Goodbye Norma Jean" (1976), which includes explicit nudity, but is more racy than "Marilyn and Me," (!991). The latter should not be confused with the 2001 theatrical film "My Week With Marilyn."
"Blonde" essentially takes our subject from cradle to fame. Much of the focus is on the early childhood and wonder years of then-Norma-Jean Mortensen.
This highly "Mommie Dearest" period of the life of the future star depicts her life with her comically unbalanced mother Gladys. The delusions that are passed onto our impressionable girl include that her absent father is a Hollywood power broker. Additionally, this Mama June on 'roids is the first of many who seek to exploit the beauty and talent of the not-yet-blonde bombshell.
The white-trash fun continues with Gladys having a wonderfully dramatic breakdown that results in her becoming a guest of the state in a publicly funded hospital and Norma Jean ending up living with her aunt. This leading to a probable "Lolita" situation prompts an essentially shot-gun marriage to a nice young man.
All of this commences a period of wonderfully lurid events as Norma-Jean fully begins her path to stardom. This generally involves falling in with the wrong crowd that includes a photographer that convinces her to go full Monty before the camera and an essentially Leopold and Loeb duo that come one element short of fully converting Norma-Jean into a life of sex, and drugs, and rock-and-roll.
The performance of future "Supernatural" star Jensen Ackles as a member of this menage-a-trois stands out in this a "very special" "The Love Boat" caliber cast of past, current, and future stars that includes Ann- Margaret and Kirstie Alley. Alley passing away the daybefore the DVD release makes her good performance as the matchmaker of her ward notable.
Although "Supernatural" fans will be disappointed that Patrick Dempsey plays Cass, who is the partner-in-crime to Ackles' Eddie, Ackles steals the show by channeling his stereotypical queen that occasionally surfaces in the life of Dean Winchester.
This latter part of "Blonde" that also depicts the beginning-of-the-end of our subject additionally shows how the career of Monroe parallels that of Judy Garland, who suffers the same fate as her fellow legend. This reliance on prescription drugs to keep up with the demands of stardom is a totally ignored cautionary tale regarding the modern opioid crisis.
"Marilyn and Me" mostly focuses on the rise of our candle in the wind. This largely is portrayed in the context of the courtship and early marriage of Norma Jean and show-business journalist-turned-screenwriter Robert Slatzer.
We see how the pair struggles to remain in the honeymoon period as the increasing demands of stardom strain their relationship. This includes the newly minted Monroe repeatedly calling on her possible soulmate for support as she runs afoul of the early Harvey Weinsteins in this period that predates the "me-too"era by several decades.
This one arguably has the most substance of the three. Not only does it focus on possibly the most loving and stable relationship of Monroe, but addresses the public image challenge that is more prevalent in the studio-system days than it is today.
A combination of 50s-morality and wanting to give Eisenhower-era straight men a sense that Monroe is available to them is behind initially pressuring her to first not engage in pre-marital whoppie and Slatzer and to later get him to postpone putting a ring on it until the little woman has fully established her career.
Film Chest saves the most tawdry for last. "Goodbye Norma Jean" features legendary bimbo Misty Rowe in the titular (pun intended) role. One of the most amazing things about this softcore production is that it is rated R, rather then X. One can only imagine the scenes that are cut to make this film available to minors who are accompanied by an adult.
This shamelessly trashy movie is the epitome of a film that would not be made today. The portrayal of Hollywood elite shamelessly using aspiring stars as live sex dolls quickly would incur the wrath of every feminist group.
The primary focus of this one is the shameless exploitative behavior of movers-and-shakers toward our aspiring and subsequently successful star. A fairly explicit early scene has a traffic cop brutally force himself on a mostly pure Norma Jean in return for not giving her a ticket. This encounter also introduces our star to her knight-in-shining armor who continues to ride in on his white steed to rescue his not-so-innocent damsel-in-distress.
The not-ready-for primetime elements include a blatant rape by a man whose well-known reputation for that crime is merely winked at. We also get a scene in which a studio executive merely drops trou, and Marilyn knows that any chance of being cast requires removing her white gloves and getting on her knees. Her dramatic monologue that is intended to shame her exploiter only seems to turn him on.
Another memorable scene has a butch lady executive lure Monroe to her home for the pretense of running lines. Although modern audiences know what is coming, our star learning that some women can play as rough as the boys further erodes her innocence.
The DVD bonus materials include lighter material. An episode of "The Jack Benny Show" has Monroe appear in a daydream in which Benny fantasizes about that Hollywood newcomer.
The big picture regarding our feature presentations is that it takes the "True Hollywood Story" approach to the life of Monroe to a more tawdry level. We also receive confirmation that our mothers are too blame for our later trauma-and-drama, that our adolescent experiences also largely determine our adult lives, and that fame does cost.
The even bigger pictures is that both male and females stars always have (and still must a lesser extent) do their time on the casting couches of the studio "suits" of both sexes if they want to join the "some that you recognize and some that you hardly even heard of" who get their stars on Hollywood Boulevard.
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