"Blonde"

Ana de Armas plays a largely fictionalized Marilyn Monroe in Andrew Dominik's version of the Joyce Carol Oates novel "Blonde" (Netflix, 2022). Also featured are Julianne Nicholson as her mother, Bobby Cannavale as Joe DiMaggio and Adrien Brody as Arthur Miller. Garret Dillahunt plays Eddie, based on Edward G. Robinson, Jr. His buddy Cass, based on Charlie Chaplin, Jr., is played by Xavier Samuel. The cinematography was by Chayse Irvin. 

 

An acting teacher played by Rob Brownstein leads a class that Marilyn is attending. The scene was shot at the Palace Theatre, 630 S. Broadway. We're onstage, looking into the auditorium behind Rob. 

 

The camera pans to the left and it's only obvious when we get around 90 degrees where we are.  In the gloom off left is the diagonal line of the staircase coming down from the the 2nd balcony that cuts through the stagehouse. 

 

 

The shot ends with a view of Marilyn.

We first see the Los Angeles Theatre, 615 S. Broadway, with Marilyn and George Sanders onscreen in "All About Eve," a 20th Century-Fox release out in October 1950. We next see a shot of Marilyn watching the show with an older guy. He's starting the conquest by putting his hand on her thigh. 

Another shot of Marilyn at an acting class. A look at the pipes behind her reveals that it's a second scene done onstage at the Palace. 

 

Later we get this nice staircase view that would be difficult to identify without the next shot. 

 

 

Marilyn comes down the stairs and with this shot it's clear we're back at the Palace again. We're house left with the reduced-height doorway leading onto the Palace stage. 

 

 

We get a title saying "Los Angeles Actor's Studio 1952." At the piano are Charlie Chaplin Jr., called Cass, and Edward G. Robinson Jr., called Eddie. 

 

 

A look to stage left at the Palace as Marilyn dances with Cass while Eddie plays. 

"A raging torrent of emotion... that even nature can't control!" The trailer for the January 1953 release "Niagara" is part of the program when Marilyn, Cass and Eddie go to their favorite theatre, the Los Angeles.  

 

 

A 1st balcony look at Marilyn onscreen with Joseph Cotten in the "Niagara" trailer.

 

The big question: to watch the trailer or make out with Marilyn?

 

"The two most electrifying sights in the world -- Niagara Falls and Marilyn Monroe." 

The July 31, 1953 premiere at Grauman's Chinese for "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." Well, we're supposed to be at the Chinese. They advertised: "Presented on Our New Gigantic Panoramic Screen." But for this crane shot we're on a studio back lot. 

Lots of flashbulbs are popping as Marilyn arrives at the "Chinese." Note the Cinegrill sign to give us a bit of Hollywood Blvd. color. It's actually a half block west of the theatre. 

 

 

Something on the backlot standing in for the entrance of the Chinese.

 

 

What a relief. When we go inside we're back at the Los Angeles Theatre. The "Diamonds" number was lovingly re-created. Jane Russell is mentioned earlier in the dialog and she's on the marquee but for this number we only get one star -- no sight of Jane.

 

 

Another shot of the "Diamonds" number on the screen at the Los Angeles. 

 

We go to 'scope for the audience reaction shot.  

 

 

 

Marilyn heads to New York to study with the Actors Studio in 1955. Adrien Brody, playing the Arthur Miller character, is late for a reading of a play that she's appearing in. For this shot we're back at the Palace, this time in the south exit passage. That famous "Stage Door" sign was painted for the 1993 version of "Gypsy" with Bette Midler.

 

 

 

He goes up the fire escape and catches his breath before going in at the 1st balcony level. 

 

 

 

Inside the door this is our view. Certainly not the Palace. Marilyn is in the center. 

 

 

 

After the reading Marilyn gets applause from the other actors. She goes out to lunch with Arthur and tells him a few things about his play. 

 

Yes, we've seen this shot before. But this time it's in black and white and for the March 1959 opening of Billy Wilder's "Some Like It Hot." 

 

 

Marilyn approaching the backlot theatre marquee. 

 

 

 

Arthur and Marilyn with a bit of the "Some Like It Hot" signage. 

 

 

 

What a surprise! When we go inside we're back at the Los Angeles Theatre for this 2nd balcony view of the last scene. 

 

This time, to make it seem a bit different, we see the theatre's famous decorative act curtain coming in at the end of the feature. 

 

 The curtain all the way in. 

 

The suits applauding at the back of the main floor at the Los Angeles.

We don't see Marilyn singing "Happy Birthday" to JFK. Instead there's a 1962 scene of a drugged-up version of her giving him a blow job while he's on the phone solving the Cuban missile crisis. And on the TV there are shots of missiles rising skyward in Cuba that somehow segue into scenes of flying saucers crashing into buildings. 

 

Marilyn tells herself that what she's doing is just like playing a scene and that it'll be over soon. She visualizes the episode as playing on the big screen at her favorite venue, the Los Angeles Theatre. 

See the pages about the Los Angeles Theatre on the L.A. Theatres site. It opened in January 1931, a design by S. Charles Lee. The Palace Theatre opened in 1911 as the Orpheum. They both get extensive use for film shoots as well as the occasional concert or film screening.

On IMDb: "Blonde" 

There was also a 2011 version of the Joyce Carol Oates novel that was directed by Joyce Chopra. See the Theatres in Movies post about that one.