André de Dienes' intimate portraits of Marilyn Monroe before stardom reissued

A compact edition of André de Dienes's photographs and private memoirs offers an intimate portrait of Norma Jeane Dougherty before she became Marilyn Monroe. De Dienes, a fashion photographer, met the aspiring model in 1945 and was briefly engaged to her. Over several years, they took adventurous road trips, and he built a series of portraits that helped launch her modeling and film career. The archive includes emotion-laden annotations and covers visits to Norma Jeane's mother in a mental hospital and Monroe's visit days before her death. The collection documents Monroe's transformation from a sensitive, ambitious girl into a troubled global star.