In 1956, Hollywood royalty crossed paths with the real thing when Queen Elizabeth II met Marilyn Monroe at a star-studded London event. The photos from the moment became instantly iconic, but in Michelle Morgan's book, When Marilyn Met the Queen, she reveals that the American sex symbol found herself with a case of major nerves that night.
Monroe was in London filming The Prince and the Showgirl when she was invited to the Royal Command Performance alongside a number of movie stars like Joan Crawford and Brigitte Bardot. According to Morgan, the actress's biggest dream while living in London was to meet The Queen, but when it actually happened, she was overcome with anxiety.
"Apparently, The Queen said to friends at the palace that she thought Marilyn was lovely, but she felt sorry for her," Morgan told Fox News. In fact, the star was so nervous "she had licked all of her lipstick off."
"When you see the footage, you see The Queen coming up the line. Marilyn is licking her lipstick off because she's nervous. And the queen picked up on that. I thought that was an interesting thing for the queen to notice," Morgan told the media outlet.
Even though she might've been missing her lipstick, the film icon made sure her outfit took center stage. Morgan said that "a memo went round to everybody" about the proper dress code for the event, stating, "You must wear something conservative. You must think about the neckline."
However, the Hollywood star didn't seem to pay attention to protocol, with the author noting that the memo "went straight over Marilyn's head."
"She already had an idea of what she wanted," Morgan told Fox News, explaining Monroe used "a theatrical dressmaker" to create a "very, very low cut" gold lamé evening gown.
"It caused quite a sensation," Morgan continued. "She was criticized by various people who were there, including Joan Crawford, who didn't like Marilyn very much anyway. But, at the end of the day, The Queen didn't seem to mind. And that's who she was there to see."
The stunning dress was indeed "so low-cut the tops of Marilyn's breasts were on full display," requiring several people to help her into it. But Queen Elizabeth, it seems, took it all in stride.
"She knew who Marilyn was. She was very aware of her," Morgan said. "She knew the kind of gowns that she wore, and I think she was maybe just as starstruck."
At the end of the day, the author said Queen Elizabeth had seen it all. "I don't think she was shockable in the least. I don't think anything shocked the queen."
