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Woman Who Owns Bulk of Marilyn Monroe’s Estate Barely Knew Her

Monroe

When Marilyn Monroe died, she was single and childless, but she did have a will.

  • Monroe signed a will one year before her death.
  • She left $100,000 in trust to care for her mother, who was institutionalized for mental illness the majority of her life.
  • Monroe left half of her estate to her acting coach, Lee Strasburg.
  • Lee Strasburg remarried after Monroe’s death, and after his death, his estate and Monroe’s estate passed to his widow, Anna.
  • Anna, who was 40 years younger than Lee and may have met Monroe once, currently holds the bulk of Monroe’s estate.
  • Monroe’s estate is ranked as the 8th highest income producing estates according to Forbes.

See Kristen Marks, What’s Happened to Marilyn Monroe’s Estate?, Sept. 24, 2009.