Marilyn Monroe Group of (7) Handwritten Notes on Method Acting. ...

Description

Marilyn Monroe Handwritten Notes from the Actors Studio Offer a Rare and Insightful Look into the Mind of a Devoted Actress.
"My problem of desperation in my work, life – I must begin to face – continuously…"

Marilyn Monroe Group of (7) Handwritten Notes on Method Acting. New York, [New York], undated ca. 1955. Vintage original group of seven pages of handwritten notes on acting by Marilyn Monroe, containing an array of anecdotes, guidance, lessons, and motivations for honing her skills, as well as character- and project-specific notes, on stationery slips measuring 5" x 8".

Marilyn writes, in full:

"Aug 5 - Lee Strasberg / To act one (can) only be concerned with what the character (he is playing) is be [sic] concerned with - not with his own criticizm [sic] or cencoring [sic] or concerned with criticizm [sic] of audience - what they feel of what the actor is doing. The actor is never the critic. Concentration - the actor like the pianist must know where he is going to put his finger (the use of the objects does this for him - puts his finger where he intends to play (continued -)

Sketches - an artist sketches preceeding [sic] or going into or used for the work of great paintings are what makes the paintings. Perhaps they are more important also interesting. (have been more interesting to me - funny) Work can be done in sketches - in which one can add to or change etc. My problem of desperation in my work, life - I must begin to face - continuously. Make my working routine more continuous and of more importance than my desperations. Awareness is reality. When I make progress in my work I must stop going back sound - music - in the direction from which it comes - use source of sound - direction

Mary Schwartz - monalogue [sic] 3 Sisters excellent moments - she brought object from home picture of her mother felt that she - in 'off' moments was reasoning with audience - their reasoning 'theirs' - 'hers' - her criticizms [sic]

Just use feeling - Her part - Mary Lincoln an understanding of her life with A.L. -
Lee criticism - written for 3 people then whole scene not there. The approach to monologue unrelated to scene noticed difficulty in speech
Lee said use difficulty in getting them out
Also really behave, be myself the way one would behave - totally alone how you would feel when you say 'I love you' alone
Out on G+R Lee's description marvelous

Stop and do what one had to do - till one gets it like in an exercise

Willing to stop and relax - for relaxation - and then effort for task.

What is the real thing happening in the scene - imagination - love
To do scene like - opening a bottle - try different ways if it doesn't seem to open - try another bottle (perhaps even many other bottles? Who knows - Trust

Clifford? - Noel Coward scene meticulous with objects
- the right reality not obvious (ov'e us) under these conditions

Each situation is an excuse for a wit - the pleasure out of wit

Faith and consentration [sic] on things - what is she the character concerned with?

Like we do in life believe in - we say things

Going towards a
Too litteral [sic] reality - wrong
Relaxation as much as you can -
Then concentration must take over even if nerviness continues

AM [Arthur Miller] Screenplay
From Court to bar (especially bar) - Idea of husband a kind of horror - quiet (stays with her)? Keeps coming back at which times she tries to push it away - her reaction should be to them because of what she has just gone thru [?] though abstractly & genuinely interested in them all. Perhaps she weeps too often instead of tears in her somewhere - and only sometimes they might or might not come

Is she too 'good'? Too much a heroine? I don't know the answer to these questions".

Taken together, these notes illuminate a dedicated and studious actress devoted to honing her craft. They also reflect the significant influence of Lee and Paula Strasberg, whose Actors Studio emphasized method acting and under whom Monroe studied extensively in 1955. As she worked to incorporate these lessons into her roles, Monroe likely returned to these pages for inspiration and guidance.

Notes are written in a variety of pencils and black, blue, and green ink, and also include strikethroughs, rewrites, and other editing marks. In the August 5th Strasberg note, the word "only" is circled with a large yellow felt-tip. Pages exhibit signs of age and wear including paper toning, bumped corners, creasing, toning, flattened folds, and smudges. Comes with a COA from Heritage Auctions. From the Estate of Norman and Hedda Rosten.

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