In may of 1962, Marilyn Monroe helped to celebrate John F. Kennedy's 45th birthday at a spectacular party in Madison Square Garden. JFK's joke about Monroe's "sweet and wholesome" rendition of "Happy Birthday" was inspired not only by her scorching delivery, but also by the skin-tight dress into which she had been sewn for the occasion.Marilyn's dress was a sheer nylon slip with 2500 rhinestones sewn on it. The dress was so snug that she had to be sewn into it. There are rumors that, fifteen minutes before going onstage, Marilyn had a sexual encounter with someone backstage (I forget who). I find this hard to believe, considering she would have had to be sewn back into her dress. But that's how some people explain her "windswept" hair that night; don't forget she was wearing a wig.
In 1999, the dress fetched over $1.26 million at a New York auction. The explanation for this fantastic price lies partly in the fact that Monroe wore it in her last important public performance, and partly in the fact that it has come to be seen as symbolic evidence of her sexual relationship with Kennedy. While nothing about this affair appeared in print while Monroe and Kennedy were alive, it is now routinely reported as certain in biographical accounts of both figures.
En 1962 tuvo lugar en Nueva York la famosa gala por el cumpleanos del presidente John F. Kennedy, en la que Monroe le canto el "Happy Birthday" (Cumpleanos feliz). Para acudir a esta gala, Monroe se ausento durante 7 días del rodaje, a pesar de que la Fox le exigio que se quedase para cumplir con su trabajo. En 1962 la Fox rescinde su contrato debido a sus repetidas ausencias y retrasos, despidiendola del rodaje de Something's Got to Give, que dirigia George Cukor. La Fox intenta completar la pelicula utilizando otra actriz, pero Dean Martin se opone, por lo que a la Fox no le queda mas remedio que readmitir a Monroe.
En 1999, dos jóvenes neoyorquinos pagaron 1,2 millones por el vestido que lucía Marilyn cuando cantó "Happy Birthday" al entonces presidente de Estado Unidos John F. Kennedy.
