Was Marilyn Monroe a pot smoker?
A decades-old "home movie" allegedly shows the troubled icon — a known substance abuser — enjoying a joint

A 90-second video emerged this week of Marilyn Monroe purportedly smoking marijuana with friends in a New Jersey home. The film, which was shot in 1958 or 1959 and stored in an attic for years, recently sold for $275,000 to collector Keya Morgan, who will be auctioning off the "home movie" on eBay later this week. The unnamed woman who shot the footage claims to have supplied the pot for the private "get-together," but the clip has triggered both skeptical and celebratory speculation.
Watch the video then read what's being said (below):
Monroe certainly demonstrates high spirits: While it's impossible to verify whether the Seven Year Itch star is actually smoking marijuana, "it certainly looks like it," says the Huffington Post. It's worth noting that the starlet "is all smiles and giggles throughout the video."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Marilyn Monroe smoking (allegedly) in home movie"
There is some evidence of a heightened sense-awareness: High spirits? At one point, says Lukas I Alpert of Reuters, the clearly stoned star "appears to take a whiff of her own armpit and breaks into hysterical laughter."
"Roll 'em! Marilyn's pot party"
Take the "joint" claim with a healthy drag of skepticism: The supposed joint "looks more like a cigarette to me," argues Azaria Jagger at Gawker. Not only that, but the film reveals Monroe to be the most "reviled class of smokers: the filter licker," someone who insists on "making out" with the cigarette rather than "just inhaling."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
"Marilyn Monroe 'smokes pot' in home video, but it looks more like a cigarette"
What's with all the questions?: Is it so hard to believe that Marilyn Monroe, "who spent her last years popping pills like they were candy," would smoke a little marijuana? asks Sabrina Brody in L.A. Examiner. Perhaps people are just "shocked" that the "compelling arguments offered by 'Reefer Madness'" didn't stop the starlet from taking a few puffs.
"Gasp! Marilyn Monroe smoked pot"
No 'smoke and mirrors' here: "Marilyn laughing and making 'stoned' faces," is conclusive enough for us, writes blogger Lindsay at Jezebel. "Not since Anna Faris in 'Smiley Face' has a bombshell actress looked so convincingly stoned on screen"
-
Javier Milei's memecoin scandal
Under The Radar Argentinian president is facing impeachment calls and fraud accusations
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Who is actually running DOGE?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION The White House said in a court filing that Elon Musk isn't the official head of Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency task force, raising questions about just who is overseeing DOGE's federal blitzkrieg
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
How does the Kennedy Center work?
The Explainer The D.C. institution has become a cultural touchstone. Why did Trump take over?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published