After the completion of The Seven Year Itch, Marilyn took a year off to take acting lessons in New York. She felt the only way to break the stereotype people held against her was to escape. She was also able to negotiate a new contract with 20th Century Fox. She wanted to have more control over her films by being able to chose her own scripts. She stated in an interview, “The main thing on my mind now is my work” (Scott, 1960). She believed the best way to find herself as a person was to prove to herself that she was an actress. When she came back from New York people questioned if she was going to be able to make a comeback because Hollywood films made a huge transition during her absence. In an article written by Joe Hyams, Hyams said the style in actresses has also changed. He stated: “stories have become bigger than stars. Most big movies made during the last two years have been based on best-selling novels and cast with actresses who fit the parts, rather than personalities who mast have parts tailored to fit them” (Hyams, 1958).
Marilyn Monroe’s first film after her comeback was Bus Stop. This was the film that allowed her to break out the ‘dumb-blonde’ stereotype that had followed her around from the beginning of her career. Her characters name was Cherie. Her costumes in Bus Stop were very different from her previous films. She used old costumes, made holes in her stockings, and used chalk-white makeup (MCcann, p102). Critics were raving about her performance in Bus Stop. The word was going around that Marilyn achieved her goal of becoming a “serious” actress (Griffith, 1956). It was being said everywhere that, “Marilyn Monroe has finally proved herself as an actress in Bus Stop. She and the picture are swell” (Griffith, 1969). Other articles stated: “She gives a performance in this picture that marks her as a genuine acting star, not just a plushy personality and a sex symbol as she has previously been” (Crowther, 1956).
