Marilyn Monroe’s House Saved From Demolition in California The Actress Was Found Dead in the Brentwood Residence in 1962
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The house where Marilyn Monroe was found dead in 1962 has been designated a California landmark, ending a year-long battle over its demolition.
The Los Angeles City Council unanimously voted on Wednesday to make the property in Brentwood, located at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive, a Historic-Cultural Monument, saving it from demolition, according to an archived livestream of the video.
It’s a decision that comes after media reported in September that the owners of the estate had filed for demolition. Following that filing, local officials took steps to temporarily protect the property and moved to make those protections permanent.
Councilwoman Traci Park, who represents the district where the residence is located, spoke at the city council meeting on Wednesday in support of the move to name the house a landmark.
“There is no other person or place in the city of Los Angeles as iconic as Marilyn Monroe and her Brentwood home,” she said. “Some of the most world-famous images ever taken of her were in that home, on those grounds, near her pool. And that Marilyn tragically died there forever ties her in time and place to this very home.”
The house, built in 1929, was the first and only house Monroe ever owned, according to the Los Angeles Department of City Planning. Monroe purchased the property in February 1962 and moved in the following month. She was found dead in the house in August of that same year after an apparent overdose. She was 36.
Monroe resided at the house between March and August 1962. (Getty Images)
While living in the residence, Monroe was photographed at the house in preparation for an interview for LIFE magazine. She also traveled to New York to sing at then-President John F. Kennedy’s birthday gala during the time she lived at the property.
Local advocacy group, the Los Angeles Conservancy, said the house illustrates Monroe’s life and is important to women’s heritage.
“While the future of the residence remains uncertain, Historic-Cultural Monument[] status provides the home with added protections against demolition, preserving Marilyn Monroe’s legacy for future generations,” CEO Adrian Scott Fine said in a statement to CoStar News.
Park said she received feedback from both members of her district and nonconstituents in support of protecting the house. Some neighbors expressed concerns about traffic near the site, but Park said she is working to introduce motions to ensure safety.
“To lose this piece of history, the only home that Marilyn Monroe ever owned, would be a devastating blow for historic preservation and for a city where less than 3% of historic designations are associated with women’s heritage,” she said Wednesday.
