And she still had hope. Although another lengthy sojourn from the screen commenced, she used her time well. Long criticized for her over-emphatic shape, Marilyn began to whittle down the body. (It is a myth that there was some other standard, back in the day. Marilyn, and her brunette counterpart, Elizabeth Taylor, were often attacked for physical sloppiness.) She returned to the exercise of her teen-age modeling years. She faced the new decade with a new shape, toned and trim—although she worried that her bosom was now too small! And taking a fresh start one step further, she bought a cozy home in the Brentwood area of Los Angeles, intent on securing herself.

In the midst of re-newal, 20th Century Fox called. One more film on her old contract was required. She did not want to make “Something’s Got To Give,” a re-tread of an old 1930’s comedy. Eventually, she approved a script, written by Nunnally Johnson, saying only, “It needs more jokes,” and reluctantly accepted George Cukor as the director—he had not served her well on “Let’s Make Love” so how would could he be trusted to manage this film, crucial to her survival? But, Cukor was on her list of eligible directors. She was trapped. Dean Martin, a good friend, was her co-star, and Cyd Charisse was the second female lead. (Charisse, though an opposite type, was perhaps too glamorous to pair with Marilyn at this delicate juncture.) Still, Marilyn forged ahead. She was ravishing in costume and makeup tests; a few months shy of 36, she had come into her own as a woman. Unfortunately, George Cukor did not approve of the script. He and his writers began to make changes. Production problems were rife and Marilyn had to stand by and watch as the studio—stunned by the astronomical expenses on “Cleopatra,” still filming in Rome—teetered.

Finally, “SGTG” was ready to begin shooting. But Marilyn was not. She had developed a severe sinusitis infection. Fox’s own doctor—who had no reason to protect her—suggested postponing the starting date. The studio, reeling under the expensive hi-jinks of Elizabeth Taylor, refused. Marilyn would report to work when ordered to.

Now began Marilyn’s final battle with authority. She was genuinely ill and she was also genuinely willful and offended. Her on-set appearances were sporadic. She was charming and cooperative when she was there—she just wasn’t there, much. (The hours of outtakes which have survived show her as lovely and in full command of her faculties, despite Cukor’s subsequent claims that she was insane and not performing adequately.) We will never know for sure how much her behavior was fueled by resentment or by her legitimate ailments. It all came to a head when she honored her commitment to sing “Happy Birthday” at President John F. Kennedy’s massive Madison Square Garden gala. Fox ordered her to refuse, as the film was behind schedule. Marilyn ignored them. She considered this a Command Performance. And, she was also having a thrilling little romance with Jack Kennedy (and soon, his brother, Bobby—a much more serious entanglement.) She wouldn’t dream of saying no to such an event! Maria Callas was going to be there. And her great friend Ella Fitzgerald. She went. She sang. She made history in her barely-there beaded Jean-Louis gown. Fox was not impressed.

She returned to the set invigorated, and determined to give the film a needed shot in the arm. In a swimming pool scene that was supposed to only simulate nudity, she collaborated with Cukor to clear the set and do it for real. Marilyn briefly slipped out of her skin-colored bikini and allowed carefully choreographed shots of herself in the nude. She looked magnificent and the session was an international sensation, but it was too late. When she again called in sick, Fox fired her. The film’s producer, said years later that he believed something dramatic had happened to Marilyn—possibly involving her personal life—that pulled her down from the high of the birthday serenade and the subsequent nude scene. (Or, perhaps after all her hard work as an actress, she was depressed she was still obliged to make news in the nude. Did she cast a baleful eye at her expensive “drama coach,” Paula Strasberg? Paula, incredibly, received a higher weekly salary than Marilyn!)