When Marilyn Monroe died from a barbiturate overdose on Aug. 5, 1962, devastated fans searched for a way to cope. LIFE Magazine, whose cover Monroe had graced six times, offered up a tribute in a manner befitting not only its mission, but also its relationship with the star: a collection of photographs. As the editors wrote:
Her death has diminished the loveliness of the world in which we live. Her life was filled with sadness—a bleak childhood, three unhappy marriages, her inability to have children. But for all her seeking, trying, hoping and never finding, she has left us many beautiful images to remember.
Here, in that spirit, are LIFE’s most timeless images of one of the most celebrated, emulated and complicated celebrities of the 20th century.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.
Marilyn Monroe on the patio outside of her home, 1953.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe posing in a studio, 1949.J.R. Eyerman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe in dance class, 1949.J.R. Eyerman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California, 1950.Ed Clark—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California, 1950.Ed Clark—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe strikes a pose, 1950.Ed Clark—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe talking on the phone during an interview for the movie "Clash by Night," while producer Jerry Wald looks on, 1951.Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe at the Club Del Mar, where she received the Henrietta Award for Best Young Box Office Personality, given by the Foreign Press Association of Hollywood, 1952.Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe at home, 1953.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe wearing her famous gold lamé gown designed by Bill Travilla for a publicity still for the motion picture "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," 1953.Ed Clark—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in a scene from the movie "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," 1953.Ed Clark—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA tearful Marilyn Monroe standing outside her home to face dozens of reporters after the announcement of her divorce from Joe DiMaggio, 1954.George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesActor Robert Mitchum wrestles with Marilyn Monroe in a scene from the film "River of No Return," 1954.John Swope—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe sits on a piano in a scene from "River of No Return," 1954.J.R. Eyerman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe attends the premiere for 'East of Eden' at the Astor Theater, New York City, 1955.Michael Rougier—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe and playwright Arthur Miller sit in a Thunderbird convertible, 1956.Paul Schutzer—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesAmbassador Winthrop Aldrich, ex-envoy to Britain, chats with Marilyn Monroe as her husband, Arthur Miller, looks on at the April in Paris Ball, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, 1957.Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe looks startled while holding a flaming sparkler in the Rockefeller Center Sidewalk Superintendents Club during a ceremony for the soon-to-be built Time & Life Building, 1957.Walter Daran—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesProducer Kermit Bloomgarden (right) visits with Arthur Miller (center) and his wife, Marilyn Monroe, in their apartment, 1958.Robert W. Kelley—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMarilyn Monroe peers out at husband Arthur Miller from behind a door to see if he approves, 1960.John Bryson—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
