Marilyn Monroe, the Hollywood icon’s last residence, which was labelled as a historical landmark, faces demolition if the court approves the arguments to overturn its historic status. The owners have argued that the home holds no significance to the late actress. They also accused the city of Los Angeles of unconstitutionally abusing their power.
How Marilyn Monroe’s Last Home Became a “Historical Monument”
Monroe’s last residence in Brentwood, the place where the actress spent her final six months, was purchased in 2023 by Brinah Milstein, the daughter of a real estate developer and Roy Bank, a reality TV producer, for $8.35 million.
According to their lawyer, Peter Sheridan, the couple had planned to demolish and combine the site with their adjacent property. However, preservationists put a stop to these plans as soon as the two received a demolition permit for the Brentwood home.
The preservationist argued for the home to be declared a historical monument due to Monroe’s cultural significance, an argument that was accepted by the city of Los Angeles.
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Home Owners: A Lot of Stars Die in LA
In their lawsuit filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the lawyer, Peter Sheridan, argued that LA is home to a lot of popular faces and not all of them are “historical monuments.” The lawsuit completely overlooks the preservationist’s arguments, hailing Monroe’s importance in the culture and the importance of her final residence.
“LA has thousands of celebrities who live and die here…Is every house that those good folks lived in a ‘historic monument’? Not in the least,” Peter Sheridan said.
Sheridan dismissed the importance of the Brentwood property, claiming that nothing in the house holds any significance to the Some Like It Hot star. Emphasising that the ‘historical monument’ status for the property is not appropriate.
“There is not a single piece of the house that includes any physical evidence that Ms. Monroe ever spent a day at the house, not a piece of furniture, not a paint chip, not a carpet, nothing,” reads the lawsuit.
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Owners Claim Abuse of Power by Los Angeles
The lawsuit claims that the decision to declare Monroe’s last home as a “historical monument” was unconstitutional and made in cahoots with tour operators. It emphasised that the decision deprived the new home owners of their rights due to the city’s involvement with touring companies that profit from such tourist attractions, along with the preservationists.
The attorneys representing the city responded by claiming to follow proper procedures, including gathering evidence for the importance of the property in question.
“Mere disagreement is not enough to overcome the city’s lawfully-taken action that petitioners opposed at every hearing of the proceedings,” read the response to the claims by the owners.
Preservationists Argue For The Historic Monument Status
Defending the status of Marilyn Monroe’s final residence, preservationist Heather Goers say that it is the only home the actress and model owned on her own. She claimed that it is one of the few historic properties in the city dedicated to women’s history.
“Marilyn Monroe was quite possibly the most influential female entertainer of the 20th century…Less than 3% of the 1,300 historic properties in Los Angeles are dedicated to women’s history. If you can’t commemorate the history of Marilyn Monroe, what’s that tell us?” Goers said in her report for the Cultural Heritage Commission.
Arguments supporting both sides have been made both in the suits and outside; however, the decision is still to be made. If the status of the Brentwood property is taken away, the owners will be free to proceed with their demolition plans. Otherwise, the house sits as a historical monument in the memory of the beloved Merilyn Monroe.
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