Important DS, one page both sides, 8 x 14, March 2, 1949. Exclusive three-year contract with the William Morris Agency, signed on the reverse in green fountain pen, “Marilyn Monroe,” to which Marilyn adds her address in the appropriate blank, “1215 Lodi Place Ho[llywood].” Countersigned by agent Samuel Parks, who also adds the date and gives Marilyn’s age as twenty. At this point in her fledgling career, Marilyn was living in the Studio Club on Lodi Place, the famous, sorority-like home for aspiring actresses which required of its residents “the best of references and high moral standing.” The signing of this contract with the William Morris Agency represented a major milestone in Marilyn’s career. As the premiere talent agency of the day—and it remains significant in the industry even now—William Morris exerted a powerful influence in Hollywood. To be granted admission to its ranks, with all of the attendant benefits, was a sure sign that one had truly “arrived” in showbiz. Though Marilyn’s star was clearly on the rise by the time she signed with William Morris, it took the agency’s clout to land her small but crucial roles in two of the most-watched films of 1950—roles that, after a string of forgettable bit parts, finally brought her to the forefront of the public’s imagination: Louis Calhern’s seductive “niece” in The Asphalt Jungle, and the scene-stealing party guest (and graduate of the “Copacabana School of Dramatic Art”) in All About Eve. By the time her William Morris contract was set to expire in March 1953, she had become one of the biggest draws in Hollywood—but was making only $1,500 a week. When William Morris proved incapable of obtaining more favorable terms for its brightest star, Marilyn defected to the Famous Artists Agency, which oversaw the most fruitful period of Marilyn’s career. As the contract which, in a very real sense, helped to launch one of the most storied careers in the annals of Hollywood, the present item is one of the most significant Marilyn documents to become available in years! In fine condition, with usual filing holes to top edge, a bit of mild toning, and a small pencil notation at top. COA PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
