Marilyn Monroe
William Bell photographed a series of test shots experimenting with lighting and poses in 1952. Marilyn Monroe was in New York to promote her film work and begin acting classes.
According to family history, Avedon wanted to photograph Monroe in Bell’s studio… so Bill set up the lighting system he had been experimenting with. Monroe offered to sit for him, and–in an impromptu session–Bell photographed what he thought were possibly the first series of photos by a NYC photographer to capture her iconic movie star quality.
A Chemise
Bobbi wore the wool chemise Monroe gifted Bill through college… and regrets having worn it to disintegration.
Scanned from original transparencies
The original large format color transparencies from which these images were scanned were found in a Kodak box labeled “Important” in bold magic marker after William Bell’s death in 2012.
Bill never worked on these — to our knowledge. His daughter, Bobbi Liepolt, copyrighted the eight unpublished, large format color transparencies of Marilyn Monroe—one of which is shown here— and 132 others of celebrities and models under inherited copyright in 2025