Marilyn Monroe’s beloved Los Angeles home, where she tragically died more than 60 years ago, could become a tear-down, as its new owner reportedly seeks to demolish the iconic, one-story structure.
The new owner has filed for permits with the city’s Department of Building and Safety to demolish the Hacienda-style home in the city’s upscale Brentwood neighborhood, the New York Post reported Wednesday. The resident didn’t say why they wanted to demolish the four-bedroom structure, which was built in 1929, but property owners usually take such steps in order to build a house that’s larger and that has more modern amenities.
The building department gave the green light for a “plan check” on Tuesday, signaling the initial stages of the demolition process, the Post said. However, a final demolition permit has yet to be granted.
Monroe, one of Hollywood’s most famous stars, purchased the 2,900-square-foot home in February 1962 for $77,500 — equivalent to around $790,000 today, when figures are adjusted for inflation. The grounds of the estate featured a pool and lush lawn, while the home itself boasted charming architectural details, including beamed ceilings, casement windows and terra cotta tile floors.
Sadly, Monroe didn’t get to enjoy the house for long. The troubled beauty was found dead in her bedroom on Aug. 4, 1962. At the time, the Los Angeles Times said the 36-year-old “Gentleman Prefer Blondes” actor was found nude, lying face down on her bed and clutching a telephone receiver in her hand when a psychiatrist broke into her room at 3:30 a.m. She had been dead an estimated six to eight hours.
Monroe’s death, officially blamed on an apparent overdose of sleeping pills, touched off a national outpouring of grief and decades of novels, investigative reports, feature films and serious think pieces about Hollywood fame, American ideals of womanhood and so much else. Known as the “blonde bombshell,” Monroe became the tragic, exploited figure in various national conspiracy theories, with suspects in her demise including John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, the CIA, Teamsters union leader Jimmy Hoffa and the Mafia.
The fascination around Monroe’s life and death has meant that her beloved house, at the end of a cul de sac in the Hollywood Hills, has become a macabre attraction for bus and van tours of stars’ homes and scenes of Hollywood tragedies.
The home was last publicly on the market in 2017 and sold for $7.25 million, the New York Post said. At some point in the last six years, the home once again changed ownership for an undisclosed amount — though its value is said to be around $8.35 million.