Marilyn Monroe's Happy Birthday dress, 19 May 1962: Jean Louis, 2,500 hand-stitched crystals; Stoughton's photograph; Ripley's 4.8 million dollars in 2016
Marilyn Monroe sang Happy Birthday to John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Garden in New York on 19 May 1962, at an early party for his 45th birthday, in a flesh-coloured, form-fitting Jean Louis dress covered in more than 2,500 crystals sewn on by hand. Cecil Stoughton, the president's photographer, took the second picture that night. Ripley's Believe It or Not! bought the dress at Julien's Auctions in Los Angeles in November 2016 for 4.8 million dollars. In May 2022 Kim Kardashian (@kimkardashian) wore it up the Met Gala steps, changing into it at the bottom with a Ripley's conservator beside her and out of it into a replica for the rest of the night. Photos: 1962, public domain; Cecil W. Stoughton, public domain; via Wikimedia Commons.