Marilyn Monroe, 1954

Marilyn Monroe as a ballerina awaiting her cue.One of the most notorious Marilyn Monroe sittings of all time began with the delivery of six Anne Klein pieces to Milton's studio for Marilyn to wear. Among them was the (soon to be iconic) white ballerina dress. Marilyn had just finished shooting The Seven Year Itch the month previous and following the holiday, returned with Milton to his New York studio for a photo session in the new dress. After hair and make-up, Marilyn slipped into the dress only to find it was too small. Milton seized the opportunity and suggested she wear it half zipped. For the duration of the shoot, she posed while dealing with the challenge of holding up the unclasped dress. In this series titled Ballerina Sitting, Milton's off-the-cuff approach perfectly illustrates the duality of that child-like innocence and brazened sexuality which she ultimately came to represent. The result is an unforgettable series of images. This image in particular was chosen by Time magazine as one of the top three most popular images of the twentieth century alongside Yousef Karsh's Winston Churchill and Philippe Halsman's Albert Einstein.