Some like it Scot: Why Marilyn’s Highland cousin is giving her cold shoulder
Munros won’t be told of their heritage, say clans, as Hollywood star’s relation pulls out of DNA project
THE search for the Scottish relations of Marilyn Monroe began a year ago amid much fanfare and optimism.
The American descendants of the Scottish Munro clan had discovered that the actress’s long-lost cousins once lived in the remote town of Tain in the Highlands.
Soon after they started testing the DNA of locals, to their joy, Clan Munro USA found a match.
However, amid deepening suspicion from the Scottish side of the family, the trail has now run rather cold.
The one Munro found to be related to Marilyn Monroe failed to respond to any contact from the Americans, suggesting that he wanted nothing to do with the project or his long-lost relation, even after volunteering DNA.
The Some Like It Hot star, who died aged 36 in 1962 of a drugs overdose, was born Norma Jeane Mortenson but took her screen name from her mother, Gladys Pearl Monroe.
Colin Munro, of the Scottish Clan Munro Association, spoke of a disdain for being lectured about their heritage by the American side of the family.
He said: “Scots think they know who they are and don’t want to find out if they’re wrong. It could also be that many Scots do not believe anything is really free.”
Clan Munro USA has been forced to concede that it is rather disappointed with its findings and “surprised” that the Scots did not get involved.
The project began after it was discovered that an ancestor of Monroe was a soldier exiled to America after the English Civil War and launched an appeal to find more ancestors.
The project organisers might have been forgiven for getting their hopes up when they did eventually find one living descendant of the US actress.
“We found one Scot who shares DNA with Marilyn Monroe’s relatives. He has a close DNA match,” revealed Margaret Bardin of Clan Munro USA, Texas.
“He lived in the north-east of Scotland and has Scottish heritage but moved to Birmingham. That gentleman participated as a favour and we paid for his testing.
“He has not continued to correspond with me. We have to respect his privacy.”
The Clan Munro Association appears to have washed its hands, with its website pointing those interested in the DNA project across the Atlantic.
Hector Munro, 67, chief of the Munro clan, said there was a vast difference in attitudes about tracing lineage.
“The Scots think they know their history so they aren’t as keen to get involved,” he said.“the further people get away from the Highlands, the more interested they are. It’s about capturing that feeling of belonging.”
Mr Munro, from Dingwall in the Highlands, said the aim of the project was to broaden the Munro DNA database and that the Marilyn link had likely been a hook to capture the imagination. “Obviously, she is rather iconic,” he added. “They tried it with James Monroe, the fifth US president, but didn’t get any takers.”