Did Kim Kardashian really trash Marilyn Monroe’s dress at the Met Gala? Here’s the story
Did she or didn’t she? That is the question.
Marilyn Monroe fans were enraged after alleged pictures surfaced of the silver screen legend’s iconic “Happy Birthday” dress trashed after Kim Kardashian wore it to the Met Gala in New York last month.
Monroe shimmied into the beige sparkler for President John F. Kennedy’s birthday party at Madison Square Garden in 1962, cementing it into history.
Shocking, new posts shared on social media show “alleged” before and after pictures of Monroe’s frock by Oscar-winning costume designer Jean Louis, currently on display at the Ripley’s in Los Angeles for a limited time.
The famed garment Kardashian borrowed from Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Museum in Orlando seems to be in terrible shape; crystals are missing, the zipper ripped.
Commenters on the original thread posted by a preservationist couldn’t believe their eyes:
“This is like walking into the Louvre and throwing paint thinner directly onto the Mona Lisa. Fashion preservation is so important,” one person wrote. “This was the destruction of an irreplaceable historical artifact, all for a walk down a red carpet. I’m going to be sick.”
On Thursday, Ripley’s released a statement saying to basically lay off the Hulu star, and that Kardashian treated the dress well for the short time she wore it to enter the Met. (A replica was used for the festivities.)
In other words: all the Internet hoopla is fake news.
The museum definitively says that the SKIMS founder “did not cause damage” to the 1962 dress that was acquired from a Julien’s Auctions event in 2016 for $4.8 million.
Apparently, the dress came to the Central Florida facility already in not ideal shape, with a number of “pulled and worn” seams.
“This is not surprising given how delicate the material is,” reads a report Ripley’s received after the gown arrived in 2017. “There is puckering at the back by the hooks and eyes,” among other issues.
Since then, Ripley’s has displayed the iconic dress at a number of its attractions around the world, causing even more wear and tear.
“The company understands the risks associated with this, but Ripley’s Believe It or Not! has been collecting notable pop-culture memorabilia, historical items, and unbelievable artifacts for over 100 years,” the statement says. “Our mission is to both entertain and educate visitors and fans, and sparking conversations like the discourse around Marilyn Monroe’s dress does just that.”
So the pictures on the Internet that were purported to be new, and post-Met Gala, were actually old.
Case closed, OK?