Marilyn Monroe, Me, and the Three Minutes That Captured Her Humanity

Throughout her career, Monroe was asked about her appearance, her waistline, or her latest, painful divorce. Later in life, I think of her every time I delve into the comments section on Instagram. In these moments, I smile and laugh, when what I want to say is, “How could you be so cruel?”

A few days before my speech, I went to the exhibit’s opening. The next day would have been Monroe’s 100th birthday. For an hour, I watched fellow fans with…