Yankee In Exile

The Story of Baseball’s Most Tragic Romance

January 14, 1954

This was the date that Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe were married at San Francisco City Hall in the former’s hometown. He was 39, she was 27, and it constituted the second try at marriage for each party. DiMaggio, who retired after the 1951 season, had met the Hollywood bombshell a year later, when she was only 25 years of age. He was working in broadcasting for the Yankees and, since he called it quits on his playing career, seemed to have a lot more time on his hands. Apparently, “Joltin’ Joe” was reading a newspaper one day when he saw a picture of the movie star dressed in a baseball jersey. He decided right then and there that he needed to meet her and arranged for press agent David March to set them up. Soon, they went on many dates and became the number one “power couple” in this country. 

Two Superstars

Looking back on things, most people can appreciate the star of Monroe. The movies she was in, her sex symbol appeal, and her unique aura of mystery. She may just have been the biggest star that Hollywood has ever known. However, what has been lost to modernity is just how popular the “Yankee Clipper” was in his day too. First of all, he was the most recognizable face of the most well known sports team in North America. He also symbolized the number one sport (by far) in the USA at the time. DiMaggio has been memorialized in many forms of media and pop culture. Perhaps the most famous of these is in the song “Mrs. Robinson” by Simon and Garfunkel. This tune became extremely popular after it was featured in the hit 1967 film, The Graduate. In addition to this, Ernest Hemingway mentions Joe D in his famous novel, The Old Man and the Sea. Jazz musician Les Brown sang about him and he was also talked about in the legendary 1949 musical, South Pacific. Simply put, Joe DiMaggio was just  as much of a 1950s icon as his new wife. Legend has it that she would even be surprised by how many people would come up to say hi to him when they were out in public instead of her. 

A Big Difference 

However, the major difference between the two lovers was that DiMaggio was now retired from public life. No longer was he traveling to different American cities like he was when he was playing for the Yankees. Monroe, on the other hand, was at the peak of her acting career. This meant they led completely opposite lives. In fact, the starlet actually had to leave their honeymoon in Japan to fly over to Korea to entertain troops stationed there during the Korean War. Marilyn also spent very long days away filming various movies and media clips. Over time, this grated on “Joltin’ Joe.” Monroe stated that her publicity bothered DiMaggio not because he was jealous of her, but that he wanted a simpler life than they lived. She stated, “He dislikes being photographed or interviewed. If he is even so much as asked to participate in some publicity stunt, he registers a big explosion.” She added, “I expected a flashy, New York sports type and instead he was a reserved guy.” To sum this up, it seems as if DiMaggio, in his retirement, wanted to live a simple, quiet life, away from the press and paparazzi. Now, if you’re asking yourself: If that’s truly what he wanted then why the hell did he marry the biggest movie star on earth? Well, then you’ve asked the same valid question that many have wondered over the years. 

It became evident that Joe D was irked by having his wife as a sex symbol. He reportedly became enraged when he saw Monroe’s famous scene in which she has her skirt blown up because of a subway gate in the movie, The Seven Year Itch. Apparently, DiMaggio was verbally cruel to Marilyn very often and there have also been unconfirmed allegations of physical abuse. The truth is, we don’t really know what happened behind closed doors, but we do know that DiMaggio has described himself as a “control freak” and that he harbored much guilt about the marriage until the day he died. 

October 6, 1954 

This was the date that Marilyn Monroe stepped out of her Beverly Hills home and announced to awaiting paparazzi (hey, who’s ever heard of privacy?) that she was filing for divorce from the “Yankee Clipper”. She stated the reason was “mental cruelty.” If you’re keeping score, this union lasted a mere 9 months or 274 days. And just like that, perhaps the most famous marriage in American history ended. Both parties took opposite paths after the break up. DiMaggio never really dated again and still reportedly loved Monroe in the years that followed. Marilyn, on the other hand, entered a relationship with playwright Arthur Miller known for works such as The Crucible and Death of a Salesman. The marriage lasted for 5 years, but ended as well. 

Joltin’Joe Comes Back 

The end of her marriage to Miller put Monroe in probably the worst place she had ever been in her life. In the winter of 1961, she found herself in a psychiatric clinic in New York City. It was at that moment that DiMaggio came back into her life. He was the one to support her at the clinic and the man to secure her release. He then brought her down to Yankees Spring Training in Saint Petersburg, FL (he was a batting coach for the Yankees at the time) to rest, recuperate, and to be in a favorable climate. Yes, Marilyn Monroe was present at Yankees Spring Training in 1961. Was it a distraction to the team? That’s hard to tell. However, seeing that they went on to win 109 games, the World Series, and the fact that Roger Maris also broke the home run record that year, I think they ended up doing okay for themselves. Monroe also had to have emergency gallbladder surgery that June in Manhattan. Who was right by her side during that process? You guessed it. DiMaggio. Of course, remarriage rumors spread like wildfire, but it seems as if, at this point, they viewed each other as lifelong friends and nothing else. And Monroe was soon on to more romance……………..

The Kennedy Involvement 

Then in late 1961, the most famous (alleged, but probably true) affair in American history happened. After Frank Sinatra introduced the two of them, Monroe reportedly  started a months-long fling with our 35th president, John F. Kennedy. Apparently, the two hit it off and the escapade lasted well into the spring of 1962. She even sang a now famous, fairly seductive, happy birthday song to him at Madison Square Garden that May. But, spring then turned to summer and, by many accounts, JFK rotated to other women and Monroe pivoted to his brother, US Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Many even claim that she continued to see RFK right up until the time of her death and conspiracy theories have abounded that the Kennedy clan was instrumental in her demise. Make of everything what you will. 

August 4, 1962 

This was the day of the aforementioned Monroe death. She was found deceased by her housekeeper. The official cause of her life’s end was a barbiturate overdose and her death was ruled as a probable suicide. DiMaggio, who was close with his ex-wife right up until the very end, was not only upset, but also angry. He reportedly blamed the Kennedys for putting pressure on her that led directly to her dying. He blamed Sinatra (and cut off their friendship) for introducing her to the Kennedys. Most significantly of all though, DiMaggio blamed himself. He stated, “I’ll go to my grave regretting and blaming myself for what happened to her.” Overall, it’s sadly obvious that Marilyn Monroe had many personal demons. Many, many movie stars do. However, DiMaggio seemed to have always felt that if his marriage to her had gone differently,  she would not have met the fate that she did. There was only one thing left that he could truly do for Marilyn. One more platform in which he could make his undying love for her known. 

The Funeral 

Considering that she did not have much family (with many either dead or estranged), DiMaggio was the natural fit to take charge of Monroe’s funeral arrangements. He, together with Marilyn’s half-sister Berniece Miracle and business manager Inez Melson determined the proceedings on August 8, 1962. The ceremony was very small with only about twenty-five total people attending at Westwood Village Memorial Park in Los Angeles. Twenty-five was all DiMaggio had any interest in inviting. He banned any major Hollywood names from being there. This included any big shot actors, actresses, producers, or directors. Naturally, Sinatra and his infamous “Rat Pack” weren’t given an invite. Nor did any member of the Kennedy family receive a request to attend. Joe D reportedly stated, “If it wasn’t for any of them, she’d still be here.” So, simply a small number of friends, family, and minor movie colleagues were there to celebrate the life of Hollywood’s most famous icon. The funeral program directly stated that the ceremony aimed to give Monroe the “quiet that she had always sought.” DiMaggio was the final person to leave her gravesite that day. 

Aftermath 

The “Yankee Clipper” never remarried and, by most accounts, remained in love with his wife of only 274 days for the rest of his life. Until 1982, he ordered a dozen red roses delivered to Marilyn’s grave three times a week. DiMaggio visited her resting place frequently, often bringing the flowers himself. However, in the aforementioned year, roses ceased being supplied to Monroe’s burial site. No one exactly knows the reason for this, but many have theorized that Joe D didn’t want the delivery of the red blooms to be the public spectacle that it had become. Joe DiMaggio died on March 8, 1999 at the age of 84. During the 1998 Opening Day ceremonies at Yankee Stadium, he was honored as “baseball’s greatest living player.” In another sad turn of events, DiMaggio’s son (with his first wife, actress Dorothy Arnold. He definitely had a thing for Hollywood people.), died just five months later. His name: Joe DiMaggio, Jr. 

Still today, DiMaggio and Monroe’s marriage ranks up there as stuff of Hollywood legend. However, once we get past the glitz and glamour of the two immensely famous stars, the story is very tragic. Their extremely short marriage, Joe D’s alleged mental cruelty, and Monroe’s continued emotional issues are enough to make even the most optimistic person lose hope in humanity. Their story nearly had a sweet ending with them rekindling their friendship and DiMaggio tending to Marilyn’s mental health needs. However, the movie star’s untimely death leaves humanity with many unanswered questions. Fiery romance, heartbreak, lasting love, and tragedy in the form of death. Perhaps these two created their own dramatic script. One that trumps anything Hollywood could ever write.