Fashion enthusiasts and Marilyn Monroe fans around the world took to social media to express their disappointment after photos showed damage to Marilyn Monroe’s iconic Happy Birthday dress, worn by Kim Kardashian to the Met Gala, were put online.
The before and after photos, posted to Instagram by the Marilyn Monroe Collection, which claims to be the world’s largest private collection of Monroe’s personal belongings and archives, show that the 60-year-old dress has missing crystals after wearing and loose threads American celebrity Kim Kardashian on the red carpet at the Met Gala on May 2nd.
The images were reportedly featured on Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Location in Hollywood where the dress was on display.
So far there has been no statement from Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Franchise or Kim Kardashian on the allegations.
The dress, designed by Jean Louis, was worn by Marilyn Monroe on May 19, 1962 during a benefit where Monroe sang “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” to then-US President John F. Kennedy. Embellished with over 2,000 hand-sewn crystals, the delicate gown was inspired by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! franchised in 2016 for $4.8 million.
After Kim Kardashian wore the dress from Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Franchise, her move drew criticism from fashion historians, who raised the issue of damage to the historical dress.
In case you’re wondering how Marilyn Monroe’s dress got damaged. Rubbing and stretching on Kim Kardashian probably didn’t help.
That doesn’t look gentle. pic.twitter.com/zRq7fI4Kla— Christina (@murphystina) June 13, 2022
She had a replica that she pulled herself into for the party. She literally only wore Marilyn’s dress on the red carpet with the white coat because she couldn’t close it. Where was the point pic.twitter.com/nQwGZx0bEJ
— Caity (@CaityTrina) June 13, 2022
Tweets evilly😭😭 pic.twitter.com/sLthZrMy2x
— mercenaries; bsd s3 spoiler xen defender (@hayouhusbands) June 14, 2022
The messages say “seems to be damaged” when the dress is completely destroyed 😭
– TricicloBaby (@gabrielcaruso4) June 14, 2022
Kim should never have worn this dress. I mean, yes, it’s nice to pay homage to Marilyn, but she could have had a new dress made and replicated. This was a timeless and iconic artifact that was ruined.
— ☆𝓙𝓪𝓱𝓴𝓮𝓮𝓶☆ (@jahkeemstar) June 13, 2022
Congratulations to the Met Gala for presenting a real-world example of why a preservation department like the Costume Institute is necessary for historically significant garments. https://t.co/7scbAKC7kA
— Amanda Smith (@AmandaSmithSays) June 13, 2022
They really let her ruin a historical artifact to get a stunning look that didn’t even fit the theme
— issa phae (@mizphantasm) June 13, 2022
In conversation with Fashion, Kardashian had said, “I have great respect for the dress and its importance in American history. I would never want to sit in it or eat in it or risk damaging it, and I won’t wear the kind of body makeup I normally wear.”
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bonusKardashian added that she had to because the dress wasn’t allowed to be altered remove to fit. She had transformed into a replica of the dress after posing in the original on the Met Gala red carpet.
