Photographer Leigh Wiener used five rolls inside the morgue that housed Marilyn's body. She sent three rolls to LIFE magazine and kept two for herself. Everything is revealed in a new documentary.
Two reels of film containing photographs of Marilyn Monroe's n-ked corpse remained hidden nearly six decades after her death, a new documentary series reveals.
"Scandalous: The Death of Marilyn Monroe," premiering this Sunday on Fox News Channel, features an interview with the son of the photographer who captured images of the Hollywood icon as she lay on a tray inside a Los Angeles morgue. .
Devik Wiener, the son of famous photographer Leigh Wiener, reveals how his father bribed his way into the coroner's rooms just hours after the star was found dead in his bed on August 4, 1962.
It wasn't the first time he used a couple of whiskey bottles to get into an off-limits area," Devik explains in the documentary series.
"He offered a couple of guys a drink, and next thing you know he was in the back."
Leigh shot three rolls of film that she submitted to LIFE magazine, including an image showing a tag on Monroe's lifeless foot.
That image was broadcast around the world, but, according to Devik, it was far from the most scandalous image taken on the night.
Leigh shot two more rolls of film that contained footage of Monroe's n-ked corpse.
"The last two rolls, which contained images beyond the toe tag, he took back to his studio and having processed and examined, he then placed them in a safe deposit box," Devik reveals, saying that the photos They were not fit for public consumption.
Leigh passed away in 1993 without revealing the location of the photos. "She actually died with that mystery," says Devik.
Given the status of Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic personalities of the 20th century, as well as the longstanding intrigue surrounding her death, the photos would no doubt sell for a huge sum.
Meanwhile, a separate image of Monroe taken shortly after her death (which was not taken by Leigh) shocked fans after it was leaked in the days after her passing.
It showed the actress wearing a white sheet up to her chin as her face appeared drawn and colorless.
Monroe's body was left unclaimed in the morgue for more than 24 hours, a fact that is also discussed in Fox News Channel's new three-part documentary series.
"Scandalous: The Death of Marilyn Monroe" also includes interviews with biographers Keith Badman and Charles Casillo and features digitally remastered versions of the original film reels after the actress's death.
