IMDb: Marilyn Monroe Planned To Do Shakespeare

Screen siren Marilyn Monroe dreamed of starring in a film based on a play by William Shakespeare and enlisted Laurence Olivier to help her achieve her dream. Monroe was determined to revamp her image and prove herself as a serious actress, according to tapes former Los Angeles prosecutor John W. Miner claims to have made for the late star's psychiatrist shortly before her death in 1962. According to the recordings, Monroe had already spoken to legendary method acting coach Lee Strasberg and Olivier about her plans. Miner's transcript reads: "I'll take a year of day and night study at Shakespeare with Lee Strasberg. I'll pay him to work only with me. He said I could do Shakespeare. I'll make him prove it. That will give me the basics Olivier wanted. Then I'll go to Olivier for the help he promised. Then I'll produce and act in the Marilyn Monroe Shakespeare Film Festival."