Please believe me it was not my doing

Something's Got to Give (1962) was Marilyn Monroe's last (unfinished) film. Directed by George Cukor and co-starring Dean Martin and Cyd Charisse, the film was a remake of the 1940 My Favorite Wife, a screwball comedy starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. From the very beginning, the project was plagued with problems involving its leading lady. On the first day of production, Marilyn didn't show up because of a sinus infection, and over the next month she only rarely made an appearance due to several health problems. With the production going quickly over budget and also having to deal with another project that ran over budget (the epic Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor), 20th Century Fox couldn't afford to keep an unreliable leading lady on the payroll. Marilyn was eventually fired on 8 June 1962.

Marilyn was to be replaced with Lee Remick, but leading man Dean Martin (a friend of Marilyn's) refused to work with anybody but Marilyn. As a result, Fox agreed to rehire Marilyn and even agreed to pay her more than her previous salary. Marilyn accepted the studio's offer on the condition that Cukor was replaced with Jean Negulesco with whom she had worked on How To Marry a Millionaire (1953). Before filming could resume, however, Marilyn died of a barbiturate overdose. The film was abandoned after her death and was eventually remade under a different title with a different cast (Move Over Darling (1963), directed by Michael Gordon and starring Doris Day and James Garner).

George Cukor and Marilyn Monroe on the set of Something's Got to Give (above), and Marilyn with co-star Cyd Charisse in a scene from the film (below).

Following her dismissal from Something's Got to Give, Marilyn sent identical telegrams to cast and crew members. Shown below are the telegrams she sent to resp. George Cukor and Cyd Charisse.

Source: julienslive

Transcript:

1962 JUN 8 PM 10 15

GEO CUKOR

9166 CORDELL DR LOSA

DEAR GEORGE 

PLEASE BELIEVE ME IT WAS NOT MY DOING

I HAD SO LOOKED FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU

WARMLY

MARILYN

Via: pinterest

Transcript:

1962 JUN 8 PM 10 16

MRS TONY MARTIN

1155 SAHDOW [sic] HILL WAY BEVERLY HILLS CALIF

DEAR CYD 

PLEASE BELIEVE ME IT WAS NOT MY DOING

I HAD SO LOOKED FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU
WARMLY
MARILYN