Something Had To Give

Jun 26, 2001 - © John McManamy

Then, days later, on the morning of August 5, Marilyn's housekeeper noticed lights on in her room. She opened the door to discover why. Marilyn was dead from an overdose of sleeping pills. She was 36.

Only Marilyn's bipolar could explain the incredible and unpredictable ups and downs that governed her final days and resulted in her tragic ending. A vulnerable person physically and mentally not ready for the demands of shooting another film, she had been placed in the impossible position of carrying an entire studio's fortunes on her shoulders. Add to that her fears that maybe she could no longer live up to her larger than life Marilyn Monroe persona, and add to that the deflation of her grandiose bubble that she could be a future President's wife. Who knows what else was going through her mind? Something had to give. Something did.

FOOTNOTE

The AMC documentary very clearly let viewers know that Marilyn suffered from bipolar, with testimony from her personal physician and with reference to her institutionalized mother. By helping viewers better understand Marilyn, AMC may have unintentionally created a greater awareness of the illness that so brutally cut her life short.

For three free issues of my depression and bipolar newsletter, mailto:jmcmanamy@snet.net and put "Newsletter" in the subject line and your email in the body.

The copyright of the article Something Had To Give in Depression is owned by John McManamy. Permission to republish Something Had To Give in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic