The Moscow Secret of Marilyn Monroe
Moskovskij Komsomolets - 13 April 2012
by Александр Добровольский
translated by Phil
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here for the original article in Russian
The famous Hollywood blonde had her eyes on a secret Soviet agent.
Marilyn Monroe - It's not a name but a symbol. It's been a half century since her death but her life is still full of obscure or even mysterious stories. One of them being an illegal trip to Moscow. It was always thought to be a beautiful legend but the director/screenwriter Lyudmilla Dark, who recently completed work on a film about Ms. Monroe, found evidence of the famous actress in the capitol of the USSR. She opened up to MK the secrets of the star.
At the beginning of the 2000's Russian intelligence agencies exchanged document archives with the U.S. Among them, from the depths of the KGB, were materials connected to the development of Marilyn Monroe. The foreign film star no doubt attracted the attention of the Soviet agencies since she was part of the inside circle of John F. Kennedy, who became the President of the U.S. in 1960.
There is evidence that in the documents from our secret agencies Marilyn went by the name "Masha", says Lyudmila Temnova. Even Khrushchev called the gorgeous blonde "Comrade Monroe" and wanted to arrange a visit to Moscow for her. Allegedly, we even planned to shoot a new film specifically for Marilyn Monroe in the lead role. But then fears about her unpredictable nature started to come up and our top leaders had to refuse.
But has the heroine of the silver screen ever been to Moscow? For a long time there were never any answers to this question. The film crew from "Circles on the Water" (Круги по воде) kept up in the search and in the end found an answer.
One day our investigator Konstantin Antonov said: "Through some acquaintances I have been promised a meeting with a man who personally met Marilyn Monroe and for sure knows if she has even been to Moscow. He personally called me and we agreed that he will meet me in the studio." As a result the interview will be impromptu and there will be no pre-prepared questions.
The visitor did not hide that he agreed to talk reluctantly: "I am meeting with you only out of respect for my former friend and colleague." At first he was against the interview being filmed: "I think it's unnecessary. I don't want to, I figured the movie..." But, as if by chance, Anton had already arranged all the equipment. To the objections of our subject he argued: "What are you actually afraid of? The country were this took place is no more, and Marilyn Monroe has died a long time ago!" After this the guest agreed to speak on camera but warned: "if you have the interview in a film please change my name..." so his real name was never revealed. In the credits he appears as Vladislav Egorov.
...In September 1959 at the invitation of then President Eisenhower the head of the Soviet Union Nikita Khrushchev came to visit. On this occasion both sides held receptions. At one of the events the popular actress Marilyn Monroe met with a young employee of the Soviet Mission to the UN.
Vladislav Egorov- "It was a reception organized by the Soviet Embassy where many famous actors from Hollywood were invited. I met Marilyn only once purely by chance near the main room. She smiled at me, we clinked champagne glasses... Then we met, chatted... It wasn't planned beforehand. Somehow it happened that we became friends and it slowly grew, even having some sense of feeling... But the fact was that I wasn't in the U.S. as a visitor, only a tourist... I worked there - doing certain tasks... diplomatic things and requests from our intelligence services... Naturally, the contact with Marilyn quickly became known to my superiors. However, an issue arose; in fulfilling my duties I would now have this woman to "develop". But when 2 people can really relate together and when there are feelings between them - it can make things complicated.
Based on the story of our friend, they met several more times with Monroe and even took her for a ride in a horse drawn carriage. During this romantic trip the actress told Egorov about her love for Dostoevsky and that she'd very much like to visit the home of such a great writer. She said: "Look, you're Russian, tell me, what do you think, could I play Grushenka in the Brothers Karamazov?"
To be in a film based on the book by Fyodor Mikhailovich [Dostoevsky] was an old dream of Marilyn's. However, instead of a cherished dramatic role she was once again offered a Hollywood mass produced character. Filming of "Let's Make Love" began in mid January 1960 and Monroe became a partner of French singer Yves Montand. Soon the media published sensational reports that the 2 stars supposedly started a relationship. Having read one of the articles in the paper, Marilyn's present husband, screenwriter Arthur Miller, couldn't stand it and defiantly left the film's set. He made no effort to explain anything to his wife. This move greatly hurt her and she felt betrayed. Saying she didn't feel well Marilyn left the film crew, went to the hotel and disappeared.
"All these facts are beyond doubt," says Ludmila Temnova. In the official biography of Monroe it actually mentions that in the winter of 1960 she disappeared from sight for 2 weeks. It's not known if she was sick in the hotel the whole time or if she went somewhere. Our classified guest proves that it is during this "technical" break in the filming of "Let's Make Love" that Marilyn, without telling anyone, made a "classified" trip to the Soviet capital. Supposedly he called her hotel room and invited her to visit Moscow. Surely this wasn't for Vladislav's personal initiative but only an invitation through him to take advantage of his closeness to the Hollywood star. Marilyn agreed to the invitation with pleasure. Soon after the respective bodies went to work to make her a visa (during the Cold War this process would normally drag on a long time). Incidentally, I asked Vladislav during the interview: "Is it true that Marilyn Monroe was in this country incognito?" He made no secret of the concern this would have caused. "Can you even imagine that in the Soviet Union, with the Iron Curtain, someone could come incognito?!"
Vladislav Egorov- Marilyn went to the Soviet Union under her real name, Norma Jean Baker, not her stage name. She didn't really stand out among our women - maybe only her clothes, perhaps. She behaved very modestly..."
Vladislav met the American guest at the airport. On the way to the hotel Marilyn said she'd hoped to see the Moscow subway. She had heard about the real underground palaces... Her accommodations were in a double room in the Hotel National where, to her delight, you could see the Kremlin from the windows. The next day she fulfilled her dream of visiting the Dostoevsky museum. Of course she was accompanied by Vladislav. Together they walked through the Catherine Garden and then down the streets of downtown Moscow. The whole time no one raised any hype about the overseas celebrity.
The view from Marilyn's Hotel Window
On arrival Marilyn Monroe only knew a small circle of people. Ordinary Muscovites simply saw a spectacular, well-dressed woman - obviously a foreigner - and never even imagined that she was a popular Hollywood actress. In the USSR most films with her never reached a wide audience and the beautiful blonde was never reached the forefront of the media or to the knowledge of most citizens. Meanwhile, the same Hollywood superstar looked with delight over the snow covered streets and trees of Moscow. Observantly she quickly noticed that Russian women prefer to wear hats in the winter and she especially liked the fluffy, knit scarves.
Valdislav Egorov in 2008
After a walk around Moscow Marilyn and Vladislav went out to the country to his parents cabin. They spend 2 days there up until she left the country.
Vladislav- "They were unforgettable days... Marilyn was greatly impressed by the Russian countryside. Of course there were some tense relations between us. After all we realized that even if it's just the 2 of us here it doesn't mean that no one else would see or hear anything. With the specifics of the situation and her arrival to the USSR it only seemed natural at the time... But I still regret that all this happened! Marilyn was waiting for me, she wanted some kind of continuation of our relationship, but it was completely pointless given the specifics of my work at the time..."
Yes, nothing romantic happened between them. Under the close watch of the bureau's secret agents how could I reveal my feelings and heartfelt impulses?!
The short visit to the Russian capital was for Marilyn Monroe like flying to another planet. But she returned to the filming of "Let's Make Love" as if nothing had happened. However, members of the film crew noticed that Marilyn was somehow different, she was now more enlightened, inspired. Additionally, after her "illness" she started to gain weight and the costume designer had to repeatedly alter her dress. After that the super-blonde actress wished only to appear in a thick sweater and low-heeled shoes starting rumors around the set about her being pregnant.
"Official information about the birth of Marilyn's baby doesn't appear anywhere if don't take into account the reports written in the tabloid magazines," says Temnova. However, according to many who knew her, the actress often talked of her love for her daughter as if she really existed...
- Indeed, it's a mystery. And what do you think about Vladislav's story? Have you tried to get any more evidence for this love story?
- Unfortunately, that was the last meeting we had with him. We have not been able to reach him anymore. But everything he said doesn't seem to be that fabulous.
- So after a chance run in a Hollywood star was overcome with sympathy for a Soviet agent!...
- In fact, it's nothing fantastic. When they met she would have been 33 and he was 27. I saw the picture of Vladislav when he was that age, he was young, charming and could easily have attracted Marilyn. Even many years later when we started talking you could feel his energy, confidence and reliability... Powerful qualities!.. Besides, don't forget, Vladislav worked as a secret agent so he was well trained in communicating with the opposite sex...
- But it turns out that none of these tactics worked! History has continued...
- I asked Vladislav if he kept in contact with Marilyn. He mentioned that after her return to America the actress wrote a few letters back to the USSR addressed to you know who... However, he never received any of them. And 2 years later the magnificent blonde was gone... You can tell by his voice as he describes their incidental contact, just as he did to his superiors years ago, that even now he still feels some guilt toward Marilyn. Now off camera Vladislav shares his impressions: "She had a kind of unpredictability, but at the same time it's very controlled... She wasn't the same as everyone had thought. She was much deeper than I had imagined... She was laid back, easy to talk to, not like a star at all! She kept a great energy and playfulness that had been preserved up into adulthood and had the looks of a seductive, mature woman...
Incidentally, I asked Vladislav what happened to his life after the series of meetings with the legendary actress. He answered shortly: "Whenever abroad, I never went out." Ok then!
Vladislav- "I may have forgotten much of this story... Who knows how everything was exactly! Believe me or don't believe me!... Many years have passed. Details continue to slowly slip away but some things, like the memory of a woman, I can never forget. Those memories will be with me 'till the end of my days."
