All About Marilyn Monroe's Iconic White Dress (and the Behind-the-Scenes Drama It Caused)

Mar. 15, 2025

Even if you’ve never seenThe Seven Year Itch, you can surely recognize the film’s famous scene in whichMarilyn Monroestands over a subway grate, the wind causing her white dress to billow up around her in a tantalizing spectacle.

Like many of Monroe’s outfits, including her pink gown fromGentlemen Prefer Blondesand the notorious “Happy Birthday Mr. President” dress, the white garment has cemented itself in fashion history. The pleated halter-neck number has also become a part of Monroe’s legacy, forever associated with her image as Hollywood’s ultimate sex symbol.

From the designer who dubbed it a “silly little dress” to the film secrets behind the iconic moment, here’s everything to know about Marilyn Monroe’s white subway dress and its lasting impact.

Where did Marilyn Monroe wear the white dress?

Bettmann

Who designed Marilyn Monroe’s white dress?

Hulton Archive/Getty

Despite its lasting legacy, Travilla never saw Monroe’s white dress as a pillar of his career, reportedly once dismissing it as “that silly little dress.”

Who blew up Marilyn Monroe’s white dress?

As the actress stood over a subway grate, a member of the crew operated a wind machine from underneath, creating the now-iconic moment of Monroe’s dress billowing up around her as she tried to hold it down.

Though Monroe wore two pairs of white underwear to ensure she wasn’t revealing too much, her husband at the time, professional baseball player Joe DiMaggio, apparently disapproved of the scene’s suggestive nature. Photographer George S. Zimbel captured DiMaggio storming off the set and it was later reported that the couple got into an argument that night, ultimately resulting in their divorce. About three weeks later, theDaily Newsannounced the separation with the headline, “Marilyn Splits With Joe Over Sexy Pictures.”

How many takes did it take to capture the iconic moment?

Marilyn Monroe in a white dress.Bettmann/Getty

When the scene was shot in New York City, thousands of spectators gathered to witness the now-iconic moment, whichThe Guardianreported took 14 takes to capture. However, the noise from the large crowd made the footage unusable, so the scene was re-shot on a lot in California. It wasn’t all for nothing, though — stills from the original shoot were used in promotional material.

What was the legacy of Marilyn Monroe’s white dress?

Everett Collection

The iconic image of Monroe’s billowing skirt solidified her status as a Hollywood sex symbol while also representing a pivotal point in her life and career.

Netflix’s 2022 biopicBlonde, starring Ana de Armas, took extra care in recreating the famous dress. The film’s costume designer, Jennifer Johnson, told theAssociated Pressthat it was a difficult process because the specific pleating technique used on the original dress has become a thing of the past.

“I think we went through about 50 yards of fabric because the pleating wasn’t right,” she said. “It looked great, but the molds were not designed correctly for the pleating. There was a lot of research and development and waste going into that.”

Where is Marilyn Monroe’s white dress now?

20th Century-Fox/Getty

Travilla kept many of his designs until he died in 1990, but the iconic white dress Monroe wore was in the care of the film studio, 20th Century Fox, until it was relinquished in 1971.

According toThe Guardian, actress Debbie Reynolds purchased the dress for $200, and it became part of her impressive collection of Hollywood memorabilia, including costumes and props fromThe Sound of Music. Reynolds had hoped to open a museum displaying her collection, but the project never panned out. As a result, Reynolds auctioned off her items in 2011, where Monroe’s white dress sold for several million dollars, with some reports claiming it went for $4.6 million while others say upwards of $5.6 million. According toCNN, the auction house, Profiles in History, had estimated the dress would sell for $2 million.

source: people.com