Marilyn Monroe was a performer.
Marilyn Monroe . The work led to short-lived film contracts with Twentieth Century-Fox ( 1946 -- 1947 ) and Columbia Pictures ( 1948 ) . By 1953 , Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars , with leading roles in three films : the noir Niagara , which focused on her sex appeal , and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire , which established her star image as a `` dumb blonde '' . After a critically acclaimed performance in Bus Stop ( 1956 ) and acting in the first independent production of MMP , The Prince and the Showgirl ( 1957 ) , she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for Some Like It Hot ( 1959 ) . The Misfits is a 1961 American drama film written by Arthur Miller , directed by John Huston , and starring Clark Gable , Marilyn Monroe and Montgomery Clift .