Marilyn balked at his maneuvers. She was holding the trump card and she knew it. “If anyone knew?” she would taunt, as if to indict him. But Kennedy persisted, saying that her fans would ostracize her, she’d lose her figure, her career would end abruptly. Divorce was severe enough without having to add the baby “element.”
He did want to marry her eventually, but they had to put things into perspective. Having the child might be right for her, but it would be more difficult for him to get the divorce. Marilyn asserted herself with her married lover, demanding that he immediately leave his wife, or else. He had no choice. The gods had already made the decision.
After Marilyn’s continuing refusal to accept his decree, he said he simply had no choice but to deny all accusations of fatherhood. His final stance was, either she got the abortion or he would never see her again.
For years, Marilyn had been longing for a child. She wanted to believe Bobby’s promise of subsequent marriage; still she wavered every time she thought of the abortion. She wondered whether he was just trying to weasel out of the relationship and was making a mockery of his professed love for her.
Returning to the comfort of his family, Bobby confided in his older brother. The options, if she went ahead with the pregnancy, were becoming very clear. If she delivered a child, people would probably think it was Jack’s, especially after the appearance for him at Madison Square Garden. The Kennedy train would be derailed.
Another alternative was apparent. She could be silenced. Joseph Kennedy made it clear she had to have it done, or else.
Bobby used the ultimate power of separation from Marilyn as an unwritten declaration. No abortion, no relationship! Depressed and hurt by his unyielding position, Marilyn began to believe he was truly serious about his ultimatum. She began rationalizing that the situation was extremely precarious and dangerous for him and, since he seemed honest and moral, she began making concessions.
Within the week, Marilyn knew she had no alternative but to accede; still she held out. Greenson made every effort to persuade the actress to acquiesce, fearing the possible repercussions from “men in power.” This time Marilyn was not so quick to respond to his persuasion; he had already lost some pull with her. She finally accepted the probability that if she took the relationship public, it might destroy her career as well.
A grateful Greenson prodded the actress to advise Bobby immediately about her decision. Saddened by the thought of another loss, Marilyn resisted and, in spite of the sleeping pills, could not sleep. She had promised herself never to have another abortion. She’d already had her share of losses and regrets. Greenson ambushed the actress, repeating she “had no choice.” If she wanted RFK, she would have to fold. And so she did.
Calling to tell Bobby was even more difficult than anticipated. After repeated nightmares of being childless, she lay awake all night prior to the call. Cornered as she was, she gave him “her” decision. His response: He was relieved that she had changed her mind. He told her to call him directly after the surgery and he would be with her “as soon as he could make it,” adding how much he missed her and that he couldn’t wait to resume their relationship. She reminded him they couldn’t “have sex until at least two weeks after the D & C,” but he brushed it off, assuring the pregnant woman that it didn’t matter. He still loved her.
Content with his reaction, Marilyn arranged the D & C for July 20. Within a few days she was released from the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital and returned home to her confidante, Eunice Murray, who would nurse her back to health. Not knowing why she had been hospitalized, Eunice was there to provide comfort, and Pat Newcomb effectively concealed the hospital stay from the press. Marilyn called Bobby to report everything had gone as planned and that the pregnancy was terminated. He promised to see her in a few days.
At the weekend visit with their father, Jack and Bobby pondered the repercussions of the affair and the continuing Marilyn problem. Bobby was keenly aware that his promise to marry her was a lie intended only to manipulate her into getting an abortion. The problem still remained: how could he gracefully remove himself from the affair? When Jack had wanted to end their liaison when it was deemed no longer expedient, she had refused to let him go. She spent many hours chasing him down, embarrassing his staff with “all those questions.” Jack was painfully aware that Marilyn had been deflected only when his brother became a replacement. Without Bobby, she would not have released Jack, no doubt would have insisted he answer “publicly” for their adulterous affair and those political secrets he had confided to her. The problem had still not resolved itself.
Although partially relieved by the abortion, Joseph Kennedy was still worried about the time bomb of Marilyn Monroe’s affairs with his sons. He was severely disappointed over their “bad” choices and angry that he was too ill to exercise greater control of their ill-chosen activities. The senior Kennedy was not about to watch everything he had labored hard and long for his entire life suddenly fall apart because of a movie star. This time Jack was ordered to put an end to Bobby’s relationship. With her threats to “go public,” Marilyn Monroe, no ordinary actress, terrorized the man who could not control her. He had entrusted his sons to “take care of the matter with discretion,” but was concerned that after the public display of the President’s romance with Monroe, America already knew what was going on. Watching the unfurling events, Joseph had constantly reminded his sons of the danger of a woman who “talked.” Quieting such a woman was not the difficult part, but doing it carefully and discreetly was. Joseph Kennedy was relentless; Marilyn was a high-risk wild card, and her life was in jeopardy.
Two days after her abortion, when Marilyn dialed Bobby at the Justice Department, she found the number disconnected. She called again, but a repeated recording informed the actress that service to the private line had been halted. She tried the official Justice Department number and asked for the attorney general. Her messages were taken, but Bobby did not call back. Marilyn had the habit of calling from anywhere, friends’ homes, business offices, even from the studio, announcing the name of Jack Kennedy or Bobby Kennedy to anyone within earshot. She reveled in having a direct line to the two powerful men, and she called incessantly. First the Justice Department: no answer. Then the White House calls continued. She bugged the secretaries, asking for details. She said she had called Bobby’s private number and it had been recently disconnected. They confirmed that it had and there was no new number. Again she would try to call the President, but to no avail. Frantic, she called every number ever given to her by Peter, Jack, or Bobby. There was no response.
Marilyn had once again been hoodwinked. The Kennedys had become frightened by her constant calling. This woman would not give up or give in. She had been promised. She was there to collect. She would not back down, and her calls continued. She began telling everyone she knew that Bobby had disconnected his phone. Calling Frank Sinatra was easy; he had already warned her about the Kennedys. Marilyn Monroe simply couldn’t believe that Bobby Kennedy had so brazenly lied to her about marriage, that all he had been interested in was using her sexually and bragging to his friends, “Marilyn Monroe has fallen in love with me!”
In her next therapy session she told Greenson what happened. He did his best to persuade her to get on with her life and career. Knowing the details of her negotiations with the attorney general, Greenson was more than concerned about the machinations of a politically powerful family. He advised her to stay away.
Marilyn had already begun to suspect that her phone lines were tapped. She overheard the familiar clicking and the sound of an open line. She had once before been tapped for Joe DiMaggio, and she prayed that DiMaggio hadn’t heard the complicated personal conversations with the Kennedys this time. Never fully giving up on a possibility of remarriage, she did not want to alienate DiMaggio. She told Bob Slatzer about the phone tap. She also mentioned that during an argument about the baby she had suggested to Bobby that she knew a great deal about his shenanigans. She a
lso told Slatzer that she had threatened to hold Bobby hostage if he didn’t marry her. And in notes, which Bobby knew about, she had jotted information on the Kennedys and the CIA attempts on Castro’s life and the murder of President Trujillo.
Marilyn was told to try to work out something with Bobby. She defended her actions. “They can’t do this to me! I want an answer!” The years of deep analysis had promoted her ability to get directly in touch with her anger instead of hiding her terror and masking her pain. But the direct approach positioned Marilyn for direct conflict, and she could not back down.
The next weekend visit with Joe at Hyannisport was fraught with anxiety. What would stop Monroe? Joseph Kennedy knew the answer but wanted to wait until the affair played out. Though not the first alternative, he knew of no other way to squelch the actress. Not trusting Bobby, his father and older brother would make the decision without him.
A fervor was stirring in the former ambassador. As his youngest son, Ted, was battling for the Massachusetts Senate seat, rumors of Kennedy infidelities were surfacing. It became more challenging to fit the Kennedy clan photo with the newspaper caption: FROM A GREAT AMERICAN FAMILY. The primary on September 11 was particularly troublesome. Critiques of Ted found him sorely missing expertise in any area.
Papa Kennedy was dangerously close to forfeiting his dream of seeing all three of his sons in government. With Bobby Kennedy recently named Father of the Year, the old man confided his fateful decision only to son Jack.
Jack had occasionally been in contact with Sam Giancana, who was still working closely with the CIA in undercover attempts to assassinate Castro. Jack had the right connection in Sam, “the best in his profession.” Judith Campbell would see her relationship with the President fizzle during the midsummer months of 1962 (as she would later write). But one more favor was due the President, who had no qualms about enlisting her aid in contacting Giacana once again.
Giancana was more than happy to hear from the President. Wanting Kennedy beholden to the mob, he listened carefully to the President’s request. Sam called for cooperation from the first family, but Jack told him not to count on Bobby—and Jack was his strongest ally. The President was still courting the mob for added protection as J. Edgar Hoover was waiting for the young President to stumble and fall.
Knowing that the Monroe home had been bugged, Giancana found another way to nail the President. In planning and executing the hit on Marilyn Monroe, he would also have a tape recording of the previous conversation with JFK and RFK, about their triangle and the baby. Then the hit would be forever on tape and the perfect blackmail material would be in the hands of the mobster. The ultimate coup!
Giancana ordered Sinatra to reestablish contact with Peter Lawford, to forgive him for the Palm Springs debacle and invite Pat and Peter for a weekend at Cal-Neva. Lawford, aware that Bobby was refusing to take Marilyn’s calls, called her to suggest the trip as a diversion. At first, Marilyn was hesitant, but than Peter expressed his hope the actress would simply take it easy and enjoy herself.
Marilyn continued to make vigorous efforts to reach Bobby. Her calls to Bobby’s home in Hickory Hill, Virginia, deeply infuriated his family. Joe Kennedy grew more impatient with Bobby and more certain in his conviction that Marilyn Monroe had to be silenced.
Behind Lawford’s invitation to Monroe was the sinister plot by Giancana, who wanted to find out from her anything and everything possible about his archenemies that might help him in his quest to bring down the White House. By drinking and socializing with Marilyn, still angry at the Kennedy brothers, at the same time taping and bugging rooms in the place, Giancana assured himself that before her impending death, he could have her “sing” on his tapes as well. Already complaining to Frank about the Kennedys, Marilyn found solace in Sinatra’s company. He understood.
By their second evening together, Sinatra and Monroe had already had a feud. Guests at the hotel watched as Frank shouted at her and sent her to her room. Bill Roemer, the FBI agent, speculated that Frank had been expecting Marilyn to participate in a private orgy with him and Giancana. Encountering her unwillingness, Frank threw a fit. Marilyn Monroe had refused a request from him, something not many women would do.
Again, Marilyn contacted her best friend, Joe DiMaggio, in San Francisco. She confided in him that her relationship with Bobby had ended and that she had been wrong about the Kennedys. Sorry for the hurt she had caused DiMaggio, Marilyn assured him she still loved her ex-husband and begged for his return. Willing to see the actress while near San Francisco, Joe arranged to travel to Lake Tahoe.
After “bitching” all weekend long to both Sinatra and Giancana and privately to Peter and Pat, Marilyn continued her “get Kennedy” tirade. She wanted Kennedy to tell her face to face, but Marilyn wanted to use her muscle to wrangle a deal of some kind, like the one she had with Twentieth. Saving face was foremost, but she wanted respect and submission as well.
After a long night of drinking, Marilyn retired to her room and Pat and Peter to theirs. Concerned about her health, as she was still recovering from the abortion, she left the phone off the hook, not wanting late night calls to disturb any possibility of sleeping until morning. But the switchboard operator became alarmed and called the Lawfords to her room, where they found Monroe had rolled off her bed onto the floor. Afraid she had passed out, Peter revived Marilyn with doses of strong coffee. Just what she hadn’t wanted! But they were relieved that she was all right. With her rage so visible to her “friends,” it was apparent Marilyn would not relent in her badmouthing the president and the attorney general to almost anyone who would listen. Rupert Allen, Agnes Flanagan, and Ralph Roberts continued to try to tone down her anger and encouraged her to move on. But the new Marilyn would not let them get away with their behavior.
By the time Marilyn was ensconced in Bungalow 52, DiMaggio was fervently looking for the actress. He had heard enough about her disastrous love life, and was close to conceding that he wanted a more permanent relationship with her. He knew all too well that she was looking for a husband and that if he could not be the one, her search would continue. DiMaggio loved Marilyn and he was ready. Checking into a local motel, he prepared to soothe her feelings and give her the word. By the next week, Joe would send the actress a pair of his pajamas by mail, another hint he had finally decided to at least live with her on a permanent basis. He could no longer watch her floundering and do nothing but offer sympathy. He searched in vain to find the actress in Lake Tahoe. But she hid in her bungalow and slept. The abortion had weakened her.
On Marilyn’s return to Los Angeles, business as usual resumed. She continued with the remodeling of her home, even ordering bougainvillea and dozens of plants to lend the house the look of a Mexican plantation. The good news regarding the final details of her contract excited her. The arrogant Cukor had been replaced by Jean Negulesco, who had directed the box-office success Millionaire, while Nunnally Johnson would retain rights to the final rewrite of Something. Even though she continued seeing Dr. Greenson several times a week, the actress had already begun “cleaning house,” first by letting Paula Strasberg go. Then, since she had decided that Greenson’s business advice had not been helpful, nor had his psychotherapy, she began distancing herself from his overwhelming clutches. Earning over $1,500 a month from the actress, Greenson had tried his best to keep Marilyn employed but obviously had insufficient expertise in the film business. And Agnes, Whitey, Marjorie, and Ralph would remain. Though sleepless nights were still plaguing Monroe, she vowed to change her sleeping habits and hoped that the newly installed blackout drapes would help.
By Wednesday, Marilyn had received Joe DiMaggio’s pajamas in the mail but had trouble understanding the hidden message. She called her ex-husband for an explanation and both had a good laugh over their standing joke; she detested men’s pajamas. DiMaggio admitted he missed her and especially wanted to see her in the house she had been remodeling and making “her own.” Marilyn’s subconscious hopes were confirm
ed. DiMaggio would be coming back.
With her recent victory over Fox and the renewed promise of Joe DiMaggio in her life, she notified Whitey that it was time to celebrate. She had to make plans for additional photo sessions. Whitey called Marjorie for the typical champagne-and-caviar feast that they had both enjoyed with the actress on many occasions. Marilyn told them that Dean Martin had already committed to return and was nearing completion of Toys in the Attic. He would be available by mid-September. Whitey reminded Marilyn he had told her things would not be so bleak. A happy, appreciative Marilyn thanked him for his loyal encouragement throughout the cacophony of negotiations. They drank into the night.
By Friday, reporter Dorothy Killgallen had the guts to suggest that Marilyn was having a secret affair. Since most of Hollywood already knew, the reverberation within the administration was sheer silence. Cautiously and carefully, without revealing her sources, the daring Dorothy took her chances. (Killgallen is believed by some to have been murdered after the Kennedy assassination, though her death was officially called the result of an accidental overdose.)
Accepting the commitment to “silence” the actress, Jack found it hard waiting for the impending explosion and warned Bobby to stay away from Hollywood. Contact with Monroe was strictly forbidden. But Peter Lawford continued to report to Jack on her most recent ravings.
With the “silence” plan securely in place, Bobby prepared to address the American Bar Association in the Bay Area, making the convention headquarters the Hotel St. Francis. He and his wife planned a few days of rest and relaxation at the ranch of an attorney friend, John Bates, in Gilroy, California. Knowing that Monroe would be permanently silenced only as a last resort, and not knowing of the contract already in effect, Bobby was persuaded by Lawford to meet with Marilyn to try to explain the second abrupt breakup.
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