The 1955 movie, The Seven Year Itch, starred Marilyn Monroe as a sexy young neighbor to a middle-aged man, played by Tom Ewell, who spends his time fantasizing about her. The movie was a box office smash, cemented Marilyn Monroe’s superstar, sex-symbol status, and gave us one of the most iconic movie scenes in the history of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Let’s look at some fun facts about The Seven Year Itch.
- Marilyn Monroe was the only choice for the female lead, but the studio considered many actors for the role of the Richard Sherman, the obsessed neighbor with an active imagination. Before the role was awarded to Tom Ewell, Walter Matthau, James Stewart, William Holden, and Gary Cooper were considered.
- Marilyn Monroe’s character didn’t have a name. She was just called “The Girl” throughout the film.
- The Seven Year Itch featured the now-iconic scene of Marilyn Monroe in a white halter dress standing on a New York City subway grate. As the updraft sends her dress billowing above her thighs, the blonde bombshell coyly tries to keep her skirt down. The overtly provocative scene so angered Monroe’s then-husband, Joe DiMaggio, that he filed for divorce shortly afterwards.
- The Seven Year Itch was based on a play, written in three-acts by playwright George Axelrod. The movie version was directed by Billy Wilder. One of Monroe’s most memorable lines from the film, “I always say a kiss on the hand might feel good, but a diamond tiara lasts forever,” was not included in the original play. But it was written by Axelrod, especially for the movie and especially for Monroe.
- The parts in The Seven Year Itch in which Richard Sherman roots for the New York Yankees and goes to a game to cheer on the Yankees took a lot of acting on the part of Tom Ewell. A life-long Brooklyn Dodgers fan, Ewell had to tamp down his hatred for the Dodgers, so he looked like he was really enthusiastic for the Dodgers.
- The film’s director, Billy Wilder, preferred to film in black and white over color, but there was a clause in Marilyn Monroe’s contract with Fox Studio stating that she could only be shot in color. The actress was worried about her appearance and believed color film made her look prettier.
- The Seven Year Itch was a hit at the box office and grossed more than $12 million. Marilyn Monroe’s chronic lateness, erratic behavior, and frequent absences, however, caused the filming to go over budget. The movie ended up costing $1.8 million to produce, which was considerably high in those days. Still, The Seven Year Itch was quite profitable.
- If you pay attention, you will see New York City’s original Pennsylvania Station as one of the filming locations in The Seven Year Itch. The station was built in 1910 and demolished in 1963. After it was torn down, the people of NYC were outraged at the loss of the Beaux-Arts station. It sparked a renewed interest in preserving the classic architecture of the city.
- The classic, white, pleated halter dress that Marilyn Monroe so famously wore in The Seven Year Itch was designed by William Travilla. In 2011, the dress was auctioned off and sold for an astounding $5.6 million. That’s four-times the amount raised when the “little black dress” Audrey Hepburn wore in Breakfast at Tiffany’s was auctioned.