At the entrance to Marilyn Monroe’s Brentwood, Los Angeles residence a ceramic tile on the ground reads “Cursum Perficio” (my journey ends)—an ominous message to leave on the place she died in just months after its purchase. The 1929 house built in Spanish colonial revival style made headlines this week following a sale to new owners who sought a demolition permit to expand their neighboring property. A ruling by the LA City Council last month unanimously voted to designate the home of the actress as a Historic-Cultural Monument, protecting it from demolition and significant alteration.
The single-family dwelling located at 12305 5th Helena Drive was purchased by the actress in 1962. Its original architect is unknown. For Monroe the move was monumental. It was the first house she purchased on her own, and the last—just months later she tragically passed away at age 36. A document prepared for the Los Angeles Department of City Planning quoted Monroe’s housekeeper Eunice Murrary who said, “For a woman to buy a home alone in such an era could seem especially difficult. But it was even more difficult for a person to be without a home in those years. Especially someone like Marilyn, who had always felt deprived of a home.”
While its interiors and front gates have been significantly modified over the years—additions were made prior to Monroe’s arrival, and after her death—a report prepared for the Department of City Planning noted the home’s exterior remains “largely intact and continues to reflect its character and condition at the time of Marilyn Monroe’s occupancy in 1962.” However, its current owners disagree. After they announced intentions to demolish it, preservationists and Councilwomen Traci Park began leading the charge for its preservation. The owners sued the city of Los Angeles for trying to designate the house. In the lawsuit they said: “There is not a single piece of the house that includes any physical evidence that Ms. Monroe ever spent a day at the house, not a piece of furniture, not a paint chip, not a carpet, nothing.” After Monroe passed away her estate took hold of the property and it has since had a number of owners.
The home was submitted for designation on the grounds that it “is associated with the lives of historic personages important to national, state, city, or local history.” While residing at 12305 5th Helena Drive, Monroe visited New York City where she famously sang “Happy Birthday” to President John F. Kennedy and posed for her first photoshoot with Vogue magazine.
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Cursum Perficio: Marilyn Monroe’s Brentwood Hacienda: The Story of Her Final Months, a book by Gary Vitacco-Robles, documents the various upgrades and decorative pieces Monroe furnished the house with during her time there.
The LA Conservancy shared this testimony with the Cultural Heritage Commission on the life of the actress and legacy of her residence: “Despite living in many places in her short but highly productive 36 years, this was the first house she sought out and bought for herself and on her own while actively working. A short tenure does not diminish her impact or association, as she spoke about this house, was photographed in this house, and was actively involved in the updating of this house, saying ‘Anybody who likes my house, I’m sure I’ll get along with.’”
