Dennis Hopper on Marilyn Monroe: There Was Magic In Her

Photograph by Cecil Beaton, 1956.

Interview with Dennis Hopper

Conducted by James Grissom

Via Telephone

1997

Is there really anything left to say about Marilyn? I don't think so. Marilyn was a work of art, what Tennessee [Williams] liked to call an ambulatory work of art, and art is what it is. We respond to it; react; recoil; find comfort. The art does not change, but we do.

There was magic in and about her. That's how people become stars, then icons, then legends. Was she a good actress? I don't know. Can anyone say? Those who are moved by what she did will say she was a good--perhaps great--actress, and we can't deny them their opinions. 

But let's not talk about Marilyn and her problems and her lovers and her fears and her flaws. Those rested within her and were the heartbreaks of those who loved her. Let's talk about Marilyn and her work and what it means to us.

We just fucking think far too much of our opinions about things, and fail to feel nearly enough.

© 2020  James Grissom