52 ‘Marilyn Monroe’s take over Darling Harbour

Madame Tussauds Sydney stages GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title attempt for the largest gathering of people dressed as Marilyn Monroe.

52 Sydney-siders and visitors of all ages, genders and backgrounds, dressed as Marilyn Monroe, took over Darling Harbour early this morning, as Madame Tussauds Sydney hosted an official attempt for the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title largest gathering of people dressed as Marilyn Monroe.

Centre ‘stage’ outside the attraction, stood the wax figure of the immortalised film-star, wearing the famous white dress from Hollywood film “Seven Year Itch” in its billowing glory, on top of a giant blowing fan.

Also front and centre stood special guest Sharyne Jewel, Director of the Marilyn Monroe Festival, acting as the independent expert witness and award-winning Sydney drag-personality Peaches Queen.

Surrounding them in various Marilyn-esque poses stood a further 50 Marilyn Monroes, one up high on stilts, sporting 1 of 5 iconic looks, from her movies, photo-shoots and public appearances.

The event took place on the morning of 26th August, the anniversary of Norma Jeane Mortenson embarking on a film career with 20th Century Fox who, impressed by her screen test, advised her to change her name and started her on $125 USD a week, thus inventing one of the world’s most stylish icon.

One of the Marilyns, Mikayla McGlone, Operations Manager for Madame Tussauds Sydney said “Marilyn Monroe is the epitome of a Hollywood icon and the perfect example of Madame Tussauds Sydney’s magic, offering the opportunity to get impossibly close to more than 100 glittering stars!

“Our attraction is all about immersive, interactive experiences and we wanted to stage a fun event that was easy for locals and visitors to get involved in. 

“We’re delighted to see how much fun everyone had today, perfecting their looks, their poses and really getting into the Marilyn spirit. We didn’t break the record this year, but we had an amazing morning celebrating diversity and a true and timeless international super-star. And you never know for next year.”

Sharyne Jewel, Director of the Marilyn Monroe Festival said, “Today so many people put in an amazing effort to look exactly like Marilyn. We had 5 looks, and all 5 looks were nailed, I’m so impressed with the calibre we had today.

“The most exciting thing for me about Marilyn Monroe is that she supported diversity, and today we saw that diversity in play. We had Marilyns of all different races, ages and genders and that makes my heart happy.”

Following the attempt for the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS  title largest gathering of people dressed as Marilyn Monroe, participants were thanked with exclusive out-of-hours access to Madame Tussauds Sydney, travelling through 11 immersive and interactive zones, with more than 100 VIP wax figures, from sport stars, to A-list movie stars to royalty.

Today’s 5 Marilyn Monroe Looks:

1. Photoshoot with Alfred Eisenstaedt, 1953 – Black turtle neck, white trousers look
2. Niagara, 1953 – Red Dress look
3. White Robe Sitting, 1955 – Bath robe look
4. Seven Year Itch, 1955 - Iconic billowing white dress look
5. The Misfits, 1961 - Denim look