Happy Birthday, Mr. President

File:JFK and Marilyn Monroe 1962.jpg Robert F. Kennedy, President John F. Kennedy, and historian Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. at the birthday celebration]]

President Kennedy's birthday celebration was held at the third Madison Square Garden{{cite web |url = http://hockey.ballparks.com/NHL/NewYorkRangers/3rdoldindex.htm |title = Madison Square Garden III |publisher = Ballparks.com |access-date = July 11, 2010 |archive-date = April 28, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190428221130/http://hockey.ballparks.com/NHL/NewYorkRangers/3rdoldindex.htm |url-status = live }} on May 19, 1962, and more than 15,000 people attended, including numerous celebrities. The event was a fundraising gala for the Democratic Party.{{cite book |last = Branch |first = Taylor |year = 2007 |title = Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954–63 |page = 590 }}

Monroe attended the event during the production of Something's Got to Give, resulting in her receiving a hand-delivered note stating that she had violated her contract with 20th Century Fox and eventual firing in June 1962.{{Cite book |last=Rollyson |first=Carl |title=Marilyn Monroe Day by Day: A Timeline of People, Places, and Events |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |year=2014 |pages=175}}{{Cite web |last=Sonneborn |first=Liz |date=2015 |title=A to Z of Women: American Women in the Performing Arts |url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/title/fofwpase?tab=entry_view&entry_id=27828539 |website=Credo Reference |access-date=October 24, 2022 |archive-date=October 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024144218/https://search.credoreference.com/content/title/fofwpase?tab=entry_view&entry_id=27828539 |url-status=live }}{{Dubious|date=May 2023|reason=The article for "Something's Got To Give" - with sources - says Marilyn Monroe was given permission to attend this event and had let them know before time. She was instead fired from the production due to missing other days (and was later rehired).}}{{Disputed inline||for=contradictory to other sources; see dubious tag for full explanation|date=May 2023}}

Monroe's dress was made of a sheer and flesh-colored marquisette fabric, with 2,500 shimmering rhinestones sewn into it. The dress was so tight-fitting that Monroe had difficulty putting it on; she wore nothing under it.{{cite web |url = http://faculty.uml.edu/sgallagher/happybday.htm |title = Happy Birthday, JFK |publisher = University of Massachusetts Lowell |access-date = February 2, 2010 |archive-date = May 23, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170523041320/http://faculty.uml.edu/sgallagher/happybday.htm |url-status = live }} It was designed by Jean Louis.{{cite web |url = https://blog.colettehq.com/inspiration/jean-louis |title = Jean Louis: Nude Illusionist |work = Colette |date = May 4, 2011 |access-date = February 26, 2016 |archive-date = March 7, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160307194524/https://blog.colettehq.com/inspiration/jean-louis |url-status = live }} Monroe's hair was styled by Kenneth Battelle and her makeup was done by Marie Irvine.

Monroe was accompanied to the event by her publicist Patricia Newcomb and her former father-in-law Isidore Miller, with whom she had remained very close. Peter Lawford was at the event that night to introduce Monroe. He made a play on the actress's reputation for tardiness by giving her a number of introductions throughout the night, after which she did not appear on stage. When Monroe finally appeared in a spotlight, Lawford introduced her as the "late Marilyn Monroe". Monroe peeled off her white ermine fur coat, revealing the dress, and the audience gasped.{{Citation |title=Marilyn Monroe singing Happy Birthday Mr President. High quality | date=May 28, 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr1Faa9cEbo |language=en |access-date=2022-10-24 |archive-date=October 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024144219/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr1Faa9cEbo |url-status=live }}

The event was staged and produced by Broadway composer and lyricist Richard Adler.{{cite news |title = Musical composer, lyricist Richard Adler dies at 90 |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/musical-composer-lyricist-richard-adler-dies-at-90-1.1282262 |publisher = CBC News |date = June 22, 2012 |access-date = June 23, 2012 |archive-date = December 21, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121221144053/http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2012/06/22/obit-adler-richard-musicals-composer.html |url-status = live }} The lighting design was by stage designer Sam Leve. According to his New York Times obituary, "Perhaps his most famous, although unintentional, touch was the lighting he designed for Marilyn Monroe's birthday serenade to Kennedy at Madison Square Garden, which caused her dress to become see-through."New York Times, Dec 12, 1999, p. 64

File:Monroe dress birthday 1.jpg's dress from the event, designed by Jean Louis]]

Monroe's iconic dress was designed by costume designer Bob Mackie, who was hired to sketch the design for the leading fashion designer of the time, Jean Louis, who paid $1,440.33 (equivalent to ${{formatnum:{{inflation|US-GDP|1440.33|1962}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}) for its construction. The dress sold in 1999 at an auction in New York City for over $1.26 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|1260000|1999}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}).{{cite web|url=https://www.etonline.com/news/203188_marilyn_monroe_happy_birthday_mr_president_dress_sells_for_48_million|title=Marilyn Monroe's 'Happy Birthday, Mr. President' Dress Sells for $4.8 Million|work=Entertainment Tonight|first=Elisa|last=Osegueda|date=November 18, 2016|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=June 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615063729/https://www.etonline.com/news/203188_marilyn_monroe_happy_birthday_mr_president_dress_sells_for_48_million|url-status=live}} Canadian billionaire Jim Pattison subsequently purchased the dress on November 17, 2016, at a Los Angeles auction for $4.8 million,{{cite news |url = https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/marilyn-s-happy-birthday-mr-president-dress-sells-4-8m-n685771 |title = Marilyn's 'Happy Birthday, Mr. President' Dress Sells for $4.8M |date = November 18, 2016 |work = NBC News |agency = Reuters |access-date = May 17, 2017 |archive-date = December 12, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161212171416/http://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/marilyn-s-happy-birthday-mr-president-dress-sells-4-8m-n685771 |url-status = live }} making it one of the most valuable dresses.

In 2022, reality TV star Kim Kardashian wore Monroe's Happy Birthday Mr. President dress for the Met Gala.{{Cite web|first=Megan C.|last=Hills|title=Kim Kardashian wore one of Marilyn Monroe's most iconic dresses to the Met Gala|url=https://www.cnn.com/style/article/kim-kardashian-marilyn-monroe-met-gala-2022/index.html|date=May 3, 2022|access-date=May 3, 2022|website=CNN|archive-date=May 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503132015/https://www.cnn.com/style/article/kim-kardashian-marilyn-monroe-met-gala-2022/index.html|url-status=live}} Kardashian had lost {{convert|16|lb|kg}} in three weeks to fit into the dress. Kardashian remains the only person other than Monroe known to have worn the dress.{{Cite web |last=Nnadi |first=Chioma |title=Kim Kardashian Takes Marilyn Monroe's "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" Dress Out for a Spin |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/kim-kardashian-met-gala-2022 |access-date=May 3, 2022 |website=Vogue |date=May 3, 2022 |archive-date=May 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503002856/https://www.vogue.com/article/kim-kardashian-met-gala-2022 |url-status=live }} Kardashian wore Monroe's original dress for approximately five minutes, only to walk up the runway, and then changed into an exact replica so as to not cause any more unnecessary strain to the 60-year-old dress.{{Cite web |last=Bonner |first=Mehera |date=May 3, 2022 |title=Kim Kardashian's Met Gala Involved a Replica Dress, a Secret Changing Room, and Zero Body Makeup |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a39890809/kim-kardashian-replica-gown-met-gala/ |access-date=May 3, 2022 |website=Cosmopolitan |archive-date=May 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220503125100/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a39890809/kim-kardashian-replica-gown-met-gala/ |url-status=live }}

Displeased with both Kardashian and the current owner, Ripley Entertainment, Bob Mackie (who first sketched the design in 1962 at the age of 23) said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, "I thought it was a big mistake.. [Marilyn] was a goddess. A crazy goddess, but a goddess. She was just fabulous. Nobody photographs like that. And it was done for her. It was designed for her. Nobody else should be seen in that dress."

Within the same interview, the host for Turner Classic Movies Alicia Malone expressed her worries by saying, "There are all the issues with the actual preservation of the dress and things like oxygen can affect a dress.. Usually, these outfits are kept very much in controlled environments. So, it was quite alarming that she was able to wear it. I personally wish she wore a replica instead of the real thing."{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/celebrity/bob-mackie-kim-kardashian-wearing-marilyn-monroe-dress-big-mistake/|title=Bob Mackie says Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe's gown was a 'big mistake'|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|first=Maureen Lee|last=Lenker|date=May 16, 2022|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=June 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616010857/https://ew.com/celebrity/bob-mackie-kim-kardashian-wearing-marilyn-monroe-dress-big-mistake/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/fashion-news/marilyn-monroe-dress-designer-kim-kardashian-780404|title=This is what Marilyn Monroe's dress designer has to say about Kim K wearing her dress|work=Marie Claire|first=Penny|last=Goldstone|date=May 19, 2022|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=June 22, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220622084330/https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/fashion-news/marilyn-monroe-dress-designer-kim-kardashian-780404|url-status=live}}

In an interview with BBC in June 2022, a senior lecturer in cultural studies at Falmouth University, Dr Kate Strasdin, remarked, "You can't even handle a dress like that without damaging it in some way, let alone wear it, so it was inevitable that there was going to be significant damage just by even wearing it on the red carpet... there will have been oils in her skin, there will have been all of that chemical reaction with a silk that is fragile". It is also noted that an Instagram account dedicated to "The Marilyn Monroe Collection", a company which claims to hold "the world's largest privately held collection of Marilyn Monroe's personal property," managed by owner Scott Fortner's team, posted a comparison image of the dress which showed significant irreversible damage which occurred after the gala event.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-61801906|title=Kim Kardashian: More damage seen on Marilyn Monroe gown after Met Gala|work=BBC News|first1=Alys|last1=Davies|first2=Tiffany|last2=Wertheimer|first3=Guy|last3=Lambert|date=June 16, 2022|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=June 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616133336/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-61801906|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Kim Kardashian accused of doing 'permanent damage' to Marilyn Monroe's dress|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jun/14/kim-kardashian-accused-of-doing-permanent-damage-to-marilyn-monroe-dress|work=The Guardian|first=Catherine|last=Shoard|date=June 14, 2022|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=June 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615235142/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jun/14/kim-kardashian-accused-of-doing-permanent-damage-to-marilyn-monroe-dress|url-status=live}}

In the 1992 film Wayne's World, Mike Myers puts on a bra and does an impression of Monroe singing the song as his character, Wayne, while his girlfriend Cassandra (Tia Carrere) is on the phone.{{cite AV media |last = Kris J |title = happy birthday mr president |date = July 2, 2012 |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av2Jc2d7fVg |access-date = November 21, 2016 |publisher = YouTube |archive-date = April 17, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170417065955/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av2Jc2d7fVg |url-status = live }} In 1994, Mathilda (Natalie Portman) reenacted Myers's scene in Leon: The Professional. At the time, she had never seen Monroe's performance.{{cite magazine |last = Aquino T |title = 11 Expert Facts About Leon: The Professional |date = October 8, 2015 |url = http://mentalfloss.com/article/69489/11-expert-facts-about-leon-professional |access-date = October 2, 2017 |magazine = Mental Floss |archive-date = March 31, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190331232811/http://mentalfloss.com/article/69489/11-expert-facts-about-leon-professional |url-status = live }}

On the January 16, 1993, episode of Saturday Night Live, musical guest Madonna parodied the song as "Happy Inauguration, Mr. President", alluding to the first inauguration of Bill Clinton later that week.{{Cite web |url = http://snltranscripts.jt.org/92/92kinauguration.phtml |title = Clinton Inaugural Gala |website = snltranscripts.jt.org |access-date = November 21, 2016 |archive-date = May 27, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170527212338/http://snltranscripts.jt.org/92/92kinauguration.phtml |url-status = live }}

Geri Halliwell of the Spice Girls performed the song in 1998 for the then Prince Charles' 50th birthday celebration, replacing the line "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" with "Happy Birthday, Your Royal Highness".{{cite magazine |url = http://people.com/archive/cover-story-nifty-at-fifty-vol-50-no-20/ |title = Cover Story: Nifty at Fifty |volume = 50 |issue = 20 |date = November 30, 1998 |magazine = People |language = en-US |access-date = November 21, 2016 |archive-date = November 21, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161121173652/http://people.com/archive/cover-story-nifty-at-fifty-vol-50-no-20/ |url-status = live }}{{cite AV media |last = Gustavo Pezzini |title = Geri Halliwell: Singing Happy Birthday to Prince Charles |date = February 10, 2008 |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMJVyYVuimw |access-date = November 21, 2016 |publisher = YouTube |archive-date = April 5, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180405101230/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMJVyYVuimw |url-status = live }}

In a season two episode of Breaking Bad, "Mandala" (2009), Skyler White sings the song to her boss Ted Beneke for his birthday.{{cite web | url=https://www.looper.com/258803/the-awkward-breaking-bad-scene-that-some-fans-refuse-to-rewatch/ | title=The Awkward Breaking Bad Scene That Some Fans Refuse to Rewatch | date=October 8, 2020 | access-date=September 16, 2022 | archive-date=September 20, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920170532/https://www.looper.com/258803/the-awkward-breaking-bad-scene-that-some-fans-refuse-to-rewatch/ | url-status=live }} Fran Felstein sings it in The Sopranos season 5 episode "In Camelot" (2004).{{cite book |title=The Immortal Marilyn: The Depiction of an Icon |date=2006 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |page=158}}

In 2012, American musician Lana Del Rey reenacted the performance in the music video for her song "National Anthem", with herself as Monroe and ASAP Rocky as President Kennedy.{{cite magazine |title = Lana Del Rey and A$AP Rocky Play Presidential in 'National Anthem' |url = https://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/lana-del-rey-and-a-ap-rocky-play-presidential-in-national-anthem-20120627 |magazine = Rolling Stone |date = June 27, 2012 |access-date = June 27, 2012 |archive-date = May 10, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170510213800/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/lana-del-rey-and-a-ap-rocky-play-presidential-in-national-anthem-20120627 |url-status = live }}

In 2016, a trailer for the second season of the alternate history series The Man in the High Castle shows Monroe singing the song for Adolf Hitler, with the line "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" replaced with "Happy Birthday, Mein Führer".{{Cite web |url = https://www.businessinsider.com/man-in-the-high-castle-season-2-trailer-nycc-2016-10 |title = Watch the new trailer for 'The Man in the High Castle' season 2 |website = Business Insider |first = Chris |last = Snyder |date = October 9, 2016 |access-date = March 16, 2020 |archive-date = August 1, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200801123828/https://www.businessinsider.com/man-in-the-high-castle-season-2-trailer-nycc-2016-10 |url-status = live }}

• List of individual dresses

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Marilyn Monroe}}

{{John F. Kennedy}}

{{Red carpet fashion}}

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Category:1962 in American music

Category:1962 in New York City

Category:1962 songs

Category:Songs about birthdays

Category:Songs about birthday parties

Category:Songs about John F. Kennedy

Category:Marilyn Monroe songs

Category:May 1962 in the United States

Category:Presidential birthdays in the United States

Category:Quotations from music

Category:1962 quotations