The journey back to the Coachella Valley of the Forever Marilyn statue is delayed
UPDATE 04/05/2021
The Forever Marilyn statue was set to begin the journey back to the Coachella Valley on Monday, April 5th. Her return has been delayed and there is no word yet on another set date to leave New Jersey. We are told we will have another update on Tuesday, April 6th.
UPDATE 03/30/2021
A judge issued a temporary restraining order Monday, March 29th, to halt the installation of the Forever Marilyn statue. This is in reference to the opposition group, Committee to Relocate Marilyn (CReMa), and their lawsuit on the statue returning to Palm Springs on Museum Way. “The people who support Marilyn in front of the museum believe that she will bring tourists to town and we are not disputing that. The only thing we are disputing is her placement on Museum Way,” said co-founder of CReMa Trina Turk.
This could mean the statues grand unveiling could be pushed back farther than April 25th. The next hearing will be on April 9th. As of Tuesday, March 30th, the Forever Marilyn statue is on track to make the journey back to the desert April 5th with a grand unveiling set for April 25th.
UPDATE 03/12/2021
PS Resorts announced that the long awaited return of "Forever Marylin" will be delayed at least another week.
The grand unveiling of the 26-foot tall sculpture of Marilyn Monroe in downtown Palm Springs has been pushed back a week. The unveiling is now scheduled to be held on April 25.
PS Resort cited installation timelines as the reason for the date change. You can read more about Marilyn's upcoming journey from New Jersey to Palm Springs below.
Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing updates.
Original Story - 03/01/2021
We know now the day Marilyn will make her long-awaited return to Palm Springs.
PS Resorts revealed the official installation and grand unveiling dates for the "Forever Marilyn" sculpture in downtown Palm Springs.
The 26-foot-tall, 34,000-pound sculpture of Marilyn Monroe is slated to arrive in Palm Springs from New Jersey on April 12. The sculpture will travel across the country to Palm Springs via a flatbed truck starting on April 5.
Once Marilyn arrives, a team from the Seward Johnson Atelier will then work to install the sculpture. Seward Johnson was the sculptor of "Forever Marilyn."
"Forever Marylin" will be unveiled in her new home on Museum Way right behind the Kimpton Rowan Hotel on Sunday, April 18.
"The Board of PS Resorts, along with our partners, has been working hard for years to make Marilyn’s return a reality. We could not be more pleased to tell the community that she is on her way back to Palm Springs – and this time, for good," said Aftab Dada, Chairman of PS Resorts.
In February, PS Resorts finalized the $1 million deal to purchase "Forever Marilyn."
Marilyn brought worldwide attention to Palm Springs when the sculpture stood in downtown from May 2012 to March 2014. Many people have been wondering when Marilyn would return to the city where she was possibly first discovered and has significant ties to.
Marilyn was supposedly discovered in Palm Springs at Charlie Farrell’s Racquet Club on 2743 N. Indian Canyon Drive by talent agent Johnny Hyde in 1949
In the 1950s, she spent time in Palm Springs with her then-husband, Baseball Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio. In the early 1960s, she owned a home in the Vista Las Palmas neighborhood.
"... I assume that she was drawn to the beauty and stillness of the landscape. There is something about her pose; the exuberance for life without inhibition, which is quintessentially American, and very fitting for Palm Springs. It expresses an uninhibited sense of our own vibrancy," Johnson said.
The sculpture proved very popular for tourists and residents in Palm Springs. "Forever Marilyn" was the site of look-alike contests, movie screenings, concerts, weddings, and a Marilyn Monroe birthday celebration.
"She’s part of our brand now, and she wasn’t here that long, but now people expect to see her,” said then-Palm Springs Councilmember J.R. Roberts in 2019. "People come back to Palm Springs and look around and say, ‘Where’s Marilyn?'"
Now the deal is done and the question can finally be answered.
Dada told News Channel 3 he is excited to bring Marilyn home, where she will stay permanently.
Stay with News Channel 3 as we bring you continuing updates on the future of "Forever Marilyn."
