The famous dress was worn by Monroe in 1962
Kim Kardashian has arrived at the Met Gala wearing an incredibly meaningful dress, accompanied by her boyfriend Pete Davidson. Speaking on the red carpet she revealed her golden gown was previously worn by Marilyn Monroe when she famously sang to President John F. Kennedy back in the 1960s.
The golden dress is a significant moment in American pop culture history, as Marilyn Monroe popped out of a birthday cake at the White House in 1962 to sing happy birthday to the former president. Her sultry rendition of the celebratory song has since been recreated, parodied and instantly became an iconic, if not controversial, moment – sparking rumours that the pair were having an affair.
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Speaking to Vogue livestream host Lala Anthony, Kardashian revealed the significant backstory of the dress and added she initially didn’t fit into the dress. However she was “determined” and said, “I had to lose 16 pounds today to fit this.”
The dress is owned currently by Ripley’s Believe It or Not and the company took to Twitter to confirm the news. It tweeted Kardashian is the “only person besides Marilyn Monroe to ever wear” the dress.
We are seeing stars! @KimKardashian made fashion history tonight at the 2022 #MetGala when she became the only person besides #MarilynMonroe to ever wear the iconic “Happy Birthday” dress owned by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! pic.twitter.com/7ajrVex1m2
— Ripley’s Believe It or Not! (@Ripleys) May 3, 2022
She paired the look as Monroe did with a white stole and a new platinum blonde hairdo. She was joined on the carpet by Saturday Night Live star Davidson, who both recently made their red carpet couple’s debut.
Marilyn Monroe singing “Happy Birthday” to President JFK in 1962
This year’s theme at the Met Gala is based on the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s current exhibition, which is titled In America: An Anthology of Fashion. Many stars paid homage to the gilded age, wearing literally gold dresses as with Kardashian to the event as others chose to eschew the theme altogether in cutting edge modern looks.
The red carpet has recently wrapped up, however you can still see the best dressed stars at the Met Gala in our gallery here. From Blake Lively’s colour-changing dress to a surprise new couple making their debut, stay tuned for more from fashion’s biggest night out.
