Marilyn Monroe was one of the most photographed women in the world. Thousands of images of her exist, spanning glamorous studio portraits, candid street shots, and everything in between. But among all of those photographs, one set stands out for its unusual backstory — the images of Monroe wearing a fitted burlap potato sack.
The story behind this photo shoot goes back to a party at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Monroe arrived wearing a low-cut red dress. A female journalist at the event took offense, publicly calling Monroe ‘cheap and vulgar.’ The critic went even further, writing that Monroe would have looked better dressed in a potato sack than in the clothes she wore.
Twentieth Century Fox took that criticism and turned it into a challenge. The studio arranged a formal photo shoot in which Monroe wore a fitted burlap potato sack — the kind used to bag and ship raw potatoes. The sack was tailored to her figure, and the resulting photographs were striking. They were published in newspapers and magazines across the country.
A second, separate story also circulates around this photo shoot. In that version, someone simply made an offhand remark that Monroe could make a potato sack look attractive. Twentieth Century Fox, ever alert to publicity opportunities, decided to prove the point. Whether one story or both played a role, the studio’s motivation was the same — to demonstrate that Monroe’s appeal had nothing to do with what she wore.
The choice of a potato sack was deliberately unglamorous. Burlap is a rough, coarse fabric, woven loosely and without any of the softness or sheen associated with high fashion. It was about as far from a designer gown as fabric could get. That contrast was the entire point.
Monroe was 25 years old at the time, and her film career was gaining serious momentum in 1951. Fox was already invested in building her public image, and this shoot fit neatly into that effort. The photographs didn’t just answer a critic — they became part of Monroe’s growing legend as someone whose presence transcended ordinary circumstances.
The images are notable for how relaxed Monroe appears throughout them. She poses with the same ease and confidence she brought to far more elaborate shoots. There is no sign of self-consciousness about the material she’s wearing. The burlap looks as natural on her as anything else would.
Twentieth Century Fox achieved exactly what it set out to do. The photographs generated widespread attention and were reprinted across the country. The journalist’s intended slight had been flipped entirely — instead of diminishing Monroe, the potato sack shoot only added to her reputation. The images remain some of the most talked-about in her extensive photographic archive.
