Mariyln Monroe was 'Jealous of Elizabeth Taylor's Success, Posed Naked to Gain More Fame'

Sexy screen siren Marilyn Monroe was once jealous of fellow actress Elizabeth Taylor's popularity that she agreed to pose nude in a bid to gain more publicity than her, according to a soon-to-be released adaptation of the memoir "Marilyn & Me", by Lawrence Schiller.

In the memoir, published by Vanity Fair, Lawrence Schiller (then Larry Wolf), the photographer who took Monroe's nude photo, has given details of his conversations with the star during 1960 to 1962, until the death of the star.

According to Vanity Fair, Larry has revealed in the tell-all book that Munroe hatched a plan to make Fox studios to take her more seriously and also to become more popular than Elizabeth Taylor.

She asked Larry to take her nude photos while she returned from the swimming pool and told him to ensure that Taylor's pictures did not appear anywhere in the magazine.

"Larry, if I do come out of the pool with nothing on, I want your guarantee that when your pictures appear on the covers of magazines Elizabeth Taylor is not anywhere in the same issue," Monroe is quoted as saying.

While Marilyn was making only $100,000 for her last film, Something's Got to Give, in 1962, Elizabeth Taylor was commanding a million dollars for her Cleopatra movie. Taylor was also gaining more publicity after her public affair with her co-star, Richard Burton.

When Playboy founder Hugh Hefner agreed to pay $25,000 for Monroe's one nude picture, she told Schiller that it was worth every penny. She said with a laugh: "There isn't anybody that looks like me without clothes on."

During their conversations, between 1960 and 1962, Monroe also shared her struggles and also showed how insecure she was.

According to Schiller, Maryiln was happy at times with her sex-symbol status, but she also turned insecure and angry about the threat of losing those looks.

"It's still about nudity. Is that all I'm good for?" she demanded of Schiller.

"I'd like to show that I can get publicity without using my ass or getting fired from a picture," she continued. "I haven't made up my mind yet."

The conversation is said to be the last one and the next morning Monroe was found dead in her bedroom. Her life has been a matter of speculation including her death and her rumoured affair with then American President John F Kennedy.