Throwback Pics Of Marilyn Monroe With Different Hairstyles Than Her Signature Look

Marilyn Monroe is one of the most recognizable figures in pop culture, and her iconic platinum-blond bob has become synonymous with old Hollywood glamor. However, rare throwback pictures of Marilyn Monroe prove she wasn't always a blond bombshell. Before she became a Hollywood powerhouse, Monroe was a brunette model from Los Angeles. At the beginning of her career, her agent suggested she go blond to stand out — Monroe followed the advice, and the rest is history. 

Most of the most popular images of Monroe are from the height of her career, when she was known for her alluring looks and shock of white-blond hair. However, many years before she would star in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," Monroe got her first break, in part, because of her brown curls. The Hollywood icon's career started when she was discovered by photographer David Conover, who snapped the first shots of the soon-to-be starlet at an airline plant during World War II. He later said that it was Monroe's natural beauty that captured his attention. Monroe was just as stunning without her signature platinum hair, and these pictures prove it. 

Before she became Hollywood's second platinum blond bombshell, Marilyn Monroe rocked strawberry blond hair. In one portrait of the then-model in 1946, Monroe wore her soft curls brushed out and cascading down her back. While her hair was quite different from what would become her signature look in the years to come, Monroe did opt for red lipstick during this photoshoot — something else that became closely associated with the icon later on in her career. Even if you don't have her blond (or strawberry-blond) hair, red lipstick is always a good idea.

Images of Marilyn Monroe with her dark ringlets on display may be rare, but they prove that the actor was truly capable of rocking any look with ease. In one portrait from 1940, before Monroe's modeling career began, the future starlet shows off her brown curls. While she would lighten her hair in the years that followed, there is a certain charm to Monroe's naturally dark-brown curls, and it's easy to see the spark that photographer David Conover recognized in her. 

Many of Marilyn Monroe's most unique hair moments come from photos taken from earlier in her modeling career. In one portrait from 1946, the star channeled a more playful vibe as she posed in a hunting ensemble. As part of the look, Monroe's strawberry-blond locks were styled into two braids tied at the ends with red bows. Monroe's early days saw her experimenting with her appearance, showing us the actor's range years before her acting career took off. 

Long before her modeling and, even later, acting career would take off, Marilyn Monroe was known as Norma Jeane Baker. In one photograph of 14-year-old Monroe from 1940, we can get a glimpse of the future star's natural hair. As a teenager, Monroe wore her hair in short, dark-brown curls, a very different look from the blond bob she'd wear during the height of her career. It's hard to believe that the girl in this photo would go on to be one of the most famous women in American pop culture history. 

Norma Jeane Baker, the girl who would later become silver screen icon Marilyn Monroe, was a stunning brunette. Unlike the later Marilyn Monroe outfits that meant more than you know, this image from 1947 gives us a rare glimpse of a young Monroe before she adopted the extra-glamorous style that later became her signature. The combination of her brushed-out brown ringlets and casual striped t-shirt shows a much more laid-back side of the starlet, unaffected by the glitz and glamor of her modeling career. 

In one of Marilyn Monroe's most distinct hair moments, the starlet wore her brown hair in sideswept pin curls neatly slicked down. The mature look stands out as something entirely unique, especially for Monroe at this time. Given that it was Monroe's hair advertisements, like this one from 1945, that led RKO head Howard Hughes to invite her in for a screen test (an event that secured Monroe's first deal with 20th Century Fox), this specific image may have been what sold Howard on Monroe as a possible emerging talent. 

Before Marilyn Monroe would undergo electrolysis to remove her widow's peak, it was a unique part of the young model's look. Her distinctive hairline can be seen in most of the photoshoots from her modeling career, but is especially on display in this photo from 1946. Monroe posed for a cozy wintertime shoot with her strawberry-blond hair braided back into a rustic updo, which highlighted her prominent widow's peak. Though she barely looks like the Marilyn Monroe that most fans think of, the iconic star was still stunning, no matter what hair color or style she wore.