Norma Jeane Mortenson—who will become better known around the world as the glamorous actress and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe—is born on June 1, 1926, in Los Angeles, California. She was later given her mother’s name, and baptized Norma Jeane Baker. After a tumultuous childhood—both maternal grandparents and her mother were committed to mental institutions, and she lived with a string of foster families—Norma Jeane married one of her neighbors, James Dougherty when she was 16.

Source: History