Marilyn Monroe died on August 5, 1962, at her home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood, located at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive. This single‑family residence was her private residence in the Los Angeles area during the final months of her life. Although she had lived in other properties across California and New York while working in film and theater, the last confirmed address where Marilyn Monroe lived when she died was this Brentwood home, where she was found unresponsive. The following sections clarify the location, timeline, and publicly verified details, avoiding speculation.
Last Residence and Location
The last residence where Marilyn Monroe lived was at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood, Los Angeles, California. This property is a modest single‑story home that she rented with housekeeper Eunice Murray. On the evening of August 4–5, 1962, Monroe was found unresponsive in this home by Murray and Dr. Ralph Greenson, who had been called earlier that day. First responders arrived but pronounced her dead at the scene. The address has been widely reported in biographies, law enforcement records, and news archives from 1962.
Neighborhood Context: Brentwood in 1962
Brentwood in the early 1960s was a residential suburb west of Los Angeles, characterized by single‑family homes and quiet streets. The area remains largely residential, with Fifth Helena Drive situated near the intersections of the Pacific Coast Highway and Mulholland Highway. Monroe chose to live in this relatively private setting in her final years, away from the intense spotlight of Hollywood studio lots. This context helps explain why she was living in Brentwood rather than a central urban apartment or a studio compound at the time of her death.
Biographical Timeline: Homes Before Brentwood
Understanding where Marilyn Monroe lived when she died requires looking at her housing history in the years prior. During her rise as a major movie star in the late 1940s and 1950s, she lived in several rented apartments and houses, primarily in Los Angeles and New York. Key residences included an apartment at 141 North Highland Avenue in Hollywood during early film work and a rented home in New York while filming The Prince and the Showgirl in 1957. As her career progressed and her mental health challenges intensified, she sought more private and supportive environments, eventually settling in Brentwood in 1961.
Notable Previous Residences
- 141 North Highland Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles — early 1950s rental while building her film career.
- Apartment at 51 Sutton Place, Manhattan, New York — mid‑1950s during The Seven Year Itch production and marriage to Arthur Miller.
- Home in Brentwood, 12305 Fifth Helena Drive — 1961 to 1962, her final residence.
While these addresses reflect where Marilyn Monroe lived at various points, only the Brentwood home is relevant to where she was at the time of her death. Public records, including coroner reports and contemporaneous news articles, confirm she resided at this Brentwood address immediately before her passing.
Immediate Circumstances at Time of Death
On the night of August 4, 1962, Marilyn Monroe was found unresponsive by housekeeper Eunice Murray in the bedroom of the Brentwood home. Murray had checked on Monroe earlier in the evening and found the door locked; she later re‑entered the bedroom and discovered Monroe not breathing. Dr. Ralph Greenson, Monroe’s psychiatrist, arrived shortly before emergency services. First responders, including Los Angeles Police officers and a paramedic, reached the scene within minutes, but Monroe was pronounced dead at the residence. The coroner’s report cited acute barbiturate poisoning as a contributing factor, with evidence of drug paraphernalia consistent with a suicide scenario. No ongoing emergency medical procedures were performed at the home itself; the death was confirmed on site.
Verified Address and Property Details
The specific property where Marilyn Monroe lived when she died is recorded in official documents and widely cited in reputable biographies. The table below summarizes the key verified attributes of the home and its relevance to the timeline of her final days.
| Attribute | Verified Detail | Source Type |
|---|---|---|
| Address | 12305 Fifth Helena Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, CA | Coroner report, Los Angeles Police log, news archives (1962) |
| Resident at death | Marilyn Monroe | Law enforcement records, biographies citing primary documents |
| Housekeeper present | Eunice Murray | Police statements, contemporary news reports |
| Psychiatrist on call | Dr. Ralph Greenson | Coroner testimony, contemporaneous accounts |
| Date of death discovered | August 5, 1962, approximately 4:30a.m. | Official death certificate and news timelines |
| Cause noted in official report | Acute barbiturate poisoning, suicide indicated | Los Angeles County Coroner’s report |
These verified details anchor the answer to where Marilyn Monroe lived when she death in a specific, documented location rather than vague references. The consistency across coroner records, police logs, and reputable biographies reinforces the reliability of 12305 Fifth Helena Drive as the final residence.
Common Misconceptions and Clarifications
Some discussions about Monroe’s final days conflate filming locations, studio addresses, or earlier apartments with the site where she died. For example, references to a Hollywood apartment or a New York residence during the week of her death are inaccurate in the context of her last hours. Additionally, claims that she was found at a different home in Beverly Hills or elsewhere have been corrected by primary documents. Clarifying these points matters because they affect historical accuracy and public understanding of the events surrounding her death.
Legacy and Historical Record
The home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive remains a point of reference for scholars and biographers examining Monroe’s final months. While the house itself is a private residence and not a museum, its documented role in her death is cited in authoritative biographies, research articles, and reputable historical overviews. The broader context of where Marilyn Monroe lived when she died contributes to understanding the isolation and pressures she faced late in life. This status‑clarifier summary reflects the consensus among historians and journalists who rely on primary records rather than sensationalized accounts.
Summary of Key Facts
Marilyn Monroe died at her rented home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. The precise address was 12305 Fifth Helena Drive, where she resided from 1961 until her death on August 5, 1962. Verified sources—including the coroner’s report, police logs, and contemporaneous news coverage—confirm this location as the last place she lived. Earlier residences in Hollywood and Manhattan provide background but are not relevant to the immediate circumstances of her death.