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To Norma Jeane with Love, Jimmie
I guess more words have been written about my first wife, my beloved Norma Jeane Baker, than perhaps have been written about a great many other people who have become famous.Even after she became Marilyn Monroe, and long after her death, the words keep coming and coming. They'll never stop.Sometimes the words liken Norma Jeane to a caterpillar becoming a beautiful and fragile butterfly, but that's not true. Norma Jeane was always a butterfly. She was beautiful all of her life, within and without. During our courtship and marriage I never stopped loving to be with her, to stare at her, to laugh with and love her. We had a wonderful, joyful marriage. But in the end, it was not enough for Norma Jeane. Like all beautiful butterflies, she had to fly away.The difference between the millions of other words written and the ones within this book is simple; mine are not conjecture. Mine are not research. My words are true because I was there.I had the honor and privilege to have lived the experience. The words in this book are all true, because Norma Jeane Baker was my wife.
- GenresNonfiction
220 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
About the author
Jim Dougherty
19 books5 followersJimDoughertyCreative.com
Jim is a worship pastor and creative arts leader serving for the last 20 plus years in the greater Philadelphia and Chicago areas.
He grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia in the golden age of the 80’s: Armed with his Nintendo, light saber and proton pack he navigated his youth riding bikes and building forts. He found his gifting for the arts in those years singing in school choirs, writing poetry and winning awards for his drawing. This translated to music in high school when he bought his first guitar at the age of 14. With his poetic abilities developing he began songwriting immediately after learning how to play a few chords. Heavily influenced by the rock giants of the grunge era he cut his musical chops playing in original rock bands through the 90’s. The pinnacle of this season came in 1999 when his band played at the Warped Tour in Philadelphia.
There was a faith element in Jim’s life from a young age. He was heavily involved in his youth group where he developed relationships with peers and mentors that shaped his life even to this day.
These worlds collided one summer while he was serving at a youth camp where he led worship for the first time. over the next few years God opened the doorways toward a career in full time ministry as a worship leader. This took him to Chicago to serve at Park Community church as thie worship pastor for a season. He returned to the east coast and Calvary Church in Souderton to lead a congregation of 3000. He has been at two other large churches since returning to his home church in PA.
Jim is a gifted worship leader and songwriter. He is passionate about leading others into discovery and development of their gifts and abilities for greater impact in the world. In recent years he has developed a love for woodworking and he has begun writing. He also loves to play with his cover bands in local bars and restaurants as he makes connections in the community.
When he is not immersed in the creative world you might find him at a Phillies game with his sons, sitting on a folding chair with a large brimmed hat at his daughters flag football game, or throwing his pitching wedge across the green at a local golf course.
Jim and Erica live in the suburbs of Philadelphia with their four children Judson, Joseph, Maggie and Grace. He serves as the worship pastor at Church of the Saviour in Wayne, PA.
For music, contact, socials, and to find out more, visit JimDoughertyCreative.com
Jim is a worship pastor and creative arts leader serving for the last 20 plus years in the greater Philadelphia and Chicago areas.
He grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia in the golden age of the 80’s: Armed with his Nintendo, light saber and proton pack he navigated his youth riding bikes and building forts. He found his gifting for the arts in those years singing in school choirs, writing poetry and winning awards for his drawing. This translated to music in high school when he bought his first guitar at the age of 14. With his poetic abilities developing he began songwriting immediately after learning how to play a few chords. Heavily influenced by the rock giants of the grunge era he cut his musical chops playing in original rock bands through the 90’s. The pinnacle of this season came in 1999 when his band played at the Warped Tour in Philadelphia.
There was a faith element in Jim’s life from a young age. He was heavily involved in his youth group where he developed relationships with peers and mentors that shaped his life even to this day.
These worlds collided one summer while he was serving at a youth camp where he led worship for the first time. over the next few years God opened the doorways toward a career in full time ministry as a worship leader. This took him to Chicago to serve at Park Community church as thie worship pastor for a season. He returned to the east coast and Calvary Church in Souderton to lead a congregation of 3000. He has been at two other large churches since returning to his home church in PA.
Jim is a gifted worship leader and songwriter. He is passionate about leading others into discovery and development of their gifts and abilities for greater impact in the world. In recent years he has developed a love for woodworking and he has begun writing. He also loves to play with his cover bands in local bars and restaurants as he makes connections in the community.
When he is not immersed in the creative world you might find him at a Phillies game with his sons, sitting on a folding chair with a large brimmed hat at his daughters flag football game, or throwing his pitching wedge across the green at a local golf course.
Jim and Erica live in the suburbs of Philadelphia with their four children Judson, Joseph, Maggie and Grace. He serves as the worship pastor at Church of the Saviour in Wayne, PA.
For music, contact, socials, and to find out more, visit JimDoughertyCreative.com
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 22, 2013
Because it was about Marilyn Monroe, I loved it.
The writing wasn't great and was too often repetitive...this wasn't pleasant to read.
The thing that upset me most was that he basically said she was lying about her sexual abuse from when she was a child. I just felt bad for her when he mentioned this. If she didn't tell him about it, it doesn't mean it didn't happen. And considering the time period as well as the emotional impact of such abuse, it is very possible that she wouldn't reveal this to her husband (think fear of abandonment because she was no longer a virgin, fear that no one would believe her, etc.). If he didn't discuss this with her personally, he shouldn't make the statement that it was not true. Based on his description in the book, Mr. Dougherty's ego could have been in the way. I just believe stating that she was lying was not respectful of Marilyn' s memory, especially since she is not here to explain it herself.
I love Marilyn Monroe too and always will.
The writing wasn't great and was too often repetitive...this wasn't pleasant to read.
The thing that upset me most was that he basically said she was lying about her sexual abuse from when she was a child. I just felt bad for her when he mentioned this. If she didn't tell him about it, it doesn't mean it didn't happen. And considering the time period as well as the emotional impact of such abuse, it is very possible that she wouldn't reveal this to her husband (think fear of abandonment because she was no longer a virgin, fear that no one would believe her, etc.). If he didn't discuss this with her personally, he shouldn't make the statement that it was not true. Based on his description in the book, Mr. Dougherty's ego could have been in the way. I just believe stating that she was lying was not respectful of Marilyn' s memory, especially since she is not here to explain it herself.
I love Marilyn Monroe too and always will.
August 5, 2012
Jim Dougherty was Marilyn Monroe's first husband before she became the sex symbol, back when her name was Norma Jean Baker. There are literally hundreds of books about the film goddess, but few of them have personal insight into her early life. Thankfully, Dougherty wrote and published this book before he died, throwing the rabid fans of his first wife some fresh material.
This book tells about how Dougherty and Monroe met and married, their life together, and their demise. He describes her love for their dog, for cooking food like peas and carrots together because of the colors, and her knack for impressing men. He does mention their sex life, but refuses to go into great detail out of respect for his ex-wife.
This book is not chronological, and does not seem to be heavily edited as Dougherty repeats himself many times. It makes the book somewhat difficult to read, but it does contain valuable information.
This book tells about how Dougherty and Monroe met and married, their life together, and their demise. He describes her love for their dog, for cooking food like peas and carrots together because of the colors, and her knack for impressing men. He does mention their sex life, but refuses to go into great detail out of respect for his ex-wife.
This book is not chronological, and does not seem to be heavily edited as Dougherty repeats himself many times. It makes the book somewhat difficult to read, but it does contain valuable information.
November 5, 2021
I’ll read pretty much anything about Marilyn Monroe, so long as it’s respectful of her memory. So when I saw that her first husband, Jim Dougherty, wrote a book about their time together, I was curious to read his reflections on Marilyn, then still known as Norma Jeane Baker, and that period of his life.
I found the book to be rather sad. Dougherty often mentioned throughout it how he wished he could’ve been there for her, and I found towards the end of the book that it was a bit repetitive. But I could also tell it was written with love.
A lot has been written about Joe DiMaggio’s love for Marilyn Monroe, and how he loved her until the day he died. I think the same could be said about Jim Dougherty, but the difference is he never stopped loving Norma Jeane.
Overall, it’s not the best book on Marilyn Monroe that I’ve ever read, but certainly worth reading if you’re a Marilyn enthusiast like I am.
I found the book to be rather sad. Dougherty often mentioned throughout it how he wished he could’ve been there for her, and I found towards the end of the book that it was a bit repetitive. But I could also tell it was written with love.
A lot has been written about Joe DiMaggio’s love for Marilyn Monroe, and how he loved her until the day he died. I think the same could be said about Jim Dougherty, but the difference is he never stopped loving Norma Jeane.
Overall, it’s not the best book on Marilyn Monroe that I’ve ever read, but certainly worth reading if you’re a Marilyn enthusiast like I am.
November 11, 2022
For a casual Marilyn fan or a hopeless romantic this book will be… nice? The writing isn’t great.
I don’t believe anything Jim says. This book is weird, it’s repetitive and overly sentimental. I do not like how he refers to Marilyn has “her” in quotation marks and everything! But it makes sense that he would considering his comment “Norma Jeane changed into another person once she became less dependent on me” she was a child dude, a 16 year old child.
Also thought everything he wrote about sex was distasteful. Also dismissing her claims of sexual abuse because “I was first” is demented. Maybe Norma didn’t tell you Jimmie? Maybe she felt ashamed. You don’t know. Marilyn always said this marriage was an arrangement and I’ll choose to believe her.
If you want to roll your eyes a lot, this is the perfect book.
I don’t believe anything Jim says. This book is weird, it’s repetitive and overly sentimental. I do not like how he refers to Marilyn has “her” in quotation marks and everything! But it makes sense that he would considering his comment “Norma Jeane changed into another person once she became less dependent on me” she was a child dude, a 16 year old child.
Also thought everything he wrote about sex was distasteful. Also dismissing her claims of sexual abuse because “I was first” is demented. Maybe Norma didn’t tell you Jimmie? Maybe she felt ashamed. You don’t know. Marilyn always said this marriage was an arrangement and I’ll choose to believe her.
If you want to roll your eyes a lot, this is the perfect book.
October 26, 2019
I bought this book, and as is my usual fashion I was unable to read it. However I sent it to my friend Tina who read it for me and thought it was heart-warming. Because of my past life beliefs reading stuff about Marilyn is difficult for me. But I have seen James give interviews about Norma Jeane on youtube.....and he was a really good man and faithful until the very end. I appreciate his kindness and the title of his book speaks volumes. I think James is highly under-rated, because Joe and Arthur are "the famous husbands". But, afterall, James kept Norma Jeane out of the orphanage by marrying her, and he gave up a steady girlfriend his own age to do it. Even better, he didn't fall for "the image"....he didn't know that person, he knew the real girl. -Michele M. Saumberfield
May 10, 2012
interesting read. seemed a little overly. sentimental but still fun.
June 12, 2026
I think I may be one of the few people who has read almost every book about Marilyn Monroe. I’ve always found her fascinating and this book did not disappoint.
September 18, 2020
Few takeaways:
- It's all a show. Norma Jeane is a real person, Marilyn Monroe is a character; similarly, Stefan Germanotta is a person but Lady Gaga is a character or - Stephen Colbert is a person, but Stephen Colbert from the Colbert Report is a character.
- Norma Jeane is an incredibly intelligent yet lonely person. Insecurities from youth always persisted her. Funny how see the same trait in many people in the entertainment industry.
- It's all a show. Norma Jeane is a real person, Marilyn Monroe is a character; similarly, Stefan Germanotta is a person but Lady Gaga is a character or - Stephen Colbert is a person, but Stephen Colbert from the Colbert Report is a character.
- Norma Jeane is an incredibly intelligent yet lonely person. Insecurities from youth always persisted her. Funny how see the same trait in many people in the entertainment industry.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews