Palm Springs Plans Send-Off Party for Forever Marilyn

No word on where she will end up after New Jersey exhibit

JIM POWERS Arts & Entertainment

 

The goodbyes have begun,

The Forever Marilyn sculpture that has graced downtown Palm Springs for the past 22 months is on its last legs, so to speak.

Forever Marilyn will make her way to New Jersey shortly to be the centerpiece of a lifetime retrospective exhibition and gala honoring its creator, 84-year-old artist Seward Johnson, at the 42-acre sculpture park Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ.

The exhibit will consist of an amazing collection of over 150 of his sculptures, displayed in three interior museums and throughout the gardens of the parklands. Many works will be on loan from private and museum collections and there is a film and a coffee table book accompanying the exhibition.

The show will be unveiled (with a champagne toast to Forever Marilyn) on May 2.

Palm Springs will say farewell with a send-off party from 6-8 p.m. March 27 at the sculpture's Palm Springs home at Tahquitz Canyon and Palm Canyon Drive.

The interactive event includes a photo booth for souvenir photos, a giant “bon voyage” card to sign, and special performances of music from Marilyn Monroe films by the Desert Winds Freedom Band and the Palm Springs Gay Mens Chorus.

Tributes are expected from Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet and city officials and Carol Channing – the original Lorelei Lee in the Broadway production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes – will make an appearance. To commemorate the 23rd anniversary of Village Fest, cupcakes will be served.

The Forever Marilyn sculpture was scheduled to remain in Palm Springs through June 2013, or for one year, but two extensions made by the sculpture’s owner allowed it to stay here until the end of this month.

“Palm Springs is undergoing a historic renaissance and Forever Marilyn has been a tremendous tourism booster to our downtown. I want to thank the Sculpture Foundation for working with the City and P.S. Resorts to keep her here as long as possible,” says Pougnet. “I encourage everyone in the Coachella Valley to join us as we say farewell to a true Palm Springs icon.”

“Forever Marilyn has brought joy to thousands of visitors who traveled to Palm Springs to see her over the past 22 months,” says Aftab Dada, chairman of P.S. Resorts. “We could not have dreamed of the amount of positive publicity and attention she brought to the city of Palm Springs during her stay. For that, we are forever grateful.”

The Sculpture Foundation has received countless requests and invitations for Forever Marilyn including Singapore, Shanghai, London, Brazil, Miami, Rome and other locales.

Forever Marilyn is not committed to anyplace after the New Jersey exhibit, which ends in September.

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