Kim Kardashian Reveals Her Second Marilyn Monroe Met Gala Dress

At the Met Gala on Monday, few looks were as hotly anticipated as Kim Kardashian’s—especially following the jaw-dropping black Balenciaga bodysuit that covered her from head to toe last September. Thankfully, she had a similarly unexpected trick up her sleeve for the second half of the museum’s “In America” exhibition, this time in the form of a gown worn by none other than Marilyn Monroe. It wasn’t just any one of Monroe’s dresses, though: the shimmering, crystal-studded flesh tone gown was worn by Monroe for her infamous performance of “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” at John F. Kennedy’s birthday in 1962. (Of course, the look being a museum-level piece of fashion history, she wore it only for photos on the red carpet before quickly switching into a replica.)

In an interview with Vogue ahead of this week’s event, Kardashian noted that she also had a replica of another of Monroe’s gowns to hand—although, as she put it, she was only planning to wear that one to “eat pizza in my hotel room.” It turns out that Kardashian also had the real thing, too: a green sequin dress that was in the hands of Heritage Auctions, and which Kardashian also slipped into for a quick photoshoot in her room. The dress is another of Monroe’s most memorable looks, this time a Norman Norell design that she wore to the 1962 Golden Globes, where she picked up the Henrietta Award for being a “world film favorite.”