At this point in her life, she was working as an aspiring young model under the Blue Book Model Agency, just on the cusp of signing her first movie contract with 20th Century Fox (which happened in late 1946, alongside her famous name change).

Here are a few fascinating details about these specific images:

The Pre-Blonde Era

What makes photos from this specific window so distinct is her look. You can see her natural, curly brunette/copper-toned hair, styled casually with a pink ribbon headband. This photoshoot took place right before the modeling agency convinced her to straighten and bleach her hair into the iconic platinum blonde look that defined "Marilyn."

The Vibe and Wardrobe

The shoot has a beautifully candid, athletic, and carefree energy. She is wearing a cozy pastel green crewneck sweater paired with bright yellow shorts.

• In the first image, she’s balancing playfully on a volleyball in the sand with her arms and legs extended—a testament to her natural charisma and comfort in front of the camera, even at the very start of her career.
• In the second image, she is caught mid-action by the shoreline, holding the volleyball and smiling away from the lens.

The Photographer

Many of these definitive early beach sessions were captured by photographers like André de Dienes or Richard C. Miller, who helped document her transition from a sweet, small-town girl into a striking pin-up model. De Dienes famously noted that when he first photographed Norma Jeane on these trips, she had an almost angelic, luminous quality that immediately captivated the camera.

These snapshots are widely loved today because they offer a rare glimpse of the innocent, joyful person behind the massive Hollywood persona she would soon build.

Like the Coach call him

Cassie you will be missed dearly

"This badge, it asks everything of you, and it gives you everything back. This week is not about the end, it’s about saying thank you to the fans, you are this

Casemiro: "Thank you to everyone, to the players, to the staff, to everyone, but the best thing in this club is you, the fans. Thank you"

I’ll tell you who’s probably been the best signing of all of them: Senne Lammens. What did he cost? Not a lot, so he’s been value for money.

I think United looked at it and thought, ‘what gets us up the table and gets us into the Champions League places?’ It’s not a new midfield player or a goalkeeper, it’s goals.

So they added [Matheus] Cunha and [Bryan] Mbeumo, guys with Premier League experience who can get you 20-odd goals and United are third right now so I think that’s been proven correct.

But I do think if they hadn’t have sorted the goalkeeper out, they wouldn’t be in the top four.