Ripley’s Believe It or Not! has set the record straight on a viral Instagram post that claims Kim Kardashian damaged Marilyn Monroe’s 60-year-old dress when she wore it to the Met Gala.
According to the museum, a report on the dress’ condition in 2017 states “a number of the seams are pulled and worn. This is not surprising given how delicate the material is. There is puckering at the back by the hooks and eyes,” among other instances of damage.
“From the bottom of the Met steps, where Kim got into the dress, to the top where it was returned, the dress was in the same condition it started in,” said Ripley’s VP of Publishing and Licensing Amanda Joiner in a statement on Thursday.
The reality-star-turned-businesswoman only wore Monroe’s artifact for a matter of minutes. She slipped into the gown in a dressing room near the Met Gala carpet and changed into a replica gown as soon as she made it up the steps.
Kardashian reportedly went body-makeup-free to the event. In addition, a representative for Ripley’s told The Post that she showed “the utmost respect” for the garment.
Monroe originally wore the dress in 1962 to serenade then-President John F. Kennedy for his birthday.
Ripley’s received backlash for letting the Skims founder take the dress out on the town in the first place.
“Our mission is to both entertain and educate visitors and fans, and sparking conversations like the discourse around Marilyn Monroe’s dress does just that,” Ripley’s rebutted. “No matter which side of the debate you are on, the historical importance of the dress has not been negated, but rather highlighted. An entirely new group of young people have now been introduced to the legacy of Marilyn Monroe.”
On Monday, the Marilyn Monroe Collection Instagram account posted photos showing alleged new damage to a few “missing” crystals and others “hanging on by a thread.”
Kardashian, 41, vowed to not make any alterations to the dress — declared a “national treasure” to The Post by one noted Monroe expert — and altered herself instead. She infamously admitted that she lost 16 pounds in three weeks in order to squeeze into the dress.
She was finally able to fit it over her famous derriere but was unable to zip it — hence why she draped herself with a white fur shawl while on the carpet.
“I tried it on and it didn’t fit me,” Kardashian recalled on the red carpet as she retold the tale of her first fitting. “It was such a challenge. It was like a role, I was determined to fit in it.”
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