Crypt 33 by Adela Gregory Read Free Book Online

Big Bear Mountain, or horseback riding in Burbank. During one weekend jaunt to Big Bear, Norma Jeane showed her possessiveness for her new husband. Fifteen girls vied for the attention of the only two men in the entire area, Jim and a merchant seaman from Sweden. Jim and the Swede paid attention by playing cards with the girls and enjoying themselves. Jim gloated over his popularity and sent Norma Jeane running to their cabin in tears. He enjoyed getting a rise out of his bride, later explaining, “I used to tease her a lot. I was a big tease. Sometimes she would laugh, sometimes get mad at me.”
    In 1943, Jim’s parents gave them a house at 14743 Archwood Street. The newlyweds had wanted to buy a place for themselves, but on Jim’s salary of thirty-two dollars a week, which was good by the day’s standards, a home in the Valley priced at five thousand dollars was out of their reach. The move up to a larger living space, especially the queen-size bed instead of the pulldown Murphy, was a source of great satisfaction for the young couple. There was now room for a collie, whom they named Mugsy.
    The consequences of being drafted in the service in 1944 were grim, so Jim joined the merchant marine and became a physical training instructor. He immediately was stationed on Catalina Island. The island was lush and beautiful and inhabited by virile young men. His wife accompanied him and they rented an apartment overlooking the bay at Avalon and the Grand Wrigley Mansion. Jim took weightlifting lessons from a champion weightlifter and Olympic wrestler and taught Norma Jeane to reshape her body. Soon she boasted measurements of 36-24-34.
    Norma Jeane swore she’d pay her husband back for all his teasing. She donned tight sweaters and skirts and flaunted her body for all the adoring males in Avalon. She pranced around in white shorts and a skin-tight blouse, enjoying the admiring catcalls. Her choice of the skimpiest bathing suits left men breathless, and left her husband out in the cold. Jim had finally tired of Norma Jeane’s behavior and gave her a dose of her own medicine. Years later, Jim recalled the one night every week he and his wife would spend in his barracks. When he forgot his key, he knocked. Norma Jeane’s response: “Is that you, George? Is it Bill?” she’d giggle, “or maybe you’re Fred.” Though Jim could dish it out, he couldn’t take it. There were bitter disputes about the way she dressed, though their arguments led them straight to bed, where passionate lovemaking made up for hurt feelings. Something about the way other men looked at his sexy wife only aroused Jim’s desire for her the more. As a willing partner enjoying the passion of her well-endowed man, Norma Jeane was beginning to understand the control she could exercise over men.
    An overseas transfer for Jim prompted a move back to Van Nuys. The Doughertys thought it best for Norma Jeane to live with his parents while Jim was away. The loss of privacy was compensated for by having more help around the house. The pressures of her lonely marriage were mounting as Norma Jeane wrote to Jim of her diversions in speaking to the salesmen who came to her door. All were offering bargains with time payments and although she was tempted to buy, most of the time she merely engaged in conversation. She taunted her husband that she was lonely for male companionship and enjoyed the outlet these men provided. The military sent her support and Jim’s family chipped in for groceries but Norma Jeane spent her money on clothes and makeup. The outfits, cosmetics, and an occasional new hairstyle charged her spirits with excitement and made the day pass more quickly.
    But shopping alone couldn’t overcome her frustration and loneliness, so Jim’s mother arranged for her to get a job at the Radio Plane Company in Burbank. Norma Jeane was placed in the Chute Room, packing and inspecting parachutes that