Remembering the Original ‘Blonde’ With Poppy Montgomery, Jensen Ackles, Patrick Dempsey & More
Netflix’s Blonde, starring Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe, is arriving soon with much anticipation. However, this isn’t the first time the fictional tale of Hollywood’s great tragic screen siren, based on Joyce Carol Oates’ novel has been adapted.
A two-episode miniseries ran on CBS in 2001, just one year after the book was released Poppy Montgomery played Marilyn, and she landed on the cover of TV Guide Magazine in May, 2001 for the role. One great reason to look back on it now is that this first version of Blonde featured some of our favorite TV stars. For instance, can one ever top a scene of Dr. McDreamy watching Dean Winchester dance in Blackbeard’s grief-robe.
Here are some of the most memorable faces from CBS’ Blonde. If you want to give it a watch before the new movie hits Netflix, it’s available to stream free with ads on Amazon Freevee, Roku, and Tubi.
Poppy Montgomery
Blonde starred Poppy Montgomery as Marilyn Monroe, seen here on the cover of TV Guide Magazine. She is best known for her lead roles on Without a Trace and Unforgettable.
Ann-Margret
Hollywood icon Ann-Margret played the young Monroe’s loving grandmother, back when the movie star was still known by her birth name, Norma Jeane (played in the miniseries by Skye McCole Bartusiak). Ann-Margret’s television roles include an Emmy -winning guest spot on Law & Order: SVU.
Titus Welliver
Bosch himself, Titus Welliver, played “The Baseball Player,” AKA Joe DiMaggio. In Oates’ novel, some characters are referred to this way, as opposed to their real-life name. Welliver currently stars on Bosch: Legacy.
Patricia Richardson
Best known for her role as Jill Taylor on Home Improvement, Patricia Richardson played Monroe’s unstable mother, Gladys.
Griffin Dunne
The role of “The Playwright,” AKA Arthur Miller, went to actor and producer Griffin Dunne. He was recently seen on This Is Us as Nicky Pearson.
Kirstie Alley
Kirstie Alley played Monroe’s foster mother in Blonde. She is best known for her role on Cheers.
Eric Bogosian
Eric Bogosian‘s role in Blonde is brief but important. He was Otto Ose, the photographer who took nude calendar photos of Monroe early in her career. He is about to star in the new Interview with the Vampire series on AMC.
Emily Browning
Emily Browning appeared briefly as one of the children in the orphanage with young Norma Jeane. She is set to star in Prime Video’s new series Class of ’07 coming this fall.
Wallace Shawn
Playwright and actor Wallace Shawn played Monroe’s agent. Shawn has been in everything from Sex and the City to Evil (and, of course, The Princess Bride). He can currently be seen on Young Sheldon.
Patrick Dempsey
Before starring on Grey’s Anatomy for a decade, Patrick Dempsey played ones of Monroe’s lovers, Charlie “Cass” Chaplin, Jr. Season 2 of his show Devils just premiered in the U.S. on The CW.
Jensen Ackles
Supernatural wasn’t the first time Jensen Ackles played someone named Cas(s)’ best friend. On Blonde, Ackles played Eddie G., Monroe’s sometimes lover and Cass’ close companion. Spoiler alert: At one point in the series, Monroe tells Cass and Eddie that they are “both about to be fathers.” Ackles just finished up a stint on The Boys and has Big Sky and The Winchesters on the horizon.
