But when you’re famous you kind of run into human nature in a raw kind of way.

Monroe first describes pleasant encounters with fans, including children, older people and working men. She then turns to envy, strangers who feel entitled to say anything to her, and colleagues who make hurtful remarks through the press. The line marks the transition between the pleasure of recognition and its cost.

Celebrity exposes her unusually directly to both the affection and the unrestrained hostility of other people.

The interview does not portray all fans as hostile: its opening describes their affection appreciatively. The sentence introduces the other side of those encounters.

• ShortenedWhen you’re famous you run into human nature in a raw kind of way The Guardian uses this shortened form as the headline of its authorized edited reprint, removing But and the first kind of. The interview wording is given above. Where it was seen

Pain

• A sex symbol is a heavy load to carry when one is tired, hurt and bewildered. (misattributed)
• An actor is not a machine.
• The soul is dyed by the thoughts. Marcus Aurelius
• But fame is not really for a daily diet, that’s not what fulfills you. It warms you a bit but the warming is temporary. It’s like caviar, you know, it’s good to have caviar but not when you have it every meal every day.
• It’s nice to be included in people’s fantasies but you also like to be accepted for your own sake.

• themarilynmonroecollection.com/collection/marilyn-monroe-letter-from-richard-meryman

Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn Monroe interviewed by Richard Meryman, LIFE (1962), authorized edited reprint in The Guardian, Great interviews of the 20th century (September 2007). Checked at Quotogeny, https://quotogeny.com/q/fame-and-human-nature-in-a-raw-kind-of-way/ (29 October 2026).

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