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In perhaps the first case ever in history, a deceased film actress is following in the footsteps of a deceased rapper who graced the planet years after she did. Not following? Marilyn Monroe’s hologram is going on tour!

 

We recently witnessed Tupac Shakur come back to life for a hologram stage performance alongside his old peers at the Coachella music festival. There were rumors of him going on a full tour, and while never confirmed, his performance certainly sparked interest in who would be the next to rise.

 

Re-enter Ms. Monroe. (I guessed Elvis; I still think it’s likely.) The show is currently titled Virtual Marilyn Live - A Musical Celebration of the Birth of the Pop Icon. The concert does not yet have a set venue but is expected to take place before the end of the year and will feature Marilyn singing and performing alongside other singers.

 

Besides just presenting a new opportunity for everyone to enjoy musicians and celebrities that passed away years ago, there is a huge revenue aspect. After Tupac’s show at Coachella, his music returned to the Billboard Top 200 for the first time since 2000; therefore, his estate is pulling in the money. Questions, though, begin to arise over copyrights and publicity contracts that obviously haven’t included a hologram clause before this time. If everything aligns legally, Marilyn’s estate, worth $27 million, stands to grow considerably from this venture.

 

Interestingly, these so-called holograms aren’t exactly that… and the ability to project an image may date further back than we realized. It actually calls upon a magician's trick from the 1500s called “Pepper’s Ghost”, which involves an angled mirror and a 2D image. (Who’s Pepper??) But before you feel duped by its newly revealed simplicity, remember that the image itself requires some extremely advanced computer animation.

 

The Marilyn concert would come on the year that marks 50 years since her death. Today, in fact, is her birthday (she would have been 86), so I guess it’s reasonable to consider her return to show business as her birthday present to us.

 

 

- Kate Ferguson, YH Staff