It's a part of Jasper's history that many outside the mountain town don't even know about.
In August 1953, famed Hollywood director Otto Preminger, along with full cast and crew, descended upon the community to film a big-budget western called "River of No Return."
The movie starred veteran actors Robert Mitchum and Rory Calhoun, but for many the most exciting cast member to visit their town would be iconic actress Marilyn Monroe.
Sixty years later, an exhibit at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum entitled 'Jasper Remembers Marilyn' has many residents reliving the starlet's visit to their Rocky Mountain town.
Harry Home and Sandy Robinson, long-time residents of Jasper and young adults at the time, easily recall a day six decades ago as if it was yesterday. "She looked gorgeous the day she stepped off the train," recalls Robinson.
Cast and crew took in everything the Jasper area had to offer and weren't afraid to take the time to chat with residents. "She was always visiting with everybody," Home remembers of his personal experiences with Monroe.
Val Delill, exhibit designer and coordinator at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum, was amazed at the response by residents as she and her staff asked people to talk about that special summer in 1953. "It was amazing to watch all these stories come out of the woodwork," said Delill, "Every time you thought you had all the stories you could find, someone else would come forward with a story."
The exhibit features dozens of pictures and stories of people and places, like the dance hall Monroe and co-star Robert Mitchum used to go to after a long day of shooting.
"I remember that one night, they came and they danced," said Harry, "if you had nerve enough to ask them to dance, they'd dance with you."
Monroe's death in 1962 was especially sad for Jasper residents, but their memories of happier times are being reignited by a unique tribute to the fallen Hollywood icon and how she touched their lives.
The 'Jasper Remember Marilyn' exhibit is now showing at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum until September 22, 2013.
With files from Bill Fortier
