Press Releases

Terry Karger, granddaughter of Metro Pictures co-founder Maxwell Karger and the daughter of Fred Karger (Marilyn’s lover and vocal coach), recounts her experience with Hollywood and a young Marilyn Monroe. Coauthored by New York Times best-selling author Jay Margolis, My Maril begins with a young Terry Karger meeting Marilyn, affectionately nicknamed “Maril” by the Karger family, for the first time as her father’s new girlfriend. Marilyn becomes Terry’s babysitter, and she serves as a friend and sister-esque figure in the young girl’s life. Terry’s version of Marilyn is personal – she is kind, affectionate, smart, and mischievous, strikingly different to the way she was portrayed by the media. This book is a comprehensive account of Marilyn’s entire life, as well as a behind-the-scenes glance into other prominent public figures, such as Ronald Reagan, that Terry Karger knew personally.

Old Hollywood through the eyes of a child and a young woman. When your stepmom is Jane Wyman, stepbrother is the son of Ronald Reagan (who would later become President of the United States), and surrogate mother / big sister is Marilyn Monroe, you’ve got some unique memories. Terry Karger delivers.

Richard Buskin

New York Times Best-Selling Author

As author Jay Margolis states, “Fame never impressed Terry and the messages Terry wants to get across are that Marilyn Monroe was intelligent, not a dumb blonde, a woman who sought and was attracted to intelligence, and was a kind-hearted, generous soul who bought gifts for those she loved even if she was not necessarily in a financial position to buy such expensive gifts.” My Maril dives deep into this side of Marilyn, revealing never-before-heard stories from Terry herself. It also includes previously unseen photos from Terry’s personal collection. These photos are of Marilyn Monroe, the Karger family, and other prominent figures.

This book is unique in comparison to other accounts of Marilyn’s life, as Jay states, “This book differs from the others in that, for the first time, it’s a memoir of a woman, Terry Karger, who not only knew Marilyn Monroe longer than her three husbands, Jim Dougherty, Joe DiMaggio, and Arthur Miller, but she first met a 21-year-old Marilyn Monroe as a 6-year-old child. Marilyn became Terry’s first and only babysitter, and Terry grew up with her until Marilyn’s death at 36 and Terry was 21. Unlike the other books where people knew Marilyn only for a few short years, Terry and her family knew Marilyn for 14 years!”

Terry Karger has written a remarkable story of her times with two of the most iconic, larger-than-life figures of the twentieth century, Ronald Reagan and Marilyn Monroe. She knew them before the world did. Terry had a glimpse of their down-to-earth humanity.

Hermine Hilton

Author and Memory Expert