Berniece Baker Miracle
Berniece Inez Gladys Baker (born
July 30,
1919 in
Venice, California) is the half-sister of
Marilyn Monroe.
Bernice's father kidnapped her and her brother after their mother, Gladys,
divorced him. Bernice grew up in
Kentucky, and married Paris Miracle on
October 7,
1938; their only child, Mona Rae, was born on
July 18,
1939.
Bernice did not know she had another sibling until she was 19 after receiving a letter from Gladys; they met for the first time in
1944. Bernice worked for many years at the
University of Florida. Her and Mona Rae's book,
My Sister Marilyn (1994), not only shed new light on their famous relation, but on the family's history of
mental illness.
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Mona Rae Miracle's web site