Of Monroe Doctrines

I don't usually bother with coins, but Derek's article on the new Monroe dollar reminds me of something:

This isn’t the first time Monroe has been on the obverse of a coin, although the first time around he had to share the honor with a friend: in 1923, the Mint commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine with a special half-dollar, with the heads of Monroe and his Secretary of State John Quincy Adams (who will appear on a dollar himself May 15th). It wasn’t actually the Mint’s idea for the commemorative dollar: the commemorative coin was part of an elaborate plan to clean up and improve the public image of the California film industry. 300,000 of the coins were minted at the San Francisco mint and distributed in California — they are relatively uncommon, but not unobtainably rare. Several have sold on eBay from $20 to $80, depending on condition.

From that link, regarding Monroe's first coin, I am reminded of jokes about the Monroe Doctrine. They've been the pun-ery and titular fodder for Hollywood-esque headlines involving Marilyn Monroe -- and as scathing comment on US politics. But before Marilyn, there was another Hollywood connection to James Monroe. Again from the coin article link, a bit of Hollywood history:

Scandals were beginning to severely tarnish the reputation of the studios’ stars and directors. Within only a few months director William Desmond Taylor was murdered under mysterious circumstances, Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle was indicted for the murder of a minor actress, and actor Wallace Reid died from a drug overdose. The studios responded by launching a public relations campaign that they hoped would help restore public confidence in the movie industry. Two committees were formed. One, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, developed over the next decade into a self-regulating censorship board. The other, the American Historical Revue and Motion Picture Historical Exposition, was a civic-minded organization whose public relations staff found it had little to promote.

Searching for a way to raise funds, the Historical Exposition decided that a commemorative coin would do the trick, and in the process would generate much-needed goodwill for the film industry. The only problem was there were no convenient centennial or jubilee celebrations that California could legitimately claim in 1923. The most obvious historic event correlating with 1923 was the 150th anniversary of the 1773 Boston Tea Party. But in 1773, California was a largely unpopulated province in the Spanish Empire with no connection to New England. This dilemma was finally resolved by Congressman Walter Lineberger. Introducing a bill to authorize the Monroe Doctrine Centennial half dollar, Lineberger reasoned that Monroe Doctrine prevented England, Spain, and Russia from claiming and occupying California. While this was nothing more than historical fiction, apparently Lineberger and his fellow representatives had little concern for such details. On January 24, 1923, legislation was passed authorizing the minting of no more than 300,000 Monroe Doctrine Centennial halves: the coins were to be struck at the San Francisco Mint and distributed by the studio’s Historical Exposition committee.

The front of the coin featured Monroe and his Secretary of State in 1823, John Quincy Adams; the back "in its final form is unquestionably one of the most unusual and daring design motifs ever placed on a U.S. coin.

In place of the relief maps of the continents, Beach substituted two female figures which were contorted into a rough approximation of the shape of each land mass. The North American figure holds a branch in her left hand in the area of northern Canada while extending a twig to South America through Central America with her right hand. The South American figure holds a cornucopia with her right arm. The major ocean currents of the Atlantic and Pacific are also included, and apparently represent the flow of goods between the two continents, unimpeded by the European powers. In the lower left reverse field the centennial dates 1823-1923 flank both sides of a scroll and quill, symbols clearly intended to suggest the Monroe Doctrine. Chester Beach’s initials are found near the reverse rim at the four o’clock position and the inscriptions MONROE DOCTRINE CENTENNIAL and LOS ANGELES encircle the border. Struck in low relief, the design overall is uninspiring. The reverse motifs are novel and would indicate a certain creativity on the part of Beach were it not for the fact that the draped female figures shaped as two continents were actually copyrighted in 1899 by artist Ralph Beck and used by Beach for the seal of the Pan-American Exposition of 1901.

The artist, more commonly known as Raphael Beck or A. Raphael Beck, did in fact create the clever female continent design. Beck's work, among over 400 submissions, was chosen as the official logo by the Pan-American Exposition Company for the expo in 1901 and official souvenirs, (silver spoon image via Sipler).



In other words, the deal with the first Monroe coin was to promote a more pure Hollywood -- with a completely fabricated story & a coin with appropriated art. Nice new image, Hollywood.

Related:

Complicated Women: Sex & Power in Pre-Code Hollywood

Pola Negri

Marilyn Monroe: All I Need Is This Doll