File photo Actress Marilyn Monroe.

Yet this isn't just any old memorabilia which is going under the hammer in Australia and we can discount the tacky pictures and even the odd third hand recorded piece of song she may have once sung, so it's not everyday that a piece of unseen film comes to light of the woman who has captured our hearts as well as our imagination for so many years. The film, which was shot whilst she was on the set of making perhaps her most famous film of all, Some Like It Hot in 1959, shows the blonde actress also shows the young and handsome Tony Curtis, who most famously came to blows with his female co star and equally legendary director, Billy Wilder. The film had been shot by a guest on the set who was an American naval officer. He had been asked to come along to the set to watch after he had been introduced to Monroe at his base in San Diego. She had visited the base herself as a part of the shows she performed for troops during the war. The 8 mm film, still in its original Kodak box, was passed on to thee officer's daughter who now lives in Melbourne, Australia. The film last a mere two-and-a-half minutes, yet still captures a moment in time, as well as a moment in movie history. The 1959 black and white caper based loosely around the St Valentine's massacre, is still regarded to be one, if not the funniest film ever made. Auctioneer, Charles Leski beamed when he told Reuters of his honour to see this go for sale, he said,

"It's been a significant part of the family folklore for many decades but it has been sitting in her drawer for about a decade as she didn't know what to do with it or if it had some broader interest. From a documentary point of view there is still great interest in any Marilyn Monroe image, moving or still, or any recording of her voice, as she has been such an iconic presence in the 20th Century. Her influence on fashion, film and comedy and many other areas still continues."

The film, showing a rare moment of fun between the feuding Curtis and Monroe playing on a beach, is said to fetch up to $30,000 when it goes up for auction on the 25th later this month. More recently a 47-minute film of Monroe and Clark Gable on the set of the last complete film either star ever made, The Misfits, sold in America for $60,000. This recent piece could fetch just as much.