Palm Springs saying goodbye to 26-foot Marilyn Monroe statue

PALM SPRINGS, Calif., Feb. 27 (UPI) -- The hotel group that brought a 26-foot Marilyn Monroe to Palm Springs, Calif., said they will throw a going-away party for the New Jersey-bound statue.

Aftab Dada, general manager of the Hilton Palm Springs and chairman of P.S. Resorts, the hotel group that brought the windblown skirt-wearing Forever Marilyn statue to town two years ago, said a going away party will be held March 27 to say goodbye to the statue before it leaves April 1 for Hamilton, N.J., the Riverside (Calif.) Press-Enterprise reported Thursday.

"It's going to be a very sad day not only for Palm Springs residents but for the entire Coachella Valley," Dada said. "She's really become family."

The Sculpture Foundation, which owns the statue, said it is traveling to Hamilton to serve as part of an exhibition for its designer, Seward Johnson.