Marilyn Monroe 'had a lesbian affair with her drama teacher Natasha Lytess'

Marilyn Monroe had a secret lesbian affair with her domineering German acting teacher, newly unearthed documents reveal, the Daily Mail reported.

They show that the actress lived as ‘man and wife’ with Columbia Pictures drama coach Natasha Lytess for two of the seven years they worked together from 1948 to 1955.

Miss Monroe, who was married three times, is said to have admitted to lesbian flings with fellow stars Joan Crawford, Marlene Dietrich and Barbara Stanwyck, as well affairs with Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra and John and Bobby Kennedy.

Now a pair of Miss Monroe’s jeans is up for sale, with a letter of authenticity from Miss Lytess.

The flannel-lined high-waisted pair was given to Miss Lytess by her ‘dearest friend’ and is on offer for between £400 and £500 on website auctionmystuff.com.

Although the letter from Miss Lytess does not discuss their relationship, she disclosed details in an interview given in 1962 – the year the actress died – which has been discovered.

Natasha, who died from cancer in 1964, said she was with Marilyn for ten years and they were so close the actress would often insist that they held hands, even when they were filming a scene.

'Very often, during close-ups I had to hold her hand. I had to support her every time.

'Thanks to the specificities of the close-up - which films only the head or the shoulders - I could hold her hand without being filmed by the camera. I had to do it to give her some courage.'

In her recent book, Marilyn: The Passion and the paradox, author Lois Banner wrote: 'Natasha and Marilyn lived together as husband and wife, although Marilyn often simply wanted to be held.

'She was like a child in her need for physical affection.'

'Miss Lytees made me free,' Monroe would say later.

'She gave me balance and made me understand life. I owe everything to her.'