In a way, the “Who Killed Marilyn” single served as a symbol of Glenn Danzig himself. Released as a Glenn Danzig solo recording, despite the fact that the Misfits were in the middle of barrage of singles, EPs, and albums, “Marilyn” bore all the hallmarks of Misfits classics. Built around a classic early rock structure, the song featured Danzig as his most melodic and likely playing all the insturments. Yes, there were the iconic doo wop influences here, especially as Danzig called “But it ain’t a mystery/oh baby not to me,” but he seemed to be making appoint that while his work (and Misfits work) is built in inspiration, it’s not pure retro material. Danzig made it a point to inject some menace into the lines, howling here, and growling there.

As the style created Danzig, the singer looks at the golden age of Hollywood and subverts it by looking into the seedy underbelly. (Not to mention that the band’s name comes from Monroe’s last film before dying… or being killed.) Many Misfits tracks are multilayered concepts, and “Marilyn” is actually one of Danzig’s deepest stories. On the track, the subject not only asks the details behind the actresses end, but states that he knows the secret and seems paranoid about it. The tune is less than two minutes long, but somehow Danzig is able to wrap homage to classic era film, conspiracy theories, and paranoia into its brief running time. It’s no wonder that these tracks are some of the most hallowed punk songs there are- every single millisecond counts.

The flipside, “Spook City USA,” with it’s bubblegum beat, seemed at first to be a more lighthearted fare than the a-side. Constructed as a sort of Freddy Cannon meets the Munsters number, Danzig gleefully chants out “Spook City USA” as a jovial beat clips in the background. However, despite the jolly beat, Danzig slipped in just a few lines that underscored the tracks grave outlook- “Here is where I’ll die for sure/ I don’t want no substitute.” Again, in a blistering minute and a half Danzig painted the complex picture of a man looking forward to death, naming his place of passing, with a macabre glee. That’s all we know, leaving the listener to construct the story around the grim tale. The track underscored just how Danzig is a master of supplying enough detail to make a track interesting and abstract, without seeming purposefully obtuse.

And, in a sort of meta-commentary, the release itself begs the question- why wasn’t this released as a Misfits single? A few old archival interviews suggest that Danzig wanted to record stuff quicker than Jerry Only could commit, but Jerry Only states that he doesn’t know why it wasn’t recorded as a Misfits track. To make things stickier, the Misfits did record a version of the track before the release of this 7-inch for an intended single sided 12-inch that was never released, and they recorded at least three studio recordings of the track. We will never know the answer to this mystery, and that’s one of the many things that makes this band so compelling and will keep people asking questions for decades…much like the passing of a certain Hollywood starlet…